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Her horse had won the Sweetheart Classic. Five hundred thousand dollars for her ranch.
No, she thought as she buried her face in her father’s chest.Our ranch. Mine and Trey’s.
She’d thought of the perfect name. She just needed to talk to him. Maybe if she told him again that she loved him, he’d forgive her and come home.
* * *
A couple of hours later,Beth pulled up to a pavilion on Bluegrass Ranch. “Wow,” she said at the same time Hugh said, “Who has a pavilion on their property?”
“The Chappells,” Beth said. Julie flitted around, moving bowls and utensils, giving directions to her sons, who did what she said, and stepping over to her husband and pressing a kiss to his forehead.
She got out of the SUV and reached to open the back door so TJ could get out too. He went running toward the pavilion, where a couple of the brothers greeted him. She felt strange walking up the sidewalk with Hugh and Lucas but without anything in her hands. She’d offered to bring something, but Julie had insisted they had everything covered.
“Hello, sweetheart,” Julie said, receiving Beth. She kissed both of her cheeks and looked at Hugh.
“This is my brother,” Beth said. “Hugh.”
“Nice to meet you, ma’am.” Hugh could play the proper Southern gentleman, and he shook her hand dutifully.
“Is your father coming?” Julie asked.
“He wasn’t feeling well,” Beth said. “My sister took him home.” She glanced at Hugh, who nodded. “It’s just us. Hugh’s wife just found out she’s pregnant again, and she’s not well right now either.”
Kait wasn’t especially happy about the pregnancy, and while Beth knew she’d come around, she also knew Kait and Hugh had wanted to be finished with two children.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Julie said. “Who are you?” She crouched down in front of Lucas, who clung to Hugh’s leg like there were monsters at this luncheon. Julie reached up and took a cookie from the tray, offering it to Lucas.
He took it, and then took her hand when she promised to get him some chocolate milk to go with it. Just like that, she’d charmed him, and Beth marveled at the softer side of the woman.
She stood next to Hugh, feeling very out of place. She couldn’t explain anything to him, so she just got out of the way as another truck pulled up to the lot in front of the pavilion.
Spur got out of the driver’s seat, and he walked around to the passenger side. He whistled between his teeth, and everyone turned toward him. “Here he is,” he called in a loud voice. “The newest championship horse trainer at Bluegrass Ranch…Trey Chappell!”
He grinned and started to clap as the door opened. Trey got out, his smile huge as his family cheered for him. Beth joined in, those pesky tears filling her eyes as she clapped. She couldn’t get her voice to work, so the applause would have to be enough.
After only a few seconds, Trey lifted his hand in a sign to tell people to quiet down. They did, and he and Spur walked up the sidewalk. He hugged his family, his eyes never leaving hers for long.
When he finally reached her and Hugh, Trey shook her brother’s hand first, and then lifted her right off her feet.
She squealed and held onto his shoulders to keep her balance.
“We did it, baby,” he said, setting her down. He gazed down at her, and underneath the brim of that big, black cowboy hat, they got some inkling of privacy.
“Youdid it,” she said. “She was incredible, Trey.”
“I’ll do it, Beth,” he whispered, pressing his cheek to hers. She closed her eyes and drank in the words. “I’ll come home.”
“You will?”
“Let’s sit down and talk after this,” he said, pulling away from her.
She could only nod, because a promise to talk was more than she could’ve even hoped for. It wasn’t more than she’d prayed for, but she didn’t dare to hope for the happily-ever-after her fantasies had started to conjure up.
“Trey!”
He stepped around Beth and caught TJ as he raced up to him. They both laughed, and Beth’s heart warmed all over again.
She knew she’d made the right choices for the three things she had on her priority list.
