“I cut my hours. Cut ’em down to zero. I quit.”
She blinked and straightened in her chair. “Wow.” He quit? “I thought you liked it there.”
“I used to. But lately I’ve felt sort of like I’m on a hamster wheel.”
She had trouble processing that statement. He’d always said a steady job gave him a sense of security. “Well, if I know you, you have a plan.”
“Actually, I don’t. I was talking to Angie and she offered me a job, but I don’t know if I’m ready to work for somebody else again.”
Who was this guy and what had he done with her brother?
“I’m sure she could use you,” Luis said. “Especially when she has that baby in October. She’s good people. Kieran and Kendall adore her.”
“’I believe it. She seems great. I love that she and Dallas have already named their kid Montana before they know whether they’re having a boy or girl. And don’t wanna know until the day. Fudging brilliant.”
“Yeah, but I would want to know,” Jordan said. “I’d be dying of curiosity.”
“But waiting builds suspense for the big day,” Rio said. “I like that idea.”
Cole nodded. “Me, too.”
“I’d want to know.” Luis glanced at her. “Why not find out? Makes planning easier.”
“That’s what I say. We have the technology so why not use it?”
“Right. We get enough surprises to deal with.”
His glance in her direction felt like a warm hug, as if he’d sensed that Cole’s news had thrown her for a loop. His understanding calmed her, which was ironic. Cole used to be the one she counted on for that.
She turned to her brother. “What about your apartment? Did you keep that?” His two-bedroom in Helena was nothing special, but it was the closest thing to a real home she’d ever had until she’d bought her custom trailer.
“The lease is up next month, so I need to make some kind of decision before then. I will. I just need time to think about things.”
“I’m sure you’ll figure it out.” Yeah, having her rock steady Cole questioning his life path was uncomfortable as hell.
But this wasn’t about her, was it? If he needed emotional support she was there for him. Or financial help, for that matter. She was solvent enough she could offer that, too.
Their food arrived and the conversation switched to Rio and Luis’s next steps with the wild horse training program. Cole looked relieved to be talking about something else.
After lunch, Jordan excused herself to go check with Mila and find out if she’d be available to come back to the Raccoon after the afternoon autographing and chat with her, Luis and Cole.
She made her request quietly, but Granny looked her way. Was she lip-reading? She had hearing issues, which often made people better at reading lips.
Mila readily agreed to the meeting. Excellent. Now she could just slip away…. Or not. Granny beckoned her over.
Walking around to her chair, she crouched down so they were at eye-level. “What’s up?”
Granny leaned close and lowered her voice. “’Tis an engagement party yer plannin’? Or a weddin’?”
“Neither one.”
“But it hasta be. Yer brother and his sister. They’re the ones yer goin’ ta need fer the ceremony.”
“There’s no ceremony in the works. We’re just going to talk.”
She smiled. “Ah, yer slaggin’ me, luv. I know what yer doin’, I do. Go on and have yer conversation.” She made air quotes. “The truth will out soon enough.”
No use fighting it. “Tell you what. I’ll fill you in on the details when we get back to the ranch.”
