Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
Carson
I stand at the edge of the ranch.
My hands tucked into my pockets, fingers fidgeting with loose threads as my mind whirls.
My chest tightens. I want to be the one to make her smile without reservation, to chase away the shadows of loss that cling to her.
“Quite a view,” Liam says as he comes to stand beside me.
I nod. “Yeah, never gets old.”
Liam's friendship is one of the few things I can always count on.
“Penny for your thoughts?” he asks.
I hesitate. How can I explain the storm of emotions Kelsie stirs in me? The hope, the fear, the longing – all tangled up with the responsibilities I carry as a single father. Instead, I deflect. “Just... thinking about the ranch. All the work that needs doing. Life.”
Liam's knowing chuckle tells me he isn't fooled. “Sure, Carson. Because the fence lines are what's keeping you out here brooding as the sun goes down.”
Leave it to Liam to call me out on my bullshit, but with enough gentleness that I can't take offense.
“It's Kelsie,” I admit.
“I can't stop thinking about her.”
The admission hangs in the air between us. Liam remains silent, giving me space to find the words.
“I know I shouldn’t,” I continue. “There's so much history there, so many complications. But after all this time…” I trail off, struggling to articulate the whirlwind of emotions.
Memories flood my mind – Kelsie's laugh echoing across the high school parking lot, the softness of her hand in mine at the county fair, the hurt in her eyes the day she left for college.
“We were just kids back then,” I say, more to myself than to Liam. “But now? The way she is with Collin, how she's facing everything life's thrown at her with such strength... It's like I'm seeing her for the first time all over again.”
I run a hand through my hair, frustration seeping into my voice. “And then I remember all the reasons why this is a bad idea. She's been through so much, Liam. The last thing she needs is me complicating her life further.”
Liam shifts beside me, his presence a steady anchor. “Have you considered that maybe you're exactly what she does need?”
“What if I'm not enough? What if I mess things up?” The vulnerability in my words surprises even me. “It's not just about me anymore. I've got my kid to think about. And Kelsie... she deserves someone whole, someone who isn't still piecing themselves back together. But when I'm with her,” I say, my voice gaining strength, “everything feels right. Like maybe, we could heal each other.”
Liam's hand comes to rest on my shoulder, a grounding presence. “Sometimes the things that scare us the most are the ones most worth pursuing.”
“It's not just that. Kelsie's brother, Jake... he doesn’t know that Kelsie and I ever… I’ve never told him and I can’t lose one of my best friends. Not now.”
The words taste bitter on my tongue, and I feel my fingers curl into fists at my sides. “I want to be there for her, Liam. To show her that life can be beautiful again, even after everything. But I've got responsibilities here, to my son, to the ranch. How can I ask her to give up what she wants for this?”
Liam’s boots scuffing against the dry earth. “Why don't you try taking things slow? Focus on the present, on getting to know Kelsie again without all the pressure of what might come next.”
I turn to look at him, my brow furrowed. “But her brother?—”
“Forget about her brother for now,” Liam interrupts, his dark eyes kind but resolute. “He's not the one you're interested in, is he?”
A chuckle escapes my lips despite myself. “You're right. I've been so caught up in what could go wrong, I haven't given myself a chance to see what could go right.” The tension in my shoulders eases. “Thanks. I needed to hear that.”
As the sun settles over the ranch, I stand there, my friend by my side, feeling for the first time in a long while that maybe, I can allow myself to hope for something more.