Page 40 of Wilde Hearts

“I highly doubt Mom will let that happen. You can work on that garden you guys have talked about for years. Fiddle around with veggies instead of horses.”

He rolled his eyes. “Your mother already told me she’s going to be planting kale. What the hell is kale anyway?”

I laughed, leaned up, and kissed my father on the cheek. “Wait until you find out about the nice-cream she has planned for you.”

“Nice-cream?”

“Ice cream made from bananas and protein powder.”

Groaning, my father said, “For fuck’s sake. I don’t need to worry about another heart attack, I’m going to starve to death!”

I laughed as I made my way back to the apple and peanut butter. We spent the next thirty minutes going over his client list to make sure there wasn’t anything specific I needed to know. By the time we were done, my mother had returned, triumphantly declaring she’d convinced Vivianne to give her the recipe for her kale salad.

Ensley

The second I left the Owens’ ranch, I went directly to my parents’ house. I hadn’t been able to stop by yesterday because of everything I’d stumbled upon with Jacob and his missing money.

I pulled up and parked behind my mother’s car. I could already feel the tears starting to build.

“Do not cry, Ensley Wilde. Do. Not. Cry.”

Grabbing my phone, I opened the truck door and slid out. I drew in a few more deep breaths as I walked up the steps to their porch. Before I got to the door, it opened, and my mother stood there. And that’s when the dam broke. I instantly started to cry as I walked into her outstretched arms.

“Oh, my sweet, sweet girl.”

The next thing I knew, we were on the sofa, a blanket over both of us, while my father handed us cups of his famous hot chocolate.

“How did you know?” I asked, before blowing my nose into a tissue.

“Gatlin stopped by earlier to tell us that Colt’s back.”

My father added, “He also told us about Jacob’s ranch hand stealing from him.”

I nodded. “I think that’s why he had the heart attack. I saw the bank statement on his desk, showing an overdrawn balance. That’s when I called Gatlin to come and help me figure things out. Colt, I guess, is going to take care of paying everything for his father.”

“Is he staying in River Falls for a while then?” Mom asked.

Sighing, I said, “He’s back for good.”

My parents exchanged a look. After Colt left ten years ago, I’d spent what felt like days in my parents’ bed. My mother would simply hold me while I cried, until I couldn’t cry any longer.

“That must have been a shock for you to see him. Gatlin told us it was at the hospital.”

“Yeah. He showed up a few days ago. He’s going to take over Jacob’s farrier business. As you know, Jacob sold off his cattle a number of years ago, but he still breeds horses. That’s what Ryan was helping with.”

“Do you know how he emptied the accounts?”

I shook my head. “No idea. I can’t see Jacob giving him access. He had to have tricked him somehow.”

Mom cleared her throat. “Well, I’m sure they’ll get it taken care of, now that Colt’s home. I’m more concerned about you.”

“He keeps saying he wants to talk to me. To explain.”

“And you don’t want that?” my father asked.

“Why should I give him the chance to explain things now? It’s been ten years, Dad! Ten! He can’t just walk into my life and think we’re going to simply pick up where we left off.”

They exchanged looks again.