Fortunately, Tanner got a ringer, which canceled their dad’s ringer, and he got his second shoe closest to the stake.
Tanner squeezed Ellie’s shoulder. “Come on, kid. Get your head in the game.”
She nodded. “Next round, just watch me.”
He flashed her a grin. “There you go. That’s the sister I know.”
They played three rounds. In the second and third rounds, Ellie did better than she had in the first, but they still lost to her dad and Jace.
Tanner picked up horseshoes and put them into the nearby metal bucket with a lid. “We’ll take our championship back next time, Ellie.”
She smiled. “You bet.”
Greta got up from the swing. “Time for apfelkuchen.”
“You haven’t made your apple cake for a long time.” Ellie walked up the stairs to the front porch beside her mom. “It’s one of my favorites.”
Gretal smiled at her. “Seems to me that you say that about all of my pastries.”
Ellie shrugged. “That’s because they all are.”
Tanner held open the screen door. “Right this way, ladies.”
Ellie smiled at him and entered the house. It wasn’t a traditional single-level ranch-style home. It had a large ground floor with a front room that Greta called the parlor, a family room, a dining room, a kitchen, and Hoss’s study. Upstairs were six bedrooms, including the master. The smallest bedroom had been Ellie’s, but she hadn’t minded. It had been her little sanctuary.
When her father left the service and moved back to Arizona, bringing his new wife home from Germany, they started with a small ranch and a modest home. Years later, when the ranch had grown into a successful business, they built the house they now lived in, precisely what Greta had wanted.
Ellie sat around the dining room table with her family as they talked and ate the apple cake she adored. Her mother made the best pastries. She loved being with her family, but her mind still wandered to Tucker and last night. Just knowing she would spend the whole day with him next Saturday warmed her insides.
Tanner jolted her out of her thoughts when he said, “You’re daydreaming again. Don’t tell me it’s about Tucker Rawlings.”
Her cheeks warmed, but she came up with the first thing that popped into her mind. “Just thinking about my work. Myth Hunter comes out in a month.”
“I saw a display for the game in a game store window when I was in a mall in Phoenix last week.” Tanner stuck his fork in the last bite of his apple cake. “They’re really pushing it for preorders.”
“I’m nervous and excited about it.” She shook her head. “It’s the first game I’ve done voicework for, so I have no idea what to expect.”
Tanner swallowed the bite he’d taken. “You have nothing to be nervous about. Since you were little, you’d do voices for all your toys. I don’t think you could have found a better career.”
“That makes two careers for me.” She thought about her plan to hire someone. “I’m playing phone tag with my friend’s younger sister. I’m going to ask her to work for me part-time.” Ellie sat back in her chair, her plate devoid of cake, a few crumbs remaining. “If she’s not interested, I’ll have to find someone else.”
“You might consider selling your business.” Tanner pushed his plate away from him and folded his arms on the table. “It’s successful, and you’ve built a big social media following.”
“I want my cake and to eat it, too.” She thought about all that she’d put into it. “I love what I do with my business. At the same time, voicework is fun, rewarding, and challenging. The income is fantastic, too.” She shrugged. “One of these days, I’ll have to decide which route I want to go.”
He nodded. “No need to rush it.”
“You’re right.” She blew out her breath. “I’m getting ahead of myself. Being a voice actor is like any acting career you can have—you don’t know when you’ll get your next offer.”
Tanner gave her a brotherly pat on the shoulder, and then Jace asked him a question. As he turned to answer, Ellie echoed Tanner’s words to herself. “No need to rush it”—but this time while thinking about Tucker and a possible relationship.
She had to get home and upload the chili cookoff and barn dance pictures to Tucker’s social media accounts. Maddee had given her access to everything she needed—passwords and login IDs for the website, the social media accounts, and the emails attached to them. Ellie would also email links to everyone identified as a client in the ranch’s contacts.
Ellie’s mom wouldn’t be happy with her having to leave the family get-together early, but work called. At least it was fun because it involved looking at pictures with Tucker in them and daydreaming the whole while.
* * *
“There you are.” Maddee sailed into Tucker’s large man cave, Grady Donovan at her side. Seemed his sister was spending a lot of time with the firefighter.
