“How about sitting on the steps here for a little while before we go in?” She visualized a positive response, the way he’d taught her to do with the horses. She’d discovered sometimes it worked with people, too.

  He blew out a breath. “That’s probably a good idea. I want to explain a few things.”

  “Good.” She sat down on the top step. “I’m all ears.”

  He sat next to her but not close enough to touch. That in itself was telling. Usually when they were alone, he couldn’t get close enough. “I told you nobody knew the details of that Christmas Eve but the three people involved. I want you to know them, so you’ll understand.”

  “Okay.”

  Resting his elbows on his knees, he laced his fingers together. She wanted him to reach out and take her hand, but he didn’t choose to do that. “Let me give you some quick background. Drake was the first friend I made my freshman year at UV. We did everything together. He introduced me to Jeannette, and then the three of us hung out a lot, sometimes adding whatever girl Drake was dating at the time. He never stayed with any very long.”

  “Could he have been secretly in love with Jeannette?”

  “No.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Yep. And before you ask, she wasn’t secretly in love with him, either. We were together a lot. I would have picked up on it.”

  “Guess so.” Lily wasn’t totally convinced, but she let it go. This wasn’t about what she thought.

  “After graduation, Drake and I went into practice together. His parents own racehorses and so do many of their friends, including Jeannette’s folks. With contacts like that, we couldn’t help but succeed. To no one’s surprise, Jeannette and I got engaged.”

  “Right.”

  Regan cleared his throat and stared into the darkness. “As I said the other day, I’ve thought about that engagement a lot lately, and I’ll admit I wasn’t the most attentive guy. I let work interfere too much. In fact, I’d expected to spend that Christmas Eve delivering a foal, but it turned out to be false labor. So I got to go home to Jeannette. Instead of calling to say I was on my way, I decided to surprise her.”

  Lily’s stomach lurched. Poor Regan.

  “When I saw Drake’s SUV sitting in front of our town house, I figured he’d pulled his usual trick of shopping on Christmas Eve. He’s famous for that. I thought he was delivering our last-minute gift.”

  She put her hand on his arm because she had to touch him. His muscles stiffened, but she kept her hand there. “I’m sorry. So, so sorry.”

  “I walked in, thinking they’d be in the living room, or maybe back in the kitchen, because Jeannette had promised to make cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning. Then I heard her upstairs. She was...moaning with obvious pleasure.”

  Lily sucked in a breath and laid her head on his arm. “Horrible.”

  “They said it was the first time they’d had sex, and the thing is, I believe that’s true. But once was all it took for me to realize that I never wanted to see Drake Brewster again.”

  She squeezed his arm and gazed at his profile, which looked as if it had been carved in granite. “I don’t blame you.”

  His shoulders relaxed a little. “Thank you. I figured if I told you the whole story, you’d understand.”

  “I do. Oh, Regan, I do. But...”

  “But?” He looked squarely at her. “Surely after hearing my side of the story, you’re not going to tell me I should meet with him.”

  “Not for his sake.”

  “Damn straight! Then why go?”

  “For your sake, so you can put this behind you.”

  “I have put it behind me!”

  “No, you haven’t. If you had, then you wouldn’t care if Drake showed up here. But he did, and you’re beside yourself. You need to go see him, Regan, and make peace with the situation.”

  His jaw worked as he stared straight ahead. “You’ll be happy to know that I do have to go see him. But I’m only doing it because it’s how I’ll get him to leave. I won’t be going to make peace with the situation. I’ll be going to get his ass out of my town.” Standing, he walked into the house.

  She didn’t have to ask if he was moving his things back into her bedroom. She knew the answer. Clutching her stomach, she leaned over and rested her forehead on her knees. The pain of letting herself fall for Regan O’Connelli was about to start.

  16

  REGAN COUNTED the adoption fair a modest success. They’d adopted out only five horses when he would have preferred six or seven, but two of the five had been Rex and Strawberry. Molasses had also found a good home. That left sixteen horses for twelve stalls, but with the paddock available and the two most assertive geldings gone, it was workable.

  He and Nick had finished dismantling the bleachers and strapped them onto the flatbed provided by the Chances. Regan took off his gloves and held out his hand. “Couldn’t have done this without you, buddy. You and the rest of the family.”

  “Glad to. It’s a great cause and I want Lily to succeed at this.”

  “Yeah, me, too.” Thoughts of Lily were extremely painful at the moment, but he didn’t want Nick to know that. Working with her all day and exchanging only clipped words had been horrible. The past few hours ranked as some of the worst of his life.

  “So you think you’ll be staying on here? Not that we don’t love having you at the ranch, but those boys arrive tomorrow, and the second floor won’t exactly be a quiet haven anymore.”

  Regan had no idea what he was doing at this point. “I have to talk to Lily,” he said. “She might be ready to kick me out.” He made it sound like a joke.

  “I sincerely doubt that.” Nick had a speculative gleam in his eyes, though, as if he was catching something bubbling under the surface. “Whatever you decide is fine. Just warning you about those boys.”

  “Thanks. I’m sure I could handle a few adolescent boys.” His problem was one thirty-year-old man who was currently living way too close to the Last Chance for Regan’s comfort. “I, uh, need to ask you about something.”

  “Sure.”

  “I hear there’s a log-cabin rental just outside your fence line.”

  “Matter of fact, there is. We became better acquainted with that place a couple of winters ago when one of our hands chased a runaway horse over in that direction. He had to take refuge there. Do you want to rent it? I can put you in touch with the owner.”

  “No. I just need directions.”

  “Okay. Do you mind if I ask why?”

  He hesitated. If he couldn’t convince Drake to leave, word would get out sooner or later. The guy was bound to come into town. “Drake Brewster, my... former business partner, is staying there. He wants to see me.”

  Nick stroked his chin. “I see. I’m not sure it’s safe to let you go over there by yourself, cowboy. I’d hate for you to get arrested for assault.”

  “Don’t think it hasn’t crossed my mind, but he’s not worth it. He’s here because he wants to salve his guilty conscience. If I can convince him he’s wasting his time, I’m hoping he’ll pack up and leave.”

  “And if he doesn’t?”

  Anger tightened Regan’s gut. “I’ll think of something else.”

  “Let me know what happens. Jack is friends with the owner of the cabin. If we put our heads together, we might come up with a way to get the guy evicted.”

  Regan smiled for the first time today. “Thanks. I always like a backup plan.”

  “Or, if the eviction idea isn’t possible because of legal issues, Jack can send a work detail to that area with a few chain saws. They don’t have to cut anything down, but they could make a hell of a noise. We could set up some battery-operated lights and start work around two in the morning.”

  “I like it.” Regan chuckled. “Only thing is, if you drive a rat away from one hidey-hole, he’s liable to take up residence somewhere else.”

  “Not in our town, he won’t. Had I known about this cabin-rental deal, his sorry ass wouldn’t be plunked down there, either. At the very least he’d be staying in Jackson, or even farther away in Cheyenne.”

  “I appreciate that sentiment more than I can say.” Regan considered asking Nick to voice his sentiments to Lily, but then Nick would know things weren’t great between them, and Regan wasn’t ready to let that be public knowledge...yet.

  “Want me to go with you?”

  “No, but thanks for the offer. It means a lot.”

  “Just don’t do anything stupid and slug him. Or if you do, make it look like an accident.”

  Regan was still laughing about that when the last of the Chance vehicles left Peaceful Kingdom. He wouldn’t mind telling Lily how Nick had responded to the news of Drake’s sudden appearance. But that wouldn’t be very mature of him, and besides, he didn’t want to stir up trouble between those two friends over something that was his job to handle.

  Lily had gone into the house to put away the bowls they’d used at the kids’ craft table, and he considered whether it was time to lock the front gate. Then he noticed a truck and horse trailer coming down the road. All five horses had been picked up, but he hadn’t kept track of everything going on. Maybe a sixth horse had been adopted and he hadn’t heard about it. That would be great.

  He headed over to find out, but the driver climbed out of the cab and made for the porch before he could get there. The guy knocked on the door and Lily let him in. Although Regan was curious, he knew that she didn’t need him to come barging in as if he didn’t think she could handle the situation.

  Instead, he headed to the barn, where he knew there were chores waiting. Feeding time was coming up, and plenty of people had been in and out of the barn today. A few things would likely be out of place. Stall doors that should be open might be closed. Little stuff, but it could make feeding take longer.

  Nick’s support with the Drake issue had improved his mood considerably. He shouldn’t be too hard on Lily for thinking the way she did. That was her nature, and her generosity of spirit was something he appreciated about her. He’d benefited from that every time they’d made love.

  Sleeping down the hall the night before had been a miserable experience he didn’t want to repeat. So maybe they could agree to disagree about Drake and move on. Regan planned to pay Drake a visit tomorrow and talk him into leaving. The jerk had ruined one relationship for Regan, and damned if he was going to ruin another one by hanging around and providing a bone of contention between Regan and Lily.

  Regan had just coiled a rope and hung it up when Lily came through the barn door leading a horse Regan had never seen before. He nudged back his hat in surprise. “Hello. Who’s this?”

  She stood holding the horse, which had a sorry-looking mane and tail and a dull, butterscotch-and-white coat. “His name is Taffy.” She sounded defensive.

  Regan had a sinking sensation that Lily had just accepted another horse mere hours after they’d cleared out five. They’d agreed that she wouldn’t take in any more horses until she had an empty stall. “So what’s Taffy doing here?”

  She met his gaze, and defiance flashed in her blue eyes. “He has nowhere else to go.”

  He didn’t doubt the guy who’d brought Taffy had said that. Whether it was true or not, Lily had clearly decided she was the only thing standing between Taffy and some horrible fate. He understood the impulse. But she had to get over it if she ever expected to make Peaceful Kingdom work the way it should.

  Taking a deep breath, he chose his words carefully. “Is the owner still here?”

  “No. And he lives in Montana, so if you’re thinking he’ll come back for Taffy, he won’t.”

  “He brought this horse from Montana?”

  “Yes.”

  Regan groaned. “Lily, your reputation for taking in horses is spreading fast. Out of the state, even. You can’t keep doing this.”

  She swallowed. “I know. But I can’t help it. So I have a big favor to ask of you. A huge favor. Would you live here until I can find a buyer to take over?”

  “You mean live here with you? I’m already doing that.”

  She shook her head. “Not live here with me. I can’t run this place. I might as well admit it and give up.” Her voice trembled. “I realized when I was walking over here with Taffy that I’ve failed. I can’t say no.”

  “You can. I know you can! Don’t leave, Lily. These animals need you.” I need you.

  “And I’m going to let them down by taking in more! You can see that, right? This horse came all the way from Montana, and I took him.”

  “Because you weren’t mentally prepared to say no. Think about all the other visualization techniques we’ve worked on together. You have to visualize the animals you have, and the space they need, and picture yourself saying no for the benefit of those already in your care.”

  She shook her head. “This isn’t what I’m good at, Regan. I need to go back to Silicon Valley and design computer games.”

  “Don’t say that.” He felt sick to his stomach.

  “I am saying it. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll take Taffy down to his stall. I’m putting him in with Sandy.”

  Stepping aside, he let her go by. He couldn’t allow this terrible thing to happen, but he didn’t know how to stop it. She didn’t believe she could train herself to say no.

  * * *

  ONCE AGAIN, Lily spent the night alone in her bed. She and Regan had worked side by side handling the chores without talking. They both knew the routine and didn’t need to talk, but the silence was nonetheless excruciating. Now they seemed to have nothing to say to each other.

  How quickly everything had fallen apart. But the seeds of the destruction had been there all along. She couldn’t be happy with a man who insisted on keeping his anger walled up inside and wouldn’t take a golden opportunity to deal with the issue. His stubborn attitude regarding Drake could turn into a deal breaker for her.

  Yet she’d been hopeful that he might change his mind and talk with his former friend. Maybe he just needed time to work up to it. But time had run out for her and Regan, because when faced with her first test of her new resolve to turn away a needy animal, she’d failed. She didn’t belong here.

  After tossing and turning all night, she managed to oversleep for the first time since she’d moved in. That just proved that she wasn’t up to the job. Leaping out of bed, she threw on her clothes and barreled into the kitchen. The smell of coffee should have alerted her to the fact Regan was up, but she’d been too distracted to notice.

  The coffeepot was turned off, but a thermos carafe that she kept handy for keeping her coffee warm was sitting on the counter next to a note.

  Lily—

  The critters are fed. I have an errand to run. See you in a few hours.

  Regan

  She tried to imagine what errand he’d have on a Sunday that would take a few hours, and then she remembered Drake. Regan had gone to see his former best friend to get him to leave Jackson Hole. Now that was depressing. She’d wanted them to talk, but not so they could widen the gulf between them.

  Pouring herself a cup of coffee, she walked through the empty living room and down the hall past Regan’s bedroom. She glanced in, and saw that he’d made his bed. It was a small thing, but it touched her that he was considerate enough to leave the room looking neat.

  The third bedroom served as what she laughingly called an office. It contained her computer, a table and chair, and some cheap shelves for her books. When she moved out of this house, she’d be able to pack everything in half a day or less, which was typical for her.

  While she waited for the computer to boot up, she thought about the email she was about to send expressing interest in the game-designing job. And she’d confirm that yes, she’d be willing to move back to Silicon Valley and work at the company’s headquarters. She imagined the thrill of trading ideas with fellow gaming nerds. The game she’d written had been a solo effort with some consultation from Al, but it might be fun to brainstorm with others while she created more games.

  It pretty much had to be fun because that was the option open to her. She sent the email and decided not to think about it any more today. Her next step involved contacting Morgan Chance, who was a real estate broker.

  Yeah, well, she could do that later on. No rush. The process of selling this place would take a while. She was fairly sure Regan would agree to stay on until Morgan found a buyer. He’d handle Peaceful Kingdom so much better than she had. Maybe he’d consider buying it himself. That would be perfect.

  Okay, maybe not perfect. Perfection was eluding her every time she reached for it. Fitting, then. It would be fitting if Regan bought this place. Whoever bought it would have to be tougher than she was. Maybe she should leave the person a list of other horse rescue organizations within driving distance.

  An online search turned up a few, so she printed out a list. The new owner would have options to give anyone who came to the front gate. That would help ease the pain. She wasn’t sure why she’d never thought of it. She’d been too busy getting ready for the adoption fair and making love to Regan, apparently.

  Hunger finally drove her back to the kitchen. On her way through the living room, she looked out the front window and saw a truck pull up to the gate, which Regan would have locked behind him. Sure enough, the truck was hauling a horse trailer. She sincerely doubted the trailer was empty.

  A stocky man got out of the driver’s side and rattled the gate to see if it was locked. What if it hadn’t been? Would he have driven in, unloaded his horse and left? Lily had experienced that once, and she’d felt sorry for a horse that had been unceremoniously dumped.

  Something occurred to her that never had before. People were arriving without calling first. Her number was online, so they wouldn’t have to go to a whole lot of trouble to get it. That would be the respectful way to handle the situation. So far, no one had done that. They’d simply shown up without checking to see if she had space.