‘I have time,’ Nina argued. ‘And if me helping you out occasionally means you get to take a day off every now and then—’
‘I don’t want to take a day off.’ Sierra slipped out from under the blanket and picked up her heels. ‘I like working,’ she said again. And because her tone was tight and impatient, neither of which Nina deserved, she added, ‘And you’re not using me as an excuse to procrastinate getting back to acting. I’ve seen the pile of screenplays your agent has sent you – most of which are still unopened.’ When Nina’s shoulders slumped, Sierra softened her tone. ‘It’s time, Nina.’
Nina crinkled her nose. ‘Drat.’
Nina had stirred some waves in Hollywood with her sexual assault allegations, and even though she had taken a year off to deal with the fallout, they all knew she was avoiding going back in case none of the big producers wanted to work with her anymore. Which was bullshit. She wastheNina Keller. She could get any role she wanted – but convincing her of that was proving difficult.
‘Actually,’ Sierra added as an idea sparked, ‘we’re going to have family screenplay readings. Start attacking the pile.’
‘I like that idea,’ Markus seconded. ‘We can each pick a role to act, make it fun.’
‘Guys, you don’t have to do that. I’ll read the screenplays.’ Nina looked back at Maverick, her eyes pleading.
But Mav, who had been completely silent through their conversation, only smiled, said, ‘I think Sierra’s onto something.’
‘Traitor!’
Instead of teasing her back, Maverick held out one hand for Nina, and when she stood and went to him, he pulled her onto his lap. ‘It’s okay to be scared.’
‘I’m pregnant. I can’t take the work anyway.’
‘You are pregnant. And maybe you’ll be showing by the time filming for these movies start, but I think you should look at the screenplays, get into the habit again. I won’t let you give up on your dreams, Nina.’
‘And once the baby comes, you have the whole family here to help you,’ Sierra added. ‘And plenty of resources to hire full-time help to travel with you for filming if that’s what you want.’
‘And you have me,’ Maverick reminded her. ‘I can come with you if you need me.’
Sierra blanched at that. She supposed she hadn’t thought about it yet, but Mav was the obvious choice if Nina needed help with their baby while on location for filming. He’d want to be there. A year ago, she wouldn’t have worried. Benji would have taken over seamlessly. But now … Hunt Ranch hadn’t recovered financially from their closures yet, and hiring a new ranch manager was out of the question.
When a slash of anxiety threatened, Sierra took a deep breath and reminded herself that they had a year to figure it out, a year for their finances to stabilize again.
And they would. Bookings were solid, courtesy of their resident celebrity. Everything was looking tentatively good. It would just take time to haul them back out of the little hole they’d landed in.
‘And Poppy?’ Nina asked.
‘She’ll come with us.’ Mav shrugged. ‘I’ll have to look into any home-schooling requirements if we do that. But she’s young enough that it won’t set her back to travel for a few months out of the year, and we’ll both want to be with you and the baby. I’ll do whatever it takes to support you, Nina.’
Perhaps sensing that any arguments would be patiently countered, Nina whispered, ‘But what if they don’t want me anymore?’
Maverick kissed her gently, asked, ‘Nina, what if they do?’
Sierra’s heart melted. She might have her own battles to fight, but it was comforting to know that her brother, who had been through his fair share of trauma, had foundthat– with Nina.
Nina exhaled a big breath. ‘Okay. Let me take a look at the screenplays.’ She shrugged. ‘It’ll give me something to do when I can’t ride anymore.’
‘And tell Alison you’re pregnant,’ Markus suggested. ‘That way she can filter what she sends.’
‘But wedding tableware first,’ Sierra reminded her as she started towards the front door, heels in hand.
‘Hold up.’ Markus exaggeratedly looked her over from head to toe. ‘Is that the same fabulous outfit from yesterday?’
Sierra stopped at the door. Turned. ‘Yes.’
‘And?’ He snapped his fingers. ‘Details.’
Sierra thought through what to tell him, and settled on, ‘Remember that question you asked me – and I said I didn’t know?’
He nodded eagerly.
