Page 78 of Kayla's Cowboy

“What gives with those two?” Jackson asked.

Elizabeth shook her head. “Lord, they’ve been arguing the merits of hand-churning ice cream versus an electric churn for the past forty minutes. Why don’t you go break it up?”

“No way. They’re going to do one of each as a test, right?”

“Naturally.”

“Well, if I get involved, they’ll recruit me to do the hand churning. That’s an adventure I’ll leave to the kids.”

Elizabeth and Sarah both chuckled.

“It’s good to have you here,” his mother said to Kayla. Sarah awkwardly pulled her into a hug.

Kayla returned the embrace. Considering her remarks in the car, Jackson figured she’d let go of the past in a way that seemed both gracious and sensible. It also made him uneasy—he’d had trouble doing the same thing.

“When do you think the kids will get here?” Elizabeth asked.

“They left when we did,” Kayla explained, “but I wouldn’t count on them hurrying.”

Sarah laughed. “Then, we won’t put anything on the grill until they arrive. We’re all set otherwise, so just relax and enjoy yourself.”

“Let’s go for a walk,” Jackson suggested to Kayla.

Her hesitation was so slight he didn’t think anyone else would have noticed. “Sure, that sounds nice.”

Elizabeth and Sarah beamed with approval, and as they walked through the backyard, Hank and Parker waved with equally wide smiles.

“Let’s go down to the pond,” Jackson murmured.

Kayla’s thoughts still seemed to be elsewhere and she said nothing as they strolled down the tree-lined path.

“Something on your mind?” he asked finally.

“Yes, but I don’t want you to misunderstand.”

“What?”

“You saw how happy your folks and my grandparents were when we went for a walk?”

“Uh, yeah,” he said, having a sudden suspicion where the conversation was leading.

“I don’t want anyone to get ideas that we might become a couple.”

“Anyone? That sounds like code for something.”

Kayla nodded. “Sandy speculated about it last night with Alex. He wasn’t thrilled. Then I started worrying about Morgan and whether she might get the wrong idea.”

Jackson wasn’t sure what he should be most concerned about—that he hadn’t kept his sex life separate from the ranch, or that Alex was upset at the mere suggestion that his mother and birth father might get together.

“Morgan knows I’m not interested in getting married again,” he said finally.

“That doesn’t make any difference. Do you really want your daughter to figure out that we had sex in your bedroom while she was riding her horse?”

Kayla was right, but Jackson was struggling because he didn’t want the sex to end. There were moments he felt obsessed with Kayla and it alarmed the hell out of him. But surely it would be easier to regain his equilibrium once she was back in Seattle.

“Of course I don’t want her to find out.”

“Okay, good.” She nodded as though convincing herself. “From now on, we need to be extracareful to not suggest we’re anything more than friendly.”

They’d reached the pond and Kayla stood gazing across it with anxious eyes.

“What else is bothering you?” he asked.

She sighed. “I don’t think Alex has resolved all the reasons he ran away to Schuyler. Or at least I don’t think he’s told me all of them.”

“He seems to have recovered from the shock of learning he was adopted. Sometimes teenagers just react and then it’s over.”

“I know.”

She still looked worried and Jackson frowned. Kayla had good parenting instincts, much better than his own. It might not help, but maybe he could talk to Alex about it himself.

* * *

KAYLA GLANCED AROUND the idyllic scene; it was just as beautiful as she remembered, though it really wasn’t a pond. Eighty years ago the McGregors had built a small stone dam on a bend in the creek, creating a deep, clear pool. Even in a dry summer, water flowed gently over the mossy top stones of the dam, while box elders and black cottonwood trees provided shade.

“That looks new,” she said, pointing to a rope hanging from a strong tree limb. “Now that they have a pool, does your family still cool off down here?”

“Sometimes.” His eyes gleamed. “Want to give it a go?”

“Nope.”

“We had fun.”

“Of course we did. We were teenagers.”

Yes, they’d had fun. It had been an unusually warm spring and Jackson had taught her how to swing out on the rope, letting go at just the right moment. The exhilaration had been even greater the time they’d swung together, his arms around her as they’d dropped into the water. At that moment she’d believed she would love Jackson McGregor forever and ever.