“She talks to Dottie and Bill, too.”
“I wouldn’t expect her not to.”
Billy checked the Black Mountain Ranch website to confirm they’d closed for the season. As he scrolled through the pages, he did his best not to look at the photos, but he couldn’t help himself. Renie was in several of them, and she looked happy.
There were photos of her on horseback, dancing, and on cattle drives. The most precious one was of her sitting off to the side of what appeared to be a chuck wagon dinner. She had a daisy in her hand, and she was looking away from the camera. He looked closer at the photo. The cowboy standing behind her was looking at her in a way that Billy would’ve been if he’d been there.
He didn’t like it one bit, but what did he expect—that she was pining away for him the way he was for her? She’d given him no reason in the last seven months to believe she cared a hoot about him, missed him, or even thought about him.
He heard the back door open and shut the computer down.
“There’s my girl!” He walked toward his mom and took Willow out of her arms.
“Dada,” she said, putting her head on his shoulder.
“She’s tired. Didn’t sleep a wink all afternoon.”
“You ready for a nap, baby girl?”
Willow rubbed her face on his chest, a telltale sign.
“Let’s go snuggle for a bit.”
Billy walked toward her bedroom.
“I’ll stay for a few minutes, if you want to talk,” his mother offered.
“Got somethin’ to tell me?”
When she nodded her head, Billy doubted it was good news.
“She’s home,” his mother said when he came back out from Willow’s room.
“I know.”
“What about Pooh?”
“She knows where her horse is.”
“Uh huh.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Take Pooh to Crested Butte.”
“Mama—”
“It’s the right thing to do. Renie Fairchild will do anything to avoid confrontation, Billy. You of all people should know that. Don’t force this. If you care about her, you’ll make it easier for her.”
“Even if I break my own heart in the process?”
“So, Jace, huh? Should we be planning a family reunion?”
“Let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves.”
“My daddy would sure love to see them. Jace’s daddy is his cousin. Our grandfathers were brothers. My grandfather came to Crested Butte. Jace’s granddad went to Aspen.”
“Again, Ben, let’s not start making plans.”