“I’ve never seen your brother cry, Spring, but he did when we spoke about it. He thinks he failed you.”
Emotion clogged Spring’s throat. “I told him it wasn’t his fault.”
“I did, too, but he was heartbroken and angry at himself for suggesting you hold out the olive branch to Ben.”
Spring supposed she and her brother would need to discuss it further. The last thing she wanted was for him to berate himself for something he played no part in. “Ben told me he’s leaving me everything after his death.”
Regan looked surprised.
“I don’t want anything from him, and I think accepting this inheritance will make me feel like a hypocrite.”
Regan scoffed. “Please, don’t be ridiculous. Take whatever he gives you, so you can stop robbing Peter to pay Paul. If Ben’s trying to buy his way into heaven, fine. But accepting doesn’t make you a hypocrite. I’ve been dirt poor and wealthy. Wealthy is better.”
Spring loved her so much.
“Besides, you need that money to buy hogs so I can have my bacon.”
Amused, Spring hung her head.
Regan added, “And, I’m still upset with you for not letting me help you financially.”
“I know.”
“Sisters help each other, Spring. You can’t eat pride.”
Regan was right, but accepting help in any form was difficult, even when necessary as it had been earlier in the year when she offered the means to buy the piglets and feed Spring needed.
Regan said sincerely, “I don’t like knowing you’re going without, Spring. Neither does Colt.”
Spring’s tight nod conveyed she understood. As she’d noted before, only a small handful of people cared whether she lived or died, and Regan Carmichael Lee was at the top of the list. She had to learn to do better and accept that care in the spirit it was given because it was so rare in her life.
They talked for a while longer about Ben’s gift and the things she might do with the money, the reward claimed by Perry, and speculated on where Matt Ketchum might be.
Regan said, “Colt was part of a posse that went out with Whit last evening. Somebody thought they spotted Matt up by Eagle Point. Whit said some of the summer cabins near there had been broken into. He thinks Matt may be the culprit.”
“The posse find anything?”
“No, but Whit was going back up there this morning.”
Eagle Point was not far from Spring’s battered old cabin. The land around it was owned by her grandfather and named for the many eagles nesting there due to its proximity to the Paradise River. The area was densely wooded, but many spots offered great hunting and spectacular views of the mountains. The rich from back East were beginning to build summer cabins there.
The loud cries of the now-awake Colton Fontaine signaled an end to the sisters-in-law’s visit, so they both stood. They’d discussed Garrett’s departure, and as they shared a parting hug, Regan said, “Give Garrett my goodbyes, and prayers that he and the family have a safe journey.”
“I will.”
“And, Spring, try not to hurt the man tonight, you hear?”
Chuckling, she replied, “I’ll do my best is all I can promise.”
Spring spent the rest of the day seeing to her horses and the newly emerging shoots in her garden, then made bread for dinner. With no idea what time Garrett would be arriving she wasn’t sure if she should cook dinner for just herself or for him, too. In the end, she pulled two steaks from the last of the ice in her outbuilding and took a bath while they thawed. After the bath she went through her wardrobe in search of something special to wear. The only fancy items inside were the gown she’d worn to the Cale dinner, and the burgundy off-shoulder beauty she’d worn to Regan and Colt’s wedding. She wanted the evening to be special. The burgundy was jaw-dropping gorgeous, so she chose it.
The clock in the kitchen showed the time to be just past six when a knock sounded on the door. Letting her excitement have its head, she went to answer, and there stood Garrett. As if the evening was special to him, as well, he’d worn his brown suit. He ran his eyes over her in the gown and said, “Trying to kill me before I even step inside, are you?”
“I can take it off, if you want.”
Eyes locked on hers, he replied, “That’ll be my job.”
She stepped back to let him enter, and as he did, he eased her close and greeted her with a