Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 107803 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107803 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
I nodded. “I promise you, I will.”
Caden
There was nothing more beautiful than a winter morning on the ranch. Gatlin rode ahead of me with my uncle Mike as they guided the cattle to the west side of the ranch.
“Penny for your thoughts.”
Glancing behind me, I smiled at my father. “What are you doing out here, Dad?”
“I may be retired, but I still get the itch to ride out and round up some cattle.”
“In these temperatures?”
He laughed as he motioned ahead of us. “That’s a beautiful sight.”
Glancing at the snow-covered Rocky Mountains, I nodded. “It sure is.”
“You looked like you were thinking pretty hard as I rode up.”
“Not really. Just enjoying the brisk morning.”
“Your mother tells me Lilibeth was stuck at your place for a couple of days during the storm. I trust she was okay?”
“She was. Cold and tired, but not hurt otherwise.”
When he didn’t say anything else, I turned to look at him. “What is it you want to say, Dad?”
“What makes you think I have anything to say?”
We both came to a stop, and I turned my horse so I could face my father. “Because you’re my dad, and I know you better than anyone.”
His brows rose.
“Okay, maybe not better than Mom.”
Laughing, he looked back toward the cattle. “I knew the moment I saw your mother that she was the one.”
When he looked back at me, I could see myself reflected in his eyes. Everyone said I was the spitting image of my father, and the older I got, the more I saw it. Not just in looks, but in other ways, too.
“Dad, I’m not sure what Mom told you, but—”
He held up a hand. “I’m not trying to lecture you, Caden. But I will tell you one thing. If you find someone who makes your entire being light up, simply because she exists in your world, don’t let her go. I saw you with Lilibeth the morning you brought her back to her car. A man doesn’t look at a woman like that and not have feelings for her.”
I wanted to tell him that he had it all wrong. That I didn’t have feelings for Lilibeth, but I’d be lying to my father…and I never lied to my parents.
“It’s complicated, Dad.”
“Ahh, yes. The ‘it’s complicated’ reasoning. Does Rachel have anything to do with why it’s so complicated?”
I nodded and looked back toward my brother and uncle. They had almost gotten all the cattle into the pasture. “I don’t know why I can’t open my heart. The thought of doing it…I don’t want to go through that kind of pain again.”
“You called it. Love is definitely complicated. But it’s also one of the most beautiful things in this world, Caden. It’s a deep commitment between two people, and it’s not just about sex.”
“Dad,” I groaned.
He smiled. “It’s about intimacy, and the need for the person you love to always be safe and happy.” He placed a hand over his heart. “A deep connection in here, and it’s not fleeting. It’s about wanting to see the person you love succeed at everything they do. It’s empathy, commitment, trust, and most importantly…honesty. It’s selfless, yet passionate. It’s patient and kind. It’s a partnership that can teach us so many things, son. How to grow, trust, heal.
“Love is the most powerful emotion we have. And when it’s true, it doesn’t lie, steal, or cheat. Sometimes when we think we feel it, but it’s simply another emotion disguised as love. Let me ask you something about Rachel.”
I exhaled. There was no use in trying to get him off the subject until he’d said what he came here to say. “Ask away.”
“Why did she say no when you asked her to marry you?”
Laughing, I replied, “Shit, Dad. Just straight to the point?”
He tipped his cowboy hat at me. “Only way I know how.”
I looked back over the ranch that I loved with my whole heart. “She thought I’d be getting the ranch once Grandpa passed, and that I’d sell. Move out of River Falls and start a new life.”
“That’s what she wanted.”
“Yeah, that’s what she wanted.” I faced him once again. “It took me almost a year afterward before I could fully accept that she never wanted anything but her own happiness. Maybe I always knew that, but didn’t want to see it. Maybe I subconsciously thought if I waited long enough, she’d come around. I know I’m better off without her, Dad. I know that.”
“Does your heart know that? If she showed up today and asked you to take her back, would you?”
My mind instantly conjured an image of Lilibeth. Her beautiful, smiling face looking up at me after we’d made love. It surprised me for a moment, that mental image. Especially after what my father had just asked.
“No.”
“You didn’t hesitate to answer.”