He wasn’t wrong. And when she was younger, she would’ve given anything to have a life that was more stable. More normal.She had figured out a way to cope. But what did she actually want? For her life? For her future? She was running for mayor because she cared about Rustler Mountain—that much was true. She wanted to do right by everyone in town. She wasn’t running just to poke at Danielle. Petty revenge wasn’t enough. It also just wasn’t her. Maybe she wanted to prove that she was smart. That she could fix things. That she mattered. But she also wanted to actually do the fixing, so that had to matter for something.
“We’ll just see how everything goes,” she said.
“You might win,” he said.
Her stomach swooped. “Maybe.”
“But whatever happens, you have him.”
Except she didn’t actually have Flynn. Although, she had had Flynn. And now she couldn’t imagine … It was difficult to imagine life without him. At least in some capacity. Maybe they were friends now. Maybe.
Her mom walked away from Flynn rather abruptly, which was just how her mom was, and Flynn turned toward her and West. “Great bonfire,” he said.
“Just wait until my dad starts telling stories,” she said. And she kind of meant it.
They sat down in lawn chairs near the fire and made s’mores. Her dad started telling tall tales, Western myths and legends.
“You want to go back to my place?” he asked when she yawned. “Yeah,” she said. “I’d like that.”
It felt right. His place tonight. She could spend the night. And she could see his bedroom. The idea thrilled her.
“When you’re ready,” he said.
“Oh, I’m ready,” she said. “Drive me back to my place. So that I have my truck. I’ll follow you over there.”
He looked a little bit reluctant to do that, but it was just common sense.
“All right.”
They said goodbye to everyone at the bonfire, but they didn’t talk as he drove Jessie to her truck.
She got in and started the engine.
She didn’t play any music on her way over to Flynn’s. She just replayed everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours.
And it seemed more like a movie than real life.
Chapter 13
I thought there was nothing left to discover in this world. I know every hard truth there is, but I didn’t know this joy.
—Belle Martin’s Diary, April 1869
Jessie Jane pulled right in behind him when he parked in front of his house. He had been a little worried she was going to make a run for it. She was in a strange mood, and he couldn’t entirely sort out what it was.
She had seemed to enjoy tonight, but this evening, she had been a little distant.
It had been interesting meeting her parents. They were definitely unique. But they were kind people. That much was easy to see.
In fact, the whole troop was comprised of some of the nicest people he’d met. Yet again, he thought it was a shame that his family had judged them so harshly. The Hancocks had a way of infusing a lot of joy into this outlaw thing.
He could only respect them.
He opened his truck door, and she did the same; they closed them in unison. He walked straight over to her, wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her in for a kiss. He had been behaving himself the whole time they were in public.
“That was great,” he said, and he meant it. “Your family is …”
“Weird?”
