6. Halle
HALLE
The barn at Thornwood Ranch glows with strings of lights overhead, packed wall-to-wall with people who’ve known me since I wore pigtails. Music plays low through the speakers, country classics that came out before half of us were born, and laughter bounces off the rafters.
It’s crazy how much this barn has changed since I was little. I spent a good bit of time in the summer running around these fields, but when my mom left, Dad and I spent more time here than we did at home. Being able to hang out with Grandpa Ben was the highlight of many of my summers.
Sloane, Aunt Aria, Tierney, and I stand near one of the tables in the front corner of the room, nursing a glass of wine. Aunt Aria laughs at something Tierney—her best friend and partner in crime for decades—says while Sloane nods with a softer smile—the calmest out of the three of them.
“—and then he tells me he’s ‘rethinking his priorities,’” Tierney says, rolling her eyes. “At seventy-four. Like I don’t watch him eat gas station hot dogs in the truck when his sons aren’t watching. Priorities my ass.”
Sloane laughs, warm and genuine. “Men reach a certain age and suddenly discover self-help TikTok.”
“Or they discover expensive cars and bikes,” Aria adds dryly. “Same difference.”
I smile and let myself sink into their rhythm for a minute.
Aria catches my eye over the rim of her beer bottle with a look. She’s always seen me in more ways than any of my parents could. She never lets me hide behind my own sarcasm for long.
“You’re quiet today,” Aunt Aria says, bumping my hip with hers.
“Dad and Sloane saw the disaster zone firsthand, as you know.”
Me. I’m the fucking disaster zone.
Across the barn, I catch Colt’s eye. My little brother gives me that knowing look—the one that says he has tea and we’ll be dissecting my life later. He grins, disappearing back toward what looks like a pissed-off Rhett Thornwood.
Damn that boy needs to learn what the word no means. Rhett is just going to break his heart.
Suddenly, Cash shouts, “Please get your shit together. Grandpa is coming.”
Tierney’s head snaps up, but before she’s able to say much, she’s shushed, the music is silenced, and the lights turn off.
Ben walks in with Luke and we all shout Happy Birthday and he startles. But that is soon replaced with a wide smile that spreads across his face. He probably knew, but he lets the family think they surprised him.
After the cheers die down, a loose line forms for people to greet Ben. Sloane nudges me forward and somehow manages to snag Colt too, so he ends up stuck behind me, getting his ear talked off instead of slipping away like he clearly wanted to.
Grandpa Ben has always treated me like family, even when I was just a scrappy kid tagging along with my dad, running around the ranch chasing cows for fun. He told me I was more than an honorary granddaughter—that I was his and I would always belong, without question.
And after my mom left us, feeling like I was wanted someplace, meant the world to me. That’s why, after all that time, I came back to Cedarbrook. To be surrounded by people like Grandpa Ben and Aunt Aria.
This is where I belong.
Sloane talks Colts ear off behind me as the line to see Ben thins out as I get to the front. He looks good for seventy-five—silver hair, strong shoulders, that quiet authority that makes everyone straighten up a little.
When it’s my turn, I step up and wrap my arms around him tight. “Happy birthday, Grandpa Ben,” I murmur into his shoulder.
He hugs me back, then pulls away just enough to look at me properly. His hands stay on my shoulders. “Halle girl. Look at you.”
I laugh softly. “Pink hair and all.”
“Pink suits you. Bold choice for a bold woman.” His eyes crinkle with that familiar warmth. “Heard you’ve been stirring things up—taking back what’s yours.”
The lump in my throat surprises me. “Trying to. Grandma’s house is a mess, but it’s mine. It matches the mess I am right now … but I’m figuring it out.”
Ben nods. “That’s all any of us ever do, Darlin’—figure it out while the barn’s still standing. You’ve got good people around you. Always have. And you’ve got steel in you, don’t forget that. Whatever comes next, you face it head-on.”
“I’ll try.”
He chuckles, the sound deep and comforting. “That’s my girl. Now, go enjoy the party. I’ll get to join you once this train finally ends.”
I hug him again, longer this time, and don’t let go until I’m ready.
The Thornwoods have always felt like home to me.