Page 60 of The Cowboy Comes Home

Nic walked in beside Jackson, and the smile on her old friend’s face as she watched the two men in her life told Emily all she needed to know about how well their marriage was going to go.

“Thanks for picking him up,” Nic said to Tucker.

Emily was startled when Tucker shrugged and said, “Thank Emily. She drove.”

Nic drew back slightly, but she was smiling even wider as she shifted her gaze to Emily.

“Lobo wanted to go, so we took my car,” she explained, and she knew from the tiny shift in her expression that Nic had noticed there apparently hadn’t been any question about whether or not she would be going too.

“And it was good that Lobo was here, wasn’t it, Uncle T?” Jeremy asked.

“Very,” Tucker said solemnly. “I think he took a lot of sass out of ol’ Splatter today.”

“In that case I owe you double thanks,” Jackson said with an eye-roll as he set Jeremy down again. “Got some schoolwork to show me?” he asked his son. The boy nodded and scampered over to the steps that led to the upper loft, and scrambled upward.

“How’d it go with the new kid?” Tucker asked.

“He’s pretty devastated,” Jackson said as they settled in, out in the living room.

“Understandably,” Emily said, aching at the very idea of a child losing both parents like that, and so young.

“But he showed some interest in the horses,” Nic said. “First thing in a while, his aunt said.”

“He’ll be back next week,” Jackson said, and Emily heard the note of great satisfaction in his voice.

“Good.” Tucker glanced at her before adding, “Emily said you should maybe talk to a local guy. Keller Rafferty?”

Jackson’s brow furrowed, but Nic immediately exclaimed, “Of course! Brilliant, I should have thought of that. Leave it to you, Em.” She flicked a look at Tucker as she added, “Emily is always thinking about who can help who here in Last Stand, and how to connect them.”

Emily thought she was probably blushing as Nic turned to Jackson and gave him essentially the same information she had given Tucker about Keller. But Emily only heard it, because she couldn’t look away from the man beside her. How could such a simple thing as being complimented in front of him unsettle her so much? And more, how could him just saying her name make her react so strongly?

“I’ll text Keller and see when would be good,” Nic said.

She quickly sent the text. But being Nic, she wasn’t content with just sitting back and waiting for a response. Instead she looked at Emily rather archly, in that very Nic way.

“So,” she began brightly, and Emily braced herself, “you’re going to the inn Friday night, right?”

It took her a moment to make the switch, to remember. “Oh. Kane.”

Nic laughed. “Yes, Kane.” She shifted her gaze to Tucker. “Have you heard about him yet?”

“You meantheKane? The singer?” Tucker asked. “Yeah, I have. A couple of the guys out west were fans, so I heard a lot of his stuff. Really good. And Jackson told me a couple of months ago he was from here.”

Nic laughed. “With his last name, where else would he be from?”

Tucker’s brow furrowed, then cleared. “Wait, it’s Highwater, right? He’s one of those Highwaters? Like the police chief?”

He looked at Emily then, and she again felt that jab at the scrutiny of those eyes. “His youngest brother,” she said. And then something else hit her, and she caught her breath.

But before she could speak Nic’s phone chimed a response. “Keller says right now would be good, because Sydney’s due home this afternoon.” She flashed a grin at Emily. “I’ll leave you to explain that one.”

Jackson called Jeremy down from the loft which, Emily gathered, served as his room. “We’re going over to the Raffertys’ place,” he told the boy.

Jeremy lit up. “Then Maverick has to go. He’ll want to see Mr. Chance.”

“I figured,” Jackson said with a loving grin.

The boy’s brow furrowed. “But what about Lobo?”

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