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you.”
    She opened the front door and as she closed it behind her she tipped her head back and let the air-conditioning sweep over her. “Rina!”
    â€œYeah?”
    â€œWil is on the east porch. Will you bring him some iced tea?”
    Rina poked her head out of the kitchen and looked down the hall at her. “Abernathy?”
    â€œYes. Be nice. He’s got an offer to lease some land. It might be the cash influx we need to bail ourselves out of this mess.”
    â€œWhat about Ace?” Rina said, wiping her hands on her apron as she walked toward Molly.
    â€œWhat about him?” Molly asked. “He’s not here and Wil is. I’m going to take the fastest shower in history and be right back down.”
    Rina patted her shoulder as Molly sort of limped by her. “Okay, sunshine. I’ll keep him entertained until you come back down.”
    â€œThanks,” Molly said, walking past Rina up the stairs. She felt that urge to cry again. Not because of the pain or the situation but because her dad wasn’t here. She wanted to know what had happened between him and Wil’s father. Was she betraying him by even agreeing to listen to Wil’s proposal?
    But he wasn’t there. She showered off the day and felt better for it. She pulled on a denim skirt and a sleeveless top then put on her flip-flops, inspecting the bruise on the top of her left foot. Pulling her hair into a ponytail, she went out to the porch where Wil waited for her.
    He had a slice of lemon icebox pie and a half-empty glass of iced tea next to him on the table.
    â€œOkay, Abernathy, tell me about this idea of yours,” she said as she sat down.
    He leaned back in the rocking chair. “My sister wants to raise Scottish Highland cattle. It’s a small herd and I’d like to keep them separate from our stock and the bulls. Leasing the grazing rights to your land—the section that borders our ranch—would allow me to do that.”
    He told her more about his plan and what he would pay. She took his proposal, which he’d thoughtfully typed up for her, and told him she’d get back to him with an answer in a few days. The deposit he offered wouldn’t be enough to clear their debt, but it would put a nice dent in it.
    It was an option she should definitely consider. Actually, it was probably the best option she had right now.
    She couldn’t help but think that she might have liked Wil if there wasn’t a family feud between them. He was a nice guy. Solid. The kind of man who knew what ranch life demanded and was happy to live it.
    Not like Jason. Ace , she reminded herself.
    Molly put the file in her office. She kept looking out the window, hoping to see Jason come walking up, but he wasn’t going to. He’d made a point of putting distance between them after the intimacy of last night. She knew she had to give up the idea that he was going to ride to the rescue. She was on her own.
    * * *
    D INNER HAD BEEN a loud affair with the hands all giving their opinions on what she should do with the ranch. It was going to affect all of them and she thought they should know that the ranch was in financial trouble. Even though she wanted to ensure their jobs, there would have to be changes. Jeb was the quietest man she knew and he’d just sat there listening to all the ideas. Most of the men weren’t too keen on a dude ranch and if Molly was being totally honest, she wasn’t, either. She didn’t want to have to cater to people on vacation.
    â€œI’m just out of ideas,” she said at last.
    â€œSomething will come to you,” Jeb said. “It always does. In the meantime, I’m going to put some of the hands on land clearing. The acres down at the edge of our property haven’t been touched for a while and we should get them in shape for whatever you decide to do.”
    â€œThanks, Jeb.”
    He nodded.
    â€œAlso, Dad left the ranch to both