LITMIR.BIZ

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      Clearing her throat, she asked, “You’re going to let them work on their own?”

      “I can see them from here. Besides, they’re not beginners. They know what they’re doing.”

      “They seem to,” Priscilla agreed, surprised that Alyssa took as much care with her horse as Mia did.

      And Sam was still in that down mood. His brow was drawn and his mouth was pulled into a straight line instead of the teasing smile that always got to her. She wondered what was going on with him, but she wasn’t about to ask. She didn’t have to. Apparently he needed someone to talk to.

      “I only wish I knew what I was doing,” Sam said.

      “In what respect?”

      “I’m worried about the future of the farm.”

      Apparently, he was taking all the responsibility for the land on his shoulders despite the fact that his father had intended to sell the place.

      “You’re just getting started, Sam. Take it easy. You just need a little patience.”

      She felt like patting his hand or something for encouragement, but, not wanting to touch him, she kept her distance.

      Sam sounded even more depressed when he said, “What I need is luck. I nearly lost some horses the other night when they mysteriously got out of the pasture.”

      The way he said that made her ask, “And you think someone did it on purpose?”

      “Logan swore the gate was locked when he finished. And the horses didn’t just wander out calmly. They were a little freaked, like someone purposely spooked them.”

      “Oh, Sam, that’s terrible.”

      “It could have been worse if one of them had wandered onto the highway. And that’s not all.”

      “What else happened?” This didn’t sound good.

      “The other day, after the ride, while I was at my cabin having supper, someone scattered boards with big nails in the parking lot. Loose nails and screws, too. If I hadn’t cleaned it up, some of my customers would have had ruined tires. That probably would have been it for them. They wouldn’t have come back.”

      Priscilla frowned. “I haven’t heard about any kids messing around on people’s property, not since Brian Lange and his buddies were caught playing pranks and straightened out doing some community service. That happened a couple of summers ago. I wasn’t here at the time, but I heard all about it from his sister Kristen. You remember her, right? My best friend in high school?”

      “Vaguely. Smart. Ambitious. Couldn’t wait to graduate to get out of Dodge.”

      “She did that, but she came home to Sparrow Lake, too. Now she manages her aunt’s quilting shop.”

      “You’d think there was some magic about this area, pulling us all back.”

      “Not everyone. My brother doesn’t even visit more than once every couple of years.”

      “A big-shot lawyer has innumerable choices about what to do with his life.”

      Though obviously not enough time to discipline teenagers, Priscilla thought glumly, thinking again about the problems with Alyssa.

      But she was being selfish. Sam’s woes were far more pressing. Furthermore, she had the feeling that his mood had to do with more than loose horses and boards with nails. With more than fearing his business would fail. He’d said rodeo was a young man’s game, but she was pretty certain many competitors were in their forties and even fifties. Maybe there was another reason he couldn’t or didn’t want to go back. And maybe he’d been doing one thing for so long, he didn’t think he had any other viable choices. She wished she knew more so she could be supportive, but she hesitated asking him more directly. If he wanted her to know what had happened, surely he would tell her.

      He suddenly asked, “You haven’t heard about anyone in Sparrow Lake having it in for me, have you?”

      “No. I didn’t even know you were back in town until we showed up for the trail ride. I’ll keep an ear open and ask around, though. Mom seems to know what’s going on with everyone.”

      “Thanks. I appreciate it.” His grim expression lightened a bit, as if having her on his side made a difference. “I asked around about the Main Street Cheese Shop. I hear you’re all the rage these days.”

      “I’m doing okay. It usually takes a business about three years to really succeed, but I’m making pretty encouraging progress.”

      “You’ll have to tell me how you did it.”

      “Sure. It’s not a secret. Just a lot of hard work.”

      “I’ve never been afraid of hard work. Maybe we can have dinner and talk about what you did more specifically. I could use some pointers.”

      Despite her reservations about getting too involved with Sam, Priscilla agreed. “Right. I told you I thought that was a good idea.”

      She sympathized with him having such trouble getting his business off the ground. From experience, she knew it was difficult enough to get a new business going successfully without the kind of setbacks he was having. But she didn’t just have herself to think about this summer.

      “My parents want to take the girls to Lake Geneva for a day.” A beautiful little resort town with mansions facing a lake, boutiques for Alyssa and boat rides for Mia. “I’m not sure when they plan to do that, not as yet. Sometime in the next few days, I think. I’ll find out.”

      He nodded. “Sounds good. Thanks, Prissy.” He covered her hand with his calloused one.

      Despite her pulse fluttering at his touch, she would have to be cautious, not fool herself into thinking they could have something more personal going simply because she still felt attracted to him. After all, she didn’t know if she could trust Sam Larson with more than friendship after the way he’d simply left town right after he’d kissed her and told her he wanted her to be his girl.

      No one knew why he’d left. That still bothered her. Not that she was going to ask. She didn’t want to get into an uncomfortable discussion. Anything to avoid that kind of tension. She remembered in high school, Sam was voted the most likely to end up dead by 30. Had he done something terrible? Was that why he’d left? Was whatever he had done somehow reflecting back on him now? If he had some big secret he was hiding, he wasn’t exactly being honest with her.

      Again.

      She’d gotten over him once—at least she’d convinced herself she had—and she didn’t need to go back there. They’d been just kids, then, really. Still, it had obviously had a lasting influence on her. Could it be that Sam’s disappointing her the way he had was part of the reason she’d never given herself fully to any other man? She’d had a serious boyfriend in Madison and a couple more in Milwaukee, but those relationships had never worked out. Always the bridesmaid, never the bride—that was the running joke she had with her girlfriends.

      A joke based on the disappointing truth.

      * * *

      PRISCILLA TRIED NOT to think about Sam that evening. Mom had invited them for a barbeque, but when they arrived at her parents’ backyard, Mom was fuming.

      “Supper will be a little late.” Mom’s eyes were narrowed behind her glasses. “Your father forgot to light the coals.”

      He muttered, “I was distracted.”

      “And then he fell asleep. You’re always sleeping, Roger.”

      Priscilla didn’t say a word. Though her mother had a point, she wasn’t about to get in the middle of their ongoing argument.

      “Didn’t you sleep last night, Gramps?” Mia asked.

      “Oh, a little.”

      Mia

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