Page 41 of The Rancher's Heart

“We have to call 911.” She grabbed her phone from the table just as Jonas dug his from his pocket. Her fingers were faster than his. “Hello? I want to report a missing child.”

Tears streaked down her face. Jonas leaned his chest against her shoulder. He didn’t understand it. Clara had been so happy to be with Sloane. Why would she run away?

“She’s thirteen, blonde, has brown eyes—”

Behind him, the front door creaked open. Jonas turned. Clara was standing just inside, her smile fading as she took in her frantic sister.

“She’s here! Thank you! Yes. Thank you.” Sloane put her phone down on the table and marched over to Clara, choking out, “Where have you been?”

Jonas gave them space, figuring the kid’s explanation had better be good. He wasn’t the one she should be worried about, but his heart was still thumping. He hadn’t been that scared since he couldn’t find Blake after he’d told him to never come back to his home.

“I went to get donuts. I thought—” Clara held up a white pastry bag.

Finally, he moved, wrapping his arms around Sloane from behind and saying, close to her ear, “Shh... she’s okay.”

“Why would you go without leaving a note?” Sloane’s voice was watery, but she was starting to calm down. Jonas didn’t release her, wanting her to know he was there if she needed support.

Clara crossed her arms, the bag bumping against her belly. “On the weekends, I got donuts for my mom for breakfast. It was the only thing I could get her to eat.” The kid switched her gaze to Jonas. “I thought Sloane would want some.”

Sloane stiffened in his arms. “Where did you get the money?”

The teen looked from Jonas to her sister. “Your wallet—”

For the first time, he noticed the small backpack Sloane used for a purse on the couch, her wallet half out.

“Breathe,” he said softly to the woman in his arms.

She must’ve heard him through the panic he could feel starting to ebb. Breathing in, she held out her hand to Clara. “Come sit with me.”

“I’m sorry—I didn’t mean—” Clara took her sister’s hand. Sloane pushed her purse aside. They sat together, knees touching.

“I’m not mad at you. You just scared me to death. And Jonas too.” She glanced at him and then turned back to the teen. “We have to have rules.”

Listening, he went to the kitchen and filled two glasses with water. He put them on the coffee table in front of Sloane and Clara.

“No leaving the house without telling me. And ask before you get into my wallet,” Sloane finished softly.

Clara stared down at her hands. “Mom always needed me to take care of her.”

“That was very grown-up of you, but you don’t have to take care of me.” Sloane gently tilted her sister’s chin so that their gazes met. “All you have to do is be a good kid. Okay?”

Clara nodded.

Sloane held her tight, then picked up the pastry bag and peered inside. “Let’s see what kind of treats you brought home.”

*

Jonas sat onthe fence of the outdoor training arena and watched Blake as he gave riding lessons to all the kids, including Clara. The kid was quiet, but seemed to have recovered from her mistake that morning. A natural on horseback, she was riding Angel, a white-spotted chestnut mare, as if she’d been riding all her life.

He hadn’t recovered. If anything had happened to her—His heart was still in his throat. Sloane had done a good job of smoothing out the crisis, but he knew she was in the same place he was. How did they convince Clara that she was the child and they were the parents?

His whirling thoughts came to a dead stop.They were the parents.

Sloane would make a great mother. His mom and dad had been the best, giving their boys the run of the ranch for as long as they could. But when left with Nathan and Blake to take care of, he hadn’t done so well.

Nathan, Izzy, and Malorie joined him. Malorie took pictures with her phone, while Izzy, their marketing guru, snapped photos with a high-end digital camera to get what she wanted to add to the website.

“They’re doing great,” Nathan said, his arms folded on the top rail. “Next year, if they want, they’ll be good enough to compete in the youth events at the rodeo.”

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