Stan shrugged. “Cade and Joe went into town to run an errand, and honestly, between the two of them, they’ve got everything on the ranch caught up. April and MacKenzie are napping, and I didn't want to disturb them. I was just sitting on the front porch having a cup of coffee, and saw you out here. I couldn’t just watch while you worked on the porch.”
“Well, here you go then.” I handed him a paintbrush. “You’re more than welcome to help.”
We painted in silence for a while, before Stan spoke. "I just can't tell you how glad I am that you came back to West Bend, June."
"That's nice of you to say." I moved along the porch railing, the rhythmic movement of the paintbrush soothing.
"It's the truth," Stan said. "It's selfish of me, and I'll admit it. I know Cade and Crunch's family are back here due to trouble, but having all of you back here has made me the happiest I've been since Molly died."
"It's nice to have family around."
Stan bent over, painting the underside of the porch railing. "Having a kid around again," he said. "It's like stepping back in time. Back to when you all were kids. I always considered you like - well, I'd say like a daughter, but then that makes it sound weird, since you and Cade used to date."
I laughed. "No, it's not weird," I said. "I know what you mean. I always thought of you and Molly fondly."
"I've always been real proud of you, too, June. When I'd heard you became a Navy doctor and all."
It was funny, hearing that from Stan didn't rub me the same way it did when Jed said it. When Stan said it, I felt warm, happy.
"June," he said. "I'm sorry if I stirred things up between you and Cade."
I had to turn away to hide a smile. There it was, the reason he'd come over. All the pretense, in order to apologize.
He and Cade were cut from the same cloth.
"It's okay, Stan," I said. "You didn't stir up anything."
"Now, I know that's not true," he said. "And I insulted you, implying that you'd be talking to a cop about Crunch and his family."
I shook my head. "It was really okay, Stan."
"That's good to hear," he said. "I wouldn't want to have wanted to stir things up with the two of you."
I was beginning to realize that Stan was as bad as one of the old ladies down at the hair salon, meddling in my personal life. I couldn't tell if he was trying to get Cade and I together, or warn me off of him.
Stan studied me carefully. “I fought in ‘Nam. I drifted for a while when I came back, was a little lost there for a bit. Got mixed up in some bad stuff.”
“What happened to change things for you?”
“Meeting Cade's mother is what happened to me,” Stan said. “She gave me a reason to live, a reason to get my head out of my ass.”
I walked over to the bucket, dipped my brush in the paint, returned to the porch. I didn't have a response for that. Was he comparing Cade and I to him and Molly?
Stan waited a while before he spoke again. "I've seen the way Cade looks at you. It's the same way I used to look at his mother."
“What?” My voice caught in my throat. No, that wasn’t right. Stan was mistaken. Cade did not have feelings for me. “But – but you’re the one who warned me away from him. When he first got here.”
Stan nodded. “I was wrong to say that.”
No.
I was not Cade's savior.
We did not belong together.
When I didn't respond, Stan finished his piece of the railing in silence, then wiped his hands on his jeans. "How would you feel about taking a ride tomorrow?"
"Me?" I asked. "Stan, I haven't been on a horse in years. I haven't ridden since I left West Bend."
Stan nodded. "I know you haven't, June. We took Sassy for you. She only passed on a couple years ago, right after Molly died. She was a gorgeous horse."
I swallowed the lump in my throat. Sassy was just a colt when I'd left here. I'd bought her with my savings, two years worth of summer earnings before my parents would agree to chip in and let me buy her. Cade had helped me train her, the whole year before I’d left West Bend. I’d been raised around horses, sitting on the back of horses before I could ride a bicycle, but Sassy was special because she was entirely mine. When I’d had to leave her behind, I was devastated. I’d lost everything, and to lose her too, was too much.
"I know," I said. "My aunt mentioned it. I'm really grateful."
"You know she had a colt," Stan said.
"She did?" No, I didn't know.
"Yep," he said.
"I haven't been able to ride, Stan," I said. "I don't even know if I can anymore."
And I'd only even gone near the barn once since I'd been back here, too. To yell at Cade.
Stan nodded. "A mare," he said. "We named her Missy. She's that blue roan over there by the water trough. You should come by tomorrow and we'll get you saddled up."
"I don't know, Stan,"
"What's that old cliché?" Stan asked. "Get back in the saddle and all that?"
I couldn't tell if we were still just talking about riding.
"I'm calling in a favor," Stan said. "My back's been acting up lately, and riding out to the ridge to check on cattle is starting to get tough on me. Now, I was thinking that I might be able to have you ride out sometimes, when my back's real bad."