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“Oh, Lucy, you’ll soon learn that Amelia doesn’t like help in the kitchen. She loves to do it all herself. She might seem easygoing in many ways, but not when it comes to her food.”
“Now, now, Ranger,” she chided him. “You don’t want to scare Lucy off.
“I’m not scared,” I laughed. “I think that’s amazing. If I had something that I did really well, I wouldn’t want someone who wasn’t half as good as me to be doing it either.”
“You see, she gets you, dear.” Ranger walked over and rubbed her on the shoulder. “Now, may I please have one of those croissants?”
“I told you no, Ranger. If you have croissants now, you’re going to ruin your appetite for dinner.”
“I always have a huge appetite, my love. I can always eat your food.”
“Yes, you can, but I want to make sure that it remains that way, and it’s not going to remain that way if I let you have croissants before dinner.”
I started laughing. “Oh, you two are funny.”
“I guess that’s what happens when you’ve been married for a long time,” Amelia said, her eyes twinkling. “Now, I was going to make an apple pie for dessert, but I also have some fresh blackberries. Which would you prefer, blackberries or apples?”
“Oh, either one. I don’t mind,” I said. “What do the others prefer?”
“Well, you’re our guest,” she said cheerfully. “It’s really up to you.”
“Oh, well, I love apple pie, but blackberries are in season, right? And they’re always so delicious, so maybe let’s try that.”
“Oh, Austin’s going to be upset.” Ranger laughed.
“Oh, why?” I said. “Does he prefer apple pie?”
“No, he loves blackberry pie,” Ranger chuckled.
“So then why would he be upset?” I was confused.
“Oh, maybe he didn’t tell you, dear. Austin’s gone to the log cabin, so he won’t be joining us for dinner.” Amelia studied my face. “He said he needed to get some stuff done further out on the ranch, and that he needed some space.”
“Oh, I didn’t realize …”
I didn’t know what to say. I was sad, which was weird because I shouldn’t be sad. It wasn’t like I was here to be with Austin, and he didn’t owe me anything. But why hadn’t he told me that he was going to go away? Why hadn’t he told me that he was feeling overwhelmed? Was it because of me he was feeling overwhelmed? Was he over everything? Was he over me?
I looked up to see Amelia and Ranger staring at me. “Well, I’m sure he’ll have an amazing time. The log cabin did seem really cool.”
“Yes, it’s a very nice cabin,” Ranger nodded. “Though not a place where you would raise a family.”
“Yeah, well, it doesn’t look like Austin’s raising a family anytime soon, does it?” I realized I might’ve sounded bitter. “But good for him. I’m glad he really enjoys it.”
“Yes, he does,” Amelia said with a small smile. “We’ll miss him, but he’ll be home soon.”
All of a sudden, I felt deflated. I couldn’t believe how low I was suddenly feeling just because I knew I wouldn’t be seeing Austin for a while.
“Hey, Lucy.” Beau walked into the kitchen with a huge grin on his face. “What smells so good?”
“I’m making pot roast with mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables.” Amelia beamed. “Maybe you can take Lucy into town this evening after dinner, show her that there’s actually stuff going on in this town so she doesn’t want to leave?”
“Sure. Want to go to the bar?” Beau grinned. “I’m always down for the bar, and maybe Austin and Wyatt can join us?”
“Join you with what?” Wyatt walked into the kitchen, looking suspicious.
“The bar.” Beau turned to his brother and slapped him on the back. “I know you love going.”
“Oh, sure, I’m down. I’ll see if Sadie is free.” He pulled out his phone.
