Page 7 of The Prodigal Brother Returns

“We’ll fix that.” She took his vitals, recorded them using the scant light from the bedside lamp, then gave him pain medicine and a drink of water. “Go back to sleep, if you can. You’ll feel better in the morning.”

His eyes started to close. “Thank you.”

Blake hadn’t moved, but as she drew even with him, he asked lowly, “How’s he doing?”

Malorie glanced at Nathan. “He’s gone back to sleep.”

“Thanks.” Blake lowered his chin to his chest.

So, he intended to be at his brother’s bedside all night. It was surprising after the ruckus she’d witnessed.

Quietly leaving the house, and with the sparkle of stars overhead, she made her way back to the cottage. Hope sputtered, but she pushed away the thought that the Triple L might still be a place where she and the kids could begin to find their way again.

She crawled into bed. Sleep did not come easy. What had caused the rift between the brothers? She wanted to ask, but it didn’t matter what the reason was. Unless it could be resolved quickly, she would keep looking for the peaceful renewal she and the twins needed. Grief at losing a member of their family was not an easy thing to live with. Even if it wasn’t her and the kids who’d asked for the breakup. Somewhere out there was the haven she was looking for.

Chapter Three

“Malorie’s leaving?” Blakepoured steaming coffee into a mug, then turned, cup in hand, and leaned against the granite counter. “Why?”

He cringed at the thought that she was leaving because she’d walked right into the middle of one of his and Nathan’s infamous arguments on her first day on the job.

Jonas sat at the oak table nestled under the windows, where it had been for as long as Blake could remember. The glow of early morning sunlight streamed through the picture windows. This had always been his favorite time of day when he was a kid. Before he lost his parents. And everything else important in his life had gone down the toilet.

“She didn’t appreciate walking into the middle of our family disagreement yesterday,” Jonas said. Just as Blake had suspected. Jonas shrugged. “I guess our reunion could have gone a lot worse.”

Blake gulped his coffee before saying, “I don’t see how. Especially since Nathan was very clear he doesn’t want me here.”

“Since when do you care what Nathan thinks?” Jonas studied Blake over the rim of his cup.

Jonas had a point. “Can we change Malorie’s mind?”

There was only one person who Blake cared about what he thought, and that was Timmy. The kid’s camp would only last ten days, and Blake’s stay on the ranch could stretch beyond four weeks into six or eight, depending on how well his brother cooperated with his nurse.

Blake didn’t have high hopes in that regard.

“I’m not sure. She said she took the job because she and the kids needed a quiet place to regroup. She doesn’t think that can happen in the middle of our family ‘dysfunction.’ Her word, not mine, though she’s not far off base.” Staring down at his cup, Jonas twisted it between his hands. “I don’t blame her. Anyway, she promised to stay until I can find a replacement. That won’t be easy. I was lucky that she was between assignments and could come right away.”

Blake had no idea why—it didn’t make any sense—but he suddenly wanted Malorie Harper and her kids to stay on the Triple L. Last night, as he’d gotten them settled and then started on dinner, until they realized he was B.J. Burrows, Andee and Reece were off and on again too quiet. Malorie was right, as all mothers were. The children needed time to recover from whatever had happened to the little family.

Working in the kitchen with them had emphasized how much he missed Timmy, even though he’d seen his young brother-in-law just a few days ago. Baking bread and cookies always took Blake back to those happy days when he and Tina and Timmy had been a family of three, having fun and watching out for each other.

He straightened away from the counter. When Timmy’s camp adventure was over, and he was stuck on the Triple L for a month, maybe more, what was he going to do with Timmy? The kid liked his routines. Would he be okay with staying on the ranch for most of the summer?

Blake’s heart pinched.

He should tell Jonas about Timmy, but then he’d have to tell him about Tina too. Blake wasn’t ready to bare his heart to the brother who’d only ordered him home because Nathan couldn’t run the ranch until he healed from his accident. “What if you can’t find a replacement?”

“Then, I guess we’ll have to find a good argument that will convince the lady to stay.” Jonas stared pointedly at him, making Blake squirm inside, just like their father used to do when he’d broken a house rule. “I think that’s a problem you can take care of.”

“Why me?”

“Because you’re the troublemaker around here.” Jonas emptied his cup and put it in the sink.

But his brother had it all wrong. He wasn’t that troubled kid anymore. Life had given him some hard knocks along the way, and he’d grown up.

Parking his arms across his chest, Blake scowled at his brother. He didn’t know Malorie well enough to know what argument would be convincing, except she was a nurse by profession and there was a patient who needed her care, even if that patient was a cranky one. If Jonas couldn’t find a replacement nurse, she probably wouldn’t just walk away.

“I have an errand to run in town, so keep an eye on Nathan until Malorie comes on duty. I’ll be back as soon as I’m done.”

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