“You won’t leave until we do?” she asked.
He lifted his hands. “I can’t promise that, but I’ll make sure everything that can be said is said. Okay?”
She frowned, seeming surprised he hadn’t given her a more definitive promise. “All right. Well, you may not feel like you owe me any favors right now, but I’d greatly appreciate it if you’d go talk to her.”
“Tory, she didn’t take off because she wanted to be chased down. Especially by me. I know we haven’t been around each other in a long time, but I am pretty sure I can still guarantee you that.” He flashed to the conversation with Vivi earlier that day, how Chey and he instinctively turned to each other, sharing and gauging their reactions to what they were hearing, just as they’d done when they were younger. He and Chey might be strangers to each other in some ways, but the core of who they were hadn’t changed.
“I don’t think she’s sorting things out. I think she’s hiding so she doesn’t have to. There’s a difference.” Her shoulders fell then, and her expression wasn’t merely worried; she looked helpless.
Wyatt knew Tory rarely let any vulnerability show, so that was no small thing.
“Okay, full disclosure,” she said. “Maybe this is about me, too. I just got here, Wy, but I already don’t want to leave. I adore Vivi. The stables are amazing old works of stone and wood. I can’t wait to meet Hannah, who is so graciously letting me stay in her loft. And Avery, too, whom I’ve heard so much about. All of Chey’s stories were about this place and these people and how they renewed her life. Renewed her heart after Cody died. Yes, I want all the parts of my life to come together, for her, for me. And for you, even when you go traipsing off again.” She laid her hand on Wyatt’s arm. “I am sorry, truly, if I messed up. I don’t want to hurt either of you. You are all I have, the two of you. I know that sounds sad and pathetic, but—”
Wyatt pulled her in for a short, tight hug. “You didn’t screw up anything.” Then he ruffled her hair, which he knew she’d always hated—because she’d earned that much, and because she had always been the sister he never had. Bossy, intrusive, and so certain of his worth. She’d defend him to the ends of the earth and kick him right in the ass when he needed it. She had done both for him and Chey, though far more of the latter than the former, and he knew he’d never properly thanked her for it. “Wanting your life to come full circle, to surround yourself with people who mean something to you, to find a place you feel good in, where you can finally put down real roots is the opposite of sad. And there has never been anything pathetic about you. You’re hopeful, and we could all stand to have a bit more of that.” He let her go, then slid his hands down her arms so he could look at her. “We come from the kind of life that most people could never understand. It’s true I’ve made friends all over the world in my travels, and some of them mean a great deal to me.” He grinned. “Many, if not most of them, have lives even more weird than ours were.”
“I always assumed that was the draw,” she said with a laugh that sounded a bit watery. “You found your people.”
“Maybe,” he said, then laughed, too. “Probably. But close friendships or not, none of them, not a one, knows who I was back then, my life, or anything about it, other than that I grew up raising bulls in a family business. You know. Chey knows. That’s it. You’re it. And that means something.”
Her eyes widened, and he saw understanding hit home, but what she said was, “Not if you’re still trying to put it behind you.”
“There’s only so much I can do, Tor. I know I haven’t said this to you, and I should have. I am very grateful you hunted me down to tell me about Cody. More grateful still that you stuck around. I don’t have siblings or family, either.” His smile then was genuine, without reservation. “Except you. I may not approve of, or have been particularly thrilled with your methods of bringing about this reunion, but then siblings don’t always agree on everything, right?”
Her eyes grew glassy then. “So, you’re really not upset with me?”
He shook his head, then took her elbow and tugged her into a hug. “Okay, maybe a little, but I’ll get over it.”
She knuckled him in the ribs and he winced even as he laughed and hugged her more tightly still.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” came a soft female voice from behind them. “I didn’t see anyone, or that you were—”
Wyatt loosened his hold on Tory but kept his hand on her shoulder as he turned, instinctively putting himself between her and the newcomer to the conversation. “No, that’s okay,” he said, his smile open and friendly. He dropped his hand to his side as Tory stepped up beside him.
“Victoria Fuller,” Tory said, extending her hand. “Oh, you’re Hannah, aren’t you?” Tory’s smile could have brightened a cloudy sky. “My new landlord. I’m so happy to meet you!”
The woman nodded and took Tory’s hand in a quick shake but found herself enveloped in a brief hug instead. Her smile was as immediate and sincere as Tory’s when the two parted. “I am, and me, too,” she said with a laugh. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here to greet you. I didn’t know you were coming so soon. I haven’t had the chance to really get in there and straighten up. I just use the place as a painting studio these days and I’m not really doing much of that out here, either.”
“No, no, that’s okay. Chey didn’t know exactly when I’d arrive, I’m afraid. I wanted to surprise her with something of a family reunion.”
“Oh?” Hannah said, then glanced at Wyatt expectantly.
“Wyatt Reed,” he said, extending his hand. He didn’t know what he’d expected, but it wasn’t the immediate faltering of her sunny smile. Or the brief look of shock that passed over her face, followed by a quick series of expressions he honestly couldn’t read, as Hannah glanced between the two of them. All he knew was that none of them looked favorable.
One thing was clear, though. Chey might not have talked about him to Tory over the years, or Vivi, for that matter. But Hannah definitely knew who he was. Or thought she did, anyway.
Just when he was about to pull his hand away, she reached for it and gave it a quick shake. “Sorry,” she said quickly. “I just—you caught me off guard.” She didn’t say anything else.
Tory glanced between the two of them, even as Hannah was sizing him up.
“Pleasure to meet you,” Wyatt said, hoping his wide smile would cut through the suddenly awkward tension. “I understand from Vivi that you’re one of the artists out at the mill. A Bluebird, I think they call you guild members?”
Hannah looked surprised, but she smiled. “Lavender farmer, mostly, but yes, I am a painter in my spare time. And a member of the guild.” She looked at Tory. “And in case you’re worrying about the loft, being a member means I have a studio there now. I’m also pretty much set up at Will’s. Now that it’s getting warm, I expect I’ll do most of my painting outdoors anyway. All that is to say I won’t be coming in and out. My place is your place, for as long as you need it.”