“He mentioned that box,” she said softly. “He was still half convinced these baseball cards might be worth something.”
“They aren’t, but you’re welcome to keep them,” Colt said.
Jane gathered them up in one hand and looked down at them. Her husband had had so many memories on this ranch, and yet he’d never wanted to bring her here...
“Are you really angry with him, still?” she asked quietly.
“Yep. I am.” But his voice sounded tight, and when she looked over at him, she saw mist in his eyes.
“What happened?” she asked quietly. “All I know is that Beau changed his will, and Josh had enough. He’d never been the son that Beau wanted. Josh said that his dad had been more proud of you than he’d ever been of him—”
“That’s not exactly what happened,” Colt said, his voice low.
“Then what?” she pressed.
“He—” Colt turned toward her, his expression grim. “He asked me to go tell Beau I didn’t want to be in the will. I couldn’t do it.”
“The money?” she said, her stomach sinking. Had it really come down to cash, as Josh had said? Coming out here, meeting Colt herself, she’d seen a different man than that but maybe she’d just been naive.
“The money?” Colt barked out a bitter laugh. “No! Josh didn’t want this, Jane. He thought it was boring, and he wanted excitement. For years I worked this ranch in his place. He was always too busy—cadets, school football, girlfriends—” He stopped. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
“He was too busy with everything else,” Colt went on. “And I did the chores. I did morning chores and evening chores. I worked by the hour and helped my mom make ends meet. I did it because I loved it, and also because I needed to contribute at home, make sure that us staying in the in-law suite downstairs wasn’t a waste to my uncle and aunt. And my uncle really valued my contribution. I was up in the morning ten minutes before he was. Josh had to be threatened and cajoled to do even the basic stuff. He said it didn’t matter. He’d be the boss, so he’d be supervisory, anyway.”
Jane winced at that. Josh had mentioned a couple of those sentiments to her, too. He hadn’t liked ranching—he’d been clear about that.
“Thing is, I had a single mom,” Colt said. “I didn’t have the same chances he did, and when my uncle told me he’d rather leave the ranch to me in his will because he knew that I’d actually run the place, I—” He heaved a sigh. “I was grateful.”
“I could understand gratefulness,” she said.
“Yeah. I mean, when else was I going to have a shot at owning a ranch? I could work one no problem, and I’d made my peace with that. At least I’d be doing the work I loved, but to have a chance to own it? It was something I hadn’t even dared to dream about.”
“Until then...”
“Until then.” He nodded. “And once you let yourself imagine something, it’s hard to back off again.”
“And Josh wanted you to give it up,” she concluded.
“I should have,” Colt said, turning away again. “I should have told Beau that it wasn’t worth tearing apart the family over. I mean look at me—do I look like I’ve made my peace with any of this? But I didn’t. All I could hear was my cousin demanding that I give up this chance at more than I’d ever imagined—actually having a stake in this place after all those years of work. I felt like I deserved it.”
“You probably did,” she conceded.
“Ah, but Josh did, too. For other reasons. He was born to it. I couldn’t compete with that.”
“If Josh had lived...” she began quietly. “Would you have changed your mind about that? I mean, with a little more time to think it over?”
Colt looked at her, his eyes clouded. “You mean, would I have handed the land over to him to make him happy?” He shook his head. “A ranch is more than a business, Jane. It sinks into a man’s heart. It puts down roots. I’m sorry. I know how this makes me look.”
“It makes you look honest,” she said. “You could have told me anything else. You didn’t have to admit that.”
“Honest...” He reached over and took her hand. “For what it’s worth.”
It was worth more than he realized. This kind of honesty was what she’d been looking for in her marriage and had never found. She’d just wanted her husband to open up to her, trust her with whatever was going on inside him.
“Colt,” she said, turning toward him. “You’re a good man, you know.”
“You think?” He squeezed her fingers gently. “I’m not so sure.”
“You were two stubborn men butting heads.” She shrugged weakly. “You wouldn’t be the first.”
Colt met her gaze. “There are consequences, though. And I had no idea how far it would go.”
“He would have gotten the cattle, and you would have worked with him,” she said, shaking her head. “You’re a good man.”
The pain in his eyes tugged at her heart. He looked so alone, so filled with grief and self-reproach. She wanted to make him feel better, and holding his hand didn’t seem like quite enough. He turned away from her, leaning his elbows on his knees, and without thinking she leaned forward to kiss his cheek.
His gaze flicked at her as she leaned in, and he turned toward her. She froze—this hadn’t been her intention, exactly, but as his dark gaze enveloped her, he reached out and put a callused hand against her cheek.
“Colt, I—” She was going to explain, but the words evaporated on her tongue and he leaned in closer, his mouth a whisper away from hers.
“You what?” he breathed.
She didn’t answer him, and his mouth came down onto hers in a kiss. Her eyes fluttered shut as his lips moved over hers slowly, tenderly. The day seemed to evaporate around them, leaving her alone,
