Page 81 of A Rancher's Bride
“Finished an hour and a half ago. You forgot about the time zone difference. And we don’t know why, but for some reason, one of the four-year-olds entered was a filly out of Nemo. Remember Outside Darling? She came from behind riding wild odds and placedsecond. Tamara and I were watching live on YouTube, and as soon as the results were in, Tamara told Lisa to adjust Nemo’s fees. And the websitestillwent crazy.”
Luke glanced over the pages, swearing softly at the outrageous numbers on each of the contracts. “If these are legal and binding, he’s about to earn a shit-ton of money.”
“Completely legal,” Kelli assured him. “You know that automated system Lisa put into place on the website? Almost all the open stud dates are booked for this coming yearatthat higher fee. These pages are just the people who Silver Stone already preapproved. You still have to approve the new mares, Luke, but stablesreallywant Nemo. Stables with lots and lots of money in their pockets.” Kelli bounced another couple of times, her gaze darting between his and Caleb’s faces. “Does that help? Does that help Silver Stone deal with finances for a little longer?”
Caleb caught hold of her, surprised delight escaping her in a squeal as he spun her in a circle. “It helps,” he agreed as he put her back on the ground. “It helps a damn lot.”
Then it was Luke’s turn to pick her up, but after a quick spin he held her against him, brushing their noses together. “You girls were brilliant.” He lowered his voice. “And once again, you did more than your share, considering those names I’d preapproved were breeders we met in Kananaskis Country who you sweet-talked into getting on a short list.”
Her face lit up the room. “I want to show Ashton. Can I? I’ll take the papers back up to the house when I’m done.”
She kissed Luke right there in front of Caleb, squeezing his neck tightly before letting go and taking off at a run.
Luke watched her go, happiness…and something else…stewing inside.
It took a little while before it hit. In fact, it wasn’t until two days later that his brain finally offered up the tidbit that had been haunting him. But when it did, he didn’t hesitate.
“I finally figured it out,” he told Caleb as he tracked him down in Ashton’s office later that night. “We need to talk about Nemo.”
Ashton glanced up, smile growing. “He’s pulling his weight now, isn’t he? Good old boy. Glad we stuck it out.”
“Me too, but we nearly got rid of him, didn’t we?”
Ashton leaned back in his chair. A crease formed between his brows as he thought back. “Come to think of it, you’re right. He was pretty surly at one point. Kelli was convinced she could train him to behave and talked us into holding on for another season.”
Caleb nodded. “I’d forgotten about that.”
So he hadn’t been imagining things. Luke took a deep breath. What he was about to propose was a huge change and affected how much Nemo’s increased fees helped Silver Stone, but it needed to be done. “I think Kelli should be listed on his ownership papers.”
Caleb stopped everything. He turned his perceptive gaze on Luke, examining him carefully. Ashton had gone silent as well.
“That means she gets a cut of every payout,” Caleb pointed out. “On one hand, I don’t have any problem with that, but…?”
“It’s the right thing to do,” Luke insisted.
Caleb considered for a long, quiet moment.
Luke knew his brother. Heknewwhat was going on in Caleb’s head as he weighed the needs of the family and what was proper.
Sooner than expected, his oldest brother shrugged. “We should have done this years ago, but I guess it’s better late than never. It’s not right for us to keep all the money when we wouldn’t have had anything if it hadn’t been for her.”
Ashton laid a hand on Caleb’s shoulder. “Your dad would be proud.”
Caleb made a rude noise. “He’d be shaking his head that it took this long for the truth to sink in. Mom would have laughed—she’d have liked Kelli.”
“Both of them smart and stubborn—not bad traits in a woman, especially ones who live with us untamed cowboys.” Ashton glanced between the brothers. “You need to talk to the rest of the Stones?”
“We should.” Caleb checked his watch. “Luke, you call Walker. I’ll email Ginny, then track down Dustin for his vote, but I don’t see any of them having a problem with it. Even with giving Kelli part of the higher fees, Silver Stone is still really close to turning the corner.”
“Let me know when you’re ready, and I’ll contact our legal guy. He can do it up proper with a contract.” Ashton folded his arms, the trace of silver at his temples and the lines on his face the only things showing he was no longer a young man. “I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again now, Kelli’s been an asset to Silver Stone since the day she arrived.”
Knowing a little more about the details of that day, and how she’d walked onto the ranch uninvited, Luke let his smile broaden without sharing why.
He and Caleb left Ashton, walking in companionable silence across the snow toward where the packed-down path split in two directions.
They paused as if it had been planned, both of them staring upward. The air was icy cold, stars twinkling in the deep black sky.
Caleb made a noise of approval. “Never gets old. Even when it makes me feel like I’m small as a flea, it’s so damn beautiful, I don’t really care I’m pretty insignificant in the scheme of things.”
