“No.”
“Might want to do it soon, Max. They’re not gonna wait forever. Deadline’s tighter than you think.”
I nodded. “I know. Just… figured I’d let her get her bearings.”
“Town’s talkin’. Developer’s got his eye on Starcrest again. If she doesn’t anchor herself soon, he’ll swoop in.” He tipped his hat. “Be kind, alright? She just got here.”
I watched his taillights fade down the drive and sighed, rubbing a hand over my face. The Sheriff's words hung in the air, cold as the night.Sell it? Not on my watch.
I headed back inside and found her standing in the hallway, staring at the old photo on the mantle. Her hand hovered just above the frame.
“She smiled like that,” I said quietly, “your mom.”
She turned, eyes wide. “You knew her?”
I nodded once. “A little.”
“Did she… did she ever come back?”
I shook my head. “Not after she left. But he—your grandfather—he always watched from afar. Asked about her when he thought no one was listening. Like a shadow he couldn't quite shake.”
She swallowed, blinking fast.
And with that, I stepped into the kitchen to start dinner. I pulled two chipped bowls from the cabinet, poured what was left of the chili from the crockpot, and set it on the table like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Ella hovered at the edge of the kitchen, looking uncertain. She wore a frown of concentration, as if trying to decipher the unwritten rules of a ranch kitchen.
“You eat chili?” I asked.
She smirked. “Only if it’s not too spicy.”
“It’s Montana.”
She laughed softly, then took the seat across from me. Duke sat between us like a referee. As we ate, I found myself watching her more than I meant to.
She ate slowly, picking at the edges of the chili like it was a foreign substance, but she cleared the bowl. She was quiet but not timid. Observant. Still chewing on everything she saw.
We didn’t talk much. But it wasn’t the silence I’d expected. It was something else.
Tentative. Tense. But not entirely unwelcome.
If she was really staying, we had a long winter ahead.
And I wasn’t sure either of us was ready.
Chapter 3 – The Grand Tour
Ella
Boots on hardwood. The scent of coffee, strong enough to raise the dead. My eyes fluttered open, and it took a second to remember where I was.
Not my apartment. Not my mother’s old townhouse. But a place with creaky floorboards, drafty windows, and a faint scent of hay clinging to everything. Starcrest Ranch.
Outside my window, the morning sun spilled over endless white fields. The snow had stopped sometime during the night, leaving behind a sugar-dusted postcard of Montana countryside. The sky was clear and so blue it hurt to look at.
For a second, I let myself believe this might actually work.
Then I stepped into the kitchen and found Max already halfway through a mug of coffee, boots on, hat in hand, Duke at his side.
