Page 112 of Roping Her In

Daddy took her hand, and they exchanged a glance. Jake watched Momma calm right down, and he loved watching his parents interact. They’d always been such a good example to him of two people who loved one another, compromised, and continually worked on their relationship until it was what they both wanted. Carson’s jaw jumped, and he glanced over to Jake. He hurried to dig his fork into the cinnamon roll again.

“I think that’s great, Carson,” he said, and he shot his brother a smile before he put the next bite in his mouth.

Perhaps if he acted casual, his parents would understand that long-distance dating wasn’t that big of a deal. “Yeah, so I just drive a delivery truck,” Carson said. “And I’ve been looking at jobs in Dallas. There’s only about, oh, five hundred, and I’m thinking that I’ll move there.” Most of his earlier irritation and frustration had fled, replaced by open vulnerability in his blue eyes.

Jake’s heart bled for him because he knew exactly how Carson felt.

“Are you going to marry her?” Momma asked, her voice shrill.

Carson nodded a couple of times. “I think that’s where we’re headed, Momma, yes,” he said. “But I need to be closer to her, and I can get a job there easy. She lives with her sister in a nice house, in a Fort Worth suburb, and there’s plenty of places to live.”

“That you can afford?” Daddy asked.

“I’ll work it out,” Carson said, his eyes meeting his father’s. “I wanted to talk to you guys because, well….” He trailed off and looked at Jake. “I guess I’m just wondering if you think this is crazy or not.”

One look at his parents, and Jake knew exactly what they’d say. “I don’t think so,” Jake said. “And I think Momma and Daddy would agree if I’d gone first.”

Every eye came to him, and though he’d only eaten a few bites of his cinnamon roll, he needed to start talking. Now. “Maybe I can say my news, because I also asked them here to get their advice.”

Momma’s hand in Daddy’s tightened, and Jake smiled. “And then maybe they can tell us which one of us is the craziest.”

“Well, it won’t be you,” Carson said. “You’re the golden boy, and you do everything right.”

Jake blinked at him, his chest collapsing on itself over and over. “Is that really what you think?”

“It’s what they think.”

“It is not,” Momma said firmly.

Carson held up one hand in acquiescence and then waved it as if to say, It doesn’t matter.

“I quit my job,” Jake said, the words just right there and eager to come out. He hadn’t told Hailey yet either, because he’d wanted to do it in person. He wanted to explain why he’d done it, and perhaps him getting this summer head cold had actually been a blessing as he could go through it with his parents first.

“You quit your job?” Daddy said, his voice a low growl. “Here at the ranch? This very good, high-paying veterinary job that anyone in the world would want?”

“Yeah.” Jake’s head bobbled a little bit as he started nodding and couldn’t quite seem to get himself to stop. “Hailey took a job with the Walkers on the south side of town,” he said. “It comes with a beautiful three-bedroom house and a lot of freedom. And well.”

He glanced over to his brother and smiled. “I’m in love with her, and even an hour and ten minutes is too far away for me. She’s been working there for about a month now, and I only see her on weekends, and it’s awful.”

He reached over and squeezed his brother’s forearm. “I don’t know how you’ve been dating Denise in Dallas for this long. I would’ve moved there in March.”

A smile spread across Carson’s face, and he ducked his head as he chuckled. “Maybe I’m not quite in love with her yet.”

“Mm, yes, you are,” Jake said, and he laughed. “And you don’t need to be embarrassed about it. She’s beautiful and a good woman, so why wouldn’t you be in love with her?”

Carson’s jaw tightened again, and he pressed his lips together.

“Anyway,” Jake said to pull the attention off his brother. “I didn’t know about Denise before Valentine’s Day, and until this minute, I thought it was just a one-off thing. I’m really sorry for any turmoil or problems I caused.”

“You didn’t,” Carson said.

Jake nodded, and while he’d apologized to his brother before, it felt good to do it again. He looked at his parents, his smile still solidly in place.

“I know this is a good job, Daddy,” he said. “And I know you got it for me, and I’m really grateful.” His emotion stormed through him, and he cleared his throat and swallowed a couple of times before he could go on. “But I don’t need to be here anymore. I’ve healed from what happened in Hondo, and I’m ready to move forward with Hailey.”

“What are you going to do instead?” Momma asked.

“I haven’t quite worked that out yet,” he said. “Libby and Beau are looking for another veterinarian, and I said I’d stay on and help with the interviews and get them trained up before I left.”