Fay had stormed into his living room, hair and clothes damp. Shocked that she’d known he was in town, he’d only stood there and listened as she ranted and raved, releasing all her anger and grief as she blamed him for her husband’s death the previous summer.
He’d escorted Scott’s body home and stayed for the services, but he and Fay had hardly spoken to each other that hot July day. She’d certainly made up for the lapse that night, but hell, she didn’t say anything to him that he hadn’t been telling himself.
So he let her talk. But Fay had worked herself into a frenzy while she paced, not paying attention to what she was doing or where she was walking. When she tripped over his duffel bag, he’d reached out and caught her, pulling her hard to his chest. Off balance, they fell together onto the couch.
Her words disappeared, leaving only choppy breaths that had torched his bare skin like fire. Her fingertips pressed against his chest and not kissing her had been damn near impossible—
“Hey, bro. You okay?”
Adam jerked his head around.
Blinking away the memories, he forced words past the hard lump in his throat. “What? Yeah, I’m fine.”
“You’re looking a bit pasty.” Dev turned his attention from the road to look at him. “What are you thinking about?”
Shaking his head, Adam noticed they’d already driven through the center of Destiny, right past Fay’s shop, and he hadn’t even noticed.
He yanked his BDU—Battle Dress Uniform—cap farther down over his forehead. “Nothing. Go on, keep talking.”
Dev rattled on about the family business, Murphy Mountain Log Homes, and how well things were going even in the current uncertain economic times.
Designing and building a log mansion for local racing champion Bobby Winslow last year had brought in a slew of new customers from all over the country, each with money to spend on their dream home.
Like his parents and five brothers, Adam was a part owner, but much to his father’s dismay he’d walked away from any involvement in the day-to-day running of the business years ago, leaving his younger brothers to fill key management roles.
“Is it too soon to bug you about your plans?” Devlin asked.
“Sleep.”
“I mean now that you’re home. For good. You’re still set to retire, right?”
Adam nodded. He’d recently completed twenty years in the Air Force reserves, most of the last four years spent more soldier than civilian. Thanks to the unused leave time he’d accumulated he was essentially out of the military with his official retirement set to take place in a few months.
He was ready to return to his first love, ranching.
Right after college he’d purchased a share of the family’s holdings from his father with the dream of raising horses and cattle. But other than building his log home, life had gotten in the way of his plans. Now, it was time to make that dream a reality by putting the pastures and the section of the Blue Creek River that cut through his land to good use.
Devlin slowed at a crossroads. A right turn would lead them to the family compound and company headquarters. He looked at Adam and offered an arched brow as if he already knew what the answer would be.
Adam pointed left. “I’ve been up almost twenty-four hours straight. I need sack time more than anything else right now.”
His brother steered them down the road to Adam’s place. The closer they got, the more restless he grew to see his home again. He rolled down the window, letting a cool summer breeze wash over him. It’d been blisteringly hot in Afghanistan when he’d boarded the military transport, but here in Destiny, tucked up against the foothills of the Laramie Mountains, it was a perfect day with lots of sunshine, green trees and the fresh, earthy scent of the great outdoors.
This return was different.
This time he was home for good.
All he wanted was the chance to start his life over again. Alone. Nothing to concentrate on but his land. He was sure his father would try to get him involved in the family business again and his mother would drop hints about wanting her eldest settled with a nice girl.
Been there, done that, and Adam still had the battle scars to prove marriage, kids and a nine-to-five job weren’t for him. Spending as much time alone working on his ranch was the perfect plan.
At some point, he’d have to find a way to make things right with Fay, but there wasn’t any rush. Destiny wasn’t a big town, but he could keep out of her way, positive she wasn’t in any hurry to spend time with him.
Not after the way she’d torn out of his place when she’d awakened to find him dressed in his uniform ready to head back overseas.
No, Fay Coggen had made it perfectly clear two months ago she wanted nothing more to do with him.
He may not like it, but he’d learn to live with it.
Devlin pulled into the driveway and cut the engine.
Realizing his brother planned to come inside, Adam sighed and punched in the code on his cell phone to deactivate his home’s security system. “I should warn you, the place is probably a mess.”
He couldn’t remember if he’d washed up the dirty dishes from his visit or even taken out the trash, but for certain the nest of blankets and pillows he and Fay had made love on were still strewn across his living room floor.
Dev joined him on the covered porch that ran the entire circumference of his log home, the twelve-pack of Guinness balanced in the crook of his arm, and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I’d forgotten how much of a dump the old homestead is.”
Retrieving a spare key from behind a bench, Adam paused and looked out over his front yard. The large area thrived with clusters of cottonwoods, freshly mowed grass and trimmed bushes. A recently mulched area with brightly colored flowers was new.
He figured he had his family to thank for that and for the upkeep. A nearby barn and horse corral could use some work, and beyond that lay a hundred and eighty acres ready for hay meadows, horses and cattle-grazing.
“I’m talking about inside my place, moron.” Adam dropped his duffel to the floor. “It’s going to need airing out if nothing else. I left in a rush.”
Dev leaned over and grabbed the bag. “It’s a good thing the folks are still trolling around the Southwest in their RV. There’d be hell to pay if they knew you were home and hiding from everyone.”
“I need some downtime.” Adam opened the door and stepped inside. “A day or two by myself before … What the hell?”
Dev sidestepped behind him. “Whoa, don’t want to drop the cargo.”
Adam looked around.
Bright sunshine spilled through squeaky-clean windows, filling the large dining and living room with light. Tabletops gleamed and a lemony scent lingered in the air. The area in front of the fireplace held nothing but the Navajo-print rug and the oversize furniture that had been rearranged to allow better viewing of both the flat screen television and the fireplace.
No sign of his and Fay’s impromptu bed.
Adam walked in farther and a quick glance at his kitchen revealed that the appliances and countertops shined as if they’d never been used. The dining table, once covered with stacks of laundry, now held only a potted plant—one still alive, at that—and a neat pile of mail.
His place was spotless.
“Looks like your fairy godmother knew you were coming.” Dev walked into the kitchen and placed the beer in the refrigerator. “Geez, you’ve even got orange