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“Oh, but . . . I mean, he wanted to do the basketball camp. He loved basketball! I wasn’t forcing him.”

“Of course not, but he’s clearly changed his mind about something. If he’s anything like my boy was, there’s no going back.”

Banned. “No, there isn’t. But . . . He helps out at Mile High. I thought . . . It’s so beautiful up there, and active. I thought he’d love the hiking and rock climbing and all that. It’s healing.... It can be healing.” She felt healed. Not quite the same way Lilly did, but this was still . . . She was a new person, becoming a better, stronger person. Gracely had to have something to do with that.

“Of course, Cora. The land is the truth. It’s why people believe in this Gracely legend. I’d be hard-pressed to find someone who can’t get a little healing from the land, but mostly it’s just a little space to heal themselves. That’s fine for adults, but a sullen boy with ghosts in his eyes needs to feel responsible for something. He needs to feel big instead of small. That’s where the animals come in. He needs a ranch. He needs horses and hard work. Mark my words.”

“I don’t . . .”

“You bring him out tomorrow morning, and I’ll have Shane and Gavin work up some chores for him.”

“Oh, but . . .”

“Tomorrow is your day off, isn’t it?”

“Yes, but—”

“You can supervise, see if you’d be comfortable leaving the boy with us a few hours here and there. If not, no hard feelings. But give it a chance.” Deb reached across the table and patted Cora’s arm. “I know a thing or two about raising boys. They drive me crazy, and I’d throttle all of ’em eight ways till Sunday about now, but they’re fine, good men.”

Emily clucked her tongue. “You might as well just agree. She won’t take no for an answer.”

“Oh, now,” Deb said, swatting Emily fondly on the arm.

Micah shuffled out of the bathroom, still sullen, shoulders slumped, and he just wouldn’t talk to her. Even that session with Dr. Grove the other day hadn’t been helpful, at least not short-term.

Maybe Deb was right.

“You bring him out at six,” Deb said, a little overloud, and Cora had to bite back a laugh as Micah’s mouth dropped.

“Oh, I thought ranchers started work at sunrise,” Cora said brightly.

Micah’s jaw dropped farther, and Cora stifled a giggle as Emily covered her smiling mouth with her hand to hide it.

“We’ll give him a break on that since you’ll be the one driving him over.” Deb looked over Cora’s shoulder to Micah, who was standing halfway between their table and his seat in the corner. “Maybe next week he can start at sunrise.”

“Mom?” Micah said, eyes wide and a note of panic in his voice.

It might make her a terrible mother, but all she could think at that note of panic wasgood. Maybe her son needed some panic.

And some hard work.

* * *

Shane yawned into his jug of water while Gavin muttered irritably at the slow drip of the coffee maker. No matter how many years passed, Shane still couldn’t stand the smell of coffee in the morning, but he forced himself to endure it, if only to remind himself he wasn’t twelve anymore.

“Good. You’re up.”

Mom, dressed and alert, walked into the kitchen with that aura of determination in her eyes that never bade well for him.

Oh, Shane was not ready to fight about Donahue. He was a morning person by and large, but he needed a little time out in the fresh air before his brain truly started to engage enough to ward off whatever battle his mother was about to wage.

“I need a favor from you boys.” She glanced from Gavin to Shane as if considering before her gaze focused on Shane. “Mostly you.”

“Mom—”

“Before you start yapping about the wedding or Ben, this doesn’t have anything to do with either.”

“How could that possibly be?” Gavin asked grumpily.