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“It’s not a problem. You’re welcome to hang out here. I can make you some breakfast before I head out. You were going to stick around for lunch with everyone anyway, right?”

“I was, but maybe I should… Do they have such a thing as taxis or Uber around here? I could go back to Remington Ranch and come back later. That way I’d have my rental car.”

“Is that what you want to do? I can check with him – see how long he’s going to be.”

“Would you mind? I don’t want to pester him.”

Ford took his phone out and sent a quick text. “I doubt he’d see it as you pestering,” he said with a smile.

He looked down at his phone a moment later. “It doesn’t look good. Janey, our sister, she’s a vet, is out there with them.” He looked up at Everly. “Would you feel more comfortable going back to the Remington place?”

“I think I would. I’m not running away or anything, I can come back later if he gets the horse taken care of, and he wants me to.”

“He’ll want you to. No doubt about it. You want a taxi ride then?”

“I can call one if you have a number.”

He chuckled and got to his feet. “I’m your taxi, honey. I’ll take you back up there.”

She watched the barn in the rearview mirror as Ford drove her up the long driveway.

“Did you shoot him a text yet?” Ford asked.

“I didn’t want to disturb him. Do you think I should?”

“I do. Just be sure to tell him that you’ll come back later.”

Everly: I’m going back over to Remington Ranch. I asked Ford to give me a ride. I’m not running away, just getting out of the way while you’re busy. If you still want me to come back later,just give me a shout and I’ll be there. Hope the horse is okay.

She opened her purse to put her phone in, not expecting to hear back from him for a while. It beeped with a text before she’d even zipped the purse back up.

Tanner: Shit. Sorry, Ev. I didn’t mean to abandon you like that. She’s going to be okay. I’ll give you a call as soon as she’s in the clear.

Everly: It’s all good. I’ll see you later.

~ ~ ~

It was just after noon by the time Tanner got back to the house. The mare was going to be all right. That was the most important thing. One of the hands was at the barn keeping an eye on her, and Tanner would go back to check on her later.

Seeing his siblings out on the back porch, accompanied by their spouses and partners, gave him a sinking feeling in his stomach. Callie wouldn’t have left if Kolby had been called away to an emergency. Shayna was the most recent addition to the family, and she’d come to the family lunch by herself just a couple of weeks ago when Ty had been helping Travis on a renovation project.

He gave himself a mental shake. It wasn’t the same. It wasn’t as though he and Everly were together in the way that the others were. He was getting ahead of himself. It might feel like a lot longer, but he’d only known the girl for less than 48 hours.

As he trotted up the porch steps, Ty waved a spatula at him from his spot at the grill.

“Is the mare going to be alright?”

“Yeah. She’ll be fine in a day or two.”

“That’s good news. What about Everly? Is she coming for lunch?”

Tanner took his phone out of his back pocket. “I hope so.” He smiled as he dialed her number; he couldn’t wait to hear her voice. He was disappointed when it went straight to voicemail.

“Hey, darlin’. It’s me. I’m just getting back to the house now. I need to take a quick shower, and then I can come pick you up whenever you’re ready. Call me back.”

Ty grinned at him. “It suits you.”

“What does?”