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As Heidi reached into the bag and withdrew a smaller gauze bag, Macie held her breath.
Heidi undid the ribbon tie, then pulled out the bracelet that Macie had made for her. She wondered if Heidi would remember . . .
“Oh, it’s the serenity bracelet.” Heidi turned it over a couple of times, then slipped it on. “It’s lovely, dear.”
In that short sentence, gratitude flooded through Macie. Heidi’s words had been sincere, and Macie couldn’t ask for more. When Heidi raised her gaze to meet Macie’s, her eyes were moist.
Macie swallowed against the growing tightness in her throat. “You’re welcome.”
Heidi’s smile was genuine this time. “Well, I think Holt would be mighty glad to see you back at the ranch. I can keep Ruby with me while you go find him.”
Now, Macie’s eyes were the ones to fill with tears. Had she heard Heidi right?
“A-all right,” Macie said. “If you’re sure?”
The question had multiple layers to it. She knew it, and Heidi knew it.
But Heidi’s nod was resolute. “I’m sure.”
So Macie moved through the crowd, returning greetings to those who spoke to her, but not really seeing them because of her blurred vision.
Holt had probably left. Regardless, she needed to be outside for a bit. To think. To comprehend. To wonder.
She made it onto the porch.
And stepped right into a Prosper sister discussion.
She recognized both of them, although it had been years since she’d seen Cara and Evie. They were young women now and not teenagers.
“Hi, Macie,” Cara said.
Both women were blonde, although Cara was more of a dirty blonde.
“Hi, nice to see you both.” She gave Cara a hug, and it wasn’t as awkward as she thought it would be.
Then she hugged Evie.
“Ruby is adorable,” Evie said.
“Oh, thank you,” Macie said, her nerves fluttering like mad.
“Looking for Holt?” Cara asked.
Macie flushed. What did these sisters know, or not know? “Uh . . .”
Evie laughed. “He and Lane are in the barn. Lane’s probably boring him with statistics or something. The drive to Prosper was so painful with him telling us about how we need to be better at budgeting.”
Cara nudged her sister. “Just because our brother’s a nerd doesn’t mean you need to make fun of him. Someday, he’ll be richer than your husband.”
“I’m not even dating,” Evie shot back.
“What happened to that football player?”
At this, Evie blushed. “That was last week.”
Cara laughed. “And this week?”
“Someone else that I’m not telling you about.”
