“I think Mom and Jack are being too hasty,” Jenna said. She hadn’t reacted well when their mother showed her the ring Jack had given her. “Shadow, she’s been on her own for a while now, and you can see how much happier she is. All those years of putting up with Daddy, him losing one job, then finding another, only to get fired or quit that, too…” He’d always seemed to be between jobs when he wasn’t sitting in his old recliner all day, channel surfing the TV or bullying one of the kids, especially Jenna. “Mama may be leaping at this chance with Jack when she should take time to really figure out what she wants.”
Shadow started on her own lunch with a sigh of satisfaction. “I’m sure she hasn’t forgotten how hard it was to put food on the table or buy all of us shoes—”
“Used sneakers from Goodwill or the church rummage sale,” Jenna remembered. “Mama had a bad self-image then, and no wonder with the way Daddy treated her. I’d hate to see her give up her new independence only to get into another bad situation.”
“She won’t. I’ll admit Jack’s quirky,” Shadow agreed, running a hand through her dark hair, “but so what if he pretends he’s French when he’s not? I find that endearing, especially in a town like Barren where cowboys rule. His restaurant’s already a big hit, he’s been good to Mama, and he’s great with Bertie, who’s not the easiest person to get along with. As I just learned all over again.” Shadow’s nearly black eyes held the hint of a smile. “I’ll find Bertie a caregiver he feels comfortable with. Would you deprive Mama of her chance to be truly happy for once in her life?”
“Of course not. But what’s wrong with a longer engagement that would give them both time to see if this is really the right thing to do?”
“Jack loves her. She loves him. What’s to figure out?”
Jenna finished her sandwich, savoring the last bite of ham-and-cheese goodness, her gaze focused on a framed photograph of Shadow, her husband, Grey, and their ten-year-old daughter, Ava, on the desk. “This, from a woman who adores her husband, dotes on her new baby and has everything else she wanted in life? Including Wilson Cattle and everyone’s favorite little cowgirl?” And Ava now had a baby brother, if not the sister she’d asked for. Being around their little family—or Hadley’s twins—for Jenna was both a joy she couldn’t resist and a sorrow she could never escape. She should worry instead about finding some clients.
Shadow saw her looking at the picture. “We have problems like anyone else, Jen.” She tried a smile. “For instance, Grey’s parents’ house has taken forever to build. Everett’s a great father-in-law, and I do love Liza, who’s the best stepmother-in-law in the world, but really, they need their own quarters and so do we. Just like Mama and Jack. There’s always something. Life’s never perfect.”
“I guess I still have to work through my own issues,” Jenna admitted.
“Sure, and I get that—” Shadow had never liked David, Jenna’s ex “—but Mama’s wedding to Jack shouldn’t be one of them. Your marriage didn’t pan out. The divorce was hard. We all think David treated you terribly, but look at you now,” she said. “You’re better off, and you have a new business, which I know is going to be successful—”
“—if things ever pick up,” Jenna said. She couldn’t deny that, like their mother, she’d sacrificed a big part of herself to help further David’s career and run the rest of his life so he wouldn’t have to. “I thought getting certified as a designer would be hard. Compared to launching my business, it was a piece of cake—chocolate,” she added, tapping one finger against the square white box Jack had packed for them with dessert.
“Even so, you’re doing fine.”
“Are you in Pollyanna mode today?” Jenna asked.
“No, but who needed that big house in Kansas City?” Shadow didn’t point out that there’d been no babies there to fill the space. “Your apartment here is gorgeous and homey. All you need now is confidence.” Her eyes brightened. “Why don’t you call Liza? Now that their house is almost done, she’ll want a designer. Maybe you can get the job.”
“You’re changing the subject. We were talking about Mama and Jack.”
“I think the two are connected. Them and your divorce.”
She glanced out the window. “I just don’t want her to get hurt.”
Shadow arched one eyebrow. “See what I mean?”
Jenna’s hands twisted in her lap. “No. I don’t. I care whether our mother makes another mistake, but that doesn’t mean it’s about me, too.”
Shadow gazed at her. “I disagree.” And Jenna could tell that what she’d dreaded was coming. “Mama’s engagement, even your divorce, aren’t the only issues. You’re going to have to deal with the rest eventually too, Jenna.”
She didn’t pretend to misunderstand. “I can’t believe you’d bring up my…infertility. Yes, I wanted kids—maybe too much—but that dream is over.” She folded her sandwich wrapper, then dropped it in the trash can beside Shadow’s desk. The closest she would ever come to a baby of her own was Shadow’s three-month-old son, Zach.
Jenna opened the cake box and gave her sister a piece. Shadow sampled the slice set before her. “What’s the best thing now for you? Maybe you should work on that.” She hesitated. “And while we’re in risky territory here, what’s going on with Hadley Smith’s twins?”
“I see them as much as I can—for Amy’s sake.”
“Jenna, if that’s painful, you don’t have to spend time with them. I think Amy would understand. Unless visiting the McMann ranch isn’t just about the babies.”
Jenna said, “I enjoy the twins, but I don’t want to know Hadley any better than I already do.”
Shadow blinked. “Now, that’s interesting.”
Yes, it was. Why had she assumed Shadow meant him? She couldn’t deny he had a certain appeal with that dark hair and those steel-blue eyes. But he didn’t want her around, and she didn’t like to get near him, either. She went to the ranch for the twins, not Hadley. “I’m keeping tabs on him. That’s all.”
“Maybe you won’t have to much longer. I hear Clara’s going to sell her ranch.”
That news surprised Jenna. “Then the problem will solve itself. Hadley won’t stay in town.”
Why hadn’t she heard about Clara putting the ranch on the market? Jenna rose from her chair. Unfortunately, that also meant she’d no longer see the twins, hard as that might be, because Hadley would be out of sight before the sold sign was posted on the ranch. As expected. Jenna didn’t want to examine her mixed emotions about that too closely, so she changed the subject. “I forgot to bring you the quilt you bought for Zach. I’ll drop it off tomorrow. Would that make you happy?”
“Yes,” Shadow said, “but I’d feel even more pleased if you’d help me with the plans for Mom’s wedding.”
Jenna didn’t respond. That would be as hard for her as saying goodbye to the twins.
AFTER HE LEFT the NLS, Hadley had grabbed a quick lunch at the Sundown Café—he wasn’t a big fan of the fancy French food served at the Bon Appetit—then ate his burger on the way to the Circle H.
Begging didn’t come easily to him, but if that’s what it took… Only Logan Hunter, Sawyer’s brother and part owner of the ranch, quickly dashed his hopes. At the moment they were fully staffed.
After their brief conversation, Hadley left his cell number, then climbed back in his truck, disappointed. Still, he had to envy Logan, who