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his family. He hadn’t done it yet because the ranch meant everything to him, and despite his annoyance with his family, he loved them. Someday, this place would belong to him and his brothers, and Colton needed to learn all he could from his father before that day came.
    But that was something he could still do while living under another roof.
    “I’ve been thinking of moving into the shack,” blurted Colton. He’d meant it as a joke, but as the idea settled in his mind, it turned into something that resembled an epiphany. Why hadn’t he thought of that before?
    Silence reigned in the room, all eyes trained on Colton. He gave himself a mental pat on the back for finding a way to shut his brothers up.
    “Why would you want to do that?” his mother finally asked, her fork paused in the air halfway to her mouth.
    “I’m twenty-six, Mom. It’s long past time I lived on my own.”
    She set her fork down. And rested her chin on clasped knuckled. “But it’s in horrible condition. I wouldn’t let one of our cats live there.”
    Colton refrained from saying that the cats already spent a lot of time there—hunting mice. “I’m not talking about tomorrow. I’ll fix it up first.”
    His father snickered and shook his head. “Son, you know there are only twenty-four hours in a day, right? Are you planning on getting any sleep this summer?”
    At least his parents seemed to be considering it. “I can manage.”
    He gave a little scoff, as though giving up on reasoning with his son, and returned to his green beans.
    “Can I have Colton’s room when he’s gone?” said Spencer, looking excited until his mother’s glare had him dropping his gaze back to his plate.
    A few awkward moments passed before his mother cleared her throat. “I suppose I can help you with the shack. If you’re sure.”
    “I’m sure.”
    She nodded and looked down at her plate. Colton knew exactly what she was thinking. He could see it in her eyes and the telling expression on her face. She didn’t like change, didn’t like the thought of her oldest son moving out when there seemed to be no reason for him to do so.
    But there was a good reason. Colton craved independence, change, and growth. He’d been ready to take that next step for a while now, but wanted to build a home of his own some day and couldn’t justify the expense of renting an apartment when that extra money could go in a bank. And, like his mother said, the small cabin had always been a run-down, forgotten structure not fit for human habitation. But it had been years since anyone had been inside. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as it looked. Maybe all it would need was a little TLC.
    After rinsing his dishes and helping his mother clean up, Colton grabbed a flashlight and a notebook and headed up the lane, ready to make a list of his own. Only instead of riding bulls or jumping out of airplanes, his would include lots of to-dos.
     
     

 
    Sam tugged the purplish curls into a ponytail and stared at the oval mirror hanging above her little white dressing table. After she’d left the McCoy’s yesterday, she’d driven straight to Cal Ranch and purchased a hat, along with a sturdy-looking pair of cowboy boots. Then it was off to the grocery store for hair dye and her favorite treat—Andes mints. Colton had given her usual confidence a bit of a shake, and the dye was her way of firming it up again. She’d show him that his opinion didn’t matter to her. The mints were merely food for thought.
    Her parents had a dinner engagement, so Sam had invited Kajsa for a sleepover. They spent the evening listening to country music, learning a line dance from YouTube (so Sam could cross country dancing off her list), eating an entire half-gallon of mint chocolate chip ice cream (sprinkled with Andes mints), dying Sam’s hair, and laughing hysterically at the results.
    Take that, Colton McCoy , Sam had thought before crashing into bed and allowing a mint-induced coma to take over.
    But