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Holt kept his gaze on the road as they drove toward the ranch, but it was nearly impossible, because all he wanted to do was study Macie and decide which things had changed about her. Granted, the last time he’d seen her was when she was pregnant with Ruby and sick, so of course Macie had changed. But he had a pretty good memory. Her hair was shorter, falling just past her shoulders, not to her mid-back as before. A detail he probably shouldn’t be noticing.
Nor should he notice the vulnerability in her brown eyes. A far cry from when he’d first met her, when she’d been curious and interested, and maybe a bit flirty. And now . . . she had her hands full with a little girl. The moment he walked into the airport, he’d spotted Macie leaving the baggage claim. He could have picked her out in a crowd of dark-haired women, because she still had the same pale pink lips, lithe body, and those long legs.
And she was wearing flimsy, beaded sandals. Something that wouldn’t last long if she intended on staying at the ranch for more than a day. Despite his resolve, his gaze strayed to Macie where she sat in the passenger seat. Her pale green print dress set off the honey tone of her skin, along with the several bracelets she wore on each arm. They weren’t metal bracelets, but looked woven, with various charms.
Then it dawned on him. Was this the type of jewelry she made? When his mother told him that Macie was in the jewelry business, he hadn’t pictured bracelets that looked . . . handcrafted and hippyish. And he hadn’t expected her scent of sweet apple to fill the interior of his truck.
“Oh no,” Macie said, looking toward the back seat.
“What?” Holt asked, surprised she’d spoken after such a long stretch of silence.
“Ruby’s asleep,” Macie said. “She’s going to be a bear when she wakes up, and then she’s going to stay up way too late, and—”
“It’s okay,” he said. “She’s only a little kid. Let her sleep.”
Macie bit her lip and glanced at him. “You’re right. I get pretty wound up sometimes, I guess. At home, I rely on her napping and sleeping schedule so I can get my own work done.”
Holt nodded. “Makes sense, especially if her dad’s not around to help.”
Macie went silent at that. So . . . maybe don’t bring up Knox? Holt had plenty of questions, and he hoped to eventually ask them. First question, what the hell happened to their marriage? Second question, why didn’t Ruby seem to know her dad?
Holt had more questions, about how his brother refused to work any sort of job to support himself or his broken family. Chasing after the rodeo star dream had come at a very high price. And things weren’t all peachy at Prosperity Ranch, either. Rodeo events had been steadily declining over the past few years, thanks to a newer generation who preferred to spend their time and money elsewhere. Prosper’s own rodeo only had a fraction of tickets sold. Holt could remember when four or five years ago, the rodeo sold out in a matter of days once the tickets went on sale.
A couple more miles passed, and Macie said, “You were really sweet with Ruby. Thanks for that.”
Holt didn’t want to feel pleased at the comment, but he did. “No problem. I could tell she was giving you a hard time.”
“That obvious, huh?” she said in a wry tone. “Do you have any kids, Holt?”
“Me?” The question was logical, but surely, she knew some things about the family. “No, I’m not married.” That was probably the worst thing he could have said, because everyone knew that Macie’s marriage had been a shotgun wedding. “I mean, I don’t have any kids. And I’m not married, either.” He really needed to stop talking. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay.” She shrugged. “I know what you mean or didn’t mean. I’m not proud of everything I’ve done in my life, but I wouldn’t trade Ruby for anything.”
He couldn’t read her tone of voice. She didn’t exactly sound defensive . . . more like tired. “Look, Macie—”
“Seriously, Holt,” she said. “It’s fine. I’m just grateful that you were able to distract Ruby from a full meltdown. I’ll tell you, she was close.”
“I do have four younger siblings,” he said. “So you could say I’ve seen a thing or two.”
The edge of Macie’s mouth lifted into a half smile at his comment. And yeah, he’d noticed because he’d slowed to stop at a traffic light and glanced over.
Her voice was much lighter when she said, “What’s everyone up to? Your mom told me some basics, but I never had much time to spend on the phone with her. And my calls always had to be when Knox was out of the house, because, well, you know.”
Holt did know. He’d never forget the argument between his father and Knox that last Christmas Eve they’d all been together. Knox had said that he had a wife and kid to support and now was the time to make his dream happen. Holt’s stomach tightened at the memory, but he didn’t want to go there, not right now. So he told Macie about his younger brother Lane, and his two sisters, Evie and Cara.
What he didn’t share was that those three siblings were draining the ranch coffers with their tuition and boarding fees. His dad hated dealing with finances, and with his mother’s poor health, Holt had been helping out on the personal side. And what he’d found was dismal to say the least. His mother’s generosity had left his parents’ financial situation in a serious crunch.
Macie asked a bunch of questions, and Holt was once again reminded of all that Knox had taken from their family. Not only himself, but his wife and child—both of whom could have been part of the last four years of family traditions.
As they turned onto the long drive leading up to the ranch, Macie sighed. “Last time I was here, Knox and I left in a hurry.”
Holt knew the exact night.
“We drove most of the night,” Macie said. “He didn’t tell me one word of what had happened until later.”
Holt pulled the truck into the circular driveway because he was assuming Macie would want to transport Ruby to a bed and continue her nap. “Look,” he said in a low voice, “if I start apologizing for my brother now, we’ll be sitting here until the sun sets.”
But, oh, did he have questions.
