Page 27

“Yeah.” I pulled the reins on my horse and twirled away from him.

“Hey,” Kipp bellowed from behind me, but I didn’t turn his way. Hoof beats came up quickly. I didn’t stop. I just got off my horse, threw the reins at him, and headed for the house. “Nora, stop.” He followed me and I turned around to see he had left Cooper with Nash. “Nora, what’s wrong?” He followed closely as I walked into the house.

“What’s wrong? You come up here and ask for my help and then ignore me the entire time I’m out there. I don’t need you all over me, but how about an acknowledgment once in a while?” I turned to head into the kitchen and he grabbed my arm.

“I was nervous. I wanted to impress you.” He looked at the floor and kicked one of Cooper’s shoes out of the middle of the room.

“Oh my God, Kipp.” I closed my eyes and rested my head against his chest. “Everything you do impresses me. You know what you want and you go after it. You are so good with Cooper. I’m impressed. Can we move on?” I looked up at him and he smiled at me.

“Sure, we can move on.” He wrapped his arms around me and leaned his head to mine. Our lips brushed together.

“Trouble in paradise?” We both froze. I took a step away from Kipp, but his arms were still around me.

“Hi, Mom.” He cleared his throat as my stomach dropped to my feet. “I better get back out there.” He put his finger under my chin and kissed me again. “Bye,” he whispered before turning and walking out the door. My face was on fire, it was melting actually, my face was melting off my head.

“So, shall we talk?” Julie asked, turning and striding back into the kitchen. I followed her, dreading every moment of the conversation ahead. I’d only met parents once before, and I was told to stay away from their son. This felt a lot the same.

“Mrs. Miller, I’m sorry. I’ve blurred the lines of why I’m here, and it won’t happen again.” I shook my head and looked at my feet. If I was looking at my feet, I didn’t have to see the hate in her eyes. It was one thing to joke about it but a total other thing that it was actually happening in front of her.

“It better happen again. Dear, I don’t know what you’ve done to my son, but this is the happiest I’ve seen him in a long time. It doesn’t really matter what is happening as long as you’re both aware of it, which, from what I can tell, it's not one-sided.” She arched her brow and handed me a glass.

My nose burned when I smelled it. “Is this whiskey?”

“You seem like you need a shot. You’re a little high-strung today.” She smiled and threw hers back.

“It’s ten in the morning,” I said, looking at the alcohol in my hand.

She shrugged. “It's branding. You’ve been up since four, right?” Her grin made me shake my head and, following suit, I did the same and it burned all the way down my throat.

“Hey, you can’t do shots without me!” Kristin whined when she came into the kitchen. Julie poured one for her and she took it. “Another one, “she puffed. “I roped for two hours. I need something to make me forget how sore my arm is.” Julie poured three more shots. We all slammed them on the counter and drank.

“Okay, we have to work,” Julie huffed as she twisted the lid back on the bottle and put it back into the cupboard. “Kipp text when Griff was hurt and said you would need help, so here I am.” Julie smiled and I couldn’t stop myself from throwing my arms around her.

“Thank you. All right, let’s get the tables set.” I turned a little too fast and stumbled. Kristin reached out and steadied me. “I’m good, good.” Nodding, I could feel myself get a little rubbery. “Whiskey has never been my friend. Whiskey is the reason Cooper is here. No more whiskey,” I said, shaking my finger. The women stared at me, giggled, and we went about our work.

Cooper didn’t make it to supper, and Kipp effortlessly picked him up and walked him into the house while I talked with some of the other wives that had come to help. “Oh, that man could make me want to have kids again at my age,” one of the older women said, sighing. All eyes turned to the door where he’d just disappeared through. “Sorry, Julie, but it’s the truth.”

“I’ve had to listen to it since he was eighteen. I’m used to it.” She ate the last of the food that was on her plate before looking at me, winking slightly. I didn’t think anyone else noticed.

“But Kipp Sr. was a handsome man too. You were the envy of the county.” Another woman nodded.

I saw Julie’s eyes sparkle with tears and her beautiful smile turned radiant. “That he was. God, I miss that man,” she whispered as she wiped a tear that had fallen down her cheek.

“How did you meet?” I asked, reaching for my water.

“I came to cook on this ranch.” She arched her brow and smiled.

“You did not,” I deadpanned, rolling my eyes, not believing her.

“She did too,” Sonja piped up from beside Julie. She was Julie’s best friend and they were inseparable.

“I came from Wyoming for a summer job. In those days, the workers stayed in the bunkhouse, but I ran into some trouble and Kipp Sr. loaded my belongings up and moved me into the room you’re in now. There wasn’t a question asking me if I wanted to. He just decided it would happen.” She smiled as she talked about Kipp’s dad, and I couldn’t blame her.

“Sounds like the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” I quipped, leaning back against the chair I was sitting on, listening to her story intently.

“We were married six months later. Kipp Jr. came along three months after the wedding.” Her cheeks grew pink and I was shocked that she’d blushed. She was a tough ranch woman that I’d imagined had seen or done everything that would make someone blush.

“It was quite the scandal, but once Kipp Jr. came along, nobody remembered anything about it,” Sonja said, patting Julie on her leg. “Kipp Sr. became Miller, and Kipp Jr. was just Kipp. Miller was so proud of his son. He taught him everything he knew…” Sonja’s voice trailed off and all the women in the group looked nostalgic.