My jaw was on the floor.
He couldnotbe serious.
“So, as long as she wants to stay and give me another chance to love her better, I’ll give her that chance, too. That’s why I’m quitting my job. I’ll find a quarry and drive a dump truck for a while or maybe pick up some contract work. Things will be tighter financially, but it won’t be forever. We’ll have to say no to some things, but fixing us is a lot more important.”
I stared at him—unmoving, unblinking.
“I know that’s a lot to process.” He patted his thighs like he was about to stand. “We will tell the kids about Peter soon. In the meantime, talk to him. He’s in his room. They just got home a little bit ago, and he’s afraid.”
“And when will you tell them what happened between you and Mom?”
“We won’t.” He stood, his stern gaze falling on me. “And neither will you.”
I wanted to protest, but I knew arguing was pointless.
“There’s no point in scaring the kids about Mom and I. If things…” His voice faltered. “If, God forbid, Peter really does have leukemia, everyone will be plenty scared without adding adult problems into the equation. You understand?”
Reluctantly, I nodded. “Yes sir.”
“Alright. You dancing tonight?” He glanced at my bedroom clock. Quarter til seven.
“I plan to.”
He leaned down to kiss my forehead. “Have fun. And be careful out there.”
“I will, Daddy.”
I looked up at him and he smiled down at me, his eyes full of tears. “I love you.”
Present Day - June
“Good morning, Cooper.” I brought his plate and coffee to the porch table.
As usual, he had a cap on. Backwards again today. “Morning.”
This weekend, he was the only one I had to feed. Harlan had a weekend off since there were only a few horses at the ranch. The majority of them went with Tag and Jesse to a huge rodeo in Rio Grande. They’d left early Thursday morning, which relieved my stress levels. Ever since our conversation on Tuesday afternoon, I’d avoided Jesse. He even tried to flag me down a few times, but I ignored him. My emotional stability was precarious as is, and I couldn’t afford another meltdown if I wanted to do my job at Meadowbrook well.
And I wanted to because Ilovedcooking for everyone, caring for the guests, looking out for Bea, and taking afternoon strolls with the girls. For the first time in my adult life, I felt like I had a purpose outside of my children. Serving everyone was somehow filling my cup. And I didn’t want to waste my stamina on a stupidargument with Jesse—who was a danger zone in every respect. I was far safer with Cooper, who loved my company.
By Saturday morning, Cooper and I had a routine. I’d warm up his breakfast, make a cup of coffee, and chat with him on the porch while he ate. Cooper was, without a doubt, crass and rude and possessed no filter whatsoever—he honestly reminded me of Jackie—but I liked his quirks. Since I was the only person who knew about his bird hobby, I made sure to ask him lots of questions, and Cooper was eager to talk.
We were discussing the endangered golden-cheeked warblers when Cooper’s phone rang. He brushed the biscuit crumbs stuck to his hands onto his jeans, picked it up off the table, and frowned at the screen. After a few beats of confusion, he swallowed. “I…I need to get this.”
“Sure.” I squeezed my mug of coffee closer to my chest. “Go ahead.”
He swiped across the screen and lifted his phone to his ear. “Hello?”
I couldn’t hear much, but it was definitely a peppy male voice on the other line.
A breath of air rushed from Cooper’s lungs. “Wait.”
The voice stopped.
“Is this Greg?”
I heard a canned, but distinctwell who else would it bethrough the phone.
I had no idea who Greg was—but Cooper obviously did. My heart flopped as the blood drained from his face. Cooper rolled his lips, his eyes cutting to the driveway. In the blink of an eye, he had shriveled up. His aura had shredded, leaving him looking very much like a frightened boy and not the confident man educating me about warblers.
