He’d said no. Olivia sucked in a deep breath. It was his right, and she didn’t blame him at this point. But she had been hoping for a different answer. Maybe an agreement just to sit down together, a conversation with the people... That would have been the kind of answer that would have satisfied the Whites. But this answer wasn’t going to make them happy...
“Okay, that’s understandable,” she said slowly. “I’ll tell them that.”
“Good.” Sawyer’s expression was more cautious, though. Less open. And she wondered what he was thinking right now.
Olivia had been right that he needed more time to get his memory back before he could grapple with this issue. But an “I told you so” wouldn’t be helpful right now, either. The Whites had been pushing her for answers, and now they would have one. But it wasn’t the kind of answer that would prompt the grateful intervention with a hospital board, either.
Except, this wasn’t about money—wasn’t that what she’d just told Sawyer? This was about a family in pieces that needed to heal. But she’d done more than just talk with the Whites last night...and her stomach sank at the memory. She’d texted them a photo.
It had been going too far. She felt that even more keenly this morning than she had last night, and she licked her lips, wishing she didn’t have to confess this part.
“I—” She winced. “Sawyer, I did something you might not like too much...”
“Oh?” He eyed her cautiously. “What’s that?”
“Last night, I was talking with Mia’s parents. They called me, for the record. They wanted me to put in a good word for them with you. Anyway, I sent them a photo of the girls. I took a couple at the park in town, and they were so cute. When Irene and Wyatt asked for a picture of the girls, I sent one.”
Sawyer was silent for a moment, and she watched his face, trying to decode his emotions. But his expression was granite.
“I’m sorry,” she added. “I realized after I’d done it that it was overstepping and I didn’t have the right. They aren’t my kids. I know I was wrong, but I wanted to tell you.”
“Yeah, I wish you hadn’t done that,” he said with a sigh. “But...whatever. It’s just a picture, and like you say—they are family, right?”
“They are,” she agreed.
“No more of that, though,” he said, catching her gaze and holding it. “Not without asking me first.”
He was their father, and she could feel that authority in his gaze.
“I promise,” she said with a nod.
“Okay. If they want to know about me or the kids, let me be the one who talks to them. And I’ll do that when I’m ready.”
“That’s fair,” she agreed.
“You can tell them that.”
She wasn’t sure what she’d been expecting when coming out here. But now she was hoping that the Whites would still value her contribution here enough to hold up their end of the bargain. She’d been so fixated on how they could help her, that she hadn’t fully thought through what she was supposed to achieve. Was delivering a message really worth that much to them? Or were they expecting more of her?
Olivia took a spoonful of sugar and sprinkled it over her oatmeal. The worst was out of the way, and at least she wouldn’t have a deception on her conscience. However things worked out with the Whites, she couldn’t sacrifice Sawyer in the process.
“So, about Evelyn,” Sawyer said, turning to Lloyd. “Is this...romantic yet?”
Olivia flicked her gaze to the older man, relieved that the topic hand changed, but also interested. Did Lloyd have a girlfriend?
“I’m not sure,” Lloyd said, and his tone was carefully controlled.
“Well, what did she say?” Sawyer asked.
“She said she’d love to see my ranch and that the calving season sounding really interesting. She’d never seen a calf born before.”
“But how did she say it?” Sawyer asked.
“She put her hand on my arm,” Lloyd said. “And she smiled real nice. You were watching us talk. I don’t know! What did it look like?”
Olivia couldn’t help but smile, too—was this really how men talked when it came to women? They weren’t so much different, were they?
Her cell phone rang, and Olivia pulled her phone out of her pocket, meaning to just silence the ringer, but it was her brother’s number. Olivia stood up, picking up the call and moving across the kitchen so not to interrupt Sawyer and Lloyd’s conversation.
“Brian?” she said.
“Hey.” His voice was terse. “So, something’s happened.”
“What is it?” she asked, her heartbeat speeding up. She put her hand over her other ear to hear him better.
“Shari’s parents just found out that she’s pregnant, and it’s a mess.”
“What’s going on?” she asked. “I mean, she’s a grown woman—”
“Yeah, but they’re furious. They want her to move home to have the baby.”
“And not marry you...” Olivia concluded.
“So it would seem.” Brian sounded angry. In the background she heard a woman’s voice, but couldn’t make out the words. “Shari’s really upset. She’s close with her parents, and—”
“What can I do to help?” Olivia asked.
“How’d you like to be a witness at a shotgun wedding?” he asked.
“You’re serious?” she asked quietly.
“Well, first of all, I was hoping we could just sit down and talk it all through. I mean, if you can get that debt reduction that you were promised—”
But it wasn’t quite so simple as that anymore. Maybe it never was.
“I can’t guarantee that, Brian,” she said quietly. “I don’t think I can deliver what the Whites want. So we might have to give up hope of that offer. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have options, okay? Let’s get together and talk. I might be able to see a solution where you can’t right now. What matters is that you two love each other, right?”
“Yeah, right.”
“Where are you?” she asked.
“At my place. Shari’s on the phone with
