Page 51 of Rancher's Strength

“They are something,” I laughed. To be honest, I was thinking the same thing.

“What’s so funny?” Elle asked, joining Nora and me. The thing about this group—it wasn’t some organized trail ride. In all the years I’d helped, we rarely rode in a line. If someone wanted to let their horse run, they did, catching up later. Today was going to be a long one, and conversations on horseback had always been one of my favorite parts.

“The Magnificent Five, up there. It’s hot,” Nora said, pointing ahead as she replied to Elle.

Elle burst out laughing, and for a second, I thought she might fall off her horse.

“Fallon, get up here!” she yelled over her shoulder.

Fallon rode up beside Elle, and just like that, she smiled. Not the forced kind either—the real thing. I hadn’t seen that in a while.

“Look at them, showing off, pretending they’re a posse. We need to show them how it’s done, I think.” Elle shifted her gaze between all of us.

“Go,” Fallon said, and we all kicked our horses into a run. We were a good distance behind the guys, but they’d be able to hear us coming. They all turned to watch us ride together, and we split apart as we got close to them. Fallon and Elle went left, and Nora and I went right. I caught Ryder’s eye and gave him a wink as I rode past.

Wind whipped through my hair, and I was glad I’d pushed my hat down low on my head before we moved, or Gwen would have had to pick it up on the way past. When we were around them, we formed a line again and slowed our horses. The urge to turn and see what they were doing was strong, but none of us looked back; we just slowed and laughed with one another.

“You still ride better than I do, Lex,” Fallon laughed as she leaned ahead to look over at me. We competed for years on the local rodeo circuit. If it wasn’t her at the top of the leaderboard, it was me, but she had more passion to keep going. Once I finished high school, I was done, and she continued because she was a few years younger than me.

“I highly doubt that. It’s been a long time since I’ve ridden all out like that.” Hell, it’s been a long time since I rode, but I didn’t mention that.

“Lex, I owe you an apology,” Fallon said as she switched places with Elle and rode alongside me. “I had no right to say the things I did.” She held out her hand, and I took it. We didn’t stay like that long because the guys rode up behind us, and Ryder nudged his way between us.

“Everything good?” he asked quietly, and I nodded.

“Yeah, damn, Ryder, what did you think I was going to do? Pull her off her horse? Men are so dramatic,” she said, leaning forward and rolling her eyes.

“Are you going to have to work at the bar often?” Nora asked as we all shifted back to boys separated from the girls.

“I shouldn’t have to. I don’t love it, and Lydia respects that, so I’ll just help her out when she needs it.” I hated personal questions, but this one was an easy one.

“What about kids? Will you and Ryder have any of your own?” Elle asked. She was so sweet, and from the tone of her voice, it was a completely innocent question. Glancing over at Ryder, who was still behind me, I was sure he’d heard the question. With a slight nod, which unless you were looking at him, you would have missed, he gave me the strength to answer her honestly.

“I can’t have kids. I’ve known it since I was sixteen.”

“Oh, Lexie, I’m sorry. I’m such an ass for even asking.” Her brows furrowed, and I wasn’t quite sure if she was going to start crying.

“It’s taken a bit, but I’ve come to terms with it.” Nodding, I smiled as her worry eased slightly. But I was a big liar. I hadn’t come to terms with anything. Ryder was right, I really needed to talk to someone, but I wasn’t sure I had it in me. I avoided looking back in Ryder’s direction because I didn’t want to see the pain in his eyes that I knew would be there.

The rest of our ride went well, and the tension finally eased after Elle’s question. Ryder finally stopped staring holes into my head as we got closer to the cattle.

While the guys took care of the horses, the girls and I set up camp and chased the kids all over the meadow. They’d been tired after a long day on the trail, so they were happy to be able to run around. Wes and Gwen headed back to their place. We’d see them in a few days before we headed back.

“I can’t believe how good Ruby and Sawyer are doing,” Nora said as she and I set up the area where we were keeping the coolers of food. “It’s like they’ve been here their entire lives.Cooper absolutely loves having Sawyer in his class. He comes home and tells stories of their day, and I’m pretty sure that teacher is ready to pull her hair out at the end of the day.”

“You couldn’t pay me enough to be in that classroom,” I agreed, because if there was mischief to get into, you could be sure Sawyer and Cooper would be leading it.

“I’m glad you’re here, Lexie. I don’t know what went on before, and I’m sorry that Kipp’s being such an ass, but I’m glad to have you as a friend.” Her warm, genuine smile made me take a deep breath before I smiled back at her.

“I appreciate your friendship, Nora, and as far as Kipp goes, he kind of has a right to be that way. There’s a lot of things I need to do before I earn back his trust.” I shrugged. This was Ryder’s story, and maybe one day he’d be willing to tell it, but I certainly wasn’t going to be the one to share it with everyone. And as angry as I’d been at Kipp, I can totally see his point. If I had to witness the pain my best friend went through, I’d be pretty mad too, I think.

Chapter Twenty-Six

RYDER

We rode through the valley in groups to make sure the cows looked good. Sawyer hopped up with me, and Linc took Ruby with him. Laughter never stopped with these two kids, and I loved watching them explore all the things I’d taken for granted after all the time I’d been doing this. Tomorrow was going to be a long day, with an early start and a late night by the time we got the cows back home. But these were the days that created lasting memories.

A blazing fire crackled and popped, sending sparks shooting into the air, and I watched them fall as I waited for Lexie to come sit with me. The night had cooled off more than I’d expected, but the fire managed to keep the chill away. Lexie took a seat beside me and reached for the cup I’d poured whiskey into. “Kids go down?” I asked quietly as I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, and she snuggled into my side.

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