least one more day. Here.” She handed Erin a fresh, ointment-coated gauze pad. Erin pressed it gently into place and secured it with lengths of surgical tape. The golden foal quivered, but didn’t try to move.
“Good job,” Natalie said as Erin stepped back. “It might fall off later. If it does, don’t worry. Just let the wound heal in the air.”
Tori let go of the mare. “You did great,” she told her daughter as they walked back to the house. “I was proud of you. Maybe you should think of becoming a vet, like Natalie, one day.”
“I have thought about it.” Erin sounded surprisingly grown-up. “I wouldn’t mind being a vet, but I’d have to go away for my schooling—for years. I don’t want to leave the ranch that long.”
“But, surely, you’ll want to go to college,” Tori said. “The money’s there. Your grandpa Bull left it to you in his will.”
“Dad never went to college,” Erin said. “Neither did Sky. I want to stay right here on the ranch and train horses. I can learn all I need to know right here.”
Tori gazed at her daughter, already growing so tall. This was a child speaking, she reminded herself. A child just short of her thirteenth birthday.
“I know the ranch needs money right now,” Erin said. “I’m going to tell Dad he can use what Grandpa left me.”
“Erin! Your dad would never take that money from you!”
“Not even to help save the ranch?”
“Not for anything,” Tori said, knowing she was right. “Do you want to go into town with me this morning? We could get lunch at Burger Shack. You must be getting tired of leftover turkey.”
Erin hesitated, then shook her head. “I’ll stay here. I want to keep an eye on Tesoro. If I go, I’ll be worried about him.”
“All right. I’ll see you later, then.” Tori watched her daughter scamper off toward the coop to gather eggs for Bernice. Maybe by the time she finished high school, Erin would change her mind about college. But she had inherited her father’s stubborn nature and his love for the land. Something told Tori that her decision was final. As a mother she could only hope and pray it was the right one.
After changing her jacket and collecting her briefcase, Tori went out to her wagon and headed for town. When had her little girl become such a determined young woman? she wondered as she drove. What would Erin do if the worst happened and the Rimrock was no longer there for her?
Tori remembered Will’s request—that if he was sentenced to prison, she and Erin would move back to the ranch. She’d told him she’d have to think it over. But now, after hearing Erin’s decision, she knew it would be her only option.
How would that limit Tori’s life, especially if things became serious with Drew? But how could she even think about that when Will was facing years behind bars?
The jangle of her cell phone broke into her thoughts. With her free hand, she fished it out of her purse. The caller was Drew.
“Hi,” she said, realizing she’d scarcely given him a thought since the barn fire. “How’s Omaha?”
“Boring. I missed my favorite lady, so I drove back early. I know you’re busy, but I need to talk to you. How about getting together for lunch?”
CHAPTER 16
Tori had an hour-long appointment with a middle-aged couple, setting up a family trust for their grown children. After they’d left, she spent another hour organizing the paperwork and filling out the formal documents on her computer. The next time she glanced at her watch, it was almost noon—time to meet Drew for a quick lunch at the Burger Shack.
Seeing him again would be good for her, she’d told herself. Drew was easy to be with. He always knew how to make her smile. But anxiety gnawed at her as she drove to Blanco’s only restaurant. Drew wouldn’t have come home early on a whim. Something had to be weighing on his mind.
Drew had offered to pick her up at home, but she’d told him she had errands to run after lunch, which was true. It was also true that if they were alone in his car or her house, and he wanted to push her to a decision, things could get emotional. Meeting in public would be a safeguard against regrettable words and actions.
His car was parked outside the Burger Shack when she pulled up. He’d be waiting for her inside, maybe expecting