“I know you wanted to stay and hang out with Bill. I didn’t want to leave either, but we aren’t needed.” Or at least Jed wasn’t needed at the inn, not as long as Danny was there. He had no right to be jealous or angry. If it weren’t for Danny, Jed would be dead, and God only knew what would’ve happened to Mandy. Nathan would’ve gotten her for sure.

He settled behind the wheel and pressed a hand to the never-ending ache in his gut.

He was grateful. He was.

But why did the guy have to come back here? Watching Mandy get all flustered over some other guy was rubbing Jed’s ego raw.

After all these years she didn’t see him as a man. She thought of him as a brother. Jed’s feelings were anything but brotherly. What could he do to change the way she felt about him? She wouldn’t let him do much around the inn, except to help out with Bill now and then. But Christ, he could barely lift a ladder. Bringing Honey to visit Bill was about the most useful thing Jed had done for Mandy in ages.

Jed shifted into drive and pulled out onto the road. He cruised to Main Street and turned right, heading out of town. He drove back to his house in silence. Honey sat up and put her nose to the window as they neared his home on the outskirts of town. The truck bounced on the rutted drive and sharpened the pain in his belly. He parked and got out of the truck. From the kennels on one side of his compound, a chorus of barking greeted him. Each dog had an insulated doghouse and a run. His labs were tough hunting dogs, not pets. They lived outside in all but the worst weather. Except Honey. His hand rested on the golden head at his side. She’d always been meant for something more.

Exhaustion and pain clawed at his body, but the dogs came first. As much as he faked wellness in front of Mandy, Jed was not 100 percent. Shit, he wasn’t 60 percent of what he’d been, and the doctors hadn’t made any promises. Between the original wound and the sepsis that had invaded his body in the weeks after, Jed knew he’d cheated death. He’d all but high-fived the Grim Reaper. His heart had stopped twice. The doctors were surprised he was still alive. This could very well be Jed’s new permanent reality. Mandy blamed herself, but he didn’t. He’d do it all over again in a heartbeat to save her.

He’d do anything for Mandy.