Abby had no appetite, but she carried her loaded plate out of the dining room with its old over-sized furniture to the wide wraparound porch. Several people milled around in small clusters, holding their plates and doing more talking than eating.
She smiled and greeted those who talked to her--not that many people did, but she didn’t stop--and continued searching for Seth. She had to find out what he intended to do now that he was back in McAllister.
“Do you think Seth will stay in town?”
She stopped and took a deep breath before facing the woman behind her. Tammy Jo had never liked her, but then she’d never quite understood what Mike had ever seen in the spoiled heiress.
“I doubt it. He’s famous. Nothing in McAllister mattered to him before.” She turned to move away from her ex-husband’s wife.
“I overheard him talking with his aunt.”
When Abby looked at her, Tammy Jo smiled and glanced around at the people on the porch. She could barely keep the disdain off her supermodel face. So, she still considered herself better than the rest of them.
Tammy Jo met her gaze again and her smile widened. “Seth asked her what his father planned for the ranch. Seems to me he’s thinking of moving here. How wonderful that would be. He’s so famous.”
“Yeah, wonderful,” she muttered. Of course, Tammy Jo would think so, now that Seth Kendall was famous and rich. But there had been a time she wouldn’t have given Seth a second glance.
Abby looked around again. She hadn’t seen Seth since arriving at the house after leaving the gravesite.
She’d see about him staying. He had no business here. He’d promised to come back. Oh, he’d come back all right, only to leave again. He hadn’t even wanted to see his baby. Chasing his dreams had been more important. Now, he could just keep on chasing them.
The numbed part of her heart belonging to Seth Kendall started to beat. The hurt was unbearable at the thought he’d leave her again.
Which was totally ridiculous. He had to go. His showing up now in Emily’s life would serve no purpose but to devastate her.
Mike walked up beside her and Tammy Jo. He smiled at his wife and kissed her on the cheek. She rested her hand on her seven-month baby bump and looked up at him with softness in her hazel eyes.
Mike glanced at Abby and then back to Tammy Jo. Abby’s heart skipped a beat at the answering love he held for his wife in his eyes. He’d never looked upon her like that, but then, neither she nor Mike had ever been in love.
“Sweetheart, I need to talk to Abby about Emily. Can you go find Miz Kendall and make sure she’s doing okay? She’s taking John’s death hard.”
Tammy Jo’s smile turned cold. “Of course.” High heels clicked across the porch as she strode into the kitchen.
The screen door closed with a bang, making Abby cringe. “You know she hates me.”
Mike swallowed and looked down at his hands. “She thinks you have some hold over me.” He met her gaze before turning away and heading off the porch. “C’mon.”
She set her plate of untouched food on the wide banister and followed Mike out onto the lawn. They passed Martha Gordon and two of Tammy Jo’s elderly aunts she took care of, as they sat under the trees in the garden eating and chatting. Mike nodded and tipped his hat at the older women.
“Sheriff Ritter, how you doin’? Getting ready for that baby?” Martha’s smile showed extra bright against her dark brown complexion.
“I’m doing fine, Miz Gordon. And I can’t wait until Tammy Jo has the baby.” He smiled as they continued walking. “Aunts Edna and Bea. Good to see you ladies out and about.”
The spinster sisters harrumphed and glared at Abby.
Martha glanced at the sisters and then back to her. “Good to see you, dear. The nursing home keepin’ you busy these days?”
She didn’t miss the curiosity in the woman’s words, or the McAllister sisters’ lips compressed into stern lines. “You too, Mrs. Gordon. Yes, I’m picking up some of Darlene Martinez’s hours.”
“Glad to hear you ain’t causin’ trouble.”
Mike raised a brow at her and then looked over his shoulder at the women. “We leave all the trouble to our daughter.”
Martha chuckled. “Now, I just bet that sweet little girl can cause a heap of trouble. But she sure was blessed with an angel’s voice. Will she be singing at the Founder’s Day picnic next month?”
Abby glanced at Mike before answering. Neither of them wanted Emily to sing publicly, but they also had long realized she had too much of her father in her to keep her quiet. “You know she will.”
Edna leaned closer to her sister and said just loud enough for Abby to hear, “I remember John having the same trouble with Seth. That boy would sing to the cows just to spite his daddy. God rest his soul.”
Abby’s breath caught at the comparison.
Mike held her gaze a beat before tipping his hat and smiling at the women again. “Have a good afternoon, ladies.”
Once they rounded the corner of the house and were out of earshot of the elderly women, Abby said, “Do you think people wonder where Emily’s talent comes from?”
“No.” He set his hand on her back and guided her to the white rail fence bordering the yard. “Talent may run in families, but that doesn’t automatically mean it has to. Besides, I have a cousin from Georgia who is a rock singer. So, talent does run in my family if anyone ever asks.”
He’d eased her mind a little. “You’re probably right.” She smiled and glanced at Mike as he looked out over the pastures. “You know most people think I’m hanging around you and your family because I want you back.”
Mike met her gaze and shoved his hands into his pockets. “We were pretty convincing when we were married. Our divorce surprised the whole town.”
“Yeah, we deserve an Academy Award for that performance.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
She laughed and waved the comment off. “Nothing. It’s just amazing how easily we fooled everyone.” She leaned over the fence rail and stared at the cattle grazing on the buffalo grass. “Thank you. I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.” She met his deep brown eyes and smiled. “And I’m also sorry.”
“For what?”
She straightened and faced him as she pushed her hair from her face. A warm breeze blew across the flat grassland of the pastures. “You know what for. You and Tammy Jo. You were so head over heels crazy for her in high school. I wish I’d have known about your affair sooner. I’d have let you go then. It’s the least I could have done.”
She’d be lying to herself if she said his secret two-year affair with Tammy Jo hadn’t hurt, but she couldn’t be what Mike needed. She loved him, but not as a woman should love her husband. He’d always been more like a big brother to her. Her best friend.
Seth had been the one she’d burned for during those long nights while Mike slept on the far side of their bed. He never felt passion for her either. Soon after their marriage, they stopped trying to find it. Their nearly non-existent sex life had always been damned awkward.
He looked away and leaned his backside against a fence post. “I’ve always loved her. But I couldn’t turn my back on you--or Emily.”
He squinted against the glare of the sun. She’d always known what Mike sacrificed to be with her, to be a father to