Page 12 of The Prodigal Brother Returns

Nope. Her new not-married-anymore status was all on Mark. Seven months ago, he’d turned forty-one and, suddenly, she wasn’t what he wanted anymore. She wasn’t sophisticated enough. Or stylish enough. Or wanting to spend every weekend doing something more exciting than being a soccer mom, like snowboarding down the slopes all day while she left the twins with a babysitter (that’s what Mark suggested, before saying he was just kidding). She’d heard it all. Being Andee and Reece’s mom was all the excitement she needed to be happy.

Looking back on the last year and a half of her marriage, when Mark worked longer hours and came home for dinner less, deep inside, where she hadn’t wanted to explore too much, she’d started to expect their family wasn’t his top priority anymore.

She heard the twins asking Blake questions—their favorite activity—before she saw them.

“How do you know their names?” Reece asked.

Malorie stopped where she could see the three of them raking out one of the stalls. She wondered about that too. From what she’d heard between Jonas and Nathan, Blake hadn’t been back to the ranch in a long time.

Using a pitchfork, the rancher piled used hay in the wheelbarrow in the opening of the stall with the door slid to the side. “My dad, when he was alive, had a lot of horses. He put their names on plaques on the back of each stall.” He pointed with the handle end of the pitchfork. “See there? It looks like my brother has continued with the tradition. This is Duke’s stall. The next one is Angel’s. And the next is Bella’s.”

“There’s only three horses?” Leave it to Reece to notice the number of stalls that weren’t occupied.

“So it would seem.” Blake’s brows pulled together and his smile disappeared. “That’s something I have to talk to my brothers about.”

Blake talked about his dad with a hint of sadness. It didn’t make her choice as easy as it should have been. She should go, just as she planned. But staying on until Nathan no longer needed nursing care was starting to have an appeal, especially since the brother’s interactions seemed to be settling into something less volatile.

When he turned to help the kids finish up the stall they were cleaning out, he saw her standing just inside the barn. “And here’s your mom—come to see if we’re doing a good job, no doubt.”

“Of course.” Malorie joined them and peered into the stall. His teasing smile was irresistible, as if a man’s smile was all it took to make her day better. She mentally pulled free. It wasn’t. “Looking good, guys.”

Blake appeared to have no trouble including Andee and Reece in whatever he was doing. Unable to resist that small act of kindness—something their father never got the hang of—even though it would be better if she didn’t, Malorie smiled back.

Reece pulled on her hand. “Mom! B.J. gave us chores to do. I get to give the horses grain every morning.”

“And I’ll give them water every morning and night, and sweep the floor,” Andee said proudly, standing tall before going back to raking up dirty straw.

The barn was long, with a lot of stalls off to both sides of a wide center aisle. Only the first three were in use. Bridles hung beside each open door. Off to one side was a heavy gate that led into a large space marked as the arena.

She loved the sight and smell of horse and hay, and how happy her kids were. Was she doing the right thing leaving the ranch?

“I hope it’s okay to give them some chores. They want to learn about the horses. I figure this is one way—”

Malorie looked down at Blake’s boots, well worn, and not just for show. If she decided to complete her contract, which she still thought was a long shot, she’d have to get the twins cowboy boots to tromp around in the muck while they cleaned up after the horses. “You’re sure they’re not getting in your way?”

“They’re fine. I’m glad to have their company.” There was something in his forest-colored eyes—It was silly really, but she recognized that tiny glint of grief that was so quickly hidden.

Getting entangled in Blake Lohmen’s problems wasn’t part of the plan. Still, she couldn’t brush off the feeling that there was more to the rancher’s story than he wanted others to know, including perhaps his brothers.

And she had to stick to her agenda. She hadn’t come so far away from home to be distracted by a guy she barely knew, no matter how sensitive he appeared and how attractive he was at first sight.

Shaking free of the momentary lapse, she wrapped an arm around Reece and gently scrubbed his head with her knuckles. Holding off a smile, she nodded at Blake. “I think having chores won’t hurt them one bit. It’ll keep them out of trouble. Especially this one.”

“Mom!” Reece wrestled his way free, getting far enough away so that she couldn’t reach him.

For the first time in months, Malorie laughed. She wasn’t certain landing the twins in the middle of another family’s dysfunction was a good idea, but she couldn’t avoid how freeing it felt that Blake seemed willing to fill the role of a responsible adult male, even if it wasn’t intentional.

How could she not appreciate his effort? Especially since, besides being a rancher, he was also a superhero author who wrote books full of good advice for kids trying to find their way in life. Books that her children responded to and loved.

“You guys come up for lunch when you’re done helping Blake.” Burying her sudden interest, she glanced at him and shoved her hands in her pockets. “You’re welcome to join us if you want.”

Arching his brows, he studied her closely. “Thanks, but I need to ride the fence line to see if any repairs need to be done.”

That was good because getting into a flirtation was not what coming to Colorado was about. “No problem.”

When she saw the speculative gleam in his eyes before he turned away, she wondered if maybe she hadn’t reined in her misbehaving hormones as well as she’d hoped. In any case, as of that morning, Jonas hadn’t had any luck finding her replacement. And she’d reached out to several travel nurse agencies after her own didn’t have anyone available. No luck there either. Even colleagues she’d worked with and whom she trusted to take good care of Nathan had already taken summer jobs.

Maybe she and the twins weren’t leaving the Triple L. She couldn’t just abandon Nathan without making sure he had a nurse to help him through the healing process. Which left her uncharacteristically between a rock and a hard spot. She’d always been able to solve any problem that presented itself, even Mark wanting a divorce. Not this time.

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