Ginny ignored the urge to roll under him and instead peeked into the space filled with squeaky baby meows. “Whoa. Brown with little white paws, the entire litter. They look like they’re wearing snow boots.”
The mama cat watched them warily, kittens lined up along her belly in an assembly line as they nursed greedily.
“Let’s not touch,” Ginny said softly. “This mama looks extra protective.”
Tucker didn’t say anything. Just lay on his belly with his arms folded so he could rest his chin on his hands and stare at the little furry creatures.
Okay. Ginny copied him, stretched out at his side. Their breath slowed, and the magic of the barn stole over her.
She’d been home less than twenty-four hours. It would take time to feel comfortable again. She couldn’t pretend that she’d never left—and wouldn’t want to, because she had learned a bunch of fascinating things while she’d been away. Too many lessons she eventually wanted to share with the people who were important to her.
But she also couldn’t pretend that the world hadn’t changed while she’d been away. She needed to get okay with that.
Voices sounded, and she rocked to her feet. She was at the railing looking down in time to see Caleb’s family pour into the barn. Followed by—
“Walker. And Ivy. Oh my God. Brace yourselves,” she called in warning.
Tempting as it was to use Kelli’s old method of throwing herself out of the loft to reach the ground sooner, Ginny was more comfortable keeping her feet under her. It was still only seconds later when she threw herself into Walker’s arms.
His hat flew off as he twirled her in a circle, squeezing tight. “Brat. Missed you.”
“That seems to be the theme of the day,” Ginny said as brightly as possible. “I’m glad to be home.”
He caught her unspoken message because he gave her an additional pat on the back before setting her free.
“Come visit us this week?” Ivy asked.
Ginny had plenty of teenage memories of the quiet woman who was now her sister-in-law. Ivy still looked fragile, with her silver-white hair and fine bone structure, yet somehow appeared far stronger than before.
“I would love it,” Ginny said honestly before giving Ivy a slightly less exuberant hug than she gave Walker in an attempt to not break the woman in two.
“We’re going riding,” Emma said as she tugged on Ginny’s sleeve. “You too?”
“Sure. We’re not going very far, are we?” Ginny checked her watch. “Don’t you have a friend coming over?”
Emma’s eyes went wide, and she nodded vigorously. “Papa said we’ll ride in the arena until after Talia visits.”
“Wow, that’s a good idea.”
Caleb wandered past, chuckling softly, saddle hefted over his shoulder. “You don’t have to say that as if it’s an utter surprise. I do have them at times, you know.”
“Hush,” Ginny mock whispered. “Girl bonding. Don’t interrupt.”
Emma put her hands over her mouth and snickered softly.
A moment later, Sasha was there as well. Only she had her fists on her hips and eyed Ginny with suspicion. “Mom said girls’ night out is for bonding, but we’re too little to go. Kelli says you gotta put in the work before you get to play.”
Some things would never change. Sasha’s Kelli-isms were still a thing and still hysterical. “You’re right, and Kelli’s right. But girl bonding is not just for grown-ups. It’s also about spending special time with your people, and that means any age counts.”
Sasha considered for a moment. “Then today is special because Talia is coming to visit.”
“Yep.” But an inkling of another idea snuck in.
Ginny stored away the thought for another time, because between the visits from a birthday friend and Christmas presents, the girls probably had enough excitement to keep them bouncing for the next forty-eight hours.
Not too much later, most of the family were up on horseback, easy conversations happening while the horses paced slowly along the edge of the fence line. Two by two, mixing and matching every few minutes.
When Emma’s friend showed up with her father, and her father’s good friend, Ginny slipped aside to observe a little more closely.
Her gaze went unerringly to Tucker. He wasn’t riding but standing near the barn with one foot up on the bottom railing, his arms along the top as he chatted with Ivy.
Another memory slipped in. Tucker knew the entire Fields family, and Ivy, from way back. He really was mixed up in a whole lot of history.
Seeing him there just felt natural. Felt right.
Made things inside of her crave his heat and talented hands.
As if thinking of him somehow tapped him on the shoulder, his gaze swung to the right and their eyes made contact. No one was watching, which meant Ginny didn’t worry about hiding the things bubbling inside her.
Two weeks. If that was all she got, then she would do her best to convince him they needed to take advantage of every opportunity.
Shrieks of laughter rose from the left, and Ginny hurried to see what her nieces and their friend were doing.
All of them were in the goat pen, each one cornered by their own personal goat bodyguard.
The rest of the afternoon and dinner passed in a violent rush, until the Stone family once again gathered in the main ranch house. Presents under the tree, new toys and scraps of wrapping paper from the morning’s event already in evidence.
But now was for the whole family, and while Ashton played his fiddle and Dustin danced a jig with Sasha, Ginny found herself with eighteen-month-old Tyler in her arms.
The little tyke seemed fascinated by the necklace she wore. Leaning down, he sniffed the ceramic surface like a puppy after her scent. He babbled between times, patting his hand against her cheek and catching hold of the ends of her hair. But mostly it was the ceramic pendant she wore that held him fascinated.
“Whatever you’ve got in there, I need a bucketful,” Tamara said dryly. “I swear it’s Tyler catnip. He’s usually grumbling by now, but you’re working some sort of magic.”
“I’ll get you one,” Ginny promised. “Herbal-based and safe for both kids and pets—I double checked.”
Tamara mouthed thank you, then headed to beside the tree where Caleb had risen to his feet.
Ginny’s oldest brother made a slow perusal around the room, noting everyone was present. Emma and Sasha had been sent to the basement with a new movie, so only the adults in the family were present. Along with Ashton and Tucker, of course.
Caleb cleared his throat. “Seems as if I made an announcement like this only yesterday, but Tamara reminded me it’s been at least a couple years. I’ve got an update on the state of Silver Stone’s finances, and I want you all to listen close.”
4
Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Tucker lifted a hand to nab Caleb’s attention, then gestured toward the door. “I’ll let myself out.”
Caleb waved him down. “Stay. This affects Ashton, which means he’ll need you to bounce ideas off.” Caleb’s expression kicked up half a notch to a half smile. “I seem to remember you being around a couple of other times that were pretty momentous for us Stones. You deserve to enjoy this one.”