LITMIR.BIZ

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an older woman greeted them warmly. “Shane! Are these your sisters? I’m so glad to see that you finally have family visiting.”

      Shane looked at them and shrugged, then shook his head. “No. They’re the ones who inherited Helen’s ranch. I’m helping them get settled. We’d like three coffees and bear claws, if you have any left.”

      He hadn’t actually asked them if they wanted bear claws, but as Della lifted the domed lid off the tray, Leah wasn’t going to complain. It had been forever since she’d indulged in any kind of pastry because of how she limited the sugar her boys consumed. It didn’t seem fair to have treats for herself and deny them.

      “It’s nice to meet you,” Della said as she put bear claws on plates. “I hope you’ll be sticking around Columbine Springs. I always hate it when people turn our ranches into vacation homes that never get lived in.”

      Leah smiled. “My sisters and I plan on making this our home. I’m Leah, and this is my sister Erin. At home is my sister Nicole, and my two sons, Dylan and Ryan.”

      “Wonderful. So nice to have more families coming to our town. What about your husband?”

      An innocent question but, as always, it was a knife to her gut. “He’s dead.”

      “Oh, I’m so sorry for your loss. Forgive me for assuming.”

      The older woman looked so sad that Leah almost felt bad for having told her. “It’s okay. The boys had to have come from somewhere, didn’t they?”

      She gave a small laugh, even though she didn’t feel much like laughing.

      “True,” Della said. “Still, we’re glad to have you here. I hope you’ll be joining us at Faith Community Church on Sunday. Your family will find a warm welcome, and Pastor Jeff is a real man of God.”

      The Colonel had made them go to stuffy, oppressive churches that were all about following the rules and being obedient. Those churches had all given them warm welcomes when they first arrived, but the warmth was quickly replaced with disapproval over every sin they committed. What would this church think when they found out about the last years of her marriage? When they saw how Dylan acted up? When they heard about Erin’s divorce or about Nicole’s fiancé leaving her at the altar, only to be killed in a car accident with her maid of honor?

      As much as people talked about the love of God, not one person who had claimed to be a Christian had reached out to their family in comfort. Instead, they were all quick to point out what the women had done wrong in their lives to have deserved such punishment from God.

      But before Leah could come up with an appropriate excuse, Erin asked, “Is that the church Helen went to?”

      Leah looked at her sister. The women in Erin’s church had shunned her for her divorce. Why would she be so curious about this one?

      “Yes. It was terrible when Helen got so sick, not having her there. Some of us would go to her house every Thursday for a Bible study, so she didn’t feel like she was missing out. The church was never the same.”

      But Helen had been divorced. Why would this church be nice to her?

      “I loved going to church with Helen when we were little,” Erin said. “I know it sounds crazy, but I always felt a tangible love from God when I was there.”

      How Erin could still be open to going to church, Leah didn’t know. But she couldn’t begrudge her sister any happiness, not when Erin’s life had been so difficult over the past year. It was odd that Erin had lost the most of all the sisters, a beloved child, yet she still managed to be the most cheerful. Not the fake cheer that Leah found herself mustering up every single day for her sons, but there was something deep down in Erin that found a way to be happy despite everything.

      Some days, Leah wished she could find a little of that for herself.

      “I hope you’ll join us on Sunday,” Della said with a smile. “I know it will be an answer to Helen’s prayers.”

      “We’d be delighted,” Erin answered for them both.

      Leah had already told Erin that she had no intention of stepping inside a church ever again. But she wouldn’t argue with her sister here. In fact, she didn’t have the heart to argue with her at all. As usual, Leah would paste a smile on her face and do her best to make it through. At least until they kicked them out. Which they would, as soon as they met the boys.

      Shane paid for their coffees and pastries and led them to an open table. Many of the other tables were full of men in cowboy hats talking over their own mugs of coffee. This was real ranch country, and it seemed so different after spending so many years in Denver.

      “I know you had your hearts set on running the ranch. But Helen sold off the livestock and let things go into disrepair after her brother Norm died. She only kept a few chickens, and even the coop is no longer useable. It would take a lot of time and money to get everything back in working order.”

      Of course it would. The two things they had the least of were the most necessary.

      “We need to make a living,” Leah said.

      Shane nodded. “When Helen was alive, she leased her land to me so I could run my cattle. It was enough for her to live on, though I suppose with more of you, it wouldn’t stretch as far. Still, it’s a fair amount of money and no work for you. I’d be happy to teach you what I know, and in the next year or so, you could decide if starting a ranch again would be worth the effort.”

      It sounded almost too good to be true. The lawyer had asked them what they were going to do about Shane’s lease. This wasn’t a pity offer, but something Shane needed as badly as they did. From what the lawyer said, if Shane couldn’t graze on their land, he would have to buy hay, which was more expensive.

      “What do we do about the shortfall?” Leah asked, looking at her sister. Leah had worked several jobs over the years, but it had been hard keeping them because her sons had been kicked out of too many day cares. That’s why running the ranch had been such a good idea. They could all work from home, and they wouldn’t need someone to watch the boys.

      Not that the boys were Erin’s problem. Or Nicole’s. Which was why Leah hated the idea of having to find a job and asking her sisters to watch them.

      “I could see if anyone needs an accountant,” Erin said. “I haven’t worked in a while, but I’ve kept up my CPA license.”

      “If you’re serious, I know several ranchers, myself included, who could use your help.”

      Erin smiled. “That would be great. I don’t like to complain, but I would appreciate having the mental challenge again. Sometimes it’s hard being alone with my own thoughts.”

      Strange how her sister could be so different. All Leah wanted was the chance to be alone for a while. But she supposed they both had their own ways of dealing with pain.

      “Great. If you give me your information, I’ll pass it around.” If Leah wanted to accuse Shane of merely tossing them a bone to get them to agree to lease their land, it wasn’t obvious by the look on his face.

      Erin would tell her that she was being too cynical. And perhaps she was. But Leah had lost everything except her sons because of her blind faith in others.

      As if he knew she wasn’t quite ready to trust him, Shane turned his attention back to Leah. “Helen and I always operated by handshake agreement, but I’m sure you’re expecting something more formal. My attorney is drawing up the papers for the lease. I’ll bring it by when it’s ready.”

      He was going out of his way to be fair. But Leah also couldn’t bring herself to give him the same wide-eyed look her sister had. Perhaps the difference between Leah and Erin was that Leah’s life had been destroyed by someone she trusted, whereas Erin’s tragedy was simply one of those random terrible things that tears a person apart.

      “That would be good, thanks,” she said. “You can bring them when you

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