Page 36 of Colt

Lips bright red.

She looks pretty. And sexy. And perfectly put together in a relaxed kind of way.

I wish I were that relaxed. That free to just…kick back and enjoy the evening.

Why don’t you? Right now?

“I just so happen to love LEGO sets too. I miss playing with them,” Lainey is saying. “Maybe you and I could build something together?”

Dean, suddenly shy, grins. “Okay. Are you Mimi’s friend?”

“That’s right! Y’all haven’t met yet.” Mom puts a hand on Dean’s shoulders. I notice she’s still leaning a bit on her right leg, which makes me frown. “This is Miss Lainey. She’s here to help me and Pawpaw come up with some new ideas for the ranch.”

“New ideas?” Dean shrugs. “Like what?”

Lainey grins. “You know how everyone recognizes a LEGO brick? Like they immediately know what it is because it’s so different and cool and special?”

“LEGO bricks are super cool,” Dean replies.

“Well, I’m going to do that for the ranch. Make sure everyone knows what it is because it’s so different and cool and special.”

Dean is grinning now too. “That sounds fun.”

“Do you like to draw?”

“Yeah. Only with markers, though. Crayons are for babies.”

“Well, would you like to help me draw up some ideas for a new logo for the ranch? It’s a symbol that will represent what y’all do here. We could play around with horseshoes, horses…”

My heart twists at the look of utter delight on my son’s face when he replies, “Cowboys too? ’Cause that’s what I wanna be when I grow up. A cowboy, just like my dad.”

Lainey’s eyes flick to me. “We can play around with cowboys too.”

She’s good with kids. She’s also funny.

And that makes me want to trust her, which I know is a dumb fucking idea.

I should run. Right out the front door. I’ll skip Sunday supper until Lainey leaves. Six weeks isn’t that long, right?

I can do anything for six weeks.

Instead I’m stuck in place, legs like concrete as I try not to smile at the way she lights up Dean.

“Sure,” Dean replies. “I’ll draw with you.”

Someone laughs, and I glance into the dining room to see Billie, Beck, and Tate walking into the house.

“This sounds fun.” Billie is all smiles as she strides into the kitchen.

My sister really is lit up. Different. No trace of the weariness we’ve all seen in her over the past few months.

Turning back to Lainey, I put my hands on my hips. “You got some mouth on you.” And that smart mouth is turning me on, which is a problem.

“Colt.” Dad eyes me from his perch on the recliner in the family room that adjoins the kitchen.

“Dad, you’re not being very nice to Miss Lainey,” Dean says.

Lainey nods. “Thanks for sticking up for me, Dean. We don’t like bullies, do we?”