Page 24 of Luna

A great sense of relief flowed through her that Hunter now knew why she reacted the way she did in certain situations. Going forward, Luna planned to avoid anything that might cue another episode of panic.

Later, as she let her body relax in her comfortable bed, she offered a prayer of thanks for the guiding hand that had led her to Pendleton. Even though she wasn’t yet healed from her panic, she did feel stronger. At least this time, she hadn’t fainted.

And she was ever so glad she’d met Hunter William Douglas, heir to Bramble Hall.

Chapter Eight

Hunter was riding the kinks out of a green bronc with a stubborn mind of his own when he noticed a cloud of dust rolling up the driveway. A sure sign they had company arriving at the B Bar D Ranch.

He shifted his focus back to the half-wild cayuse he rode and tried not to wonder who had come to visit this early in the day. Mid-morning, it was already hot, and he had a feeling the temperature would continue to climb as the day wore on.

Since the circus two weeks ago, he’d kept himself busy between training Dally’s horses, helping Rowdy wherever he needed an extra hand, and making plans for the property he’d purchased. The two pieces of land were now officially his. He’d approached the older widower who owned the property on the other side of the creek, letting him know he’d give him a fair price if he were ever of a mind to sell. Mr. Rickert had said he’d keep that in mind, then wished Hunter well in his endeavors.

Flynn had ordered the poplar trees that would serve as a windbreak. He and Hunter had agreed it would be best to wait until early spring to plant the apple trees, but Hunter had already put in orders with the growers Flynn had recommended. Hunter also wanted to try his hand at growing some apple trees from seed and planned to get a greenhouse constructed before winter arrived.

The list of things he needed to see to at his own place was lengthy and growing by the day. However, Dally needed his help now, and he gladly gave it. His sister had always been generous with him as well as supportive. The two of them understood each other in a way he’d never experienced with his younger brother. Jeff was more like their father, more serious and quieter, often introspective. Hunter supposed he and Dally took after their mother, who was lively, fun, and incredibly kind.

Thoughts of someone lively and kind filled Hunter’s mind with a vision of Luna Campanelli. The girl with deep brown eyes, charming smile, and sweet face popped into his thoughts with alarming frequency. He didn’t know what it was about her that just stayed with him, but something sure had.

Although he knew it had been hard for her, he was glad she’d told him about her past and what had happened with Matteo, her beloved. Her nervous behavior around crowds and loud, sudden noises made so much more sense now that he knew the cause of her skittishness. He wanted Luna to be young and carefree, but he feared those days were long behind her. The best he could do was to make sure he didn’t put her in situations that would cause her distress, like taking her to the circus. Had he been aware of the things that seemed to trigger an onslaught of panic, he’d have taken a far different approach to the circus than immersing her in the jostling crowds and leaving her exposed to the noise and stressors like firecrackers.

Going forward, he’d do a better job of protecting her. At least he hoped she would allow him to escort her again. He’d seen her at the restaurant when she was working, at church, and at Dogwood Corners last week when Lars and Marnie hosted a picnic after the Sunday morning service.

Hunter had somehow been coerced into joining the Pendleton Baseball League. The team captain was Garrett Nash, and members of the team included Lars Thorsen, Kade Rawlings, Tony Campanelli, Riley Walsh, Grant Hill, and Walker Williams. Nik would have joined, but he never knew when he would be called away to tend to a patient and didn’t want to leave them short a player.

Despite his protests that he didn’t have time for such things, Hunter had found himself playing a practice game with the men last Sunday, and from there, they’d added his name to the roster. Hunter enjoyed baseball as much as anyone, but Garrett and Kade were dedicated fans of the game.

They would play their first big game on the Fourth of July, when a team from Walla Walla would challenge them at the park after the annual parade and picnic.

Hunter wondered if Luna would feel up to attending any of the events. Perhaps if she watched the parade from Ilsa’s store, the noise and crowds wouldn’t bother her.

Lost in his musings about Luna, he was nearly unseated when the horse beneath him started bucking. Hunter held on with hardly more than brute strength and determination.

“Ride ’em, Hunt!” Rowdy yelled, slapping his dusty hat on his thigh as he sat on the top rail of the corral fence.

“Yeehaw!” he heard one of the other ranch hands call, but then he forced all his attention to riding the bronc. It could have been seconds, minutes, or an hour that passed before the horse stopped trying to send him on a ride to the clouds and settled down. He circled the horse around the pen three times before he rode over to the fence by Rowdy and swung off the animal’s back.

It was then he noticed his audience had grown.

Ilsa, Aundy, Marnie, Caterina, and Luna all stood around, watching him.

“That was marvelous, Hunter!” Aundy clapped her hands in approval, and the other women soon joined in.

The words from Aundy pleased him greatly, considering how handy she was with horses. For a woman who’d spent her childhood growing up in a big city, Aundy had taken to country life like she’d been born to it.

Hunter admired the woman for her tenacity and willingness to do whatever was necessary to succeed, even when that meant taking a step back and letting someone with more knowledge or experience handle the job. Sometimes, that was her husband. Sometimes, it was one of the ranch hands.

Hunter had observed that Garrett and Aundy Nash were more than just man and wife. They were true partners in life, like his parents.

When Hunter got around to considering marriage, that’s what he wanted. He wouldn’t settle for less than a true partner, someone he could journey through life with, walking shoulder to shoulder.

Being able to have complete trust in and honesty from his spouse was of far more importance to him than marrying for a pretty face or someone who knew how to work their way through all the utensils at one of his grandmother’s painfully formal dinner parties. He wasn’t even sure he knew the exact purpose of the weird little fork shaped like the king of Atlantis’ trident. Seafood, he supposed, but he had yet to stab anything with it.

He would marry for love or not at all, and the woman who became his wife had to be someone who brought out the best in him, who made him want to bring out the best in her.

Annoyed that Luna’s face again came to mind, he tried to brush it aside, but his gaze entangled with hers on the other side of the fence, and he found himself unable to look away. He was still gaping at her, noticing that she looked astoundingly lovely in a pale-yellow summer frock with the sun shimmering around the edges, when the horse he’d turned over to Rowdy swished his tail and swatted Hunter across the face with it.

Everyone laughed while Hunter inwardly fumed. Rather than show his irritation and indignation, he swept the cowboy hat he wore from his head, made a grand, sweeping bow, then turned his back to the women and strode over to the center of the corral, where two of the ranch hands held a new horse steady, one Hunter was determined to ride.

---