Robbie, and Zona’s daughter was coming up on her second birthday too.
Neither of them said anything, and it was Sammy who said, “Bear and I have decided to sell the mechanic shop.”
“She decided to sell the shop.” Bear frowned at his wife. “I have no say about that.”
Sammy rolled her eyes, though she and Bear got along real well. “Fine, I decided to sell the shop,” she said. “The kids keep me busy, and the boss around here is a real grump when his tractors break down.” She cocked her head at Bear, obviously challenging him to contradict her again.
“Yeah, he’s a real bear when things don’t go his way,” Cactus said, eliciting another round of laughter.
“A grizzly,” Preacher said.
“Roars at everyone and everything,” Ranger chimed in.
“Okay, okay,” Bear said, plenty of fire shooting from his eyes. “I ask Sammy to come to the equipment shed when the ranch needs help.”
“Sure,” Ward says. “Like you asked me to make sure there would be gravy for days at this dinner.”
“I just—”
“Those exact words,” Ward said, chuckling. “Gravy for days.”
“I like gravy,” Bear bellowed. “Judge hasn’t—”
“Papa Bear,” Smiles said, his clear, high voice cutting through the house. Bear looked down at his son. “Too loud. Indoor voice, okay?”
June started to laugh, but she didn’t dare let any sound come out of her mouth. Her chest shook, and beside her, Judge’s did the same thing. Etta’s near-silent laughter nearby reached June’s ears, and there was going to be a swell of sound any second now.
Bear bent and scooped his son into his arms. “Yes,” he said. “Sorry, buddy. Indoor voices at Christmas Eve dinner.”
“Merry Christmas, everyone,” Judge said, his laughter infecting his voice. “I guess you’ll have to elbow Bear away from the gravy, which should last for days.”
The room exploded then, with every single person smiling or laughing. June had never felt anything like it, and she sure did love this family who had welcomed her in, made her feel like one of their own, and forgave each other when they didn’t use an indoor voice.
Chapter 11
August went down the hall in his cabin and into the bedroom, ignoring the wailing coming from Hailey’s room. Such a feat didn’t actually happen, but he pretended that he hadn’t heard her. On the outside, he’d given no indication that he cared about her alligator tears and that she’d said he was unfair and that their house was lame.
“Lame,” he said with a scoff. He couldn’t help it that Cactus had five children, about ten dogs, a brand-new swing set, and a trampoline out on the Edge. He had no reason—and no resources—to have those things.
Hailey and Cameron were in the same grade in school, and while they didn’t have the same teacher, they’d become fast friends. All the third graders ate lunch at the same time, and they had recess together, and Cam and Hailey were actually in the same reading group.
Great. August wasn’t upset that Hailey had found friends. He was upset that she didn’t even seem to notice how hard he’d tried to make her life as easy as possible.
He sighed in frustration as he paced over to the window. This one in the corner looked south, and all August could see was a dormant field. Then another, and another. The land here could bleed into one great big square, making a man feel small and insignificant—the way August always felt.
Not always, he thought. When Etta looked at him, he felt like he held the world in the palm of his hand. Not only that, but he felt like he could actually harness it and give it to Etta, along with his heart.
He was kidding himself, of course. All he had to offer was a cabin he actually got as part of his job for her ranch, and…yeah, that was all. A half-heart? A few hundred dollars in the bank? A nine-year-old daughter who sometimes came across as so selfish?
A knock sounded on his bedroom door that sent his pulse up into his ears. That was not a child’s knock. “Hello?” he called as he stepped toward the door. Someone had just come inside his house. Who?
He yanked open the door, his patience for the day gone. He had no idea who he expected to see there—maybe Walt from next door, or maybe Jess—but he found Etta.
She flinched backward. “Sorry,” she said. “It’s just me.” She gestured over her shoulder. “Hailey let me in.”
The girl stood in her doorway, sniffling, and August