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“I’m beginning to see that,” I mumble.
He gets serious again. “We’ve been trying to get Jenna back to Bridger Falls for years.”
I look over at Tucker because I know he’s done joking.
His voice softens. “She’d come home for work. But then she’d disappear again. She didn’t like being here.”
I don’t say anything, just listen.
“But this...” He gestures toward the direction of the cabin. “This is the longest she’s stayed in a long time.”
I don’t know what to say to that. I don’t want to mess anything up.
Tucker kicks a chunk of dirt with his boot. “And she’s happy with you.”
I straighten and nod.
“So don’t break her heart.”
He doesn’t say it like a threat. He says it like a brother who’s watched his little sister be unhappy for a long time and he’s missed her.
“I won’t,” I promise.
Tucker nods once. “I believe you.”
Then he surprises me. “And I like having you here, Ty. You’re family.”
I look over at him. “What?”
He shrugs like it isn’t a big deal. “You heard me. Jack likes you, too. He asked if you could stay on.”
I blink with surprise. “He did?”
“Oh yeah, but don’t let it go to your head,” he teases.
I don’t know what to say. Nobody’s ever said anything like that to me without expecting something in return. Not because they simply wanted me around.
Tucker looks me dead in the eye. “I don’t want to mess anything up for Jenna and make her not want to come around again.”
I nod.
“And I don’t want to mess it up for you either. You belong here, too.”
My throat tightens. Because Wilder Ranch stopped feeling like somewhere I was staying at for a while. It started feeling like somewhere I wanted to belong. I wanted to matter to them. I wanted to earn my place here.
I swallow hard. “That means more than you know.”
He claps me once on the shoulder. “Let’s go get breakfast, then we have a long morning of checking fences and cattle.”
Relief fills me as I think about how Tucker’s good with us. But that’s not what’s worrying me. Now I have to worry I don’t mess things up.
13
jenna
I Want Him
“So,” I say, stealing a glance at him across the cab of his truck where we’re headed to town together, Christmas music playing softly through the speakers. “Where are we headed first?”
