“To any of us,” Opal says.
“Huh.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I catch sight of Charlotte smothering a grin. “I figured it was one of those multilevel-marketing schemes. Onlyother time I ever saw him that hot was when he took in a guy passing through who got stuck here with car troubles for a couple of days. Two of them were at Iron Moose, having their BLTs and bison roast one minute, and the next, Tony had that table turned upside down and was yelling at the guy to get out of here with his slimy snake oil sales pitch.”
“The man probably shouldn’t have led with the vitamin for impotence problems,” Opal murmurs to me.
If Junie heard that one, she doesn’t react.
I do, though.
And the story gives me the first honest laugh I’ve had since I got here.
“I would’ve thought he’d have been all in with the herbal supplements,” Charlotte says. “He fit the profile in most other ways. But this is why we don’t stereotype, now isn’t it?”
I slide another glance at her while Opal picks up the scissors.
Is she making a subtle inquiry about the things people here have assumed about me?
“I don’t mean you,” she says quickly. “Tony never said a bad thing about you. Actually, when he came in to redo his will ten years ago, he told me you were in a bad relationship, didn’t know it, and one day, you’d need a place to go. He said he wanted to make sure you had it whether he was still here or not.”
Chills race down my spine, followed by a warmth that feels like a hug.
“You’ll hear people say he planned to leave the place to the town, and honestly, he’d make noise about it every now and again,” Charlotte continues, getting her head pointed straight again by her stylist as she talks. “But anytime I’d ask him if he wanted to update his will, he’d sayNot until I know my niece doesn’t need a backup plan anymore.”
I will not cry. I will not cry. I will not—
“We got your back, hon,” Opal murmurs. “Allof us, even ifsomeof us might have acted like assholes yesterday.”
Crap.
My eyes are getting too hot to handle.
Yep.
I’m gonna cry.
Opal squeezes my shoulder. “Is this your natural part here? Or do you want to part your hair on the other side once it’s short?”
I nod quickly and try to surreptitiously wipe my eyes while pretending I’m brushing a lock of hair out of them.
And I fool absolutely no one.
“We know what Tony wanted, Maisey,” Charlotte says. “We don’t know why you’re finally here or what you plan on doing with the ranch, but Opal’s right. We’ve got you. Especially if you join the PTA.”
Everyone cracks up.
Even me.
“You gonna do a reality show about the ranch?” someone calls.
I shudder and make myself think about the future. “Ineverwant to see another camera again in my life. But Iamgoing to fix up whatever needs it around the ranch. And I woke up this morning thinking about a couple girlfriends I know online who are going through divorces. They don’t have an uncle Tony with a home in waiting when they need it. How many people do? And I was just thinking, wouldn’t it be lovely to add a couple modest houses to the land?Notdevelop it. Not develop it. Just a couple more places to take in wayward souls.”
“Like Tony used to,” Opal murmurs.
I nod. “In the meantime, I’ll probably renovate the bunkhouse—how fun would that be for an artists’ retreat?—and tear down the barn—”
The stylist at the chair on my other side drops her scissors. Three women and the one guy in the salon this morning gasp.
