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“Huh. Surprising I haven’t run into her. Marcus isn’t that big a place.”
“She’s a small business owner just trying to make ends meet. I think she works a lot. She’s not the type to go to the charity balls; she’s a mechanic.”
“We go, and we’re ranchers.” Tom frowned. He wasn’t painting the town red every Friday night like a twenty-year-old, but he wasn’t a recluse, either.
“Only one a year. The Youth Homes is a great charity.”
“True.” He went to more events, but Dad rarely did.
“And it’s probably just as well.” Dad shuddered. “Erin’s mother is Sharlene Murphy. You know, from Marcus City Bank.”
Tom jerked in surprise. “Yikes. Wouldn’t want her for a mother-in-law.” She was stone-cold, mean as a rattler, and one of the reasons Dad was so shy of debt. Plus, she’d tried to talk him into taking outside investors, something neither of them were the least bit interested in. She wasn’t good at taking no for an answer, either.
“Yeah, but Ryan’s handled her just fine.” Dad grinned. “Figured she wasn’t going to like him no matter what he did, so he made sure of it. Made a big scene at some fancy concert. One of the guys saw the whole thing. Right there in the lobby, Ryan kissed Erin for a good minute or so and then carried her out the door like they were in a movie. My buddy said Sharlene looked like she was going to blow the top of her head right off.” Dad was laughing hard for a second-hand story.
Even not knowing Ryan, Tom could picture Sharlene Murphy’s face and joined Dad’s laughter. “That would have been worth seeing.”
“A good part of the town did.” He slapped his thigh. “I don’t think she’ll ever forgive them.”
“That’s probably smart on their part.” He remembered a story from the last gala. “Sam Kerr told me Ms. Murphy was pushing Erin to hook up with Chaz Cust, and he’s just a rotten apple. Always has been.”
“So you do know Erin?”
“No, but she’s Sam’s friend. I’d just forgotten Sam knew her or that she’d told me that. I don’t think she ever said Erin’s last name or anything about her business, so I never put two and two together until you told me who her mother was.” He shuddered.
Dad raised a brow. “I thought the two of you might get together. You looked like quite the pair.”
Tom shook his head. “Sam is a nice person, but she’s a town girl. She’d never be happy on a ranch. And I love the ranch. Besides, we didn’t have any chemistry.” Too bad, really. Sam was beautiful and kind. But they both had too much baggage.
“Ah, there’s the real reason.” Tom shrugged. Dad sighed. “Anyway, I’ll ask Ryan next time I see him, and we’ll see.” Dad wagged a finger. “He might not want to say anything about Wiz, and I won’t push him.”
“Thanks. I just hate to think of her in that house all by herself, especially if something was to happen. Bad stuff does sometimes.”
“I’ll ask.”
Tom returned to his computer. Time to turn his brain off for a while and just surf. Stupid videos or memes; anything that let him forget a pair of pretty but sad gray eyes.
Later that week, Tom put bowls and spoons on the kitchen table, taking care not to drop them. His body ached and exhaustion made his hands tremble. But the rich, beefy scent filling the kitchen had his stomach grumbling. He’d recover soon enough.
“Thanks be for the invention of the slow cooker.” Dad plopped into a chair.
What a long week. But they were ready for winter when it decided to hit. Whenever that was, it would probably be too soon. And too cold, and too snowy.
They’d invited the hands for dinner, but they were eager to get home or hit the bars. It was Friday night, after all. But that was fine; more beef stew for them.
Tom shoveled spoonfuls, slowing after the first bowl. The rolls Dad picked up from Deb’s Bakery that morning were light, chewy, and perfect for stew. Filling both of their bowls, he grabbed beers from the fridge. They deserved a second and maybe a third later.
Dad popped the top on the local brew. “Knew I shouldn’t have taken the morning off. We could have been done an hour ago.”
Tom scoffed. “No, we couldn’t. We only have one tractor, and we had more than enough people. There was no reason for you to stay.” Tom wasn’t sure exactly what Dad’s Friday routine was, but it was important. He got bad-tempered if he didn’t get away at least once a week. Not that he’d admit it. Plus, he was getting pretty old for hard manual labor.
They ate in silence. Dad’s spoon clinked in the bowl. “I talked to Ryan today.”
Tom put his down, too. “Oh? And what did he have to say?”
“He knows Wiz from the Air Force, and she’s a friend to both of them. He wanted to know why I was asking, and I explained that she’s our neighbor, and that she’d rescued you, and that we’d both like to get to know her a little. He said he’d talk to Erin, but he wasn’t willing to make any commitments.” He played with his beer can. “He seemed very protective of Wiz. When I first asked, he was downright hostile. It wasn’t until I told him that she’d rescued you that he calmed down, and he was still mighty cold about the whole thing.”
Tom’s stomach churned uneasily. “Shoot. I didn’t want to get your friends upset at you. Sorry, Dad.”
