Page 18 of Spark
Grizzly Creek Ranch
Sunday, June 3
“So, Sophie’s back,” observed Dane Swanson. “You finally going to get around to courting her?”
It was barely dawn, and Matt and his dad were busy mucking out the stables.
Though the actual work of rounding up the ranch’s cattle was mostly done with ATVs these days, Dad and Grandma Elle always kept at least a dozen horses on the property.
All of the Swansons enjoyed riding, and Matt had been in the saddle almost as soon as he could walk, learning how to handle his pony, Oreo.
And then there was the ranch’s thriving sideline as a resort.
Summer guests, who were mostly city folk, really enjoyed the riding lessons and the guided trail rides that had been Aunt Margaret’s idea years ago. The steady income from those guests had kept the ranch afloat in hard times, and it helped provide a financial cushion for the Swanson family business now.
“I—I don’t know, Dad,” Matt said, honestly.
He hadn’t been able to stop thinking about how perfectly Sophie had fit into his arms yesterday morning, and how much he had missed her scent, her smile, and her warm brown eyes while she’d been away.
The sight of Chris and Sophie hanging out and excited about working together on their ghost hunt had made him feel strange…not angry or jealous, but kind of lonely.Left out.
Dane tossed a shovelful of dirty straw into the waiting wheelbarrow, then stood there, frowning. “Well, what’s stopping you, son? She’s not going to be home for very long. Mitya and Damaris have both mentioned that she’s applied to medical school.”
“I know,” Matt said, tightly.
The thought of Sophie leaving again so soon made his inner bear very unhappy. And Matt, too, if he was going to be honest with himself. During her gap year, he’d felt as if something in his chest had shriveled up, leaving an aching void.
At least when they’d both still been in college, he’d gotten to spend time with her during semester breaks and for the holidays.
“You planning to wait until she’s a doctor?” his dad asked. “Just going to hope that someone else doesn’t step in and court her before you finally get around to it?”
Matt gritted his teeth. Dad—and pretty much every other Swanson bear shifter on this ranch—knew that Matt’s bear had chosen Sophie as their mate years ago, before Matt was even interested in girls that way.
“There’s some other stuff going on right now,” he said. “It’s not the right time.”
Not to mention that Sophie had never given him any sign that she might be interested in him as more than just a friend.
And then there was Chris.
The sabertooth shifter was his best friend, but right now he was also acting like a rival for Sophie's affections. Matt had known that Sophie was meant to behisever since they first met. His bear was only really happy when Sophie was around. But he really liked Chris, too.
In fact, Chris had become like a brother to Matt in the years since Chris and his Uncle Daniel had first shown up at the ranch. Matt had never forgotten their dramatic arrival.
Daniel had been all shot up, and Chris had been terrified out of his wits that the bad guys who had just tried to kill them in Albuquerque would follow them to Bearpaw Ridge.
“It’s never going to be the right time if you keep waiting,” Dad said, gently. “Before I met your mother, I’d sworn I’d never date another Ordinary woman, because of, well, something bad that happened to me in college. But when I laid eyes on Annabeth, I knew instantly that she was the only one for me, and my bear agreed.”
“Yeah, but—” Matt began, thinking,Mom told me that she fell for you at first sight, too. You guys knew that you were meant for each other from the very start.
Dad wasn’t done talking. “I also knew that courting her wasn’t going to be easy, and there was a pretty good chance that I was going to get my heart broken. Again. But you know what?”
“What?” Matt asked. He raked up another pile of soiled straw and manure.
“Annabeth was worth the risk. Son, if you want my advice—” Dane grinned crookedly. “Which you probably don’t, here it is: weigh the risks and the rewards. Is your life going to be better or worse without Sophie in it?”
“Worse,” Matt said instantly. He didn’t even have to think about it. “Definitely worse. This past year, without her…” He shook his head.
“Thought so,” Dad said. He smiled at Matt, deepening the slight crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes. “Your mom and I really like Sophie, by the way, so we’re cheering for you. Maggie, too.”
