“Amber”—Harper traced her lower lip with his finger—“I’m sorry if this isn’t a surprise you particularly wanted. I thought you’d be happy. I wouldn’t do anything to make you unhappy.”
“I know that.”
“But I invited him here. He’s a friend of my family. And right now we’re being rude.”
She nodded. “You’re right, of course. I’m sorry. I just wish I knew what to say.”
“You’re good with people. I’ll start him talking, and then you just pop into the conversation when you’re ready, okay?”
“Sure, I can do that.” She let out a breath. “I guess it’s now or never then.”
“Come on.” He took her hand. “You’ll be great.”
* * *
Thunder Morgan had led an interesting life, traveling the rodeo circuit. He’d even done German rodeos for a while. He had a wonderful sense of humor, and soon Amber was laughing until tears formed in her eyes.
Her eyes.
They were almost identical to his.
Did he notice?
“Did you ever regret not settling down?” she asked.
“Well, not overly,” he said. “Sure, it would have been nice to have a wife to come home to and kids to carry on the name, but would it have been fair to them? Would it be fair to a wife to never be home, to never help her with the kids? Would it be fair to the kids to have to grow up without a father?”
A lump formed in Amber’s throat. “I see what you mean.”
“I was a traveler. For a while I didn’t keep a permanent residence at all. I just hit circuit after circuit, winning purse after purse, putting away what I could for a rainy day. When you’re in the rodeo, you know you can’t do it forever. It’s kind of like pro football. Your body eventually says no more.”
“Seems you had quite a good run,” Harper said.
“Yup, a sight better than most.”
“Do you keep a permanent residence now?” Amber asked.
“Sure do. On the western slope. Not too far from Harper’s ranch out there.”
“I told you that Thunder used to work at Bay Crossing, didn’t I?” Harper said.
“Yes, of course,” Amber said. “That’s how you know him.”
“Nothing like the western slope,” Thunder said. “I love it here, don’t get me wrong. And I’ve seen some wonderful places during my travels, but I always knew when it came time to retire, I’d be back on the slope with the peaches and apple orchards and vineyards. I’m looking into winemaking now.”
Harper raised his eyebrows. “Really? I didn’t know that.”
“Gotta do something to keep busy,” Thunder said. “It drives me crazy to sit around doing nothing.”
“Me too,” Amber said. “I’m always finding something to do on my time off.”
“What do you do, pretty lady?”
“I’m a manicurist.”
“You don’t say? My mother was a manicurist. Small world.”
Not that small. Manicurists were a dime a dozen, but Amber didn’t say that. Instead, she found herself feeling closer to him, wondering if her interest in doing nails came from his mother.