AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"If Mick and Art disappointed me, left me, it would hurt, but I'd survive it. Sal and Bea…well, I'm fond of them and feel responsible for them, but…when they pass, I'll be fine. But you…." I couldn't say the words; I just couldn't.
"If I left, it would hurt?"
"I survived the last time. I was young. I was…it was different. Now…."
His hold on me tightened. "Now we're closer. Isha, losing you would fucking kill me. And that's not hyperbole."
"How do you think I feel? I don't know why I can't just…I don't know why I'm not ready. I don't know what I'm waiting for."
"There's no rush. We have all the time in the world. Just don't send me away, and we'll work through this, and anything and everything else that comes our way."
"And you'll keep coming to New York?"
"I'll come to wherever you and Flora are."
Chapter 33
Rowan
Thanksgiving was not a shitshow. It was actually pleasant, probably because Caitlyn stormed out to her parents place after a fight with Ace, which I guessed was about Isha and Flora.
She left the kids and Ace at home—because he refused to go with her. She tried to take the kids with her, but they told her flat out they wanted to be at the ranch.
Deb showed more class than I'd expected from her. She welcomed Isha and Flora with a hug. While I went to fix drinks, she talked to Isha.
"She didn't upset you, did she?" I asked as I handed Isha a glass of wine.
"No. She apologized and welcomed me into the family." I could see she was surprised by that. Deb wasn't all bad—she had her flaws, but she wasn't a mean person. Now, Caitlyn…well, hell, she was uniquely fucked up.
Flora, Amy, and Clara were running around the big house, making a racket.
"Amy, Clara, come on, keep it down," Ace yelled.
I put a hand on his shoulder. "Let them be."
Ace looked at me quizzically.
"Nothing makes me happier than hearing the laughter of children in this house," I told him.
He nodded. He knew how I felt about my nieces. Since Isha was back in my life, Ace had changed. He'd become more tempered. He was actually going to work these days and, to his supervisor's surprise, working.
"He's actually good with contract work," the head of the finance department told me. "If he keeps at it, you'll have a family member who can help you run the business."
I hoped so. Clay could do a lot, and we could hire more people at the ranch, but I had to manage the business end of things myself. Going back and forth to New York was time consuming. I worked on the plane, and I worked after Flora and Isha went to bed to keep up. Regardless of how much of me it was taking, I had no intention of giving my family up. Yeah, Isha and Flora had become my family. I couldn’t imagine life without them.
“Is she moving to Montana?” Ace asked me when we were sitting by the outdoor fireplace on the covered porch.
Deb had gone to bed, and Isha was with the kids. She wanted to get to know Amy and Clara, and those girls, who'd been dying for a positive female role model, were half in love with her already.
"I don't know."
"Are you moving to New York?"
"I don't know. I can't run the ranch from there, Ace. You know that. But if it comes to that…I have been thinking about selling."
Ace spluttered on his whiskey. "What?" He coughed.
"I know. But I can't live without them, Ace."
