“And this is the gift of therapy that you want to bring the people of this county,” he said with a wry smile.
“It isn’t such a terrible thing, is it?” She smiled again, her blue gaze meeting his.
“You relax when you’re solving other people’s problems,” he said instead. She did more than relax—she came to life. Not that he’d put it that way out loud.
She blinked, and some of that self-confidence fell away. The smile slipped, the sparkle in her eyes dimmed. He hadn’t meant to do that, exactly, and he regretted it. He was just meaning to point out what was obvious to him—she seemed to blossom when sorting out other people’s garbage.
“It did...uh...help, though,” he offered after a beat of silence.
“You hate that a little bit,” she said, a rueful smile curving her lips again.
“Nah...” He chuckled, then shrugged. “I’m a man. I’d rather rub dirt on it and walk it off, but that doesn’t always work.”
“I daresay it never works,” she countered.
“You walk long enough and you forget,” he replied with a lift of his shoulders.
“You don’t forget, though.” The smile evaporated and sadness misted her eyes. She compressed her lips into a line and swallowed. “They tell you that you will—but that’s a lie.”
Those words were coming from a deeper, more private place inside her, he could tell, and he tried to catch her eye again, but she turned away and headed back into the kitchen, where the coffeepot was burbling away. She grabbed a mug and poured herself a cup prematurely, the drips of coffee hissing on the heater below before she replaced the pot.
“Ember?” he said. “You okay?”
She turned back toward him, recomposed. “I’m fine.” She lifted the mug in a salute. “You rub dirt, and I drink coffee.”
“You want to talk about it?”
“Not really. It’s—” She shook her head. “It’s old. I’m fine.”
Fair enough. But when he’d seen that pain in her eyes, it made him want to fix it somehow. Maybe that was just the man in him. But he had a feeling that she wouldn’t let him, anyway.
Chapter Six
Ember got up early the next morning. Casey had offered to drive her to church with him, and she’d accepted the offer. From what Casey told her, this was the only congregation a comfortable driving distance from the ranch, and most of the Christians in the area attended one of two services in a little country church that wasn’t big enough for everyone at one time.
But Ember hadn’t agreed to go to church just to see the local parish. She felt like she needed some grounding after her last week. Worship was healing.
Ember heard the rumble of Casey’s pickup truck outside the house, and she grabbed her purse, slipped on a pair of strappy heels and went out to meet him. The chill spring air made her shiver as it met her bare legs. She hurried to the passenger side and Casey leaned over and pushed the door open for her.
“Good morning,” he said as she hopped up into the cab and the welcome jet of heat.
“Morning.” She smiled at him and looked into the back seat. Both babies were sleeping, their soothers rising and falling in a syncopated rhythm. She pulled on her seat belt as Casey started forward again.
They fell into a companionable silence as Casey drove out to the gravel road and turned onto it.
“You seem like an old hand at this,” Ember said. “The car seats, the soothers...”
“Oh, that took forty-five minutes,” Casey said with a low laugh. “But I had no faith in my ability to do this quickly, so I started early.”
Ember chuckled. “You seem to just...roll with these things, though. It’s admirable.”
“Then I fake it well.” He shot her a rueful smile. “I’m pretty overwhelmed here. In fact, I considered not taking the babies to church at all today, but I don’t want to start that. I doubt it’ll get easier as they get bigger, so it’s probably better to just jump in.”
Ember smiled. He didn’t seem to realize that his attitude was rare. Not a lot of men would just launch themselves into childcare the way he had.
“What about you?” Casey pulled down the visor as he turned onto the highway and the morning sun glistened into their eyes.
“What about me?” she asked, adjusting her visor, too.
“Do you want kids one day?”
Ember sucked in a breath. She was asked this from time to time, and the answer was never easy.
“No,” she admitted. “I don’t.”
“Okay.” He nodded, then leaned back in his seat. “I get it. Not everybody wants kids. I always thought I’d be a dad, but after I was married. Not before! This took me by surprise.”
“I think babies are wonderful,” Ember said. “Don’t get me wrong there! I had a tough time after my mom died, and I had to grow up really fast. When I made that promise to God that if He helped me to get my education, I’d put all of myself into helping others with my career, I took that vow really seriously. I know that I could do that and have a family, but...” How could she explain this without saying too much?
“God doesn’t call us all to the same life,” Casey concluded.
“Yes, and maybe we aren’t all suited to the same things. I do feel called to help others through therapy. I know I can make a difference there.”
“I get it.”
“Most people tell me I’ll change my mind. But you know when you’ve stepped into stride with God’s will. You can feel it.”
“It isn’t anyone’s place to change your mind, Ember,” he said. “From what I know of you, you’re a woman who’s thought things through.”
“I have. I’ve been through a lot, but those experiences help me to understand what others are going through in their rough
