“How’s the ball game?” she asked, making small talk.
“Fair. The Cowboys are up by two touchdowns. But I couldn’t stay with it. Too much going on in my head.”
“Are you all right?”
“Fine . . . considering.”
Tori checked the urge to reach over and lay her hand on his. It might be a comfort, but they’d gone too far down that road already.
“There’s something we need to talk about,” he said.
“I’m listening.” Tori felt the tension, like the sudden snap of a bowstring. Whatever Will was about to say, she sensed it wouldn’t be easy to hear.
He cleared his throat. “If the trial goes badly, and I end up going to prison—”
“Don’t say that!” She cut him off. “Don’t even think it. It’s not going to happen.”
“Are you that sure of yourself, Tori?”
“I have to be. It’s the only way I can do my job.”
Will’s throat moved, but he didn’t reply. In the silence the mournful wail of a coyote echoed through the darkness.
“There are some things we need to think about,” he said. “One of them is our daughter. Whatever happens, we’ll want to make this as easy on her as we can.”
There’s no way any of this will be easy on Erin, Tori thought, but she held her tongue.
“If I go away—and it could be for years—there’ll be no one in this house. Bernice wouldn’t stay on. She’s already talked about going to live with her sister. Jasper . . .” Will shrugged. “I’m guessing he’d stay put as long as he can, but he’s getting old. He won’t be around forever. Beau and Natalie will have their own place and their own family. So will Sky and Lauren.”
He gazed across the shadowed yard toward the long horse barn. “This house has been home to Erin all her life. Her room, the animals, Jasper and Sky, even those Sunday dinners—I can’t stand the thought of her losing all that, as well as losing her father.”
“I know.” Tori kept her voice low to hide the emotion. “I’ve had the same thoughts myself.”
“If I go to prison, you’ll need to move back here,” he said. “I’ll pay for a new vehicle, for you to drive to work and take Erin to school. The utilities and maintenance on the house will come out of the ranch budget. You can rent out your house in town or keep it for your office. That way, Erin will still have this place to call home.”
Tori bit back a surge of annoyance. She knew Will was only thinking of Erin, but how like him it was to have everything planned out and expect her to fall in line. His idea made some sense, but why couldn’t he have asked for her input, instead of just dumping the whole package in her lap?
“Can’t this wait until we know the outcome of the trial?” she demanded. “You’re innocent, Will, and you’re making plans as if you’re going to be found guilty.”
He looked down at her, his eyes narrowing. “Maybe you believe in the justice system. But I don’t trust it. I don’t trust the judge. I don’t trust the witnesses. I don’t even trust the jury. Anything could happen in that courtroom. If it’s the worst, I need to know that Erin will be all right—and Erin needs to know it, too.”
The night wind had sharpened. Shivering, Tori pulled the afghan tighter around her shoulders. He was right about Erin. Their daughter needed to feel secure about what would happen if her father went to prison. But how could Will expect an instant answer? With so many uncertainties hanging over them, how could she make him a promise that might bind her to this place for years?
“If it’s your boyfriend you’re thinking about, we could work that out.” Will’s voice had gone flat and hard. “I don’t have any claim on you. I know I can’t ask you to live like a nun. If you wanted to get married again, I wouldn’t stand in the way of letting him move in here for the duration.”
Something jerked in Tori’s chest. “Will—”
“This isn’t about you and me, Tori. It’s about Erin and what would be best for her.”
“I know.” Tori gazed down at his work-scarred hands, where they gripped the porch rail. For years she’d accused him of being just like his father. But Will was not Bull Tyler. She should have known that when he’d refused to sell Erin’s beloved colt, even though the money would have paid off the bank loan. And now, for Erin’s sake, he was even willing to let another man live in his family home, with the mother of his child. There was no way Bull would have been so selfless.
And Will was right. This wasn’t about the two of them. It was about their daughter. But right now he needed to back off and stop pushing her.
“I get what you’re saying, and I agree in principle,” she said. “But that plan of yours is a lot to take in. I need time to think.”
“How much time?”
“As much time as it takes.” Tori was exhausted after a long day of preparing for the trial. Will’s heart was in the right place, but his timing was way off. “You’ll have my answer in the next few days. Right now, that’s the best I can do.”