“Jake?” I scoffed, incredulous. “I haven’t seen him in over a decade. He’s God-knows-where doing who-knows-what. Last I heard, he was getting married, so he might have kids already. Besides, I didn’t think you knew him.”
“I was a ranch kid, and you were part of the alternative crowd, so I didn’t know either of you well,” she corrected, “but in a school our size, everybody knew everybody else. He was in sports but wasn’t a meat-head, quiet but friendly, watched out for the younger kids, and he put up with you for years. Plus, he was tall and handsome. Of course, I knew him.”
I threw a dish towel at her. She snagged the lasagna bites with a laugh.
“I’ve got to choose the photos for my submission. Give Sofia kisses from me. If I go in there with these, I’ll have to share.”
Her trill of laughter followed her out. Once she left, my composure cracked. I’d avoided this topic for a long time, but she was right.
Beau and I weren’t in love. After my dad got injured at the ranch, I returned to Sierra Rose Ridge. Beau and I dated on-and-off during my dad’s recovery, but it wasn’t serious. When his roommate’s job relocated him, Beau asked me to move in. I was tired of living at my parent’s house, but my two part-time jobs weren’t enough to pay for a solo place and help my folks with their bills.
Now, we were more like roommates than a couple, without the freedom of being single. I racked my brain, but I couldn’t remember the last time we had sex. We hardly saw each other since our schedules were so different.
“When did Beau and I grow apart? Is it too late to fix it?”
I worked a lot, both at the bar and for my web design clients. When I wasn’t working, I helped my parents or Vanessa. On my days off, I enjoyed mountain biking or hiking, neither of which he liked. Book club wasn’t exclusively women, but he scoffed when I invited him.
He worked early mornings at the ranch, so he often went to bed before I got home on nights when I bartended. We used to make effort to spend time together, but now, sleeping in the same bed was the only activity we shared.
“Auntie Dani? Are you coming?”
Sofia’s question drew me out of my contemplation. I pasted a smile on my face and locked my challenges into a mental box. Playing with Sofia would give me time to catch my breath until I figured out how to fix my life.
Chapter 2
JAKE
I grunted as I pulled the last box out of the bed of my old pickup. Friends on base used to give me a hard time for keeping it all these years instead of using my reenlistment bonus on a down payment, but I didn’t want to get rid of Old Blue.
For one thing, she was paid off. But now that I was back home, it was a good advertisement for my skills as a mechanic. In a small town like Sierra Rose Ridge, most people drove older cars and trucks.
And horses and tractors, but those required very different care than I provided. Horses and I didn’t really get along, and tractors were too much trouble unless you lived and breathed them.
I joined the army a dozen years ago to escape both, yet here I was again, hoping to start a new life. It wasn’t the way I planned to return, but when had luck ever gone my way?
I was shaken out of my negative thoughts by a shocked voice from my past.
“Jake? Is that really you?”
“Mrs. Williams?”
“Don’t you Mrs. Williams me.” Her stern face broke into the smile I remembered. That smile got me through my childhood and those first few weeks after Dani transferred to an out-of-state university. “It’s Patricia to you.”
She spread her arms, and I swept her into a tight hug.
“When did you get in? Have you got anybody to help you unload? Do you need help cleaning the place up? Daniel will be so happy you’re home.”
Her happy chatter washed over me and filled me up. This right here. This was why I returned, despite many of my worst memories occurring in Sierra Rose Ridge. The Williams family always felt more like home than my own family did.
“Are you hungry? Dani made lasagna earlier, but there’s plenty.”
My heart leapt at her name as it always had, but my face gave nothing away.
“Dani’s back? How’s she doing?”
I was unsure what I wanted to hear. Would it be better if she was happily married with a bunch of kids running around, or would I prefer if she was single or casually dating to unwittingly torment me again?
“Dear boy, I’ve missed you so much, and I’m glad you’re finally home.”
