—TWENTY—

 

The view of the sunrise from the front porch double rocker of the Baylor family home was about the prettiest thing Ren had ever seen. She curled in closer to Dane's chest, taking a sip of her coffee. He tucked the soft white blanket they were wrapped in tighter around her shoulders and gave her a squeeze. She was still in her pajamas but he was dressed for the day, stealing the last few moments from what had been a magical night. Gage and Kerri had stayed over at Ella and Caine's and they had taken full advantage of it as if they were a pair of newlyweds on their honeymoon. Ren made a mental note to pick up the trail of clothing from the kitchen to Dane's bedroom before the kids got home.

"Much as I hate to do it, I gotta get to the barn." Dane spoke but didn't make any movement toward departure.

"Mmm."

They sat in silence for a couple moments longer.

"Your mama knows about us, doesn't she?" Ren had had a suspicion but it was primarily because Ella sent them back to the ranch without the kids; she was reasonably sure Ella was aware of what was going on with Dane.

When he didn't reply right away, Ren looked up at him and caught a guilty expression on his handsome features.

"She knew. Hell, according to her, half of Three Rivers knows, they're just too polite to say it," he teased.

"What does Ella say? Does she think I'm a terrible person?" Ren had stopped caring what her own mother thought of her, but Dane's mother was different. Ella had befriended her, made her feel at home, and the thought that she might feel betrayed or think less of Ren because of her relationship with Dane—well, it bothered her.

"She says she wants you to bring her a basket of tomatoes from your garden when they get ripe."

Ren frowned.

"Seriously? Your mother finds out you're sleeping with the help and all she says is she wants a basket of tomatoes from my garden?"

Dane's jaw tightened at the same time his grip on Ren loosened.

"You know that's not what this is."

Ren sat up, squared him in her sights.

"No, I know that's not what this is, but technically, that is exactly what this is, and that is what other people will think that it is. You are sleeping with the help."

She could tell she had ruffled Dane's feathers, could almost see him bristling. She felt bad but after last night, she knew they were about to cross a line they couldn't uncross and she wanted to make sure he had considered every option. At the same time, it might have been her last ditch effort to protect herself before she gave her heart up completely to this man.

"To hell with what other people think."

"I agree." Ren hadn't noticed Finn come out of the house until he spoke. He walked out onto the porch and Dane made no move to let her go—in fact, tightened his grip on her again.

"Oh hell, he knows too?" Ren rolled her eyes. "Am I the only person who still thinks this is a secret?"

"Relax, he never came out and said it in so many words." Finn took off his hat and ran a hand through his dark hair. "Well, he did tell me I couldn't ask you on a date. But that could have been a 'no fraternizing in the workplace' policy reminder."

Ren looked at Dane, who shrugged, and still made no move to get out of the rocker.

"You two are thick as thieves. You'd have to be a blind man not to see that something is going on beyond raising that little boy—which you're doing a hell of a job with, by the way."

"You didn't come out here to commend our parenting skills, Finn," Dane said.

"No, I came out here to see where the hell you were, the cattle are starving." Finn laughed. "But...I also overheard some of your conversation and I just wanna say that life is way too short not to spend it with someone who makes you happy. And to be proud of that. Take them out and show them off. And to hell with what anyone thinks, as long as you're happy.

"There were a lot of things Sunny and I did when she was sick that made a lot of people talk. They didn't think a girl as sick as she was should be out and about like she was. Truth is, people get all hung up on the 'shoulds' and 'shouldn'ts' in life and they forget to actually live that life—and by the time they realize it, it's too late.

"So maybe a sick girl shouldn't barrel race or Dane shouldn't be canoodling with his homemaker, but if it's what you feel in your heart and it makes you happy, then that's exactly what you should do."

Ren hadn't noticed but while his brother had been speaking, Dane had tightened his hold on her so much she could barely breathe. He had snugged her up tight against his torso and she could almost feel his heart beating.

Finn put his hat back on and scuffed the sole of his boot against the porch. "I know it's none of my business, and I don't know much about how to fix people's problems, but this is something I know way too well. You don't get to do it over, so do it right the first time, and to hell with what everyone else thinks."

The last sentence he directed at Dane, and Ren could feel the emotion between the brothers. They had clearly seen one another through a lot.

Carefully, Ren extricated herself from Dane's arms and rose, wrapping her arms around Finn. He hesitated a moment and then hugged her back. She kissed his cheek, let him go, and hoped all her gratitude had been apparent in her hug.