Page 22 of One Night

I pulled up the picture of Duck and sent it to her.

But it looks like I am the proud father of a new duckling.

Oh my god, he is the cutest. What’s his name?

Duck.

You named the duck Duck?

Yeah. At first I didn’t want to give him a name because I didn’t want to get too attached. In case he was sick or something happened to him. He is a wild duck after all. I fully expect him to fly away when he’s strong enough.

I hate to break it to you, but I think you might already be attached.

I smirked again.

Yeah, I think you’re right.

Trouble was, I didn’t know if I was talking about the fuzzy duck in the barn or her. I shook my head. It was finally time I admitted to myself I might be harboring a crush on Sylvie King.

And she was the one woman I could never have.

SEVEN

DUKE

“Can I drive the side-by-side?”My little niece looked at me with hopeful eyes.

I shrugged and answered “Sure” at the exact moment Wyatt ground out a harsh “No.”

Penny looked at her dad with an exaggerated pout, and he lifted his eyebrows, deepening the tiny scowl that had already formed on her cute face.

Not wanting to overstep, I backtracked. “How about this? I’ll drive you around in the side-by-side, and we’ll even go to the west pasture over some of the bunny hills.”

Penny’s eyes went wide with excitement. That kid had been born with a thirst for adventure and was turning out to be a bit of an adrenaline junkie. I was certain she was the cause for a few of the gray hairs sprouting at my younger brother’s temples.

“Can we go fast?”

Beside me, Wyatt sighed, and I shot Penny a conspiratorial wink. “I’ve got something to show you in the barn first.”

Without waiting for us, Penny took off like a shot, running toward the barn with Three-Legged Ed at her heels.

Wyatt sighed again. “That kid’s going to be the death of me.”

I watched the ground as we walked. “Ah, she’s all right. She just has an adventurous spirit.”

“She’s fearless.” He shook his head and watched her enter the barn.

I smiled. “Reminds me a lot of Mom.”

Wyatt dragged a hand through his hair. “Right? Sometimes the similarities are downright eerie.”

We let the painful subject of our mother hang in the air between us. Wyatt looked out onto the fields. “Do you ever get lonely out here all by yourself?” I glanced over at my brother but didn’t answer. “Ah, who am I kidding? You’ve always been solitary. Duke Sullivan needs nothing and no one.”

A low grumble was my only response. I wasn’t sure if that had always been true or if over time I’d been hardened to become like that. Either way, it was what it was.

As we approached the barn, Penny’s small figure filled the doorway. Her arms pressed against the entryway. “Shut the front door!”

Wyatt tipped his head to his daughter, knowing full well it was pure luck a swear hadn’t come flying out of her tiny mouth. She moved forward, grabbing one of her dad’s hands in both of hers, dragging him through the entrance of the barn. Her eyes danced with excitement.

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