Page 65 of The Way to a Cowboy's Heart

“Daddy!” Clover practically leapt out of Sarah’s arms and into his.

He wrapped his arms around her, burying his face against her curls. “There’s my girl. Now what’s this fish I’m hearing about? And did you get a hot dog yet?”

“No, but look.” She held up her rock proudly.

“Oh, man, Clover. It’s a beaut. We might have to send that to the museum. It’s quite a specimen. What do you think?”

She shook her head. “No. He’s mine!”

He laughed. “Fair enough.” Clover had his green eyes and Emily’s beautiful face, and he was as besotted with his daughter as he still was with her mother.

“Daddy?”

“Yeah, honey?”

“I’m hungry.”

He settled her down near Eloise with a hot dog and got one for Eloise as well. “Anybody see where Emily went?” Even as he said it, he spotted her heading their way with a heavy trayful of sodas.

He told Clover, “You wait here with Eloise. I’ll be right back.”

A few moments later, he was snatching the heavy tray from Emily’s hands as she headed toward the Hardesty table. “I could have gotten that,” he said.

“I know,” she said. “Thanks, love.”

He shook his head. “Clover’s been looking for you.”

The smile that broke over her face was something he would never get used to. Since Clover arrived, almost a year to the day after they married at the courthouse, surrounded by his family, Emily seemed to be in her element. Motherhood suited her and was, perhaps, her biggest surprise. He couldn’t be more in love with her than he was, just watching her love their daughter.

Shedding the city had been easier than she’d expected, and she had built a big circle of friends here and had even started up her supper club again, once a month. If things worked out the way she hoped, she would expand that supper club to a weekly event dinner with limited seating over the summer, right here at the round barn. It had been her dream, and he meant to make it happen.

“I thought Clover was blissfully happy playing with the big kids over at the adventure park,” Emily said. “Really, it’s all she’s talked about doing for days now, hearing that Eloise, Lucas, and Lolly would be here.”

“Oh, yeah. But she wants to show you something she found.” He set the drinks down and they began unloading them into the Yeti tubs that were filled with ice. “Get ready for it to be all about a fish now.”

“A—what?”

“You’ll see.”

“Mommy!” Clover arrived at Emily’s side; collided, perhaps would be a better description. Her mouth was smeared with ketchup. “Look!”

Emily properlyoohedandahhedover the fossil then washed both it and Clover’s ketchup mouth clean with some bottled water. After, the tiny fish fossil stood out even more. Delighted, Clover took off at a run with Eloise to show Lolly her find.

Liam nudged Emily and jerked his chin in the direction of her father, who was deep in conversation with a guest from Canada who worked in the government. “He’s feeling right at home, it seems.”

She smiled. “He is trying, isn’t he?” It wasn’t her father’s first time back since they’d married.

Unexpectedly, he’d come for Clover’s birth after he and Emily had mostly mended fences between them during that visit. He was, in spite of everything, a doting grandfather, calling Clover once a month on Zoom much to her delight. Malcolm was still a no-show, but deep down, Liam knew Emily hoped for a reconciliation one day.

The smoke from the grill wafted over to them and Liam inhaled the savory fragrance. “Smells like Nevers is going to nail it again. I’m starving.”

Chef Nevers had gotten his anxiety under control and had proven to be a wonderful addition to the Hard Eight ranch. His food was one of the ranch’s great attractions, and Liam was glad they’d listened to his wife and kept him on years ago after a rough start.

Beside him, Emily wrinkled her nose, waving the smoke away, moving out of its path. She looked a little green, suddenly.

“What’s wrong? You okay?” he asked.

“Sort of.”

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