Page 37 of The Cattleman’s Unforgettable Love: Ford and Amelia (MacFarland Ranch #11)

"Thanks for the cakes, boss."

Ford nodded at Sawyer. After the way he'd acted this morning, bringing pastries back for the hands had been his way of apologizing. Not that he'd say that out loud – or that any of them would mention it.

Well, except Sawyer – he gave Ford what looked like a knowing smile. Or maybe Ford was just paranoid.

"Not a problem. Running them through the chute for their shots calls for everyone to step up."

Sawyer nodded but didn't comment.

Ford turned away when his phone rang and was surprised to see Cash's name on the screen. He hadn't talked to him in a while. They only talked when ranch or family business demanded it.

"Cash. What's up?" he answered.

"Not a damn thing. You doing okay?"

"Yeah, it's all good. The shots are all done now. Janey's just finished up for the day."

"Right," said Cash. "But the herd's your deal, so you're telling me this because..."

Ford let out a short laugh. "Probably because it's what's on my mind, and I can't imagine why else you'd be ringing me."

"We've been doing better lately, haven't we?"

Ford considered his answer before he spoke. "Yeah, I guess we have. Is everything all right? Are you okay?"

Cash chuckled. "Yeah, I am. See, that's the thing with you – you care, don't you?"

Ford blew out a sigh. "Yeah, I do, but now I feel like you're going to criticize me for it."

"I wouldn't. I don't know why you always jump to that conclusion with me, but... But anyway, let's not go there."

"Where do you want to go then? What do you need?"

Cash was quiet for a few moments before he said, "I need to let you know that Amelia's on her way home."

Ford inhaled sharply. "Is she okay?"

"She will be, if you don't fuck it up."

Ford closed his eyes. "Why? What did she say?"

"She didn't come running to me, if that's what you're thinking. She wouldn't have said a damn word if I hadn't pried it out of her."

"And what exactly did you pry out of her?"

"She told me what you said before you left the house this morning."

Ford's heart sank. It was one thing to admit to Brody what a mess he'd made of things this morning, but for Cash to know...

"Hey." Cash's voice interrupted his thoughts, sounding gentler than Ford remembered hearing since he was a kid. "I'm not trying to give you a hard time. I'm trying to help you out here."

"Okay."

"I know I should keep my nose out, but I like Amelia.

I care about her – and even though you don't believe it, I care about you.

I want to see you happy. I promised myself I wouldn't interfere between the two of you, and I don't often break a promise.

But that little lady is on her way home to you right now, not sure if she should ask you what you really meant about sharing your family with her. "

Ford blew out a sigh. "I don't know what she told you, but..."

"She told me enough for me to guess that you said it innocently, and then when you realized how it sounded, you realized that you meant it."

Ford closed his eyes.

"Am I right, or am I right?" Cash asked.

He let out a short laugh. "You're right – as always."

"Yeah, for once, I'm not interested in being right – well, not unless it's a byproduct of seeing the two of you figure this out."

"Why?" he asked.

And it was Cash's turn to sigh. "Because like I said, I care about you. Amelia's special, and I've always known it would take someone special to catch your eye – to come to mean something to you. And she does, doesn't she?"

Ford didn't see any point in denying it. "She does."

"Then when she gets back there, tell her the truth. I reckon the two of you can overcome anything if you keep being honest with each other."

"Thanks, Cash."

"And take her to the bakery tomorrow."

"Why?"

"Because you said you would, and because when she was all confused today, she asked if she could come to San Francisco with me this weekend."

Ford frowned.

"She doesn't want to go. It was just her way of avoiding having to face you."

"But if she wants to avoid me because she thinks I'm pushing her for too much..."

"Jesus, Ford. She doesn't think you're pushing for too much. She wants what you offered. But she's worried that you didn't really mean it and that you freaked out when you thought she might want it."

"You really think so?"

"I know so. And she should be back any minute, so I'll leave you to it. And I'll even apologize for sticking my oar in, but..."

"No apology needed." Ford cleared his throat. "I appreciate it."

"And I appreciate you hearing me out. It comes from a place of love, you know."

Ford had to clear his throat again before he said, "I know. And it's a two-way street."

Cash chuckled. "Okay, well, I'm going to go now before you make me cry."

Ford laughed with him. "You know, no one would ever believe we had this conversation."

"I don't know," said Cash. "In the past, they never would have, but I'm hoping that in the future, it might come to seem like nothing out of the ordinary."

Ford nodded, even though his brother couldn't see it. "I'd like that," he said quietly.

"Yeah, me too," said Cash. "Have a good weekend. You've got yourself a fine woman there. Don't screw it up. And if it looks like you might, just let me know. I've got your back, okay?"

Ford nodded, not trusting his voice to speak again.

"See ya later,” said Cash.

That made him smile "Yeah, see ya later."

~ ~ ~

Amelia's heart leaped into her throat when she parked her car and spotted Ford standing on the back deck.

With his hands on his hips and a frown on his face, he looked quite the foreboding figure.

She was tempted to turn the car around and drive away again.

Just because Cash had sounded so confident in his interpretation of Ford's actions this morning, that didn't mean he was right.

Cash was confident about everything – then again, he was also right about pretty much everything. Still...

She reached for her bag in the passenger seat, keeping an eye on Ford. He hadn't spotted her yet. He looked to be lost in thought – scowling away to himself as he stared out at the mountains. He looked every bit the dark and broody one right now.

When she couldn't delay it any longer, she climbed out of the car.

She might as well go on and face him. Maybe she was making too big of a deal out of it all anyway.

All he'd said was that he'd be happy to share his family with her – that could be just a throwaway comment.

She should probably let it go, not even give it another thought, let alone mention it again. ..

Her heart stuttered to a halt when he turned toward her and smiled as he met her gaze.

She smiled back and picked up her pace, Cash's words echoing in her head as he started down the steps to come and meet her.

She somehow knew in her heart that whatever misunderstanding they'd had, they were going to get past it.

When he reached her, he held his arms out to her, and she eagerly wrapped hers around his neck as he lifted her off her feet.

"Hey, Lil’ Bit." He pressed a kiss to her lips. "How was your day? I missed you."

She leaned back so that she could look into his eyes, and he lifted his hat off his head and placed it on hers. "Do you want to know the truth?" she asked.

"I'd love to."

"Then I'll be honest. I missed you too, and I made myself miserable for most of the day." She was surprised when he let out a chuckle. "You think that's funny?"

He tightened his arm around her. "No, I'm not laughing at you. I'm laughing at myself. I guess that's the difference between us."

"What is?" she asked, not understanding.

"You said you made yourself miserable." He gave her a guilty looking smile. "I made everyone else miserable."

She had to laugh. "What do you mean?"

"Do you want to come inside, and I'll fix us a drink, get something to eat? I told myself I'd do this right – explain it properly."

"Okay, let's go inside." She felt a little less confident now, concerned that he was about to tell her something she didn't want to hear.

"Hey." It was only when he gave her a little shake and her feet swung that she remembered he was still holding her off the ground.

She met his gaze. "Are we okay?"

His expression turned solemn as he nodded. "We are, if you'll forgive me."

"There's nothing to forgive, Ford."

"There is. I shouldn't have run away like that." "Come on, let's go inside." He loosened his grip on her, and she slid down his front until her feet hit the ground. Even then, he took hold of her hand and led her into the house.

When they got there, she stopped just inside the door, suddenly feeling incredibly guilty.

"Can I tell you something before we start?" she asked.

"Go ahead, but do you want a beer while you tell me?"

"Yes, please." She could use something stronger, but it'd do for now. She could drown her sorrows later if he was mad at her for what she had to say.

"What are you looking so worried about?" he asked as he handed her a bottle.

"I did something I shouldn't have today."

His eyebrows drew together. "And what was that?"

"I talked to Cash about what happened between us this morning." She held her breath and squeezed her eyes shut, hoping that he wouldn't yell.

Instead, he came to her and rested his hand on her shoulder. "That's okay. I'm glad you did."

Her eyes popped open. "You are?"

He chuckled. "Yeah. I know you're aware that things haven't always been easy between the two of us, but.

.. He called me a little while ago. Told me that the two of you had talked, told me what you were thinking.

" He nodded slowly. "And not only am I glad that he was there for you to talk to, I’m also glad that he’s around to interfere.

More than that, I want to thank you because I think, if anything, it might have brought the two of us closer. "

She cocked her head. "Really?"

"Yeah. I'm not bullshitting you to make you feel better. I think you've done us a favor."