“It won’t cause tension, right, Ty?”
Tyler paused in the doorway and swallowed the tension that was already clamoring for release. “I’m sure Kinsey and I can behave like mature adults.”
Kinsey didn’t reply.
“Then it’s settled,” Dad said quickly. “She’s staying.”
“Fine.” Tyler waved a hand but didn’t want to turn, too afraid of looking at Kinsey, too afraid that the attraction Dad had accused him of would be written all over his face.
Like it or not, Kinsey was in his life to stay. At least for a few more weeks.
11
Kinsey gripped the reins of her horse and tried to relax as she did another loop around the corral.
“You’re doing great!” Wyatt called from his perch on the top rung of the fence next to the young ranch hand who’d been patiently instructing her.
Kinsey bent and patted her mare’s head, not caring that she’d been given the oldest and slowest horse for her first day of riding lessons.
“Just remember to relax your back and arms.” Wyatt spoke maturely, as if he were twenty-seven instead of seven.
Ducking her head, Kinsey bit back a smile. Her lesson had been almost over when Wyatt had bounded up to the corral after arriving home from his horsemanship camp.
Since he’d been excited to see her on top of the horse, she’d stayed on for a little longer, although she needed to start getting ready for a fancy dinner in the lodge. Apparently everyone dressed up in their best for the weekend meals, which were followed by dancing. Emberly had insisted that Kinsey go with her.
T.W. had actually been the one to demand that Kinsey take a break. After working since her first day here without any personal time, he’d encouraged her to take one day a week for herself.
Kinsey knew she needed the day of rest, but for some reason, admitting it seemed like a weakness. She’d finally only agreedbecause T.W.’s second youngest son, Dustin, had arrived home unannounced yesterday and said he would spend Friday with T.W.
Even then, she’d still hesitated until T.W. had lined up Emberly to take her around the ranch and pamper her for the day. They’d toured the ranch on bicycles and then ended at a spa, where Kinsey had enjoyed a hydration wrap, massage, and facial. After that, Emberly had taken her to Brook Barn, where they’d eaten lunch in the rustic dining room there.
In the afternoon, Emberly had arranged for her to go on one of the medium-hard guided hikes that was only a couple hours long. Kinsey had tagged along with a group of the guests and loved getting out into the wilderness and hiking to even higher elevations, where the views were stunning. After a week and a half in Colorado, she’d acclimated and hadn’t had too much trouble with the trek, either up or down the trail.
Upon her return, she’d learned Emberly had lined up horseback-riding lessons for her. Now, as Kinsey finished, she was even more grateful to T.W. and Emberly for providing a relaxing and fun day for her to enjoy the ranch. She’d needed the break more than she’d realized.
As she directed the mare toward Wyatt, he grinned at her proudly. “I knew you could do it.”
She allowed herself to smile back, but at the outline of a man in the shadows just inside the barn, she held herself in check. She didn’t have to see the man’s face to know who he was. The powerful build and commanding presence belonged to only one man on the ranch—Tyler McQuaid.
Even though he’d agreed to T.W.’s wishes to keep her as the primary palliative care nurse, Tyler hadn’t been thrilled by the decision and had agreed only reluctantly.
At least he’d made an effort to be cordial to her over the past few days, hadn’t been so cold and silent. Or maybe T.W. was theone trying to include her, and Tyler wasn’t shutting her down so quickly.
She didn’t want to lose the truce that had settled between them, and she had the feeling she would if she wasn’t careful about how much time she was spending with Wyatt. Tyler had made it clear on one of her first days at the ranch that he didn’t want her crossing the boundaries with his son, and she needed to respect that.
“Time for me to try to dismount.” She tugged on the reins, and the horse ambled to a halt.
The ranch hand hopped down from the fence and started to jog toward her. “Hold on. I’ll show you how it’s done.”
“No you won’t.” Tyler stepped out of the barn and scowled at the young man.
The ranch hand halted midway through the corral and glanced from her to Tyler and back, his brows rising with confusion.
“I can help her, Dad,” Wyatt called as he started to climb down.
“Stay put, squirt.” Tyler stalked out of the barn, his expression stormy. “I’ll take care of it.”
Kinsey hesitated in her saddle. She wanted to tell Tyler she’d rather have the ranch hand or even Wyatt teach her how to dismount. Honestly, instead of interacting with Tyler, she’d prefer to try it on her own and risk falling flat on her face. But she also didn’t want to make a scene, especially in front of Wyatt. He didn’t need to know how much she disliked his dad.
