“Harsh, Dad.” He laughed, too, then turned back to his homework.
“You’ll always be their favorite.” He worried about teasing his son sometimes.
“I know.” Eli arched an eyebrow, grinning.
Hunter shook his head, but he smiled. God, he loved his boy.
He was lucky—he knew it. He had a job he loved. The research he and his brothers had been doing on the ranch had led to a partnership with the state agricultural agency. Their hard work and dedication had made Boone Ranch one of the biggest conservation and rehabilitation sites in this part of the country. They’d had a plan, a good plan. And once Hunter had a plan, he stayed with it until the end.
Losing Jo hadn’t been part of the plan. And nothing had ever hurt like that.
Jo.
He fisted his hands, wishing he could stop wanting her, needing her. She was here, so close, yet still out of his reach. Seeing her now reminded him of everything he’d had and lost. Thinking about her wouldn’t bring her back, wouldn’t change what he’d done—
“Do you still love her, Dad?” Eli was looking at him.
He hadn’t realized that he wasn’t looking at his computer anymore. His gaze had wandered, and he’d been blindly staring out the window.
“I’m supposed to go to Tommy’s house tomorrow night. Remember?” Eli asked. “Don’t want to leave you alone if it’ll be...weird,” Eli finished.
Fisher had already told them he wouldn’t be coming, but he hadn’t offered up an explanation.
Hunter glanced at his son. “Guess it’s a good thing her dad’s coming for dinner, too.”
“Why?” Eli asked.
“Because when Jo and I are alone, we tend to fight.”
* * *
JOSIE WAS TIRED. And stressed. And tired of being stressed. And now she was getting a headache. Probably because she was heading to dinner with the love of her life and the only person she’d ever hated. Not hated...just actively disliked. That was why she’d made her father and Annabeth promise not to bring up anything to do with Amy. Or Hunter. She didn’t like who she was, how she felt, where Amy was concerned.
“Holy crap,” Josie breathed as she pulled through the huge stone entranceway, the intricate wrought-iron gate open wide. This was nothing like the Boone ranch she remembered. This was something else. She drove slowly, following the twisting limestone drive until she reached three outbuildings.
One was obviously a ranger station. It was elevated, with a two-story ladder the only way up. A small building sat next to it, a long ranch house of sorts with two large trucks parked beside it. Then there was the main building, several stories tall, all wood and native stone and rather impressive.
Almost as impressive as the man sitting on the porch. She sighed. Hunter sat, a laptop on his knees. He looked gorgeous—and a little bit dangerous to what remained of her heart.
She put the car in Park, trying not to stare as he smiled at her. He closed the laptop and walked down the steps to greet her.
The throbbing in her head was matched by the pounding of her heart. Whether it was from nerves or exhaustion, she didn’t know. But watching him walk to her car did little to calm her nerves. It was going to be a long night.
She rolled down the passenger window as he leaned forward to say, “Hi.”
“Hi.” She forced a smile. “Dad bailed at the last minute.” Which had led to a thirty-minute argument. At least Eli would be there as a buffer.
A strange look crossed Hunter’s face and then he smiled. “His hip giving him trouble?”
“Yes.” That’s what her father had told her, though she suspected he was trying to play matchmaker. Why her father was trying to fix her up with a married man was a mystery. After the hell her mother’s indiscretions had put him through, she’d expected him to place a little more value on the whole faithful vow thing. He’d always been on the eccentric side, but this was ridiculous. Hunter was off-limits, no if, ands or buts about it.
“Can you give me a ride?” he asked. “Or we can take some horses.”
“How much farther is the main house?” She let her eyes travel over the buildings again. “And why don’t I recognize any of this?”
His eyes traveled over her face. “Did you think you’d recognize it?”
“Of course.” She rolled her eyes. “I mean, I figured you’d made some changes, and you obviously have, but...”
“I didn’t own this when we... In high school this wasn’t part of the family ranch. We bought this about six years ago.” He paused.
“That makes sense. So, if I remember correctly, this must be the guest lodge?” She took it all in, impressed. “Am I right?” She waited for him to nod. “Well, wow, congratulations. Looks like your big plans are coming together.”
“Most of them.” He nodded, his eyes boring into hers. “So horses or driving?”
She looked down at her skirt. “Driving. Didn’t know horses were part of the evening.”
He opened the passenger door and climbed in. “Just stay on the drive to the left. It’s a ways down yet.”
She drove on, and her small red four-door rental seemed to shrink as the silence stretched on.
It was too quiet. The pounding in her head seemed to echo. “Too bad you didn’t have paved roads when you taught me to drive. Maybe I wouldn’t have totaled that truck.”
“You didn’t. That thing was like a tank.” He looked at her. “It wasn’t for a lack of trying, though.”
“I guess I should blame my teacher.” She flashed him a grin.
He chuckled. “Sure. If that makes you feel better about wrecking my granddad’s truck, you just go on telling yourself that.”
“God, I felt terrible.” She shook her head. “I still do.”
“Don’t. Still drive it back and forth around here when I need to run errands or deliver something. Imagine I’ll teach Eli to drive in it.” Hunter rested his head against the headrest.
As they crested the next hill, Josie saw the ranch house. It had always been a special place, where her most treasured memories took place. She was hit with a case of nerves so intense she almost turned the car around. Instead, she did what she always did when she was nervous. She talked.
“You’ve made a lot of improvements to the house. I knew you’d never tear it down, since your grandmother was born here.” She paused, but he didn’t say anything. “I guess it’s nice to have some privacy for you and your family. I mean, you haven’t said anything about the way the ranch works now, but I remember the way you said you wanted it to work. Population studies. Rehabilitation center. Animal preserve. Did you ever get the white-tail deer breeding program started?” Her head felt as if it had a band tightening around it. “Guess you’re keeping cattle, too, since Eli is raising a calf?” She stopped as the car pulled up in front of the house. Crippling anxiety gripped her, the throbbing pulse around her skull excruciating.
Any second Amy was going to walk out that front door. Any second Hunter was going to put his arm around Amy, his wife, and they were all going inside to have a meal together. Why had she come? She felt very nauseous.
“You okay?” he asked.
She looked at him, watching the traces of amusement turn into concern. “I’m not sure. I’m feeling a little...off.”
His forehead creased as he stared at her face. “You’re really pale.” His hand touched her cheeks and forehead. His