Her Guardian Rancher. Brenda Minton

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СКАЧАТЬ volunteered for service in Afghanistan because he wanted to get away from me. If not for our divorce, he would still be here.”

      He opened his mouth to speak but then shook his head. “You’re wrong.”

      She shrugged, unsure of what to say to that. She guessed she knew she was wrong. But right or wrong didn’t change anything. Andy was gone. Jamie would never know her father. A family had lost their son.

      “Neither of us can go back,” she finally said. Because she thought they both wrestled with the past. Why else had he been driving by at this hour?

      “No,” he agreed. “We can’t.”

      They stood there for several long minutes, the only sound the ticking of the clock and the hum of the refrigerator. He cleared his throat and moved away from the counter.

      “I have to go. Will you be okay?”

      “Of course I’ll be okay.”

      Wasn’t she always?

      As she walked with him to the front door, she thought about the ten-year-old girl who had lost both parents and had been sent to live with a grandfather she barely knew. On the drive to Houston he’d repeatedly glanced at her and asked if she was okay. Each time she’d nodded to assure him. But each time he refocused on the road she would shut her eyes tight to hide the tears.

      After a while she had been okay. They’d moved from Houston to this house. She’d learned to be a farm girl from Braswell, wearing whatever her grandfather thought she needed. Usually jeans, scruffy farm boots and T-shirts.

      She could look back now and realize that in time she’d been able to deal and she’d been happy.

      Life wasn’t perfect. God hadn’t promised perfection. He’d promised to be with her, to give her strength and peace. She knew there were mountains looming in her near future. She also knew they would get through the tough times. They would survive.

      She had to. There was no choice.

      Daron stood on the front porch, tall and powerful, a man most women would want to lean on. Just moments ago, she’d been that woman, leaning into his strong arms.

      Momentary weakness, she assured herself. For that very reason she managed an easy smile and thanked him for his help. The dismissal seemed to take him by surprise, but he recovered. He touched two fingers to his brow in a relaxed salute, stepped down from the porch and headed down the road to his truck. She watched him leave, then stepped back inside and locked the door.

      This time when she leaned against it, closing her eyes as a wave of exhaustion rolled over her, she knew he wouldn’t be coming back.

Chapter Two

      The next few days were uneventful and Emma appreciated the calm that followed Pete’s midnight visit. Each morning she fed the cattle with her granddad, then headed to Martin’s Crossing to Duke’s No Bar and Grill to work the lunch shift as a waitress. Lately she’d managed a few extra shifts, which would come in handy with Christmas just around the corner.

      She’d only known the Martin family by name before taking the job at Duke’s. The last six months or so, she’d come to appreciate their family. Not only had Duke Martin given her a job, inexperienced as she was, but his sister-in-law, Breezy, had offered to watch Jamie.

      Lily, Duke’s daughter, swept into the restaurant on Wednesday afternoon, a big smile on her young face. Emma responded with a smile and a wave. The teenager followed Emma to the waitress station.

      “Breezy has Jamie across the street at my mom’s shop. She said she’ll bring her over in a minute. She thinks maybe Jamie isn’t feeling good.”

      Emma’s heart sped up a little at that information. They’d been blessed this winter. So far they’d avoided major viruses. That was the goal. And a good reason for having Jamie at Breezy’s, with fewer children around to spread germs. The twin nieces that Jake had gained custody of after his own twin sister’s death were now in preschool. Jake and Breezy had a one-year-old who stayed at home with Breezy.

      She recovered, fighting off the moment of panic. “Is she running a fever?”

      “Breezy said she isn’t. Mom thought she felt warm.”

      “I’ll check her when we get home.” She maintained a smile, to make herself and Lily feel better.

      Nedine, Ned for short, Duke’s head waitress and right-hand woman, walked out of the kitchen carrying a tray. The older woman, tall and big-boned, had once explained she’d been named for her dad, Ned. He’d wanted a son but he’d been happy with a daughter.

      The older waitress smiled at Duke’s daughter and winked at Emma. “Lily, your daddy said to put you to work when you got here after school. I think you’re going to be my bus girl this evening.”

      Lily saluted. “Will do, Ned. Hey, did the twin foals do okay over the weekend?”

      Ned’s face split open like sunshine. “They sure did. Prettiest little palominos I ever did see. You’ll have to come out and take a look.”

      “I will!” Then Lily returned her full attention to Emma. “Did my mom tell you about the potluck at our church this Sunday?”

      The girl reached for the big jug of ketchup and started refilling bottles alongside Emma. Before Emma could answer her, Duke entered the restaurant. He caught sight of his daughter and headed their way.

      “Hair in a ponytail, please,” Duke said as he gave her a hug.

      Lily responded by digging in her pocket and pulling out a hair band. She pulled her dark hair back in a messy bun and kept working.

      “She did tell me,” Emma answered the girl’s question.

      “Are you going to be there? I know you go to church in Braswell, but, you know...”

      Emma nodded. “Yes, I know. You have someone you want me to meet.”

      “Kind of,” Lily admitted. “He’s nice. He works for my dad.”

      “I’m sure he’s nice, but I really don’t have time for dating.” Emma blinked away a flash of an image. No! She would not think of Daron McKay and dating in the same thought. She wouldn’t allow his image to startle her that way, coming unbidden to her mind, all concerned and caring the way he’d been last Sunday night. At least she knew it wasn’t Daron who Lily had in mind for her. He didn’t work for Duke.

      “Are you okay?” Lily’s shoulder bumped Emma’s, nearly making her drop the ketchup bottle she held. “Oops, sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

      “You didn’t scare me. And I’m fine.” She pulled her phone out of her pocket. “It’s a phone call, that’s all.”

      Saved by the bell. She glanced at the caller ID and grimaced. An unknown caller. She didn’t need that. It most likely meant it was Pete or a bill collector or something equally unpleasant. But when the caller left a message she lifted the phone to her ear to listen.

      “Oh СКАЧАТЬ