“The family? How are they?” Rusty guzzled half the bottle of beer.
“They’re good. Real good.” He couldn’t actually admit that his daughter was rebelling, and his mother was giving him a hard time about moving on.
“That’s good to hear. I heard there was a fire over at Carson’s Creek. I bet it was a doozy. Was there any damage to the bridge?”
“Took us a few hours to contain the blaze but we managed to get it in control.” He stepped over to the sink, scrubbed his hands with soap and water then asked, “Can I help with anything?”
“Yeah, leave,” she whispered.
He laughed. “I don’t mind sticking around.” He shook the excess water from his hands and used a paper towel to wipe them dry.
“Suit yourself, but don’t blame me if I burn your food.” She bent over and took out the casserole dish. “Ouch!” She hurried to set the dish down and tore off the mitt to blow on her finger.
Every logical part of him screamed for him to stay away, but another part of him urged him to take a step forward. “What’d you do?”
“It’s nothing.”
He could see that it was something by the way she was holding her hand. “Let me look.” Taking the initiative, he reached for her hand. The thumping of her fast pulse beat against his thumb. Her nails were short and neat, painted with polish the color of pearl. Her skin was as soft as silk. There was a slash of redness and the starting of a blister on her finger. He heard her hiss of breath at the same time she jerked her hand away.
“I said I’m fine. Dinner’s ready.”
“Suit yourself,” he said smartly and joined Rusty at the table. “Did you get that new head of cattle?”
“Last week.”
“How about the wood for the new barn?”
“Wait. What new barn?” Mindy asked as she set the steaming casserole dish in the center of the table.
“It’s nothing,” Rusty said.
Feeling her gaze on him, Creed did his best not to look her way. The last thing he wanted was to get in the middle of whatever the father and daughter had going on. Creed wasn’t sure why Rusty was keeping the details of Sage Ranch a secret, but he also understood Mindy hadn’t shown any concern about the land for a long time.
With an agitated sigh, she went back to the stove and came back with bowls of green beans, cauliflower and rolls then took a seat across from Creed. She shook out a cloth napkin and laid it across her lap. “So you’re working here now?”
He looked up from his plate and realized she was speaking to him. He glanced over at Rusty and received no help. “A few times a week,” Creed answered, grabbing himself a piece of chicken smothered in vegetables. His mouth salivated. Although he’d grabbed a sandwich earlier, he could still eat.
“Isn’t that just cozy,” she muttered, pulled off a piece of bread and popped it into her mouth, all the while keeping her inquisitive gaze on him.
“So this is a celebration dinner?” Creed asked around a mouthful of chicken.
When she didn’t answer, Rusty said, “She’s working at the ice rink. Coaching.”
“Congratulations.” His heart betrayed his head. Why did he feel elated and angry all at once?
“It’s temporary,” she pushed out.
Although the chicken was moist, he had a hard time swallowing and sent it down with a gulp of water. “So you still skate?” He remembered how she’d dedicated every evening to skating. He always loved watching her on ice.
She didn’t even look at him when she said, “Of course. Is that hard to believe?”
“I didn’t mean—”
“Don’t mind her,” Rusty sniffed. “She’s just sour over that bastard husband—”
“Ex-husband,” she added, blotting the corners of her mouth with the napkin.
“Ex-husband left her for some teeny bopper.”
Mindy looked uncomfortable. Her cheeks flushed. “Hardly a teen, Daddy.”
“Told her not to marry him in the first place but did she ever listen to me?” Rusty groaned and speared a piece of cauliflower, staring at it like it was alien.
“That’s none of his business.”
“Yeah, it really isn’t.” Creed could literally see the tension building.
“It’s time you came back to the ranch. This is your legacy here, Minnow.” Rusty dropped the vegetable back onto his plate. “I won’t live forever.”
“Daddy, don’t say that. You have plenty of time—”
“That’s the problem with the younger generation. They think they have all the time in the world. Foolish. You’ll go back to California soon enough.”
“Maybe you should stop drinking,” she snapped.
As if this triggered something inside him, his expression changed as he pushed back his chair and stood. “If you’ll excuse me, I have somewhere to be.” He strolled from the kitchen.
The fork dinged loudly on the plate when Mindy dropped it.
Her shoulders slumped. “If you’ll excuse me I have somewhere I need to be too.” She stood and dropped her napkin on the table.
Creed watched her leave the room, feeling his chest tighten. He shouldn’t care, but he did. So her husband—ex-husband—had cheated. Creed couldn’t wrap his head around that truth. Who in their right mind would want another woman when they had Mindy? Who could kiss another pair of lips when they had hers to kiss every day? It was all too difficult to understand.
He looked across the barely touched feast on the table, shrugged, then spooned up more chicken and green beans. No reason for any of it to go to waste.
Chapter Five
MINDY DROPPED THE horse brush into the bucket and stretched her back. She’d been working chores for the last few
