‘I’m sorry to hear that.’
‘I’d go back tomorrow if I could, but the doctors have to sign off first.’
I wait for him to elaborate, to tell me the source of his injury, but he doesn’t, and despite my journalistic training, I find myself not wanting to pry. He’s not a subject, and he obviously doesn’t want to go into detail.
‘I’m sorry,’ I say again.
‘It’s turned out okay. I like being here,’ he says. ‘The ranch is building up again, and with the baby on the way, Cole can’t keep going the way he is.’
I glance at Cole and Beth. Her head rests atop his shoulder, a serene smile on her face. Something pulls at my heart and I blinkit away quickly, ignoring the stitch of pain, not wanting to feel it. Not wanting to be jealous of them, to feel the tug of my own failed relationship in that moment. Not wanting to think about Beau, and what life would be like if either of us were different people and willing to give this our all.
It would never happen.
We wouldn’t let it.
I don’t trust in love, I don’t trust my own judgement, and Beau? Beau would laugh off the idea of a real relationship, like he does anything in his life that gets too serious. I sit up a little straighter as the realisation lands with a thud. His practised demeanour is just that: a mask. Like he’s constantly hiding behind humour. But why?
‘Do you think Beau will come back and help, when the baby comes?’
‘Maybe, for a while. The season won’t be fully underway then. Really depends on Beau. He’ll do what he wants.’
I frown at that description. It doesn’t quite tally with the image I have of him—a man who would put his family before just about anything.
‘You think he doesn’t care enough about the ranch?’
‘Nah, that’s not it,’ Austin says, blanching a little in surprise at my interpretation. ‘This place is as much in Beau’s blood as it is the rest of ours.’ He hesitates, choosing his words with care like he’s just remembered that I’m a reporter. ‘But riding’s just as much a part of him, and he can’t do that forever. We all know that. We all get why it has to be now for him. He can’t just take a season off and get back to it later.’
My gaze drifts across to Beau. He’s basting the meat with a look on his face that is so concentrated, so full of passion, that my heart skips a beat. He looks almost as focused as he does when he’s about to ride a bull.
‘I don’t reckon Cole would ask him. I know I wouldn’t.’
‘So you’ll pick up the slack?’
‘There’s Caleb too.’ He nods across the courtyard, to where a guy named Caleb is sitting with Cassidy and Mackenzie. I was introduced to him at the same time as the rest of the family, and just caught the description of him as ‘right-hand man’. ‘He works closely with Cole. He’ll be able to step into his boots. Mind you, I doubt Cole’ll take much time away. He couldn’t bear it.’
‘Why not?’
‘He’s a control freak,’ Austin says with a smile that reminds me of Beau. ‘Always has been, always will be. But we love him anyway.’
I can just tell that’s true. In fact, I can feel the love in this family, and it makes my heart burst. For some reason, I really like knowing that Beau has these people to rely on, that he’s a part of all this. It’s special, and it’s rare, and I wonder if he has any idea just how lucky he is?
By the end of the night, I could write a book on what I know about Beau, at least as far as his family sees him. And it would be the kind of book so full of warm praise that readers would undoubtedly question the author’s objectivity, or the sources’ veracity.
I doubt neither. I mean, I know I’m probably not that objective when it comes to Beau, but I’m still capable of keeping a professional lens in place when necessary, and I can tell that the way his family talks about him shows that he’s every bit as decent as he seems.
Which makes my insides screech with panic, because the last man I bought into like this ending up ripping my heart to pieces, and I willneverlet that happen again. Beau’s not like Kirk; I know that. But then, I would have said the same about my ex. I would have sworn till I was blue in the face that he was the best of men, the kind of guy who’d die for you. No doubt his wife feels the same way.
As for my sources? While I’ve got no doubt Beau probably primed them to make him look good, I’m trained to see past that kind of thing. It’s easy to tell when someone’s gilding the lily for the sake of it. These stories were genuine, funny, off the cuff, told by multiple siblings, all jumping over each other to race to the end, with Beau guffawing in the background, begging them to stop.
I got a stitch from laughing so hard. I got a heartache from how much I enjoyed myself, because I know this is probably the first and last time I’ll spend with them. And I liked them. All of them. Not just because they’re Beau’s family, but because they all shine with his goodness. Even Mackenzie, the intern, who seemed kind of slow to warm up to me. I liked her almost most of all, because her wariness is something I feel deep in my bones, something I identify with hard.
I don’t usually trust people who warm to you too quickly, who let you in right away. In my book, trust is earned and proven, carefully guarded. Mackenzie feels the same way, I’d bet.
‘Okay, okay, that’s enough,’ Beau says with a grin so handsome and genuine my pulse throbs in my veins. ‘If y’all are about done embarrassin’ me, I’ll run Bailey back to the Spur.’
‘Aw, come on, bro. Surely you told her we’ve got spare rooms here,’ Austin says, leaning back on a hay bale, long legs kicked out in front of him.
I see most eyes are on me expectantly, like they’re all silently encouraging me to stay. All eyes except Nash’s and Mackenzie’s. They’re sitting across the courtyard, the flickering flames catching them in a golden glow. They’re talking low and soft, so even if everyone else was silent I wouldn’t be able to hear them, but I can tell from their postures, their expressions, that the conversation is heated.
