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“That’s better than Soren and me. We’re spoiled because of Caspian.” He placed his hands palm-down on the desk. “No need to commit now. I’m sure you’ll want to see the inside of the house first.”
“No, I’ll take it.” I smiled, amazed by my good fortune. “Thank you.”
I had no idea what was in store for me, but my gut told me the Moon family had just changed my life for the better.
3
THAD
The sun rose in the east, spreading rays of orange light over the pasture. I stood on the outside of the fence watching our horses graze on grass that glistened with droplets of morning dew. My toolbox remained by my feet, ready to assist in the repair of one of the cabin’s front porches. A rotted board had come loose, creating a safety hazard. We didn’t want an unsuspecting guest to fall through and hurt themself.
However, as I’d come out into the summer morning, I’d realized it was too early to start working with a hammer and nails. Other than the cabin with the faulty porch, we had no vacancies this week. Guests typically slept late before going to breakfast. They didn’t care if their hospitality manager couldn’t sleep and had decided it was a great idea to start work early. I stored my toolbox near the cabin’s front door for later and headed back to the house. I’d fix the porch after breakfast.
Today, the weather promised warm temperatures and sunny skies. A perfect day to explore all or some of our offerings. We had a full day of activities to choose from, including horseback riding, fly-fishing lessons, hikes around the property, relaxing by the bonfire, wine tasting, and a chance to rope cattle, under the strict supervision of Soren. For the most part, we rented to families, but there were honeymoon couples, girls’ getaway weekends, and reunions of one kind or another. We’d had all types in the twenty years or so since we’d opened the ranch to tourists. I never tired of meeting the interesting people who came to stay with us. I’d not gone far for college and had returned to my family’s ranch after graduation. There was no place I’d rather be.
I turned to go back to the house, stifling a yawn. The insomnia was starting to get to me. I had Sammie to thank for this new malady. I’d never had trouble sleeping. In fact, it had been a family joke that I could fall asleep anywhere at any time.
Two seasons had passed since Sammie and Chloe had come to live with us and changed my world. I’d like to say it took me that many months to fall in love with her, but that was a lie. I fell for her the first time I ever saw her standing in my office with her ratty suitcases and adorable little girl.
My desire for her was an itch I couldn’t scratch. An itch that didn’t want to be scratched. Sammie was a friend. Sort of. She kept her past hidden, changing the subject when it came up. It was obvious, even to me and my lovesick heart, that she was not available. A person with an unreconciled past could not move into the future with someone else.
There was her Southern accent too. No one who had grown up in Philly talked that way.
Even so, she’d transformed our bachelor pad into a home, reminiscent of the days of my childhood. At first, I’d told myself it was only nostalgia that made me yearn for more time with her and Chloe. They were a family, as we’d been when we were young.
As I climbed the steps up to the house, my phone buzzed from a pocket of my sweatshirt. I didn’t bother to look, figuring it was a message from a dating app I’d signed up for a few months back. The population of Bluefern was only several thousand people, with few single women. Most of the women I connected with online were from Bozeman, which was an hour from us. In a desperate attempt to move on from my debilitating crush, I’d gone out on a handful of dates in the last few months. None of them did what I’d hoped—take my mind and heart off of Sammie.
It was just turning seven when I walked back into the house. The moment the door closed behind me, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee hit me. I heard voices coming from the kitchen, one soft and feminine, the other the low and rumbly tone and cadence of Soren. He always woke at dawn to take care of the animals and get prepped for a day of outdoor activities before returning for breakfast. Sammie and Chloe were usually up before me by only a few minutes. Caspian closed the restaurant each night, thus he often slept until midmorning. He’d been especially prone to lie about in bed since he and Elliot had fallen in love, and she’d moved into the house.
I unzipped my sweatshirt and headed into the kitchen. Soren sat at the table sipping on a cup of coffee with his laptop displaying the website of our local feed store. He hated administrative work, but it was a necessary evil.
Sammie was at the stove, scrambling eggs. Dressed simply in jeans and a T-shirt that clung to her slender frame and her hair in a ponytail, she looked young and innocent. Happy even, a change from when she’d arrived here, skinny, shaky, and suspicious. Back then, her clothes had hung on her in a way that hinted at an unintended weight loss. Circles under her eyes told me she hadn’t slept well. Since she’d moved in with us, color had returned to her cheeks, and her eyes often sparkled. She’d almost lost the wary, nervous way of moving about, but not quite.
I caught a glimpse of Chloe in the mudroom just off the kitchen singing to herself as she hung up her coat.
“Morning, all,” I said.
Soren grunted but didn’t look up from his work. Sammie, on the other hand, flashed a bright smile in my direction. “Good morning. Have you been out already?”
“I couldn’t sleep, so I got up early and went out thinking I’d repair the rotten board at cabin D, but then realized hammering this early would not be welcomed by people on vacation.”
Sammie’s brow furrowed as she glanced at me with concern displayed in her eyes. “Why couldn’t you sleep?”
I wanted to tell her the truth. I’d wakened in a cold sweat from an eerily realistic dream that a man with a shotgun had come to kill Sammie and Chloe. However, if I told her I’d had such a vivid nightmare about her, she’d wonder why on earth I was dreaming about her in the first place. If she only knew how often she visited me in my dreams, some of which were X-rated. Those took a while to recover from as well.
Instead, I only shrugged. “No idea. One of those nights, I guess.”
Chloe came running in, pigtails flying, shouting about helping gather eggs with Soren that morning. “Tad, I got eggs all by myself.”
“You’re becoming a rancher, Miss Chloe.” I picked her up and twirled her in a circle, waiting for her squeal and giggle before I set her back onto her feet.
In the meantime, Sammie had poured me a cup of coffee and added just the right amount of half-and-half. “Here. You look like you need this.”
I thanked her for the coffee and plopped down at the table next to Soren.
“Did you have another date last night?” Sammie asked.
She was referring to the half-dozen “dates” I’d had with women I met online. None of them had interested me whatsoever. “Not last night. Actually, I’ve sworn them off.”
