My mother wore a grim expression. “It’s killing her; she feels like she has no choice. She can’t forgive Roger.”
All I could do was nod. “I guess I can see that. I hate that they’re going through all of this.”
She exhaled. “Me, too. I better get back up to the house. Thank you, sweetheart, for doing the chores for me this morning.”
I kissed her on the forehead. “Love you, Mom.”
“Love you, too.”
After taking care of a few more things around the ranch, I got into my truck and made the drive over to Ty and Kaylee’s place. It was right next to the Shaw ranch. It had been the original homestead, but it was given to Brock and Kaci when they got married. Once Kaci died, Brock never set foot in it again and ended up selling it to Lincoln when she moved to Montana—who then sold it to Kaylee when she married Brock. Now, Ty and Kaylee lived there.
As I waited for the gate to open, I glanced around at the mountains. The last bit of snow still held on as it covered some of the tallest peaks. The pastures were as green as a Granny Smith apple, with horses and cows dotting the landscape.
I loved this place, loved Montana, and hadn’t really realized how much I missed it or how much it was a part of me. It all made more sense to me now why Brock and Tanner had walked away from such promising careers to be here. Of course, it helped that they’d both fallen in love.
As I drove down the drive that led to Ty and Kaylee’s white farmhouse, my mind drifted to Merit’s new house. She owned a nice piece of property herself. I wondered if she had any plans for it.
Then, a strange thought hit me. What if she started to date someone, got married, and he used the place to ranch or something?
The idea of someone making a life with Merit caused me to grip the steering wheel harder. When I realized what I was doing, I loosened my hold. Who was I kidding? I had no claim on Merit.
I shook my head and wished I had a drink to take the damn edge off of what I was feeling.
As I came up the drive, I noticed a new Toyota 4Runner in the driveway. I parked behind it and climbed out of my truck, making my way over to it. I was expecting to see a car seat in the back, thinking it was Kaylee’s new car. It screamed “family car,” so it made sense. Neither Ty nor Kaylee had mentioned getting a new vehicle, though.
I jogged up the steps and knocked on the door. Ty opened it and gave me a wide smile.
“Nice car,” I said.
Ty looked past me. “Yeah, it really is a nice car.”
“Didn’t see a car seat in the backseat, though…you better get that in, in case she goes into labor early.”
Ty gave me a confused look before he laughed. “That’s not our car, it’s Merit’s. She just bought it.”
My smile slipped away. “Merit’s here?”
He nodded and motioned for me to follow him. “Yeah, Kaylee invited her over for lunch.”
“Son-of-a-bitch,” I mumbled. When in the hell was she going to learn to keep her nose out of other people’s business?
Ty stopped and faced me. “Is that a problem? I thought the two of you were friends?”
I swallowed hard as I looked past him and into the kitchen. I didn’t see Kaylee or Merit yet. “It’s…sort of a problem.”
Ty narrowed his eyes. “How so?”
I let out a frustrated sigh. “I don’t want to be around her right now.”
His confused expression turned slightly angry. “And why not? What happened?”
For a moment, I almost told Ty how being around Merit messed with my head, but I stopped. If I told him, he would tell Kaylee, and she would make it her life’s mission to bring me and Merit together. I knew that woman well enough.
“Nothing, sorry, dude. I’m just tired.”
Ty placed his hand on my shoulder as the anger in his eyes faded. “It’s okay, Dirk. It’s gonna take time, believe me, I know. When we lost Beck, I felt like a part of me had died along with him.”
The sound of women’s laughter filled the air, and I watched as Kaylee, Merit, and a woman I had never seen before walked in through the back door. The sight of Merit made my chest feel lighter, like the vise that had been gripping my heart eased ever so slightly. But I knew that the moment her eyes met mine, those strong feelings would come back.
Kaylee beamed when she saw me, Merit froze, and the blonde next to Merit smiled as she let her eyes move over my entire body, slowly. Christ, she wasn’t hiding the fact that she was checking me out.