Page 1 of Cheyenne

CHAPTER 1

Cheyenne Cross was finally doing it. She was taking a week away from her final year of working toward a bachelor’s degree and going on a spring break trip to South Port, North Carolina.

She was so excited. Not only was she taking her first-ever “official” spring break trip, but she was also meeting her best friend Samantha at the beach condo they’d rented for a full week of surf lessons, relaxing, enjoying the sights, and man-hunting.

Okay, fine, they wouldn’t man-hunt. Even thinking about the phrase made her smile. But they would check out the good-looking beach guys.

Her older brother, Porter, had surprisingly agreed to this trip. Probably because the Stone family was right down the beach. Though Cheyenne had just turned twenty-one the previous week and didn’t need his blessing, she was grateful for it. If she had Porter’s blessing, then she had all of her brothers’ blessings, which was good, because they could give her a lot of grief if they chose to.

Her phone buzzed with a call from Samantha, probably letting her know she’d be at the beach condo shortly. She answered the call. “Hey! You here?”

“Cheyenne, you’re going to kill me, but I can’t come.”

“What?” It took a few seconds for the words to sink in.

Her friend let out a long sigh. “I was about to leave to catch my flight this morning, and my grandmother fell as we were coming out of the eye doctor’s office.”

Cheyenne remembered how Samantha’s cute grandmother would often have Samantha invite her over for Sunday dinner. “Oh no. Is she okay?”

“I tried to get her seen by a doctor and passed off as okay before my flight, but she has to go in for hip surgery now since she fell, so I can’t come to South Port.”

Cheyenne’s heart dropped. “No.”

“I know, I know.” Samantha let out a light groan. “I so don’t want to miss it, but I can’t leave her. My parents are in California helping my brother and sister-in-law with their new baby.”

“It’s okay,” Cheyenne said, feeling bad for her friend.

Samantha sighed. “But you should know I still want you to enjoy your week.”

“I can reimburse you for your half of the condo,” Cheyenne said, though she really couldn’t. “At least, after I work a few more shifts at the restaurant when I get back.”

“No, you don’t have to reimburse me. Just … find some cute guy,” she said, sounding wistful. “For the both of us.”

Cheyenne smiled. They’d joked that they were going to find some suntanned guy in South Port. “I love your grandma and I’m really glad you’re helping her out, but I will miss you.” Tears suddenly came to her eyes. She pushed them down, grateful that she wasn’t on a FaceTime call with her friend.

“I’ll miss you too,” Samantha said. “Sorry, I have to go. They are prepping my grandma for surgery.”

“Okay. Tell her good luck. Bye.”

“Cheyenne, wait.”

She paused. “Yeah?”

“Remember … seize the day!”

She laughed. It was their favorite line to quote from the old movieDead Poets Society.“Yes, seize the day!”

“I’ll call you tomorrow. Bye.”

Cheyenne hung up and stared at her phone, feeling a pity party coming on. They’d been looking forward to this week of sunshine and adventure. Immediately, she dropped her head and said a little prayer. “Lord, please bless Samantha’s grandmother to be okay and do well through this surgery, and please bless Samantha. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.”

Right away, she felt better. She texted Samantha.I’ll miss you. I love you.

She sucked in a long breath and then blew it out. “I will have fun this week,” she said, trying to convince herself it would happen. She didn’t love the idea of being alone, but she had no intention of going home to the ranch and being bossed around by her brothers.

Her brothers! If they knew she was at this beach house by herself, they would not like it. She wouldn’t tell them. She couldn’t. Porter would probably end up sending one of the brothers to be with her. She didn’t want to be babysat and treated like a child. Sure, she loved her brothers and had the best time with them, but they still saw her as a little girl.

Last time she was home, she’d told Porter’s wife, Sadie, about her feelings. Sadie told her that they would always look at her like a little girl. That was just the Cross brother way: to protect and defend the little sister.

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