This Place Called Home: Includes Bonus Story! (Forget-Me-Not Ranch) Read online

“Doug said this is solid construction.” Nash slipped his arm around Agatha’s waist and prodded her back into the kitchen. “And look at this amazing set up. Granite countertops. High-quality cabinets. Professional-grade appliances.”

  “It could still have a mice problem,” she mumbled. “And there isn’t enough room to bring all the cats.” She shuffled away from her nephew, crossing her arms stubbornly so he’d know she wasn’t going to back down. “I don’t like it.”

  “But it’s the perfect house for you.” Nash walked to the window. “Nice sized yard, new construction. You wouldn’t have to worry about a thing. No fences to mend or siding to replace…”

  “I don’t worry,” she reminded him.

  Nash, on the other hand? That was the one thing she’d never been able to help him with. He’d worried about his mom before she left them and then he’d worried about his dad after she left, then he’d worried about Agatha when he’d gone off to school. It was hard to give up something that’d been your constant companion.

  Agatha zeroed her gaze in on Mack again. “What do you think, my dear?” she asked, moving to the living room.

  Not surprisingly, Nash stayed put in the kitchen. He couldn’t seem to look at Mack.

  “Oh.” The young woman cleared her throat and looked nervously in Nash’s direction before smiling. “It’s a nice house.”

  “But,” Agatha prompted. Even as quiet as she was being, Mack happened to be an honest person through and through, and Agatha had to rely on that honesty to help plead her case.

  “But compared to the ranch?” The young woman peered out the window to the half-acre yard that Agatha could hardly stand. Good lord, that manicured green grass was truly awful.

  “Compared to the ranch, it’s very…ordinary,” Mack finished, saying the words apologetically.

  “Precisely.” Agatha spun to Nash in triumph. “It’s too ordinary. Can you imagine going from living on the ranch to this?” She gestured around them to the over-shined wood floors and white textured walls and gleaming stainless steel surfaces.

  “You said you would be open-minded,” her nephew reminded her.

  “I am being open-minded.” Her heart, however, remained firmly closed to the idea of moving. No matter how practical it was, no matter how logical.

  Yes, she knew she couldn’t stay on the ranch by herself much longer. Not without help. There were days her arthritis wouldn’t let her knees bend. Sometimes after an afternoon of work in the sun, she got lightheaded.

  She was getting old—a fact she’d never admit out loud—but one she couldn’t deny to herself. As much as she loved it, the work was hard and plentiful, and with Nash’s long absences, she needed help.

  “Open-minded isn’t finding something wrong with every house the second you walk in.” Nash sniffed around. “To me, it smells like cinnamon in here. Not like rotting rodents.”

  “Well, I’ve always had a keen sense of smell.” He should know that. She used to be able to sniff out the dirty socks that somehow made their way under his bed all the way from the kitchen.

  On the other side of the room, Mack moved toward the front door. “I’ll give you two a minute,” she said before slipping outside to join Realtor Doug on the front porch.

  Based on the stubborn expression on Nash’s face, a minute wasn’t going to be long enough. Before he could start in, Agatha marched over to him. “Maybe you should stop worrying about me so much and start worrying about yourself.”

  “And why is that?” he asked though he clearly knew what was coming.

  “I’m not one to pry, but—”

  Nash snorted.

  “It’s beyond me how you and Mack have managed to coexist on the same property without speaking two words to each other since I caught you playing hanky panky.”

  He’d made himself extra busy with house calls to various pets in town while Mack had been immersed in trying to build a website for the ranch.

  But still, Agatha made them all dinner together—and then had to carry the entire conversation by herself while they each offered short answers to her questions.

  “I’m tired of walking on eggshells with you two. What happened anyway?” Normally she wouldn’t ask, but given the circumstances, she needed to know whether he was going to drive the poor woman away.

  “Nothing happened.”

  Her eyebrows shot up.

  “Nothing should’ve happened,” he clarified. “She was engaged just over a week ago. She’s clearly hiding out from her life, but it won’t last. I’m not one for rebound flings.”

  He wasn’t one for flings, period. Or for relationships—she’d seen that much. “Maybe a fling would be good for you.” At least it might remind him that he still had a heart in there somewhere. Underneath the layers he’d built up to cushion it. “She’s such a lovely person. Kind and smart and—”

  “I’m not interested,” he said firmly.

  Now that was an outright lie. It wasn’t like Nash to lie. That only spoke to how interested he really was. As much as he wanted to deny it, he and Mack had chemistry. Agatha could feel it—the tension pulling at each of them when they entered the same room.

  Glory, she’d give anything to have felt that tension with another soul at some point in her life, but it had never happened for her. Oh, she’d dated. Before she’d become Nash’s full-time parent, she’d had some fun.

  But she’d never had a connection with anyone that made her do crazy things. And it irritated her to no end that Nash would be willing to waste it.

  She couldn’t let him. She couldn’t let either of them ignore the truth. She needed Mack to stay at the ranch and she needed Nash to spend time at home to remember how much he loved it.

  “I’ll make you a deal,” she said before she thought better of it. “Give Mack and I one month. If we don’t have any funds coming in to support a staff by then, I’ll sell.”

  Something on her nephew’s face softened, as though he understood how hard that would be for her. “Just like that?” He didn’t hide his suspicion from her. “You’ll sell and move into a house in town?”

  “On one condition. You stay here the whole month instead of going back on the circuit.”

  If he went back to work like he’d been talking about the last few days, he wouldn’t fall in love with the land again. He wouldn’t fall in love with the woman he needed.

  “Okay.” He solidified their pact with a nod. “I can get coverage for the next few events.”

  “One month,” Agatha repeated.

  Though she knew it would take more than time to heal her nephew’s heart.

  Chapter 10

  Mack shut her laptop and massaged her temples.

  Her eyes ached from the long hours of staring at the screen. She certainly wasn’t a web developer, but she remembered enough from business school to start piecing together a website.

  She could’ve hired a designer, but Agatha had made it clear she would be paying for any upfront startup costs, and Mack didn’t want to burden her with that one.

  Besides, it had given her a reason to hide behind the computer screen rather than run into Nash somewhere.

  She didn’t even want to know what the man must think of her—making out with him so fast after breaking things off with her fiancé.

  She didn’t even know what to think about it.

  Mack pushed out of the chair and stepped away from the desk in Agatha’s guest bedroom. The space was homey and rustic—log walls and a beautiful antique-looking cast-iron bed draped with a colorful quilt.

  The interior walls were painted a soft yellow and pictures of wildflowers hung in symmetrical rows. There was something warm and welcoming about it, especially compared to the homes they’d looked at with the realtor the other day.

  Though they were newer and nicer, those houses had no personality.

  Personally, Mack found Agatha’s distaste for each of them amusing, but she’d been careful to stay neutral. She didn’t need more tension between her
and Nash.

  She wandered out of the guest room and into the open-concept kitchen and living room. Agatha stood at the stove, stirring something in a huge cast iron pot.

  The whole house smelled like garlic and fresh herbs, and aroma triggered a rolling hunger pain.

  “What time is it?” she asked, going to join Agatha in the kitchen.

  “Nearly six o’clock.” The woman wiped her hands on her apron. “Supper’s almost on. I made Bolognese. It’s Nash’s favorite.” She lifted the lid off the pot and that heavenly aroma of tomato, basil, and garlic made Mack’s mouth water.

  “I wish you’d let me help you cook.” Though she’d likely only mess up the meals. Working long hours back home meant she picked up takeout more often than not. “But I’m more than happy to be on dish duty too.”

  “Are you kidding?” Agatha carted a pot of pasta over to the sink and dumped it into a colander. “You have more important things to do. How’s that website coming?”

  Mack stole a noodle out of the colander and popped it into her mouth. “Actually, it’s coming along nicely. I remember more than I thought I did from my business school days. I think we’ll be ready to launch it soon.”

  That would be the easy part—launching the website. “The key is going to be getting publicity. We need to somehow get the word out so the donations start coming in.”

  “Right. About that.” Agatha’s ever-present smile sunk into a grim frown. “I told Nash if we weren’t bringing in enough money to hire some support staff within a month, I’ll sell the ranch and move to town like he wants.”

  Mack almost choked on another noodle. “You’ll give up the ranch?” she managed to ask through a cough.

  It seemed she wasn’t the only one making deals with Nash lately.

  “I’ll have to.” The woman uttered a deep, heartsick sigh. “He’s right, you know. I can’t keep doing this all on my own. And I don’t think he’ll ever stop traveling. It keeps him distracted. He likes it that way. He likes to be busy so he doesn’t have to face certain things.”

  Well, he’d surely proven that over the last week. Though Mack had to admit, she hadn’t been any better. “We have to make this work then.” Oh boy. They had so much work to do. In order to hire part-time staff, they’d have to have real commitments from donors.

  “We have to find some partners. As soon as possible. Are there any businesses in town that might be interested?”

  Agatha seemed to consider the possibility. “I’ve never really asked anyone, but River Haven is full of animal lovers…”

  “I’ll ask.” Mack suddenly found herself in a panic. “I can do that over the next few days. If we could at least get a couple of regular donors to partner with us, that would be a great start.”

  “Us.” Agatha’s smile reappeared. “I like the sound of that. We make a good team, you and I.” She raised her brows conspiratorially. “You can stay on, you know. If you’d like. You would count as support staff.”

  Something in Mack’s heart bloomed. But…could she? Only a week ago she was living a totally different life. Everything had happened so fast. What would it mean to give it all up?

  For so many years she’d worked hard to earn her place in her father’s company. To earn respect from her colleagues. And then there was the whole problem of Nash. He likely wouldn’t be too thrilled about her moving in permanently.

  “Thank you.” She squeezed the older woman’s hand. “I’m not sure yet what things will look like.” She wasn’t sure what she wanted things to look like.

  This place had been so good for her—a respite from the life she’d built—but moving to River Haven was likely out of the question.

  Agatha squeezed her hand back. “I know you have obligations to your family. I just wanted you to know you’re always welcome here. For as long as you like.”

  Tears pricked the corners of Mack’s eyes. “I appreciate that. This place saved me.” If Agatha hadn’t found her in that gas station parking lot, she likely would be back at home where her mother would be trying to force her to get back together with Evan and she would be working around the clock just to forget it all.

  Instead, she was walking in the sunshine and playing with Jasper and doing something meaningful by helping this woman.

  “Here.” Agatha reached onto the counter and handed her a basket of fresh buttered bread. “Now why don’t you take this outside? I thought we’d eat on the patio tonight.”

  “Sounds lovely.” Everything was lovely here. She wasn’t naive enough to believe that her life would be perfect if she moved to River Haven, but it would definitely be different. And maybe different was exactly what she needed moving forward.

  Mack slipped through the back door onto the deck, greeted by the cool evening breeze and the sight of the sun dangling low over the peaks. Evening seemed to soften everything in the mountains, bringing the world into harmony.

  The patio table had been set with the good china. A bottle of fine red wine sat in the center.

  Wow. Agatha always made an incredible meal, but she usually did so without the fancy touches.

  Just as Mack went to set the breadbasket on the table, footsteps thudded. She turned, nearly bumping into Nash as he came around the corner.

  “Oh! Uh, sorry,” she mumbled.

  The man automatically jolted back, like he was afraid she’d touch him. “It’s fine.” As had become their custom, they both quickly looked away and danced around each other to find a seat at the table.

  Mack rolled her eyes at herself. This was getting ridiculous. They were adults—both long past their awkward junior high years. Why was it so hard to act like it?

  “What’s the occasion?” Nash eyed the spread in front of him with visible trepidation.

  As if she’d been the one to plan a nice dinner for them.

  “I’m not sure.” Annoyance started to trump the awkwardness. “Agatha said she felt like doing something a little different tonight. That’s all I know.”

  Though he’d likely find a way to blame her somehow. He’d glared at her plenty when they’d gone house hunting the other day, like it was her fault his aunt didn’t like anything.

  “I haven’t seen the china in a long time.” He picked up his plate, seeming to study the intricate pattern lining the rim.

  There was that look in his eyes again. The same look that had been there when he’d talked about his mom, like he was someplace else. Far away.

  It had to be the china, and seeing it likely served up more memories he’d suppressed.

  And there went her heart, melting for him all over again.

  The door opened behind them. “Dinner is served.” Agatha traipsed to the table, a bowl of pasta in one hand and the pot of Bolognese sauce in the other.

  She set both down in the center of the table before taking a seat next to Nash.

  “You used the china.” Nash’s gaze was still fixated on the plate.

  “Well, why not?” Agatha shook out her fancy cloth napkin and laid it across her lap. “It’s high time we used it again. It’s been collecting dust for years.” She smiled brightly at her nephew. “We used to use it for every holiday.”

  “I remember.” To Mack’s surprise, he almost smiled too. “I was always afraid to break it. I used to try eating with my fingers so my fork wouldn’t crack the plate.”

  His aunt beamed, likely delighted that he shared the memory. “No need to be that cautious anymore. We have place settings for twelve, after all. It wouldn’t hurt to break a few.”

  “I’ll try not to.” Nash served Agatha a helping of pasta and Bolognese. Of course. Did he have to be such a gentleman when it came to his aunt? It didn’t help Mack’s heart-fluttering problem one bit.

  Before serving himself, he handed Mack the spoon. She took it, accidentally brushing her hand against his arm. “Sorry—”

  A phone dinged loudly somewhere beneath the table. “Well, who on earth could that be?” Agatha asked a little too innocently. The wom
an dug her phone out of her back pocket and held it up, squinting at the screen. “I’ll be.”

  “Who is it?” Nash leaned over to take a look.

  “It’s Marty. I totally forgot the boys and I are supposed to get together to play poker tonight.” She shoved the phone back into her pocket and hopped up.

  Mack dumped pasta and sauce onto her plate before handing the serving spoon quickly back to Nash. “Poker?” And the boys?

  “A group of retirees invited her to join their cards club,” Nash answered for his aunt. “Seems awful convenient they’re getting together tonight.” He cast the woman in a knowing glance.

  “You two should still enjoy dinner.” She snatched the bottle of wine and filled both of their glasses. “I’m sorry, but I have to run.”

  And run she did—all the way inside the house before Mack could get a word out.

  Well, that was subtle. Now she understood the setup on the patio, the china, the wine. Agatha wanted them to have a nice romantic meal together during the sunset.

  Clearly, that wasn’t going to happen.

  Mack started to scoot back her chair. “I can take my plate inside…”

  “It’s fine,” Nash said.

  Nothing was fine between them. He had hardly looked at her since he kissed her. He would hardly look at her now.

  “I’m not the kind of person who intentionally hurts others,” she informed him. None of this was intentional. Not leaving Evan at the alter, not kissing Nash. It had all been unplanned and unscripted, and ever since those things had happened, she mostly felt like she was wandering around lost.

  He took a sip of wine. “I never said you were that kind of person.”

  Oh, sure. He got to sit there and act all rational when he’d been the one to kiss her into heart-spinning oblivion and then completely ignore her, as if the whole thing had been her fault.

  “You don’t have to say it. I can tell what you think of me.” He despised her so much he couldn’t even look at her. And she was trying hard not to despise herself. If it were up to her, she would feel nothing for him. Not after just breaking up with someone else.