Page 23 of Rancher's Return

“Yeah.”

“So...” She squinted. “Lily wants to have Colton over to study. And she swears that they’re actually going to study.”

“Oh. Well. Sounds believable.”

She snorted. “I told her they have to leave the door open in the room where they’re studying the whole time. Also, I was wondering if you wanted to come over and work on the plans for this.”

“Better idea. Why don’t you guys all come out to my place, and we can do the planning there? There’s more room, and the kids can sprawl out in public areas, but still have some quiet for studying.”

“Oh. That’s great. If we do that, let me do dinner. I’m very efficient at dinner.”

“I’m not going to say no to that.”

“Okay. It sounds good.”

“Yeah. Still not a date,” he said.

“No,” she said. “Still not a date.”

Lily was a little bit irritated with Marigold at co-opting the study night, but her daughter seemed pleased to go to Colton’s house. Like it would give her a window into this boy she liked, and it would probably be enjoyable.

“I mean, I haven’t gotten to go inside,” she said.

“No, and now you will. But not into his bedroom.”

“Mom,” said Lily.

“Well. His dad and I both thought this plan would be a good idea.”

“Right.”

Marigold needed to explain to Lily everything that was going on. She had mentioned that Buck had offered to invest in her business, and for all that she had been uninterested in the topic, Lily had seemed happy for her.

“To be clear,” Marigold said, “I am not dating his dad.”

Lily’s face contorted in horror. “Why would I have ever thought you were?”

A good question. As Marigold had schooled herself into a sexless paragon. She had fashioned herself into a puritanical version of a mother. Not a woman. A mother. She had never gone on a date, not in Lily’s whole life, so why would Lily assume that of her now?

Marigold had mentioned dates several times in regards to Buck Carson, and she couldn’t pretend that she didn’t know why.

She was attracted to him. He made her heart beat just a little faster, but the problem was that with every heartbeat there was a little pain as well.

He was inextricably linked to her brother’s death. That was an old wound, but one that had not been tested in quite this way in a very long time. Well. Ever, really.

She had distance and perspective. She had age and wisdom. But that was about it.

She also had very large gaps in experience, and a whole lot of peaks and valleys in her personal development. She was a mother. She had started a business. She had raised a child to this point. She had bought a house and made a budget.

All her experiences with men and sex were the experiences of a teenage girl. And maybe that was why she felt slightly teenage now. Attaching herself to the most ridiculous man she could have possibly attached herself to.

Or maybe the problem was that old attraction simply died hard.

She had always felt an attraction to him. Even when it had been a young and innocent fascination. Back then, he had been the boy who had the power to ignite her fantasies. Now he had evolved into the man who could apparently stoke a flame that had grown cold after so many years of neglect.

So maybe she was projecting when she continually mentioned dates. She was going to have to stop that.

“Well, it isn’t, I just wanted to make it clear.”