He shook his head. “Can I talk to you guys for a minute?”
That got his father to look up from his tablet. He glanced at Mom, and Luke sat at the bar too. He hadn’t gotten himself a cup of coffee yet, because his adrenaline buzzed in his teeth as it was.
“I don’t think things are working out here,” he said slowly, trying to find the right words. “I’m trying to like the job, Dad, but I don’t. I want to stay in shape, but I can’t keep going to that gym.” He shook his head, so many scenarios running through his head, the same way they had last night.
“I’m going to find myself right back where I was before I went to prison,” he said quietly, imagining himself to be the strong, quiet Nathaniel Mulbury for only a moment. Nate never said anything that didn’t need to be said, and the words were always precisely in the right order. “I don’t want that.”
Mom reached over and touched his hand. “You’re not the same person.”
“Exactly,” Luke said, looking up at her, almost begging her to understand. “I can’t be that person again. I can’t. I’m not going to prison again.” He wouldn’t. He couldn’t.
Silence fell over the breakfast bar, until finally Dad said, “Real estate isn’t for everyone.”
“What will you do?” Mom asked.
Luke shook his head, wishing doing so would make his thoughts spark like lightning. Then maybe an idea would emerge. “I’m not sure.”
“There’s always something to do in Beeville,” Mom said. “I can call Uncle Casey and find out if he needs someone.”
Luke nodded, though he didn’t see himself running one of the resorts his family owned. He wasn’t the friendliest of guys, and customer service didn’t seem like one of his strengths.
“What do you want to do?” Dad asked.
“I liked the ranch,” Luke admitted, the words flying from his mouth without him thinking too hard about them. “All my friends are there…” He let the words trail off, because he didn’t know how to finish them.
“Wolf Mountain is near there,” Mom said. “They have horseback riding, Luke. And cabins. It’s almost like a cowboy experience.”
Luke looked at his mother and smiled. “Mom, it’s a five-star resort. Just because it’s in Texas doesn’t make it a cowboy experience.” He laughed, because his mother had no idea what a working ranch looked like. Hope Eternal wasn’t even the ranchiest of ranches. They did a ton of commercial activities with school children and the community to make their money, where some ranches literally raised cattle and sold the beef.
She laughed with him, and even Dad joined in with a chuckle or two.
“I don’t know,” Luke said into the new silence. “I just don’t feel…right here.” He hadn’t told his parents about the conversation with Damian from yesterday, and he wouldn’t. He’d made a decision, and he’d stuck to it.
His phone blinged with a tone that went from low to high, and that signaled that one of the boys from prison had texted.
He flipped his phone over and swiped on the message from Ted. The picture loaded and came into a perfectly clear portrait of Ted…and his brand-new baby.
“Oh, wow,” Luke said, something warm and electric flowing through him at the same time.
Just like the picture didn’t have any blur in it, Luke suddenly knew exactly what he needed to do.
He turned the phone so his parents could see it. “That’s Ted. Remember I’ve told you about him?”
“Oh, look at that darling baby,” Mom said, her voice soft and pitching up. She pressed one palm to her heart. “She’s darling.”
She was, and as Luke looked at the picture again, another message came in. We named her Francine, after Missy’s second mom. We’re going to call her Frannie. She’s missing her Uncle Luke.
He picked up his phone and stood. “I have to go back to Texas,” he said, looking between his mom and dad. Mom nodded as if she knew he’d go back all along.
Dad didn’t seem terribly happy, but he said, “You do what you think is right, Luke. We’ll support you.”
“Thank you,” he said, stepping around his mother to get to his father. He hugged him tight, wishing he could articulate all of the things he felt for his father. “I want to make you proud, but I’m not a good real estate agent.”
“You did everything I ever asked of you, son,” his father whispered. “If you’re meant to be a cowboy, go be a cowboy.”
Luke released his father and drew his mom into a hug. “I love you, Mom.”
“I love you too, my sweet boy.” She held him tight and patted his back. “I wish I could tell you exactly what to do to make you happy.”
“I wish that too,” Luke said. In fact, he wished a whole bunch of things. He wished he hadn’t had to give up boxing. He wished he’d never gone to prison. At the same time, if he hadn’t, he’d never have met Slate, his very best friend in the whole world. He wouldn’t have Ted to send him perfect pictures of his new baby that had cleared Luke’s mind and given him a reason to return to Sweet Water Falls and Hope Eternal Ranch.
He wished he knew what tomorrow would bring, and he wished he had the guts to text Hannah Otto and let her know he’d be back in town soon.
But just like waiting for his future to make itself known hadn’t worked, Luke also knew that wishing didn’t do much for him. He went upstairs to his bedroom, and he started packing.
“Action,” he muttered. “Do something, Luke. Don’t just stand there, waiting to get hit.”
Chapter Four
Hannah could not believe the perfect package Emma and Ted had brought back to the ranch. Her eyes filled with tears as she took the tiny pink bundle from one of her best friends. “Oh,” came out of her mouth, and she couldn’t look away from the tiny face.
The baby had her eyes squished closed, and she was all pink skin and dark, dark hair. “So much hair,” she said, smiling as she balanced the newborn in one arm and lifted her other hand to feel the silky hair.
She looked up at Emma, who wore an identical look of adoration to her husband.
“She has hair everywhere,” Ted said with a grin. “That’s my fault.” But he didn’t sound upset by it.
“She’s a little like a kitten,” Emma admitted. She couldn’t stop smiling either, and Hannah sank onto the couch with little Frannie cuddled right into her chest.
A sense of contentment settled over her, and she wanted a baby of her own so very much. She wanted a life where she could hold a baby all day and do nothing else. She knew that wasn’t entirely reasonable, or entirely something she’d really do. But Frannie smelled like powder and fresh air, and right now, Hannah just wanted to hold her while they both slept.
Having a herd of naughty goats who couldn’t seem to behave themselves didn’t help her current mood, and she sighed as she let her eyes drift closed.
“There’s something boiling over over here,” Nate said from the kitchen, and Hannah’s eyes shot open.
“Shoot.” She stood up, refusing to relinquish Frannie back to her mother, and bustled into the kitchen. The West Wing boasted a massive kitchen and dining room, and Hannah’s breath came quick by the time she reached the pot of pasta she’d put on the stove.