Page 15 of The Prodigal Brother Returns

Well. Fine. She couldn’t let the man studying her as if he could read her thoughts see how much Mark’s leaving, and the circumstances he chose to leave under, had devastated her. Inside, she knew the breakup of her marriage wasn’t her fault, or at least not all her fault, but they’d promised to be married until death parted them. Little did she know that meant it was their promise that was going to die. Her blindness at how a relationship could change over time made Malorie mad and at the same time sad. She’d failed at one of the most important things she’d tried to accomplish. She wouldn’t let that happen again.

“All right.” And before she could stop herself, she blurted, “We’re planning to watchNight at the Museum.You’re welcome to join us if you want. We’re having popcorn—”

What just happened? Keeping Blake Lohmen at arm’s length had not lasted longer than it took to take her next breath.

“I’d like that, thanks.” The quirk of his lips into an even wider smile kicked up Malorie’s pulse.

He’d won this round. She would have to pick up her game if she was going to remember the most important lesson Mark had taught her. Being a single mother was far better than trying to partner with a man who didn’t have the same goals in life.

“Okay. Six o’clock then.” Malorie made her escape before she went further down the rabbit hole and asked the man what else he would like. A cozy walk in the garden? An easy conversation getting to know his secrets?

After checking in on Nathan and seeing that he’d dozed off, she went quickly back to the guesthouse. The twins had the puzzle about half-done.

After pouring three glasses of lemonade, she set the tray on a side table. “How’s the puzzle going?”

Andee looked up and smiled. “Good. Don’t you think this horse looks like Duke? All black with a white blanket?”

“He sure does.” She sat beside them.

Reece swiveled to face her. “And this one looks like Bella. She’s so pretty.”

Her twins were happy. No matter how much she wanted to deny that Malorie couldn’t. “I invited Blake for movie night tonight. Is that okay?”

Andee jumped up. “Did he say he would come?”

“Yes. But first, he needs extra hands to assist him with an inventory of the tack room. I told him you could give him a hand.”

“I’ll help,” Reece said, his tongue poking out the corner of his mouth as he set another piece in the puzzle.

“Me too.” Andee added the chunk of pieces she was working on.

Surprised, Malorie realized they’d lost that weary set to their shoulders they’d brought with them. She had to admit, with only four days under their belts, they were thriving.

The Triple L had a rhythm that soothed the grief she brought with her to Colorado too. She just had to remember that the worst thing she could do was to fall for a caring cowboy who seemed to have an unresolved beef with his family. She hadn’t been able to fix her marriage. She won’t be able to fix Blake’s issues either.

Still, she couldn’t help wondering, if she and the twins could overcome their sadness at the current circumstances of their lives by spending the summer on the ranch, could the Lohmen brothers learn to be a family again too?

Maybe.

Could the Harpers, summer guests only, help the Lohmens put their puzzle pieces together? At the knock on the door, Andee and Reece jumped up and ran to answer the summons.

Malorie tried to talk herself out of it but couldn’t. Maybe they should stay on the Triple L until Nathan was well, after all.

Chapter Five

Giving Andee andReece a pad and paper, and taking one for himself, Blake got them started on the tack room inventory. The twins’ enthusiasm reminded him of Timmy and how much he missed Tina’s little brother, and the fact that he still had to come up with an idea for the next superhero book. Without a book that was more successful than the others in the series, he would have a hard time taking care of the boy financially, and in the end, finally prove that he wasn’t the same screwup who’d made such a disastrous mistake when he wasn’t much older than Timmy. The monthly paycheck that Nathan had promised would help.

“This is a bridle, right?” Andee held up a brown leather headgear she’d taken off the wall.

“Yes. There should be more somewhere.” Blake frowned. There used to be several dozen left hanging in the tack room. He looked around but couldn’t find any that weren’t already hanging from hooks on the center aisle walls next to the stall doors. It was the same for blankets and saddles. The racks and racks of equipment that he remembered from his childhood were gone. “There’s a storage room at the other end of the barn. I’ll check that out and be right back.”

Andee and Reece hardly acknowledged his departure. They were very focused on the task he’d given them, which made him smile. Only a year older than the twins, when Timmy was working on a project, he was just as focused.

There was no lock on the storage room. Blake pushed open the heavy door but didn’t find what he was looking for. All that was left were odds and ends of unusable bits and pieces that should have been tossed years ago.

It didn’t make sense. Maybe, with just three horses, Nathan didn’t need extra hands, but surely he could have kept the ranch up to date and made improvements. There had to be a lot of ways to make one hundred acres pay for itself, like it used to when his parents were alive.

Finding no answers in the dusty storage room, Blake went back to the tack room. The twins were still working diligently. “How’s it going?” he asked them.

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