It was nearly dinnertime on Monday. Kurt was cleaning his horse’s hooves, eager to finish up for the day so he could go in and eat—his mother had been over this morning and made lasagna—when Brant entered the barn.
“So what’d you decide?” his brother asked.
Kurt continued to hold Poseidon’s hoof while using the metal pick. “’Bout what?”
“That question you were asking me the other day when you were wiring up the generator—if I’d do something sort of unconventional for Talulah if she asked me to, something that made me uncomfortable.”
Grateful he had a good excuse for not looking his brother in the eye, Kurt moved to his horse’s second hoof and pulled the hairs of Poseidon’s fetlock to let him know what he wanted. “Forget about that,” he said as he removed the dirt and grass, being careful to clean the sole and collateral groove without digging into the triangular part of the foot called the frog. “It was nothing.”
“It was a strange question—that’s what it was,” Brant said. “And it has me a little worried.”
“Come on. You know I wouldn’t do anything you wouldn’t do,” Kurt said jokingly.
Brant leaned against the stall, resting his arms along the top rail. “The last time I relied on the idea that you knew how to take care of yourself, you ignored the Out of Bounds signs that were clearly posted on the ski slope, fell down a deep crevasse and nearly froze to death.”
“Don’t be so dramatic,” he grumbled.
“I’m not being dramatic,” Brant said. “You could’ve died!”
“But I didn’t. I made it out.”
When Kurt started to move to the other side of his horse, Brant reached out and grabbed his shoulder. “Smart is always better than lucky—at least in the long run. So what’s going on now? Who were you talking about that day? Jane, right? What could she possibly want you to do that would make you uncomfortable?”
Kurt had planned to keep it to himself. He knew Brant would probably tell Talulah. But he was so torn about having refused Jane when he really wanted to get close to her, that he needed Brant to tell him he’d done the right thing. “She wants me to give her a baby.”
Brant let go of him and stepped back in surprise. “What? You two aren’t even a couple. Are you?”
“No. That’s the thing. She’s not asking for a relationship—only a genetic donation.”
“In other words, she wants to have your baby, but she doesn’t want to sleep with you...”
“Thanks for putting it so delicately. You wouldn’t want to damage my ego.”
Brant ignored the sarcasm. “I just want to be sure I have this straight. You’re talking about artificial insemination?”
“Yeah.”
“Why would she do something like that?”
Kurt sighed. “She wants a baby. She’s staring her grandfather’s death in the face, watching him go downhill, and it’s frightening. It makes her more motivated to be sure she’s getting everything she can out of her own life.”
“And that includes a child.”
“Apparently.”
“Which beats a sperm bank.”
“For her it does. And I can see why she’d want someone she knows.”
Brant began to pace at the end of the stall. “Wow...”
“It didn’t sound so shocking when I’d had several drinks in me,” Kurt admitted. “She’d been drinking, too, when she told me about it. That was when the subject first came up.”
Brant shook his head disbelievingly. “Why not wait for it to happen the usual way?”
“Because she’s worried it won’t happen, not while she’s stuck in a small town where almost everyone else our age has already paired off.”
“Our age?” he echoed.
Kurt shot him a dirty look. “Her age, okay?”
“Although...” Brant kicked a tuft of hay from one side to the other with his boots. “In this case, you being so much younger is a good thing.”
“So much younger?” Brant was trying to needle him, and Kurt knew it.
“Five years is five years.”
Kurt didn’t bother arguing about that. He was too interested in where his brother was going with this. “Why’s it good?”
“Better sperm.”
“Thanks.” He smiled broadly. “I knew I had you beat in something. If you and Talulah need a donation for your next kid, be sure to let me know.”
Brant rolled his eyes. “That was a general statement.”
Kurt curved his lips into a cocky grin. “Doesn’t make it untrue in this specific circumstance.”
“Just tell me you refused,” his brother said. “I mean, that could create so many freaking problems...”
“I refused, but...”
“What?”
“I can’t quit thinking about her,” he admitted. “The more I’m around her, the more I want to be around her.”
“I’m not sure I’ve ever seen you crush on a woman quite this hard...”
“If that’s what you want to call it. I’ve always liked her, but it hasn’t been until recently that she’s shown any interest in even hanging out with me.”
Brant rubbed his chin.
“What are you thinking?” Kurt asked.
“I’m thinking Talulah will know what to do.”
Kurt circled Poseidon to finish cleaning his feet but was too intent on getting the answer he needed from his brother to actually do anything. “No. You can’t tell her. I don’t want her saying anything to Jane, and you know she would.”
“Fine. I won’t tell her about the baby request—”
“Swear it,” Kurt insisted, looking at his brother over his horse’s back. “Swear it or I’ll never trust you with anything again as long as I live.”
“Relax!” Brant snapped with an impatient scowl. “I’ll just tell her you’re interested in Jane. I want to see if she thinks you two would ever have a chance as a couple. Maybe that’ll make a difference.”
Relieved, Kurt picked up Poseidon’s foot so he could finish what he’d started. “How?”
“Well, I know Jane’s a good person. And I know you’re a good person. I guess there’s no absolute reason a relationship between you couldn’t work. Except...I’ve heard a lot about her wanting to move away from here. What will you do if you get together, and she doesn’t change her mind about going?”
“I’d probably regret getting involved with her,” Kurt admitted.
His brother frowned at him. “You really want to take that chance?”
No, he told himself. He didn’t. It would be smarter to stay away, avoid the potential heartbreak of losing a relationship he wanted. Or having a child he rarely—if ever—saw. Avoiding that risk was what most guys would do. He wasn’t holding a good hand.
But since when had he ever been afraid of risk?
“She’s here now,” he said with a shrug.
“You want me to talk to Talulah? See if she might be able to set up a double date or something? We could have you both over for dinner.”
Would something like a date make a difference? Maybe if Jane felt she had Talulah and Brant’s support and approval where he was concerned, it would make her more open to the idea of dating him...
“You’d do that?” Kurt asked. “Without telling her about the baby?”
A devilish expression appeared on his brother’s face. “If you’ll go move the cattle for me.”
Kurt groaned. “I just took the saddle off Poseidon.”
Brant jerked his head toward the door. “Lady’s tied up outside.”
“Really? You’re going to make me do this?”
“How much do you like Jane?” he asked as he laughed.
“You’re an ass. I never should’ve told you.”
His brother’s grin only widened. “But you did, and now I have the chance to get out of here. I’d like to surprise Talulah when she gets home from the diner—have a nice dinner made, lots of flowers, chocolates. I’m so bad at all that stuff it’s going to take me an eternity.”
How could Kurt say no? Brant was so excited he and Talulah were going to have a child. Double date aside, they deserved some time to have a little celebration.
“Damn it,” he grumbled by way of acquiescing and Brant followed him out of the barn, chuckling.
“You’d better deliver big time,” Kurt told him as he swung up onto Lady.
“I can promise dinner will be good,” Brant responded. “The rest is a gamble, and you know it.”
Kurt shot him a dirty look as he wheeled the horse around to head back out onto the ranch. But he didn’t end up minding the extra work, because he spent the time daydreaming about finally having the chance to touch Jane.
What if Talulah’s involvement really could make a difference?
LaVeryle gave Averil permission to move in early. Just knowing she was getting out on her own again had given her a far more positive mindset. She received a call from Jordan as she was packing her car and was able to ignore it, which signaled an emotional shift. She’d been so lonely and desperate over the past year she’d continued seeing him even after she realized Ellen was right. Even though he was a dentist and supposedly respectable, he was a total narcissist, no one she should ever get serious about.
At least he’d given her someone to go out with on occasion—not that their last evening together had turned out well. They’d gone to dinner in Libby, where he lived, and ended up having a big argument at his place afterward about how he’d treated their server.
Trying to shake off the irritation and frustration he caused, she got out and hauled a box out of her back seat.
Jane must’ve heard her come through the back door because she climbed the stairs right after Averil let herself into the apartment.
“Hey, you’re moving in already?”
Averil set down the box she was carrying—filled with dishes, as she’d decided to start with the kitchen stuff she had stored in her parents’ garage—and dusted off her hands. “LaVeryle said I might as well. It was just sitting here empty.”
“So she gave you the key early—before your lease even starts?”
“Yep. Said I could have the next three weeks to get settled.”
“She’s such a nice person.”
Averil wandered through the empty rooms—and saw freedom. The only downside of moving into the apartment was having Jane so close. Initially, she’d counted that as a benefit, had hoped it might restore their friendship and help her patch the rift between her and Talulah. But after learning of Talulah’s pregnancy, she knew being so close to her two friends—former friends, for the most part—would just evoke more jealousy. And she was already grappling with enough of that. “She really is.”
“Do you have more boxes to bring up? I can help.”
“There’re more in the car. But can you leave the store unattended?”
“The store’s not open today. I’m only here because I had to go to the grocery store and had a few things to drop off that’ve been shifting around in my trunk, getting on my nerves.”
“More merchandise?”
“Yeah. Some of the wooden signs Peter Hankel engraves.”
“He sells his stuff in the boot shop down the street, right? Isn’t it too Western for you?”
“It is, but I asked him to scale back a bit on some of those elements. His wife’s in rehab again and facing liver failure, and I felt so sorry for him I thought I might be able to help him make more money if I showed people how his signs can fit in with more modern decor.”
“That’s really nice of you.”
“It’s the least I can do. Poor guy’s in such a mess.”
They tromped back and forth to the car until they’d unloaded everything and carried it up. Then they stood in the apartment and looked at the pile they’d created.
“How much more do you have to bring over?” Jane asked.
“Several loads. But there’s no hurry. I feel better just knowing I’ll be here soon.”
“How’d your mother take the news that you’re moving out?”
“She’s not too happy about it. She loves having Mitch there, didn’t expect me to find my own place so soon. But I think she understands.”
“I’m happy you’re able to do it,” Jane said. “It’ll be good for you.”
Was Jane being sincere? That was the other thing that plagued Averil of late. Insecurity. Feeling as though her friends no longer wanted to be around her because of the way she’d behaved. She still cringed whenever she remembered Ellen overhearing her talking about Talulah at the grocery store and making a scene...
She pulled her car keys from her pocket. She had to pick up her son from school. “Thanks for the help.”
When Jane smiled, it gave Averil hope once again that she might be able to repair their friendship. She’d lost so much, been her own worst enemy. And yet she couldn’t figure out how to overcome her own anger and resentment—and the anger and resentment she’d evoked in others—which had kept her so isolated. “Do you think I’ll ever get over Brant?” she asked.
Jane seemed surprised she’d been so open and transparent. “I’m sure you will. They say time heals all wounds...”
Averil frowned. “How much time does it take? That’s the question. Because nothing seems to change. I never got the man I wanted—and I lost you and Talulah along the way.”
Jane pulled her in for an embrace. “Don’t say that, Av. You haven’t lost us. Friendship is more resilient than that. We’ll get beyond what’s happened eventually.”
Averil wanted to believe her, but the reality of the past year was working against her.
Jane could already feel the pressure. She was going to have Averil living above the store, feeling hurt and left out, still angry and jealous over Brant, while Talulah was working down the street, expecting the relationship they’d reestablished over the past year to continue without change or challenge. How would she juggle a relationship with both?
She wasn’t convinced it was possible to do that without one emotional flare-up after another interrupting her peaceful routine, and she didn’t need any more emotional flare-ups in her life.
She stood at the counter, making crust for a pecan pie, wishing she could finally move to San Francisco. She used her grandmother’s recipes whenever she could—to bring Papa comfort through the food he’d always loved. When she arrived home, he’d been sitting on the porch with Otis at his feet, looking lost. But fortunately, he’d perked up the instant he saw her and insisted on helping her carry in the groceries.
Normally, she took him shopping with her to get him out of the house. He’d lived in Coyote Canyon for more than fifty years and liked seeing the old friends and acquaintances he’d run into when they were in town. Once every six weeks, she’d take him to Sally’s to have his hair cut before heading home. The barbershop was closed on Mondays, but Sally worked out of her house, so she was willing to do it when Jane was off work.
Jane had been hoping to get his hair trimmed today, but he’d been particularly confused this morning and refused to go anywhere, saying that he didn’t want to miss Nana when she came back.
Since Jane couldn’t convince him that he wouldn’t miss Nana, she’d let him stay home rather than trying to force him to get in the car. She could take him to get his hair cut another time. Sally insisted that would be fine, that she was flexible. Jane would see if he’d at least be willing to go on a drive with her tonight. She felt he needed to get out of the house every once in a while, and he rarely refused a trip to the mountains. But the notion that his wife of fifty-three years might be returning had shackled him to the property.
Now he was trying to put away the groceries. She was pretending to let him handle it, but since he wasn’t putting most items in their proper place, she had to keep a close eye on him. Otherwise, she wouldn’t know where to find what she’d purchased. When he put a frozen chicken pot pie in the pantry, for instance, she had to secretly slip in after he turned away and stuff it in the freezer, where it belonged.
“What is it you’re making again?” he asked as he folded up the paper sacks.
“Pecan pie,” she told him, even though there was a large bag of pecans on the table that should’ve reminded him. “Isn’t it your favorite?”
“I love all kinds of pie,” he said. “Hard to pick a favorite.”
“No one made better pies than Nana.” She brought up her grandmother often, because Ruby deserved to be remembered and because it gave Papa a chance to feel as though his wife was still close.
“She taught you well,” he said proudly, and Jane smiled.
Using a pastry blender, she began to cut the butter into the flour. “Have I told you that Averil is moving into my old apartment?”
“Above the store?”
She’d lived there for ten years, so Jane was grateful he remembered. It gave her hope that his mind wasn’t getting as bad as she thought. “Yep.”
He looked perplexed. “Does she want you to move in with her?”
“No. She has her son, Mitch.”
“I don’t know Mitch,” he said.
“You haven’t seen much of him.” She hadn’t seen much of Mitch, either—not since Talulah moved back and the tension between Averil and Talulah intensified. “He’s a cute kid.”
Otis put a paw on her leg. A brown labradoodle Papa had adopted five years ago from a neighbor who was moving to the city, he was the perfect companion for an elderly man—devoted and gentle. She stopped what she was doing long enough to give him a scratch under the collar, since he was obviously looking for some attention.
“Is she married?” Papa asked as she washed her hands so she could get back to the pie.
“Averil? She’s divorced.” She almost added, Remember? But she’d promised herself she’d quit reminding him of all the things he was forgetting. It had to add stress to his life to know his mind was slipping, and she didn’t want to be demeaning.
“Oh, that’s right,” he said. “And your other friend—Talulah—is having a baby.”
She looked up. Did he remember she’d told him she wanted to have a baby? “Yes.”
Her phone went off. She hesitated because she’d just washed her hands and didn’t want to have to do it again before finishing the crust, but it was Talulah, who was also off on Mondays, and she wanted to invite her and Brant over for the dinner she was making. People, laughter, stimulating conversation—she felt all those things were good for Papa. And Lord knew she needed the social interaction herself.
Grabbing her phone before the call could transfer to voice mail, she hit the talk button. “Hello?”
“What are you up to today?”
“Making a pecan pie. Would you and Brant like to join me and Papa for dinner tonight?”
“I’m afraid we already have plans,” Talulah said. “But it’s funny you should ask me that, because I was calling to invite you to dinner—next Monday.”
The dessert diner was closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, but they both had Mondays off, so that was the best day to get together—beyond the impromptu visits they shared when they appeared at each other’s businesses. “Sure,” Jane said. “What can I bring?”
“Nothing,” Talulah replied. “I’ve got it. But I should probably prepare you—it’s a double date.”
Jane tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear to get it out of her face. “You’re setting me up?”
“I am.”
“No one’s tried to do that in a long time. Where’s he from?”
“You’ll see.”
“You’re not going to tell me?”
“Nope.”
“That’s a little alarming, to be honest,” she said jokingly. “Why can’t I know more?”
“Because I want you to be totally surprised.”
“You think I’ll like this guy?”
“I do.”
Talulah had good taste, which was reassuring, at least.
“Is he local?”
“You’ll see.”
She guessed he didn’t live in Coyote Canyon, that he was someone Brant had met buying or selling cattle, feed or ranch equipment. “Is he your friend—or Brant’s?”
“We both like him.”
“Interesting. Where’d you meet him?”
“I’ve said enough. Just...trust me. I would never lead you astray.”
Jane believed that to be true, which caused her spirits to rise. She’d assumed she’d have a very difficult year ahead. She had no clear direction on whether she should have a baby on her own. Averil had leased the apartment she used to live in, effectively cutting off her retreat, should she need one. And Papa had refused to go with her to get his hair cut today because he was waiting for a woman who’d died ten years ago to come home.
Sometimes the best things in life happen when you least expect them, her Nana used to say.
Maybe, in this case, that would prove to be true.
“Okay,” she said. “I’ll be patient and look for something to wear.”