I give him a good-natured elbow to the ribs. His attempts to steer the conversation in a different direction will not work.
He laughs. “It’s not a diagnosis. And it’s not terminal.”
“Whew. Then talk away, and it’ll stay between us.”
“Actually, it’s best if I don’t say anything. But I’m sorry for falling asleep on you.”
If I had the agility, I’d straddle his lap and lecture him face-to-face. But I only write scenes like that these days, I don’t live them.
So I do the next best thing. I grab a fistful of his shirt. “No, sir, you cannot change your mind now. Uh-uh. Tell me what’s going on.”
“If I do, the work we are doing on the ranch will continue as normal. Nothing will change. Promise me.”
“Okay, fine. Just tell me. Because all this pre-telling is making me nervous.”
“Pre-telling?”
“Now you’re just stalling.” I release my grip on his shirt but keep my hand on his chest. “Please, Matthew.”
“My foreman, Mario, gave notice. He’s out of town this week, so I’m handling all the stuff on my ranch. But he moves away in three weeks. When the whole family is in town, I’ll bring it up. But until then, I’m covering the chores. And it’s wearing me out.”
“Your son lives not far from here. You have two strong grandsons close by. Ask for help. And I can get Colt to help me with some of the ranch list?—”
Matthew touches a finger to my lips. “You promised. I love what we are doing on the ranch, and I want to be a part of it. And I may end up getting help from my family, but I need to give it some thought. Decide what I want for the future. David still works a full-time job. He doesn’t have the time to be out there working on the ranch. Zach and Eli work and have small children. I don’t want to burden them before I’ve made some decisions.” He laces his fingers with mine. “For now, let’s keep this just between us. Please.”
I nod. “But this is what we’re going to do.”
Chuckling, he raises an eyebrow. “What’s that, Lucy?”
“Stop with the Lucy. I’m giving advice because I care about you. We are going to pause our morning walks. Instead, I’ll drive out to your place and help with chores.”
His chuckle morphs into a belly laugh. “Seriously? You are going to feed and water horses? Muck stalls?”
“You betcha, cowboy. And at the end of the day, we’ll have dinner at your place on the nights you’re free. Unless you don’t want me using your kitchen. If it’s too weird…”
He brushes a finger along my cheek. “I like your plan. And I’d love to have you in my kitchen.”
Our tea is cold by the time we finally get around to taking sips.
CHAPTER 20
MATTHEW
I’m in the kitchen, frying bacon when the doorbell rings. Tandy’s here. After sliding the pan off the burner, I walk to the door.
She is a sight. Decked out in a T-shirt that readsI’m not short; I’m fun-sizedand a very bright pair of leggings, which are tucked into cowboy boots, she grins. “I’m ready for chores.”
“You sure you want to get those boots dirty?”
She arches one eyebrow. “No dirty talk.”
I never know what will pop out of her mouth. Chuckling, I step aside for her to enter. “Breakfast is just about ready. I just need to fry up the eggs.”
She shakes her head as she walks into the kitchen. “Cooking was supposed to be my job. I can’t help you if you don’t let me.”
“I appreciate that you’re here and willing to help me.” I give her a quick peck before walking to the stove. “And I wouldn’t have let you come over if I wasn’t going to accept help, but I am a bit concerned that you don’t know how much work this is. Mario didn’t work only for me. There is another guy with a small spread not far from here. Mario cared for his horses too.”
Tandy eases up beside me and leans on the counter. “I’ve been reading and watching videos. Are we poo picking or mucking stalls?”
