Page 38

The girl’s slow nod gave her the answer. She paused the swing. “There’s a bench on the other side of that tree. How about we go over there?”

Once they were seated on the black wrought iron seat, Sammi Jo opened her palm and Lacy placed hers inside it. It was a small thing, but a little routine they’d established over the last few weeks whenever one or the other wanted to discuss something. It formed a bond of trust.

“So what has your mind in such deep thought today?”

“I heard one of the ladies in the kitchen say that you and my dad got married because you gave him a lot of money. Is that true?”

So the time had come. It was bound to happen. Now to deal with it.

“Remember the day that you and I rode up to the top of my favorite hill, the spot where you can see forever and beyond? That is a lot of land, more than most people will ever see, much less own. We earned it the hard way over many generations who had to fight for it. Many lost their lives. And on this land, we have animals that are famous in their own right, like our racehorses, or the stallions and mares who pass on the best genes in horseflesh.

“To help pay for all that, my granddad, and others before him allowed oil to be drilled to be sold to help across this country. That makes this not only a ranch but a big business. We have many bills to pay and many people who depend on us for their jobs. And also, that makes people jealous of us. They will say things they don’t know anything about and can be hurtful. But you have only to know that we take care of our land, our people, our responsibilities. The rest is just gossip to be ignored. Your dad and I married because we fell in love. And he proposed to me in front of most of the town so everyone would understand how much we both wanted to be married—and no amount of money was involved when we said our vows that day. We would have done the same thing, even if we were poor as mice and only had a tent to live in. Our hearts wanted each other. You’ll understand that one day when you grow up. My ‘gold’ is when I feel your hand and your dad’s inside mine. Don’t ever forget that.”

Lacy nodded and smiled.

Sammi Jo continued, “A heritage is something that is very important to all the people who come here to live and to the people who haven’t even come here yet, like any brothers and sisters you might have. And when you get married and have a family, it will be theirs also and so forth and so on. We take care of it now, just as others took care of it for us before we came along. Someday, you will take care of it, and on it will go. Understand?”

“Yes, ma’am. It’s something that you love and take care of. Daddy said you loved this place like you love us.”

“Yes, Lacy. I do love it. But the most important thing on this land is not the animals. It isn’t all those stinky wells you don’t like but help pay to feed those animals you love. And it isn’t about the town or the ranch hands who live here. It is about you and your dad—the people I came to know and love. Love the land, take care of it, because it takes care of the people you love. That is the heritage from one generation to another. Make sense?”

Lacy nodded. “I get it. And I promise to learn to take care of it too. Just like you do.”

“I know you will. And we’ll all take care of each other. How about that for a deal?”

“Sounds like the best deal ever to me.” Beaudry stood not too far away with a smile and a gaze that spoke just how much he loved them. Lacy ran to draw him closer, and she earned her spot on his hip. Lacy looked at Sammi Jo.

“I have a special secret. I can tell you now because it came true. The night before my dad proposed to you, I said an extra special prayer that He let you be in our family because we loved you so much.”

Sammi Jo’s eyes couldn’t hold back the tears. “I’ve never been someone’s prayer before. My heart can’t get any fuller of love than it is right now for you both.”

“You aretwopeople’s prayer, and never forget that.” Beaudry’s gaze held all the love and promises she could ever hope to be worthy of if she lived to be a hundred.

Lacy reached a hand toward to Sammi Jo. “I also said I wanted you to be my mom. I hope you want to do that for a long time.”

She stood and wrapped her palm around the small one. Sammi Jo felt a lightning bolt through the connection that drew the three of them into the center of her heart, where fireworks shot off in glorious abandon. She wasn’t standing on the outside looking in, and she didn’t have to act a certain way or do things to make someone want her around. These two people had chosen to want her to be part of their family and loved her for herself. She knew where her true wealth was now. This man, this child, this was Sammi Jo Burkitt Hawkes’s true heritage. And she knew in that moment, without a doubt, that her very wily and wise old grandmother had not only planned to make amends for a feud ages-old, but to open the doorway for the next generation to walk through, hand in hand.

And right on cue, in the distance of the darkening skies, light faded across the vast Burkitt lands, and a coyote’s wail echoed in triumph beneath a full rising moon across time and a true Texas heritage that would withstand the ages.

The End