Don’t you dare fall for him again, a little voice at the back of her head warned her.He’ll only break your heart.
5
RANSOM
Ransom gathered ingredients from the fridge and cabinets for lasagna, glad to have something to do with his hands while his heart and mind reeled over Hailey Sinclair.
The radio was keeping him company—one of the local children’s choirs sang “The Twelve Days of Christmas” and the sound was cheerful enough that he figured it ought to take the edge off his worries.
The truth was, he hadn’t really had time to settle himself into the idea of being home yet, let alone being the most important person in Travis and Mae’s world. Willow being home should have made him feel overjoyed, but instead it only made him feel nervous about how strained their relationship was now.
Of course Jensen Webb had been home for a couple of years already, so Ransom knew that he was bound to bump into his former best friend at some point. He wasn’t sure how that would go.
And now on top of it all, here was Hailey Sinclair,with her big blue eyes and her shy smile, making him feel like his heart was too big for his chest.
I disappointed her once,he reminded himself.It’s not like she’s going to give me a second chance.
But as much as he told himself he was only helping her to try and right his past wrongs, there was still a tenacious thread of hope in his heart that maybe she would see past the stupid way he’d handled things when he was a kid.
And that was a bad idea.
First of all, because he was still settling in here—in the house, with the kids, as a civilian.
And secondly, because he was pretty sure she wasn’t going to stick around. Now that the news of her not being onRidley Hospitalanymore was public, he was sure that her agent would be calling in a day or two, offering her some amazing opportunity, maybe even the chance to play a role that would really let her show off her skills.
And Ransom didn’t want to get in her way this time any more than he had last time. Not that she would stick around for him now anyway. What woman in her right mind would trade in stardom for a country life with the man who broke her heart?
On the radio, a choir finished up “The Twelve Days of Christmas” and another group started “O Come All Ye Faithful” as he finished chopping up onions and peppers and threw them in the pan with some olive oil, and he found himself thinking again about Willow.
Making Mom’s famous lasagna always reminded him of his sister.
Hailey kind of had a point. He had made sacrifices forWillow, but that was as it should be, how all older siblings should behave, wasn’t it? He never expected her to fall all over herself trying to thank him or anything like that. He just wanted her to know that he had her back, that she could trust him to have her best interests in mind, and her deciding to enlist against his advice felt like the opposite of that.
There was a knock at the front door just as the onions began to sizzle and squeal. He glanced in that direction, but didn’t want to step away from the stove with the food cooking.
“Come in,” he called out, bracing himself.
He had no idea if Willow would be glad to see him, or if she would immediately start yelling at him. But he expected that she would just be polite and distant, like she had been every time they talked over the past few years, and that was even worse.
The door opened slowly, and his baby sister slipped inside. She looked really good—strong and happy. Her hair was long and down around her shoulders and she was carrying a big paper bag.
Suddenly, he didn’t know what to say.
“Wow,” Willow said with a smile. “The place looks really nice.”
“Come on in,” he told her, wishing he hadn’t just started cooking, but also kind of glad for the distraction. “I’m right in the middle of this.”
“Lasagna?” she guessed.
He nodded before turning back to the pan.
“I guess Travis and Mae are going to be happy tonight,” she said.
He had never felt so awkward around his own sister before, and he tried to think of something to make the feeling go away, but he came up blank.
“They’re good eaters,” he said, feeling dumb as soon as he said it.They’re good eaters? That’s the best you can do?
“There’s a pie in there for you,” Willow said, stepping into the kitchen and placing down the bag on the counter. “Hopefully the kids will like it.”
