Page 53 of The Cattleman's Unforgettable Love

She tilted her head back to look up into his eyes. "If you don't mind, I think I do want to talk about it."

"Then talk away. I'm here for you."

"Danny was an addict."

Ford nodded. The information took him by surprise, but no way would he let that show on his face. Amelia turned away from him to stare at the mountains as she continued to talk.

"I tried for years, did everything I could to help him, but I couldn't help him. I have no idea..." She shook her head sadly. "Crystal was the same. I didn't really know her, but she seemed so sweet. And they loved each other." She glanced up at him with a small smile. "I know that, and it helps."

The smile vanished as she continued. "I cut him out of my life in the end. I couldn't help him, and trying to was only making things worse for both of us. He died... overdosed."

Ford tightened his arm around her. He didn't speak. Words wouldn't mean anything, so instead, he pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

She didn't say anything else for a long while, and he waited. Eventually, she shook her head. "So yeah. Anyway, sorry about that, but I guess my point is, I have no idea who this kid might be." She turned to look at him again. "Do you have any clues? Thoughts?"

"Obviously I don't know, but I'd guess that he may be related to Crystal – to know the exact date she died." He shrugged. "For a kid to know the date..." He didn't want to say the rest, because the picture that he was piecing together in his mind could be completely wrong. And even if he was right, he'd rather she pieced it together for herself.

Amelia nodded slowly. "Maybe he was her nephew or something. Maybe Crystal's family was still part of their lives when Danny died, like I wasn't," she added in a sad, small voice.

"Hey, come on, you can't blame yourself," he told her. "I know you did all that you could do and would have done more if you thought it could have helped rather than hurt him."

She blew out a sigh. "Thank you for saying that."

"I'm not just saying it."

"I know. I mean, thanks for giving me confirmation from outside of my own head that even though it didn't work out the way I hoped, I still wasn't wrong to step away."

He held her a little tighter. "I know it's hard, but you couldn't live his life for him. I'm sorry you lost him."

"Thanks." She glanced at the laptop again. "So, what do you think? Do I need to just put this kid out of my head until next weekend, see if he shows up to chat again and find out what he wants?"

Ford nodded slowly. Part of him wanted to tell her what he was guessing, but it might be a horrible move – whether he was right or wrong. He looked at all the little icons across the bottom of the screen. "I'm guessing that while you were talking to him, you were trying to track him down."

She nodded. "Yeah."

"Did you find him?"

"Yeah. If this is as straightforward as it seems, and he really is just a kid, then he's a kid on a regular ISP in central Florida."

He cocked an eyebrow.

"Just outside of Orlando," she added.

"In case I've never told you before, you're amazing. And it's amazing the way you do that."

She shrugged. "I could say the same thing to you. I have no idea how you manage this place and all those hundreds of cows who wander around outside."

He had to chuckle at the way she phrased it and was pleased when she smiled back. It was good to know that he could lift her spirits.

"I know I should call them cattle and call you the ranch manager or something, but I have no idea about what you do, let alone how you do it. We all have our own talents."

He nodded. "We do. And what do you think? Do you want to use yours to see if you can figure anything more out about this kid, or would you rather wait?"

She blew out a sigh. "Part of me wants to go to work and try to figure it all out right now, this afternoon. But the rest of me wants to take a day or two to just come to terms with it. I don't want to sound melodramatic, but I felt for the longest time... alone. Alone in the sense that apart from my cousins, I don't even know anyone who knew Danny anymore. And just knowing that there's a kid out there who..."

Ford sat back as she leaned forward and tapped at her keyboard, bringing the screen back up. He waited, wondering if she'd picked up on the same detail that he had.

She confirmed it when she peered at the screen before turning back to him. "Did you notice?" she asked.

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