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Tears flooded my eyes again. Seeing her brought back so many feelings I’d suppressed over the years. “You’re still as beautiful as ever.”
Stella splayed her fingers against her cheekbones. “Things seem to be headed downhill these days. But I’m grateful for my health.” She paused, taking in a breath. “Do you want to join us for Thanksgiving dinner?”
“I can’t, but thank you.”
Stella cocked her head to the right, studying me. “I can’t believe you’re here after all these years. You should stay through the holidays. I’ve found, over time, that those who stay with us longer than a week usually have a compelling reason to do. And they often need a friendly face to welcome them.”
“I could use a friendly face,” I said. “Especially yours.”
Stella held out her arms, and we hugged. “You stayed away too long. I’m glad to see you other than on the big screen.”
“It’s good to be here.”Is it?
“Why didn’t you call and tell me you were coming?” Stella asked.
“I wasn’t sure I’d be welcome.”
“You are always welcome in my home and on my ranch. I practically raised you.”
“It’s just… you know.”
“I do know.” Stella tugged on one of her dangling snowdrop earrings. She wore a sweatshirt with the Crescent Moon Ranch logo on the front paired with an unzipped down vest. She must not feel the cold as I did. Had I been like that once?
“I have questions,” I said. “They probably don’t have answers, but I’m finally ready to at least admit I have them.”
“If you’d like to ask me anything, I’m here.”
“Why did my mother do it?” I blurted out the question foremost on my mind even though I hadn’t planned to.
A wave of pain pinched her features for a moment. “I’ve asked myself the same question a thousand times. Rex was a cheater and a leaver. Always had been. Born that way. But your mom, she was my best friend. I will never understand how she could do what she did. Her betrayal hurt even worse than his. I expected so much more from her. It was like the act of a different person.”
“I’m sorry for all the pain she caused you.”
“Ah, well, you were an innocent little girl, so there’s no reason you should be sorry.” She gazed up at the light fixture for a moment before returning her attention to me. “After it happened, your father told me Jennie had always been jealous of me. He thought stealing my husband stemmed from that—like a way to steal something that belonged to me. That kind of behavior, though? It just didn’t seem like her at all.”
“Did you think she was jealous of you?”
“Not at all. I never picked up on anything even close to that. She’d seemed to love your father so much. I don’t know. I wish I had answers for you. I really do.”
“I don’t want to cause you and your family any trouble. I’m afraid this will hurt your family.”
“The Moon family’s not afraid of paparazzi,” Stella said. “We have our own ways of dealing with that here in Montana. You may have forgotten how fond we are of scaring city folk.”
I laughed, despite myself. “Stella, that’s not true.”
She laughed too, waving her hand in front of her face. “All I’m saying is—Soren doesn’t like anyone on his property that’s not supposed to be here. He won’t let anything happen to you.”
“It’s not me I’m worried about,” I said. “My family did enough to hurt yours. I don’t want to be responsible for taking down your business.”
“Won’t happen. In my experience, people will flock to us more if they know you’re somehow connected to us. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. You’re welcome here. There are more important things than money. Family comes first. And to us, you’re family.”
“How is everyone?” I asked, to hide the tears that scratched at the back of my eyes. Her kind words were enough to get me crying all over again. “Atticus?”
She lowered her gaze, obviously thinking through what she wanted to say. I’d forgotten this about Stella, how careful she was with her words. How thoughtful. What a good mother she was. “Atticus is rich. He got everything he wanted. All the things he fought so hard for are now his.”
“But? There’s a but coming, isn’t there?” I asked.
“He’s lonely. A little lost too. Spends too much time alone with his dog and his books.”
