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A slow smile spreads over his lips as he looks me up and down.“Happy to oblige.Is that your stuff?”
He gestures to the two suitcases and three boxes in the living room.
“Yep.”
“Where’s the rest of it?”
“That’s it.”
His eyes turn to mine.“That’sallof your stuff?”
“Yeah, I don’t have much.Roger’s keeping the furniture.”
“Okay,” Rem says as he walks in and lifts two boxes, one stacked on the other.
“Those are heavy, you know.”
His eyes narrow.“I don’t need to take insults from you.”
With a laugh, I grab a suitcase and follow him down to the waiting Suburban.With one more trip each, we have everything piled into the vehicle, and Holly and Johnny are practically bouncing in their seats as I get in next to Rem.
“You get to sleep over at our house,” Holly announces.“We put special stuff in your room.”
“Shut up,” Johnny says.“It’s a surprise.”
“I’m not going to tell her what it is,” Holly says in her own defense and then grins at me.“It’s flowers, and I put my favorite teddy on your bed so you’re not scared, since it’s a strange place and all.”
“Holly!”Johnny exclaims, but I laugh and look over at Rem as he puts the vehicle in gear.
“Come on,” he says as he pulls away from the curb.“Let’s go home before Holly spills any more secrets.”
ChapterTen
Remington
“Hey, Mom.”I smile at her as she holds her front door open for me, inviting me inside.Do I have time for a chat with my mom today?Not really, but she requested that I come see her, and I learnedveryearly in life to stay on my mother’s good side.“What’s up?”
“Does something have to be up for me to see my son?”she asks as she leads me to her kitchen, where she’s already poured me a mug of black coffee and has a fresh huckleberry muffin waiting for me.
“Usually,” I reply with a nod and sip the coffee, watching as she smiles over at me.“You look nervous.Whose ass do I have to kick?”
“You’re so much like your father,” she says with a sigh.“It’s one of the things I love about you.Rem, I quit.”
I feel my eyebrows climb in surprise.“I’m sorry?”
“I quit,” she repeats, and then sighs again, louder this time.“I know that we’ve tried to find a new bookkeeper several times and that no one has worked out, but I’m serious when I tell you that you have thirty days to find someone and get them trained.This is business.Sure, it’s afamilybusiness, but it’s business all the same.I’m done working.I’ve done this job for almost forty years, and I am burned out.I want to enjoy my grandchildren, take trips with my husband, and maybe watch some Netflix without worrying about the financial side of this ranch.”
“I know, Mom.”I let out a sigh of my own and sip more coffee.“And you deserve to do all of that.I’ll make it happen.There are offices in town that I can hire to take it over.Thanks for being patient.”
“I love you, and I can see that you’re already overburdened.More so than what your dad and I had to deal with, now that the ranch has expanded and is more profitable than ever, and on one hand, I’m sorry for that.”
“Sorry that we’re successful?”
“Sorry that it’s not as simple as it used to be.That you’re pulled away from your kids more and more.However, I will say that I really like Erin.She’s smart and funny, and the kids adore her.She’s been a lovely addition to the ranch.”
I nod and can’t help but smile a little at the thought of my beautiful nanny.“They do love her.Things are going smoothly there, especially over the past couple of weeks since she moved in.She’s a huge help.”
“And she’s beautiful.”
