for me.”
Gideon did love his granddad’s sense of humor. Such a wily old guy. “One of these days you’ll have to tell me how it is you’ve survived all these years being so shy with your opinions.”
“Good to have you around, boy. Your father and your aunt never did indulge me the way your grandmother did. And you do too. Man’s got something right when his grandson will laugh at his bad jokes.”
Gideon agreed. It was good to
be
around. It fit. He wished his parents had come back to help, but his dad was an engineer, not a farmer. And his mother loved Patrick but she had a life in Oakland. They had offered to move Patrick down there and it had been a genuine offer. His aunt had done the same. But his grandfather belonged here on this land he’d raised children on, the land he and his wife had made into something special.
Speaking of special, Jules had come back into his thoughts. “When I first met her she couldn’t have been more than five or so. Still has the freckles, I see. Even in middle school she was a tall, gangly girl. But the woman she’s turned into is amazing. Funny how that works with women.” Gideon snorted a laugh. “Can’t imagine why she hasn’t been claimed by someone.”
“Jules is the kind of woman who can’t be claimed by anyone but the man she thinks is worthy. Everything else is a game. She’s smart that way.” Patrick pulled another turnover from the box and Gideon considered mentioning it was his third but decided against it.
Patrick peered up at Gideon. “Question is, are
you
ready to date again?”
“I’ve been divorced three years. It’s not like I haven’t dated since. I’ve been over Alana a long time.” Probably even before the ink had been dry on the divorce decree. Though it certainly hadn’t been any fun to see her with other men. Sadly that had been a fact of life until he’d finally just sold his half of the Bar M to his ex-brother-in-law and gotten the hell out of Wyoming.
The longer he’d been away from Alana, the more he understood his own behavior. The more he knew he’d made the right choice to get away. It had all brought him back here anyway.
Three years of making a new start. It was long overdue. But it had all led him to that very moment and he couldn’t help but think it was exactly what he should have been doing.
* * *
When Jules arrived back at Tart it was to find Daisy in the kitchen giving orders to a carpenter as he stretched to finish installing shelving on one of the far walls.
“Hey you.” Daisy smiled quick and easy as Jules put the flat down on her worktable. “How’d it go?”
“Really well. Patrick was pleased to do it. Oh and hey, did you know Gideon was there? He’s going to help Patrick run the place.”
“The grandson, right? He’s blond like you? He and Cal were tight? I have vague memories of having a crush on him when I was eleven or twelve.”
“Join the club.” Jules had a vivid memory of the two of them, Cal with his dark hair and olive skin, head back, laughing uproariously at something Gideon had said. They’d been cute teenage boys back in the day. “Yes. He and Cal used to run around a lot.”
“Is he still cute?”
Jules put her hands on her hips. “Girl, you have a hot man already. Don’t be greedy.”
“Ha! Levi is
more
than enough for one woman to handle. But I have several single friends who are all awesome and gorgeous so it helps to know when a new, cute single dude comes into the mix. Or even for that one gorgeous single friend who also likes boys as well as girls.”
Jules tried very hard not to frown. If Cal and Gideon got together, it would suck. Mainly because she was tired of watching Cal date everyone but her over the years. But also because they were both so hot it would suck to know they were together and she wasn’t gettin’ any of it.
“I really do think you should just make a move on Cal. God, you just frowned at the mere
mention
of him dating. You two should be
Gideon did love his granddad’s sense of humor. Such a wily old guy. “One of these days you’ll have to tell me how it is you’ve survived all these years being so shy with your opinions.”
“Good to have you around, boy. Your father and your aunt never did indulge me the way your grandmother did. And you do too. Man’s got something right when his grandson will laugh at his bad jokes.”
Gideon agreed. It was good to
be
around. It fit. He wished his parents had come back to help, but his dad was an engineer, not a farmer. And his mother loved Patrick but she had a life in Oakland. They had offered to move Patrick down there and it had been a genuine offer. His aunt had done the same. But his grandfather belonged here on this land he’d raised children on, the land he and his wife had made into something special.
Speaking of special, Jules had come back into his thoughts. “When I first met her she couldn’t have been more than five or so. Still has the freckles, I see. Even in middle school she was a tall, gangly girl. But the woman she’s turned into is amazing. Funny how that works with women.” Gideon snorted a laugh. “Can’t imagine why she hasn’t been claimed by someone.”
“Jules is the kind of woman who can’t be claimed by anyone but the man she thinks is worthy. Everything else is a game. She’s smart that way.” Patrick pulled another turnover from the box and Gideon considered mentioning it was his third but decided against it.
Patrick peered up at Gideon. “Question is, are
you
ready to date again?”
“I’ve been divorced three years. It’s not like I haven’t dated since. I’ve been over Alana a long time.” Probably even before the ink had been dry on the divorce decree. Though it certainly hadn’t been any fun to see her with other men. Sadly that had been a fact of life until he’d finally just sold his half of the Bar M to his ex-brother-in-law and gotten the hell out of Wyoming.
The longer he’d been away from Alana, the more he understood his own behavior. The more he knew he’d made the right choice to get away. It had all brought him back here anyway.
Three years of making a new start. It was long overdue. But it had all led him to that very moment and he couldn’t help but think it was exactly what he should have been doing.
* * *
When Jules arrived back at Tart it was to find Daisy in the kitchen giving orders to a carpenter as he stretched to finish installing shelving on one of the far walls.
“Hey you.” Daisy smiled quick and easy as Jules put the flat down on her worktable. “How’d it go?”
“Really well. Patrick was pleased to do it. Oh and hey, did you know Gideon was there? He’s going to help Patrick run the place.”
“The grandson, right? He’s blond like you? He and Cal were tight? I have vague memories of having a crush on him when I was eleven or twelve.”
“Join the club.” Jules had a vivid memory of the two of them, Cal with his dark hair and olive skin, head back, laughing uproariously at something Gideon had said. They’d been cute teenage boys back in the day. “Yes. He and Cal used to run around a lot.”
“Is he still cute?”
Jules put her hands on her hips. “Girl, you have a hot man already. Don’t be greedy.”
“Ha! Levi is
more
than enough for one woman to handle. But I have several single friends who are all awesome and gorgeous so it helps to know when a new, cute single dude comes into the mix. Or even for that one gorgeous single friend who also likes boys as well as girls.”
Jules tried very hard not to frown. If Cal and Gideon got together, it would suck. Mainly because she was tired of watching Cal date everyone but her over the years. But also because they were both so hot it would suck to know they were together and she wasn’t gettin’ any of it.
“I really do think you should just make a move on Cal. God, you just frowned at the mere
mention
of him dating. You two should be
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