Page 111 of Extreme Romancing in Idaho

“Where are we going?”

She didn’t miss a beat. “There’s an antique store out this way. It just opened. I thought we’d give it a try.”

Antique store? That I hadn’t heard about? Unlikely.

“Given our financial situation, we would have lost the farm anyway. Remi made it as painless as possible if you think about it.”

“I can’t trust him.” I gripped my thighs. “Besides, he moved back to Texas.”

“Maybe you should give him a second chance. Tony loved him like a son. He can’t be all bad.”

She turned down the most beautiful lane. Maple trees lined either side of the driveway. Bright white wood panel fences bordered green pastures. A horse galloped along with our car, almost looking like—

“Mae!” I tapped Mama’s shoulder. “Look, it’s Mae! Did you find the people who bought her?” I rolled the window down and leaned out to get a better view of my horse.

Mama slowed as she approached the house. The lane widened to a two-story white farmhouse placed in the center of sprawling fields and rolling hills of pasture. It had a wraparound porch with a swing on it, swaying in the wind. Windchimes, sounding just like Mama’s, danced in the breeze, their melodic sound carrying to me through my open window, followed by the call of a rooster.

We came to a stop.

Remi was at the bottom of the stairs, wearing his typical white shirt and blue jeans, minus his cowboy hat, holding a … puppy?

“This is where I leave. Get out. And go easy on him. That man is more in love with you than you know,” Mama said.

I didn’t want to get out. Remi could hold a hundred puppies in front of a thousand dream homes, but I wouldn’t move from this seat.

When I didn’t move, Mama reached over and opened the door for me. She unlatched my seat belt. “Out.”

Woodenly, I unfolded myself from the car and closed the door. If it weren’t for Mae, I would have refused. Mama sped back the way she’d come. I stood rooted in place, staring at my dreamlike surroundings. Stables matching the house rose to the south, and a detached garage and a quaint chicken coop with my chickens milling about underneath a large willow tree stood to the north. A creek gurgled somewhere near enough I could hear it.

I spun 360 degrees until I faced Remi once again. “What’s going on?” I did my best to melt him with my stare, but the wonder of this place took some of the venom out of it.

He took a few cautious steps toward me, the puppy whimpering and squirming in his arms. “I got it right, didn’t I? White farmhouse. Land to call your own. A large, healthy pasture for Mae. And a,” he held the puppy out to me, “dog.”

I allowed myself to examine the puppy, taking in his curly coat with a white stripe in the middle of his forehead, leading to his white nose and chest. Black patches with two brown spots looped around his droopy eyes. He was the cutest darn puppy I’d ever seen.

“I didn’t know what kind of dog you wanted, so I projected and picked one I would have loved to have as a kid. A Bernese Mountain Dog. Turns out they’re not only loveable and gentle; they also make good livestock guardian dogs.” He rubbed the puppy’s head while it licked his nose.

I opened and closed my mouth a few times before I found words. “What do you mean, you got it right?” I gestured to the area around me. “Why are we here? What are you doing back in Idaho, holding the cutest puppy in the world? Why is Mae in the pasture? And is that?” Marching past him, I focused on the metal structure at the end of a gravel path I hadn’t noticed. “Is that Oscar parked next to the shop?”

Remi shrugged. “Even Booster the Rooster is here.”

“Explain,” I insisted. My patience ran out.

He set the puppy on the lawn next to his feet. “Remember the money my brother and dad promised me if I bought your farm?”

“Yes, you planned on using it to open your extreme sports store.”

“I used every penny to buy this place and most of your stuff at auction. Some of the tractors I had to let go because they were just too expensive and too big.”

I covered my mouth with my hands and didn’t say anything.

“Sorry, I didn’t tell you sooner. I tried. But I’m pretty sure you blocked my number.”

I had, in fact, blocked him the morning I’d seen the closing documents.

“And I had to put a lot of work into it before it was ready for you.” Remi kicked at the gravel. “It’s not as big as your old place. Only eighty acres. Something you could manage while still working at the hospital …” His voice trailed off.

I gaped at him. He’d bought me a house. Not just any house. My dream home. He’d given Mae back to me. Tears shuttered down my cheeks. He stepped forward with his arms outstretched, but I stopped him. “Why?”

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