The Road to Reunion

He walked her back to the main house after dinner. “Kelly’s a good cook,” he said, making small talk as they moved slowly down the pathway between the two houses. “I enjoyed the dinner.”

“She likes to cook almost as much as Mom does. Which is why Shane’s always fussing about having to watch his weight—not that he ever slows down enough to have to worry about calories,” she added.

“It felt strange to be on horseback again. I guess you’ll be glad when you can ditch those crutches and get back into the saddle. Shane showed me your mare. She’s a pretty one.”

“She’s a sweetheart. And yes, I will be glad to get rid of these things—for lots of reasons.”

Kyle reached for the back door, pushing it open to allow her to precede him inside. “Do you still ride in horse shows and things?” he asked, following her into the kitchen. “I seem to remember you having a bunch of trophies and ribbons even when you were just a little kid.”

“I rode through high school, but I stopped competing when I left for college. I just didn’t have the time for it anymore.”

“Do you miss it?”

“Not really. It was fun when I was a kid, gave me something to do to keep me out of trouble, but now I just enjoy riding for pleasure.”

“I see.” Without quite looking at her, he put a hand to the back of his neck, squeezing as if the muscles there were tight. “I guess I’ll turn in early tonight. I’ve used muscles today I’d almost forgotten I had. Think I’ll take a hot bath, read for a while, then get some sleep.”

A little startled, she blinked. “Oh. Okay—is there anything you need before you go upstairs?”

“Nope. But thanks, anyway. See you in the morning.”

He could move surprisingly fast when he wanted to,

she thought moments later, when she stood alone in the kitchen staring at the place where he had been.

He hadn’t even kissed her good-night.

She tried not to take his desertion too personally. He probably was tired, she told herself. She had seen for herself how much he and Shane had accomplished that day. He seemed to have been limping a bit worse than usual as they’d made the short walk from Shane’s house, though of course she had known better than to comment.

Yet, as much as she tried to rationalize, she knew weariness had little to do with him bailing out on her so early. Obviously, Kyle had simply had too much “togetherness” for one day. Too many reminders of the past. Too much evidence, perhaps, that Molly’s life was still very different from his own.

All she could do, she thought with a wistful sigh, was to give him the space he needed. And if he didn’t come close to her again before he ran back to Tennessee… well, she could deal with that, too.

Kyle sat sprawled in one of the spring rockers on the back patio, idly watching a cow and her calf eating grass in the distance. A glass of lemonade rested on a small iron table beside him; Kelly had actually squeezed fresh lemons to make it for him.

These people were unbelievable.

It was Thursday afternoon, and it was the first time since he’d arrived at the ranch that he’d been alone outside his bedroom. He’d spent Wednesday finishing the outdoor kitchen with Shane, both of them working until they were too tired to do more than grunt during the dinner they shared with Molly, Kelly and the girls. After ward, Kyle had locked himself in his bedroom, relieved that the physical exertion had exhausted him enough to sleep through the night without waking.

Hard work, he had discovered, was better than a cold shower when it came to avoiding any further intimate contact with Molly. As much as he still wanted her, he had decided there would be no more late-night visits to her bedroom. It didn’t seem right, somehow, to violate Shane’s trust—not to mention that Jared would absolutely hate it. And besides, it wasn’t as if anything would come of it, since he would be leaving in a few days and might never see Molly Walker—or any of her family—again, he reminded himself with a hard, rather painful swallow.

Shane had driven Molly to Dallas that afternoon to see her cousin’s husband, the orthopedic doctor. They hadn’t yet returned. Kelly had gone shopping with the girls after school, and Memo had the boys doing their chores.

Having declined Shane and Molly’s invitation to accompany them to Dallas, Kyle had taken advantage of the peace and quiet to rest and regroup. He’d needed this time to brace himself for the rest of his visit, he thought, though he wasn’t sure it was possible to fully prepare himself for the upcoming party.

A shuffling sound from behind him caught his attention, and he turned his head to investigate. The lanky redheaded kid, fifteen-year-old Jacob Hayes, had just stepped around the corner of the house. He hesitated when he saw Kyle, then moved tentatively forward. “Hi.”

“Hi. Finished with your chores?”

Jacob nodded. “Memo said we could entertain our selves for a while before dinner. The other guys are playing video games.”

“You don’t like video games?”

“I just wanted some quiet. They get kind of loud sometimes. And Elias and Emilio always end up fighting. I guess brothers do that a lot.”

Kyle chuckled. “I need quiet time, myself, every once in a while. You want some lemonade?”

Jacob’s eyes lit up. “Yeah, sure.”