“I don’t want him to be right about me, either,” she whispered back. And she didn’t let go.

Fourteen

A crisp wind blew rain in across the hills, but birdsong still drifted in through the stable windows, like Montana birds were too tough to pack it in for the weather. LJ patted the silky neck of the colt he’d just finished riding, and grinned. He could understand those birds. The air was so clean up this close to the mountains, he never wanted to go inside, either.

His phone shrilled from his pocket, and Snap jerked away from him, burning the reins across his palm. Sucking in a breath, LJ winced and let the phone ring as the colt paused, stiff-legged and wild-eyed. It was going to take more than two rings to get past that reaction, but he didn’t dare wait more than three.

He answered the phone. “Hel—”

“LJ Delisle, what are you doing that’s so important you can’t answer the phone when your mama calls?”

“Juggling colts, that’s all.” He cleared his throat and focused on dropping his accent as he led Snap up the barn aisle. Mama had stretched her every penny when he was in college so she could send him money to supplement his scholarships and meager work-study paychecks. The least he could do was show her she’d gotten something for her investment. “How are you?”

“Well, I’m fixing to mail you some things this week. Some green tea—I know you hate it, but it’s good for the antioxidants—some fish fry in case you’re getting low, and a new Tai Chi video I love. Don’t you dare lie about doing it this time, either. It’s good for your joints, and you’ll thank me when you’re old. Oh, and Andra’s afghan. I hope she’s not one of those prissy types that needs a blanket to be all one color, now. It costs the earth for a ball of yarn these days, so I had to make do with what I had lying about the house. How’s that girl coming along in the kitchen?”

He smiled and used one hand to slip the bridle off Snap’s ears. “I must be better at teaching horses than humans. She tried to boil garlic last week. Didn’t peel it or noth—anything. She threw the whole bunch in the pot, skins and all.”

“She didn’t!” Mama clucked her tongue.

When he took off the bridle, Snap threw his head, so LJ pinched the phone between his shoulder and ear so he could repeat the process a few more times, waiting for the horse to calm. “I can’t get Camellia Brand beans up here, but if you mailed me some, Andra might be able to manage red beans and rice. She’s about a year off from being ready for gumbo.”