Page 43 of The Prodigal Brother Returns

She tied her hair in a ponytail with a hair tie. “Thank you, Jonas.”

Their hike to the pond was fast and silent. And a relief when they got there. All three kids were sitting on big rocks in the reeds that surrounded the water. Looking forlorn, their shoulders were slumped. Timmy had a book clutched to his stomach.

Malorie flattened her hand on her chest and fought waterworks until she was sure she had them under control. “Hey, guys. What are you doing out here?”

Blake went straight to Timmy. He knelt in front of the boy. “Hi, kiddo. Did you come out here to read?”

Timmy shook his head, but let Blake look at the book’s cover. It was one of theTimmybooks. The first one,Timmy is a Superhero. His eyes swam with sadness. So did Andee’s and Reece’s.

“Why didn’t you tell us you were coming out here?” She sat on the rock nearest to them.

A tear slid down Timmy’s cheek, breaking Malorie’s heart. “Uncle Nathan doesn’t want us here,” he said, looking at Blake.

Reece jumped to his feet, his fists pushed down at his sides. “If Timmy can’t be here, we don’t want to be here either!”

Malorie didn’t have to ask Andee. She knew the answer. The twins were rarely not on the same page.

Andee’s chin rose. Those sweet brown eyes that matched Malorie’s sparked with anger. “If Timmy can’t be here, staying won’t be any fun.”

“Come here, you guys.” Blake sat near them and pulled Timmy onto his lap. He opened his arms, inviting Andee and Reece to come too. When they settled close, he asked. “Can I tell you what I think?”

All three nodded. With this confirmation that Blake Lohmen was the farthest human from her ex, Malorie waited almost breathlessly for him to begin.

“Okay. Here’s the thing,” he began. She could see why he was a best-selling author. “A long time ago, I was really mad because my dad and mom died. It didn’t seem fair. And so I did some stupid things. What I didn’t realize was that Uncle Jonas, and especially Uncle Nathan, were just as mad at losing our parents. We had a big fight, and they told me to never come back. So, I didn’t until Uncle Nathan got hurt. That wasn’t good, was it?”

The kids shook their heads. Malorie found herself shaking her head with them. When Blake glanced her way, she lost her breath. There was so much more to this man than he allowed people to see.

He tightened his arms around the kids. “I had a lot of growing up to do. And then Uncle Jonas asked me to help with the ranch until Uncle Nathan is done healing. I want to help. But you know what? I still get mad at Uncle Nathan, and he gets mad at me. I don’t think that means we should leave because he wants us to. Running isn’t the answer, is it? That’s what I learned.”

“No!” Again, it was Reece who responded with so much conviction that it brought the sting of tears back to her eyes. He fought for the underdog. Always had. Even as a little guy starting school for the first time.

Andee and Timmy shook their heads emphatically. Their sadness disappeared. Andee straightened her shoulders. “I would be mad, too, if I lost my mom,”

“I suppose that means we shouldn’t be mad at Uncle Nathan, doesn’t it?” Two lines pulled Blake’s brows together as if giving his brother a break wasn’t as easy as he was making it sound.

Was he remembering his parents and missing them like crazy, like she’d missed having a family before she married Mark and had the twins?

“Maybe you shouldn’t leave then,” she said, mostly to Timmy, but caught Blake casting a brief look her way. “You should be where you want to be, wherever that is.”

Leaving his frown behind, Blake stood. “Let’s head back to the barn. I’ll make breakfast and then we can do our chores, and your mom can go to work.”

Not so sad now, thanks to the man making inroads where Malorie had thought she didn’t want him, she watched the kids climb down from the rock. Timmy walked backward for a few steps and asked, “Can we work on the truck after our chores?”

“You bet we can,” Blake agreed firmly.

Malorie smiled. She’d believed him when he told Jonas he wasn’t giving into Nathan’s demand to leave. He’d gotten the high card, after all, and according to Jonas, that meant he could stay and bring the vintage vehicle back to life.

When they got back to the ranch house, Jonas and Nathan were waiting on the porch. Timmy slowed down and leaned into Blake’s arm.

Jonas stayed back as Nathan rolled his wheelchair closer to the steps. “I want to apologize. I shouldn’t have yelled like I did yesterday.” He looked sharply at Blake, but then faced the kids, his apology sincere. “I wasn’t mad at you—”

Still clutching his book, Timmy edged away from Blake. “You were mad because your mom and dad died.”

“How’d you get so smart?” Nathan asked, leaning onto his elbows he placed on his knees.

“Dad told us.” Timmy pointed at Blake. “We don’t want to leave, Uncle Nathan.”

“I didn’t mean what I said. I don’t want you to leave. I hope you’ll forgive my bad temper and stay.” Nathan stared at Blake for a long minute before jerking his gaze back to the kids. Andee and Reece had taken up positions on both sides of Timmy. “You’ll do me a big favor if you decide you still want to hang around.”

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