Mama jerked her chin toward the back of the house in response, her lips compressed.

He took two long strides toward the next room. “Andra?”

He saw the suitcase first, and he had to grab the doorframe to keep from stumbling. The shirt slipped off his shoulder and puddled on the carpet.

She looked up at him, her eyes a little red, and tried for a smile that failed miserably. “Hi.”

“Where you going?” His voice came out weak and he cleared his throat. If she was packing up with no notice, he must have said something to upset her, but he couldn’t think of what.

“Jason broke his leg.”

Air whooshed out of his lungs with relief, immediately chased by guilt. They weren’t exactly close, because Jason didn’t talk much, and he got cagey about his sister, but he was a good guy. A busted leg meant a lot of slow months of recovery, and that was hard on a working man. “Which horse?”

“Taz.”

LJ flinched. It was the first colt he’d worked with on the Lawler Ranch. “Shit. I told you she was still squirrelly and I needed some more time with her.”

“I know, but I left in such a hurry, I forgot to tell Jason. It’s my fault.” She threw a pair of jeans into the suitcase. “I need to get back. The ranch is shorthanded.” She straightened and turned his way, but her eyes avoided the touch of his.

She’d opened up a lot in the last few months, but Andra still did most of her talking with her back instead of her words. And right now her spine was stretched tighter than any guitar string he’d ever tuned.

“It’s time to face my responsibilities,” she said.

LJ’s nerves started jangling, and he gripped the doorframe tighter, the cheap wood creaking. “What does that mean?”

Her eyes skittered even farther from his. “Let’s go outside.”

His heart punched out a single beat that rattled his ribs. “Uh, okay.”

She edged around him. Mama’s eyes followed them as they passed through her room, not one of the three of them breaking the silence.

He took Andra around the back of the house, where they’d have more privacy. The hair on the back of his neck bristled, and LJ had an idea he wasn’t going to like a single thing she had to say.

When she turned around again, tears glistened on her face, and the sight all but broke him.

“Why are you crying?” he whispered.

“I’m not ready,” she said shakily. “Damn it, I’m not ready.”

“For what?” He shook his head. “You’ll go back to Montana and ride about a million hours a day to catch up. Mama will get on her feet again, and then I’ll be back to help you. What’s the problem?”