She swatted his head, the place she’d just kissed. “Oh, Jace. That’s a load of nonsense and you know it.”
“I don’t know ’bout that, Mama,” he muttered.
“You got some amends to make, boy. Once you have, your life will come back together the way it’s supposed to.”
It wasn’t only his estrangement from his twin brother that troubled him. Jace was beginning to think he’d never find the kind of love his parents had. For a long time, Tucker believed he wasn’t worthy of love. Maybe it was Jace who wasn’t, and that was the reason he kept falling in love with the wrong women.
“Would you like to see some pictures of the sweetest grandbaby in the whole world?”
“You know I would.” Jace took the phone from his mother’s hand and scrolled through the latest photos from Blythe. His nephew was getting so big. As he swiped his finger across the screen, one photo made him stop. Blythe’s sister Bree held the baby on her lap. Her head rested against his, and her eyes were closed. Her arms were wrapped around him, and he leaned into her, as though it was the most comfortable place in the world for him to be.
Jace’s arms ached. He longed to hold the baby, but it was more. He longed to hold Bree, too.
It had been important that he be the one to tell her what happened with the accident. And, when he had, she accused him of wanting her to smooth things over between Tucker and him. That wasn’t it at all, but he hadn’t bothered to try to convince her otherwise. If she’d felt any of what he was feeling, she would’ve known that wasn’t why he told her.
When he closed his eyes, he could see those arms, the ones she had wrapped around baby Cochran, folded in front of her. She’d closed herself off to him that day. That was the reason he left the way he had. And never looked back.
Even when she had texted him pictures of the day Cochran was born, he didn’t respond. He couldn’t. If he did, he might be tempted to…to what? Ask her if she could forgive him? She’d think he’d lost his mind if he had.
Instead, he ignored her. He needed to get Bree Fox out of his head. He closed his eyes and started to hand the phone back to his mother, but he stopped and took one more look. He couldn’t help himself.
“I hear Bree is leaving Monument.”
“What’s that, Mama?”
“I talked to Blythe yesterday. She’s torn up about Bree leaving town.”
“What do you mean? Where’s she going?”
“I’m not sure. Maybe you should give her a call yourself and ask her.”
He shook his head. Was she kidding?
Carol sat down at the table, across from her son. “I’m serious, Jace. Why don’t you call her? I’m sure she’d love to hear from you.”
He waited until his mother went into the other room, pulled his phone out of his pocket, and scrolled through the contacts until he found Bree’s number.
2
“Thanks for driving me to the airport,” Bree said to her mother.
Paige Cochran was her rock. Blythe was daddy’s girl, but Bree belonged to her mama. She could count on her mother to understand how she was feeling, often without her having to say a word. It was true when she was growing up, and it was true now.
She gazed out the window at the pond just off County Line Road, a visible landmark from the interstate. “Whenever I drive by this spot, I feel like I’m leaving home. It’s this same place that welcomes me back.”
“I know what you mean,” answered her mom. “Nothing ever changes on this stretch of land.”
There were several thousand acres north of the road that separated Monument, in El Paso County, from Douglas County. The original homesteaders gave the land to the State of Colorado, with the stipulation that it be open space for two hundred years. The only buildings visible were part of the original ranch. Family members kept the operation going, so there were still cattle and horses on the land.
They were almost at the turnoff for the Denver airport before either of them spoke again.
“Are you renting a car in Hailey, or is someone from the ranch picking you up?”
“I decided to rent a car. It’ll be easier that way.”
“Don’t spend all your time off on your own, baby.”
Her parents sat her down, the day before, and told her they were worried she’d isolate herself.