“Smells good in here,” Hunt added, kissing their mom’s check. He was a total mama’s boy.
Their dad, John, sat at the head of the table next to Cole. Bethany and Jenna were next to him. “Where’s Nova?” Maverick asked. “She okay?”
“She’s fine,” Mom said. “She’s staying off her foot as promised. I’ll take her something after we’re through, then Dad will drive her into town to see Doc this afternoon.”
The whole family lived on the ranch. The inn, along with two other buildings—The Cottage and Pine House—included a total of twenty-two rooms for guests. But beyond the immediate grounds, down a private dirt road, were their residences. A restored house dating back to the early 1900s for Mom and Dad. Cole, Bethany, and Jenna had a newer home near the lake. Nova lived in their guesthouse. Hunter made himself comfortable in the old bunkhouse, remodeling it in his spare time. And Maverick had his own cabin, set the farthest away from the inn, at the base of a hillside.
“Speaking of doctors,” Cole said, “it looked like you and Dr. Martin already knew each other.”
Maverick sat across from his brother at the rectangular pine table. “We met earlier when Jenna was chasing George.”
“I don’t think that’s it,” Cole said, lifting his coffee mug to take a sip, a decidedly defiant gleam in his eyes. “I seem to remember you mentioning a Kennedy Martin back when you were in school.”
Damn his brother and his steel-trap memory.
Rather than answer, Maverick filled his plate with scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast. The less he talked about the wedding crasher, the better.
“I knew it!” Cole said, Maverick’s silence an error in judgment. “She’s the girl you loved to hate, isn’t she?”
“You and Kennedy went to college together?” his mom asked.
“Undergrad, yes,” he said. “And I didn’t love to hate her.”
“Loved her, then, whatever.” Cole had a punch to the face coming if he didn’t shut up.
“Didn’t love her, either.”
“You something’d her,” he insisted. “I vividly remember you complaining about her to me. You guys were always at each other. I thought for sure once you graduated, you were going to bring her home as your girlfriend.”
“I didn’t like her, Cole. And she didn’t like me.”
“I like Dr. Martin,” Jenna said, taking a bite of bacon. “She’s nice and she didn’t freak out like some people do when George says hello.”
“What were you two, then?” Mom asked thoughtfully.
Maverick didn’t meet her eyes. He knew if he did, he’d see more than he wanted to. More questions. Questions like, Are you ready to move on yet? Leave it to Kennedy Martin to not only crash his professional life, but his personal one as well.
“Rivals,” he said. Plain and simple.
“What’s a rival?” Jenna asked.
“An opponent. Someone you compete with,” Bethany told her.
“Did you win, Uncle Mav?”
Maverick finished chewing his food, buying himself a minute to think. If you’d asked him the day after graduation who had won their frequent battles, he would have said himself, no question about it. But over the years, those battles had faded into fond memories rather than hateful ones. Nicole had taught him that. She’d encouraged him to look back with gratitude, that being challenged was a gift, and that he should hold on to the positives rather than the negatives. Kennedy had pushed him to do and be better. He’d always strived to do well, but be the best? Not until he’d met Kennedy.
She brought something out in him no one else had.
“We tied,” he said, reaching over and ruffling his niece’s hair.
Cole chuckled. “Right. The real answer is she kicked his butt.”
“Any other answer is none of your business.”
“Boys.” One word from their dad and they both shut up.
“Whatever she was or wasn’t,” his mom said, “she’s lovely and we owe her a debt of gratitude for coming to Nova’s rescue like she did.”
“I’m happy to show her some appreciation,” Hunter piped in, his plate free of food. He always ate first, talked after.
“Don’t even think about it.” Maverick didn’t need his brother putting the moves on Kennedy. And the reason for that was one he did not intend to examine.
Hunter grinned. “Why not? You planning to show her some personal thanks yourself?”
Maverick pushed his chair back to stand. “Thank you for breakfast.” He took his plate to the sink, rinsed it off, and placed it in the dishwasher. He’d been reacquainted with Kennedy for less than twenty-four hours and, since seeing her again, memories of the two of them were constantly popping up and taking the place of others. The instant connection, if he wanted to call it that, made him…he didn’t know. Confused? Interested? Happy? His jets cooled when he reminded himself exactly why she’d arrived at the ranch.
“Aw, don’t run off,” Cole said. “We’re just happy to see you actually look at a woman again.”
“I’m not looking,” he grumbled.
“It’s okay if you are,” Hunter added.
“Uncle Mav looks at Mommy and Grandma all the time,” Jenna said.
“That’s right.” Maverick’s sour mood lifted. His seven-year-old niece always knew just what to say to help an uncle out. He had a good idea how to show her how much he appreciated her—and how to irritate his older brother at the same time. A win-win after Barley had her puppies and he gifted one to Jenna before he left on his trip. “See you later,” he called over his shoulder, pushing open the door.
“Love you!” his mom called out.
“Love you, too,” he answered.
As much as he looked forward to leaving the ranch for a while, he would miss seeing the faces of his family, even when they butted their noses where they didn’t belong. It means we care, his mom liked to say. He understood that, but the last thing he needed was his mom caring about a certain wedding crasher.
…
A few hours later, it took him only a second to pick Kennedy out of the crowd gathered for the welcome brunch. Sunlight caught her wavy blond hair just right, and she wore the same green wraparound dress she’d worn last night. Green was his favorite color.
Her most obvious feature, however, was the fact that she stood alone near the fence line. He didn’t know the first thing about crashing a wedding, but blending in seemed to be a wiser decision. That she appeared a little lost shouldn’t affect him in the least. He had non-wedding things to do.