“Going out for dinner?” he asked.
She smiled gently. “And so are you. The Thalbergs are celebratin’ Sandy’s discharge from the hospital, and they also want to thank you for helpin’ Brooke rescue the horses.”
Adam frowned. “Brooke already thanked me.”
“Her parents didn’t.” She raised a hand that faintly trembled. “And I didn’t tell you because I knew you’d holler. Rosemary’s already gone, and I need a ride. So shower and let’s go.”
“I wouldn’t holler,” he insisted as he rose to his feet. “And I’m bothered you think I wouldn’t take you to the Thalbergs.”
“Oh, I knew you’d take me,” she said, smiling. “But I needed you to stay.” Her hand was still quivering where she rested it on the cane.
“Of course I’ll stay, Grandma. Anything you’d like.”
“My, you’re so accommodatin’.” She batted her wrinkled eyelids at him.
It was hard to smother a grin. “I’ll shower quick.”
At the Silver Creek Ranch, Adam parked his truck outside the front door. As he helped his grandma up the stairs, the door opened, spilling a shaft of yellow light through the gently falling snow.
A man strode out onto the porch, and Adam recognized Doug Thalberg.
Mr. Thalberg reached out a hand. “Adam, good to see you.”
Adam took his hand in a firm grip. “Mr. Thalberg, sir, thank you for the invitation.”
“We’re not all that formal,” Mr. Thalberg said, stepping aside to usher them in. “Your grandma is practically family, and that makes you the same.”
Which made Adam uncomfortable, but he had nothing to say. He glanced toward where he knew the ruins of the barn were.
“The burned smell still makes the cattle uneasy,” Mr. Thalberg said. “I’ll never get used to the change myself. I’ve spent my life lookin’ at that barn. But not much we can do to clean it up until winter is over.”
Adam escorted his grandma inside, noticing the massive stone hearth that must have been part of the original ranch before they’d expanded the house. Bookcases were built along each side, a modern touch. The furniture was dark, the rugs and pillow in greens and reds. It seemed like a man’s room but one a woman would be comfortable in.
And through an open doorway, he saw Brooke bending over to pull a pan out of the oven. And immediately, his mind was focused on the curve of her hips in her dark pants and the way her blue sweater clung. He made himself look away.
Mrs. Thalberg wheeled her way toward him, and when she reached up, he took her hand. “Thank you for the invitation, ma’am.”
“Oh, please, Adam, the pleasure is all ours,” she said, her smile bright but a little tired at the edges.
“You didn’t have to go to so much trouble for me.”
“It was mostly for my mom,” Nate Thalberg said, smiling as he reached to shake Adam’s hand.
“Good.”
“But we’re grateful to you, too.”
Adam nodded, even as he felt Nate studying him. That was smart. Never assume you knew what anyone was thinking—or how they’d changed over the years.
Josh came forward next and held out his hand. “Good to see you again, Adam.”
Josh was a couple years younger than Nate, and when he wasn’t snowboarding, he’d stuck to the cowboy sports of bronc busting and steer wrestling. It hadn’t brought them together much, so by Josh’s grin, he figured the youngest Thalberg had a pretty open opinion of him.
Mr. Thalberg clapped him on the back. “We felt it only right to thank you proper for your help the other day.”
“That’s good of you, sir. I’m sorry about your barn.”
He shrugged. “Insurance will help. I’m just grateful no one was hurt. Not sure you should have risked yourself like that.”
Brooke came into the room, setting a selection of cheese, crackers, and fruit on the coffee table.
Adam gestured toward her with his chin. “As if she weren’t going to do it herself?”
Brooke frowned, Josh grinned, and Nate rolled his eyes.
“How about if we stuff ourselves with cheese and not talk about this anymore?” Brooke asked.
Adam couldn’t agree more. He helped his grandma to sit in a rocker near the fireplace, where she’d be warm. She wasn’t exactly skinny, thank goodness. The elder Mrs. Thalberg came out of the kitchen and joined them. But he couldn’t help glancing again at Brooke near her mom, her face glowing, earrings dangling, the hair around her face bobby-pinned back. She was all made up for the evening, looking very different from the jeans-clad cowgirl of the other day.