It’d been a week or more since his last visit, and Ellie missed him. She could count on Glen to distract her, make her smile. Perhaps even ease this gnawing pain. But when he’d offered to help her sort through the boxes, she’d declined, moving everything on her own. Knowing she’d have to face these memories sooner or later and preferring to do it alone.

Within minutes of her arrival at the feed store, the place was bustling. Naturally she was grateful for the business, but she would have liked a few moments to herself. Then again, perhaps it was best to be hurled into the thick of things, with no chance to dwell on her grief and all the changes taking place in her life.

It was almost two before Ellie could dash into her office for ten minutes, to collect her thoughts and have lunch. Although her appetite was nonexistent, she forced herself to eat half a sandwich and an apple. At her desk, she sifted through the phone messages and found one from Glen. It was unusual for him to call during the day, especially in early summer when he spent most of his time working with the herd. Just knowing she’d been in his thoughts buoyed her spirits.

Since his parents had moved into town and opened the local bed-and-breakfast, Glen and his older brother, Cal, had taken over management of the ranch. Thus far they’d kept the spread operating in the black, doing whatever work they could themselves and hiring seasonal help when necessary. In the last few years, they’d begun crossbreeding their cattle with Grady Weston’s stock.

The phone rang and, thinking it might be Glen, Ellie reached eagerly for the receiver. “Frasier Feed.”

“Ellie, I’m glad you answered. It’s Richard Weston.”

If it couldn’t be Glen, then Ellie felt pleased it was Richard. He’d recently returned to Promise after a six-year absence, and they’d gone out on a couple of dates before her father’s condition worsened.

“How are you?” Richard asked in a concerned voice.

“Fine,” she responded automatically, which was easier than confessing the truth. She just couldn’t talk about her grief, her deep sense of loss. Maybe Glen was the only person she could share that with, Ellie reflected. But not yet. It was too soon. For now, she needed to forge ahead and do what was necessary to get through the day.

“You’ve been on my mind a lot the last couple of weeks.”

“I appreciate your thoughtfulness, Richard, I really do.” Ellie was sincere about that. She’d been a schoolgirl when he left Promise, and like every other female in her class she’d had a major crush on him. Richard was still the best-looking man in town. The years away had refined his features, and he was suave in ways ranchers could never be. City-suave. She liked him well enough but didn’t expect anything from their friendship. To be frank, she was flattered that he sought her out. The huge flower arrangement he’d sent for her father’s funeral had touched her, it was the largest one there and stood out among the other smaller arrangements. A number of the townsfolk had commented on it.

“I received the thank-you card,” he said. “The flowers were the least I could do.”

“I wanted you to know how much Mom and I appreciated it.” She paused. “It was nice of you to do that for us.”

“I’d like to do more, if you’d let me,” he said softly. “If there’s anything you need, make sure you phone.”

“I will.” But it was unlikely she’d take him up on his offer. Not even Glen, her best friend, knew how emotionally shaky she was. The pain was still so new, so raw, that she had to deal with it herself before she could lean on anyone else. Her father had been like that, too, and she was, after all, her father’s daughter.

“You know, Ellie,” Richard said next, “I think it’d do you a world of good to get out.”

A date? Now? No way. Ellie wasn’t ready, and besides, she had a million things to do before she gave a thought to her social life. She was about to tell him that when he spoke again.

“Nell Bishop called to tell us she’s having a birthday bash for Ruth this Friday night. Sounds like she’s going all out. How would you feel about tagging along with me?”

Ellie hesitated.

“You need to relax a little. Have a few laughs,” he added with the same empathy he’d shown earlier. “Let me help you through this.”

Ellie had received an invitation herself. Attending a party was the last thing she felt like doing, but Nell was a good friend and a good customer. She needed to make at least a token appearance.

“I probably won’t stay long,” she qualified, thinking it would be best if Richard went without her. They could meet there.

“No problem,” Richard quickly assured her. “I’m not much into this birthday thing myself. The only reason I told Nell I’d come was so I could ask you.”

“Oh, Richard, that’s so sweet.”

“Hey, that’s just the kind of guy I am.”

“If you’re sure you don’t mind leaving early, I’d be happy to go with you.” Ellie had always been fond of Ruth Bishop. She knew that Ruth and Nell had supported each other through the trauma of Jake’s death. Nell had lost the love of her life; Ruth had lost her son. Nell had struggled to hold on to the ranch despite numerous hardships, financial and otherwise. Ruth had been a wonderful help, and Ellie was sure Nell had planned this party as a means of thanking her mother-in-law.

“I’ll swing by your place around six,” Richard suggested.

“Six would be perfect.” They chatted a couple of minutes longer, and as she hung up the phone, Ellie realized she was actually looking forward to an evening out. It would feel good to laugh again, and Richard was always entertaining.

***

The sun beat down on Glen Patterson. He and his brother were on horseback, driving almost four hundred head of cattle to one of the far pastures. With two hired hands, seasonal help, they’d shuffled all the cattle through narrow chutes, vaccinating them.

Removing his Stetson, he wiped his brow, then glanced quickly at his watch. Ellie had been in his thoughts most of the day. He shouldn’t have listened to her protests; he should’ve stopped at her parents’ house that morning despite everything. Ellie could use a helping hand, whether she was willing to admit it or not. The woman was just too damn stubborn.

In his view she’d declined his offer mostly out of pride. He wondered if she felt mourning should be done in private, and he wanted to tell her she didn’t have to hide her grief, that it was okay to accept an offer of help. She didn’t have to do everything herself. He knew it had all been a brave front, but he didn’t have much choice other than to accept her decision.

Vaccinating the herd was not Glen’s favorite task. Still, it was better than checking the cows and heifers for signs of pregnancy, although he strongly suspected the animals weren’t any keener on the practice than he was himself. Glen wished to hell someone would invent a urine test for cows.

“I think I’ll head on back,” Glen told his brother. They’d reached the pasture, and the cattle began to spread out.

Cal’s attention didn’t waver from the last stragglers. “Going into town?” he asked.

Glen raised his hat a bit. “I was thinking about it,” he said with some reluctance. His brother’s ability to read his mind was uncanny at times. And damned irritating.

A telltale quiver at the edges of Cal’s mouth signaled the beginnings of a smile. “You’re going off to see Ellie, right?”

“So what?” Glen didn’t care for that tone of voice. His brother never had understood how he and Ellie could be friends and nothing else. But then, Cal had an attitude when it came to women, no matter who they were. Not that Glen blamed him. If a woman had publically humiliated him the way Jennifer Healy had humiliated his brother, Glen supposed his own feelings toward the opposite sex would be tainted, too. At times, however, Cal’s lack of perspective annoyed him.