She puffed her cheeks and blew out a breath. “Some days I wonder if the best thing for us would be to sell this place and be rid of its peccadillos, once and for all.”
“I don’t think Claire would like to hear you say that.” He poured several pieces of dried fruit and peanuts into his palm. “Her heart is tied to this place now.”
His aunt eyed him for a moment, her gaze narrowing. “Tell me what’s goin’ on with you, Mac.”
“What do you mean?” He tossed the handful of trail mix into his mouth, crunching on the sweet and salty blend.
“The last few times ya been here, you’ve had a rain cloud followin’ you around.”
It was no surprise Ruby had picked up on signs of his mental struggle. Since Mac’s mom died almost twenty years ago, his aunt had been filling in for her sister and mothering him whenever she had the chance.
“Maybe you’re just picking up Claire’s mom on the radar,” he said with a grin. Deborah did tend to hover over him like a dark, menacing thunderstorm cloud when she was on one of her “take-better-care-of-my-daughter” rampages.
“You joke, smartypants, but I’m serious. Tell me what’s really goin’ on in your noggin.”
Before Mac could answer, the curtain leading to the rec room opened and Claire’s grandpa strode through. “Ruby, where did you put my—” Harley stopped when he noticed the two of them standing at the counter. “Am I interrupting something?”
“No,” Mac said, opening his bottle of tea.
“Yes.” Ruby’s focus returned to Mac. “My nephew was fixin’ to tell me what’s been bothering him.”
Harley grimaced. “I’ll come back later.”
“Wait,” Mac said, surprising Harley and himself. He toyed with the bottle cap, wondering how to broach his decision to shake up his life. He waded into it. “Ruby’s right. I’ve been struggling with a problem lately, and I’ve finally come to a decision that affects the two of you as well as Claire.”
“Are you going to ask Claire to marry you?” Harley asked. “If so, I should install shackles in the basement to hold her steady before you pop the big question.”
Mac smirked. Harley knew his granddaughter too well. “Not yet.”
Truth be told, though, Mac had bought Claire a ring before Christmas. Nothing fancy, just a garnet shaped into a heart. Something simple that he thought a girl who doesn’t wear a lot of jewelry might like. But he’d chickened out and tucked the ring away, worried a proposal would send her scurrying back to the Black Hills.
“I’m tired of commuting back and forth to Tucson,” he said and took a drink of cold tea.
Harley joined his wife behind the counter. “I don’t blame you. That’s a long drive to make as often as you do.”
“And dangerous, too, especially as tired as you often are when you make the drive after a day on the job.” Ruby’s forehead lined. “Have you talked to Claire about this?”
“More or less.” He sprinkled more trail mix into his palm. “She’s offered to spend three nights a week in Tucson with me and share the long commute, but I don’t think that’s going to cut it.”
Harley put his hand on Ruby’s back. “What will?”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to figure out for the last few weeks. I’ve come to the conclusion that the career track I was on no longer appeals.”
His aunt leaned her elbows on the counter. “Is this about that promotion you passed up back in November?”
“Partly.” He tossed the snack mix into his mouth. He’d been aiming for that particular job for years. When that no longer became a goal, he’d started floundering, asking bigger-picture questions without being able to see the answers anymore.
Harley harrumphed. “Claire should have pushed you to take the promotion.”
“She did,” Mac told him. “She even agreed to leave this place and travel with me wherever I went, but in the end I passed on the job.” He wanted Claire by his side, but he didn’t want her to sacrifice her happiness for him.
“So, what’s the problem then?” Ruby asked. “Have you changed your mind now about taking that promotion?”
“Actually, no.” He fiddled with the bottle cap. “I’m leaning in the opposite direction now.”
“Opposite how?” Harley pressed.
Mac laid his cards face-up on the table. “I’m going to quit my job.”
His aunt’s jaw dropped. “But honey, you love your job.”
“I used to.”
“Ah, hell.” Harley crossed his arms. “Claire’s gone and done it. She’s rubbed off on you with her dandelion-seed-in-the-wind ways.”
Mac chuckled. “Not quite. My feet are still touching the ground. They’re just turned in a different direction now.”
“What are you going to do if you quit?” Ruby asked. “What about your house? Your plans to travel overseas? Your—”
“I don’t have any answers yet,” Mac interrupted. “I’m still feeling my way through this, but I can tell you that the idea of continuing on my current path doesn’t hold my interest anymore.”
Ruby’s ponytail bobbed as she nodded. “Okay then, what can we do to help?”
He looked at Claire’s grandfather. “For starters, I may need to rent your Winnebago until I can find a more permanent place to live.” Although if he did move into Harley’s RV, he was relocating it to another spot in the campground. There was no way he could handle living next door to Claire’s mother.
“Phooey on that,” his aunt said. “You’ll stay in the spare room with Claire for free. She works hard around here, earning room and board and then some for both of you.”
“I don’t want to crowd you two.”
Ruby waved him off. “We’ve been fixin’ to spend more time up north at Harley’s place in the hills. Maybe bouncing back and forth every so often with Jessica if she’s willin’, especially come summer when it’s so darn hot down here.”
“What are you going to do for a job?” Harley asked.
“Honey!” Ruby frowned at
