Chapter One
“Guess who’s back in town?”
Logan Calland didn’t bother to respond to his brother, not when the answer was obvious.
There was only one person whose return to Dunbar would have motivated Trace into tracking Logan down just to deliver the news—Cassie Riggs.
Pretending a nonchalance he certainly didn’t feel, Logan kept working.
There were a couple of questions that would eventually need answering, but for now he kept them to himself—like why was Cassie in town again and how long would she stay this time?
Not that Logan had anything against Cassie.
Far from it. But she was a painful reminder of a past he’d done his best to leave behind.
It had been years since he’d even spoken to her.
They’d both been eighteen back when he’d needed to cut all ties with his life in Dunbar and leave town for good.
He’d wanted to tell Cassie himself, to explain the future they’d dreamed about just wasn’t feasible.
After everything that had happened, he’d foolishly thought that she of all people would understand his decision.
What he hadn’t expected was how hard Cassie would take the news.
The memory of her tear-stained face had haunted him for months afterward.
Still did, in fact. A man should never hurt a woman he loved that badly.
Knowing that was exactly what he’d done was the reason he avoided Cassie whenever she showed up in town.
After all, sometimes he thought she’d been the only one who had really cared when he disappeared.
Hopefully, this would be nothing more than another in a long line of short visits Cassie had made over the years to check in on her folks.
He’d managed to stay clear of her on those occasions by remaining on his family’s ranch until he heard she was gone.
The trouble was that strategy wouldn’t work for a longer stay.
It was nearly impossible to avoid anyone forever in a town with a population of six hundred people.
Rather than asking for more information, Logan hefted a fifty-pound bag of horse feed onto his shoulder and stalked out of the storage shed.
Trace normally knew when to take a hint, but not this time.
He followed right on Logan’s heels as he headed into the barn to fill the horses’ feedboxes.
Logan did his best to ignore him and kept working in the hope his brother would give up and leave. No such luck.
Surrendering to the inevitable, Logan gave up on getting anything useful done until after Trace got whatever it was off his chest. Rather than facing him, Logan pulled a carrot out of his pocket and offered it to Belle, their eight-year-old bay mare.
Once she took it from his hand, he moved over to the next stall and offered one to Ash.
As he stroked the gray gelding’s nose, he gave in and reluctantly asked, “Was there more good news you wanted to share?”
Trace avoided looking at Logan. Instead, he focused his attention on Belle, scratching her under the chin while he spoke.
“Yeah, the thing is that Cassie didn’t fly into Seattle like she usually does.
This time she drove into town in a late-model SUV pulling a trailer.
You know, the kind people rent when they move.
I can’t say for sure that’s what is going on. I’m just telling you what I saw.”
Having delivered his message, Trace immediately stepped back to put more distance between them.
It was a smart move on his part, especially considering Logan currently had his hands clenched in fists and no doubt looked as if he wanted to punch something—or someone.
Realizing he was the only handy target, Trace slowly raised his hands and offered Logan a sympathetic smile.
“Don’t shoot the messenger, little brother.
I just didn’t want you running into Cassie without a warning. ”
Trace had done him a solid, and Logan knew it. Doing his best to rein in his temper, he asked, “When did you see her?”
“Earlier this morning as I drove through town. I was on my way back from delivering that load of hay to the Halkos’ tree farm.
” He stopped and briefly switched topics.
“Oh, and before I forget, Mr. Halkos said that much would hold them through to fall, but he’ll want another delivery before winter sets in. ”
That was good news, but Logan wished Trace would just get to the point. “I’ll pencil him in on the schedule.”
Trace nodded and finally resumed telling his story.
“Back to Cassie. When I passed by, she was in front of her folks’ place, unloading some luggage.
From what I could see there were a whole bunch of boxes and other stuff in both the SUV and the trailer.
I thought about stopping to say hi and see what was going on, but I wasn’t sure if I should. ”
“That would’ve been fine. Cassie would’ve been glad to see you, and Mrs. Riggs always had a soft spot for you.”
For Logan, too. Still did, for that matter.
After all, he’d been best friends with her twins, Cassie and her brother, Dalton, from kindergarten all the way through high school.
Mr. and Mrs. Riggs had always let Logan crash at their house whenever life at home got to be too much for him.
He’d spent much of his senior year camped out on Dalton’s upper bunk.
Trace continued to linger close by as if waiting for some further response from Logan. Unsure what his brother wanted him to say, the best he could come up with was, “Thanks for the heads-up. I’ll do my best to avoid her.”
“If I’m right about her moving back to Dunbar, are you sure ignoring her is the best way to handle the situation?
” He paused and gave Logan a long look. “You’ve never said what happened between you and Cassie back in the day, but maybe it would be better if you found a way to clear the air between the two of you. ”
Maybe, but not right now. Rather than stand there spinning his wheels, trapped in the pain of his past, Logan brushed by his brother. “I’ve got work to do. Unless I’m mistaken, you do, too.”
Trace started to say something but evidently changed his mind and walked away.
When he got to the door, he paused and looked back over his shoulder.
“One last question. Mom’s book club is meeting tonight, so she won’t be home.
Would you rather stay in and have leftovers for dinner tonight or get something in town? ”
Feeling the walls closing in on him, getting away from the ranch for a few hours sounded good. “Let’s go to Shay’s tavern and have one of his giant cheeseburgers.”
Which he could wash down with a cold beer.
Maybe that would blunt the ragged edges of his bad mood.
His usual limit was one, but he might need to make an exception this time.
As if guessing Logan’s train of thought, Trace immediately nodded.
“I’m always up for one of Shay’s burgers and sweet potato fries combos. ”
Then he added, “No offense, but maybe I should plan on driving on the way home.”
All things considered, that was another good idea, but then everyone knew Trace had always been the smarter brother. He was also taller, more athletic and better looking; just ask their father. Well, if anyone knew where the man was these days. “I’ll keep that in mind. Let’s leave around six.”
With that settled, Logan went to work cleaning out the stalls and doing his best to ignore the familiar ache in his chest.
* * *
“But we’ve already painted the room, put in new carpet and even bought curtains with a matching bedspread for you.”
Cassie prayed for patience as she carried her suitcase into the house.
Her mother had been expressing her dismay over Cassie’s decision to move into a place of her own ever since she’d arrived at her parents’ house earlier that morning.
“Mom, it’s nice of you to offer to let me stay here indefinitely.
I also appreciate that you put a lot of effort into fixing up my old room as a surprise. I just wished you’d asked me first.”
She walked down the hall to open the door to her old room, trying not to wince at the vivid shade of pink that now festooned the windows and the same twin bed she’d slept on in high school.
“But if you’ll recall, I told you three weeks ago that I signed the lease on that A-frame just outside of town.
I’m scheduled to move in first thing tomorrow.
Ryder Davis is supposed to meet me there with the keys. ”
Not that things like facts would ever make a dent in her mother’s determination to coax Cassie back into the family fold. “I’m sure he would let you out of the lease when you explain the situation to him.”
“And what situation is that?”
Her mother sighed. “We’ve already told everyone how excited we were to learn you were returning home and that we were redoing your room as a surprise. What will the neighbors say when they find out you’re moving right back out again?”
Cassie set her suitcase on the floor. “I don’t know who ‘they’ are, but they should understand that I’m an adult and have been on my own for a while now.”
Actually, it was her parents who really needed to get that message.
She loved them dearly and knew they had a lot of good traits.
However, their constant worry about what the neighbors might think wasn’t one of them.
“Besides, if you’re talking about Mrs. Morton from next door, I can’t imagine she’ll care where I live.
She didn’t move here until after I left for college, so she hardly even knows I exist.”
Her mother folded her arms across her waist and frowned. “Now, you know that’s not true. I talk about you all the time.”
Great. She could only imagine what those conversations were like. “When you talk to her again, point out how considerate I’m being by getting my own place. My work hours will vary a lot. I’d rather not disrupt your routines with all my comings and goings.”