Made in Texas!. Crystal Green

he could be so loose with his affections, and it made her feel protective for Mom, even if she’d been gone a long time.

      “All the same,” Nathan added, “I vote no on this situation, too.”

      “It’s a yes for me,” Jenna said, “and I’m guessing Tammy, as well.”

      As Tammy nodded, she glanced at Donna, and no one had to tell her that she just might be the tiebreaker, depending on what their dads said.

      Jenna jerked her chin toward the room’s exit, and it was apparent that she wanted a private word with Donna.

      As they left the room, Jenna addressed Tammy. “Can you give us a few minutes before you call Uncle William? I’d like to reach Dad at the same time, if possible.”

      “Sure.”

      And, while they exited, Tammy launched into every argument she could probably think of to sway her brothers.

      After a little walking down the hall, Jenna pulled Donna into the dining room, the dark wood and stag horns above the long table looking more imposing than usual.

      Jenna shut the double doors behind her. “You don’t seem convinced, Donna.”

      Was it that obvious? “I’m sorry. But the ramifications of this decision could be…”

      “A real challenge? We’re up to it.”

      For the first time in Donna’s life, she actually felt as if she was close enough to her sister so that she could confide in her. The realization tightened her throat, and she had a hard time getting the words out.

      “It’s just that we were about to mend all of our own fences because of our dads, and then Tammy found that clue about Savannah’s baby. We were doing so well for a while.”

      “You’re still mad at Dad for being with Savannah, aren’t you? He didn’t try to fall in love with her, Donna.”

      “He didn’t try to stop having sex with his brother’s girlfriend, either.” Harsh. But this wasn’t the man Donna had grown up idolizing.

      She calmed down. “I just remember how he used to tell us to go after everything we wanted, Jen. It looks like he really practiced what he preached, and the fallout isn’t pretty.”

      Jenna laid a hand on Donna’s arm. She was getting used to the contact. Donna’s friends didn’t even show this kind of sympathy, but since coming to the Flying B, Donna had begun to wonder if she’d actually had friends or just people she went out with after work at night to blow off steam.

      “After I finally talked to Dad about this,” Jenna said, “I found out that he was inconsolable when Savannah left the ranch and disappeared afterward. He got hurt in this, too, and I only came to understand that after I fell in love myself.”

      Was she saying that Donna didn’t have a chance in hell of understanding since she had no one?

      An image of dimples flashed into her mind. Pale blue eyes sparkling with humor and lightness.

      Caleb.

      She shook him off. “Yeah, Dad was so inconsolable that he married Mom on the rebound. No wonder they split up.”

      “Donna, you really should talk to him. We can call, right now.”

      Her stomach turned with nerves. “No. I don’t want to say to him what I have to say over the phone.”

      “Then when will you do it?”

      “Soon.” She walked to the doors, paused. “Thanks for taking care of this, though. It means a lot.”

      Jenna merely nodded as Donna opened the doors, closing them behind her, yet hardly shutting out her sister’s voice as she said, “Hey, Dad, it’s Jenna.”

      As Donna walked away, her footsteps echoed off the walls, the sound mocking the dull thud of every isolated heartbeat.