Free Rocky Mountain Cowboy by S.A. Monk

moment.
    She needed to reacquaint herself with her childhood home; to learn more about this man her father had loved as a son. In the letter, her father had asked that she take some time to do just that. She owed herself and her father that much. She probably owed Mr. Larson that much, too.
    When Hawk returned to the study, he was once again carrying two mugs of Irish coffee. Jenny had managed to compose herself by then. She took one of the mugs from him with a grateful smile. With his in hand, he sat on the edge of the desk, facing her, one long leg braced on the floor, one hooked over the oak corner.
    “Your medicinal magic again?”
    “I wish it would take away all your pain.” His intense blue eyes noted the recent track of tears on her cheeks and the opened letter in her lap. “Did it help?”
    Jenny smiled faintly. “Yes, surprisingly, it did.”
    “Good.” He sipped his brandied coffee slowly, regarding her through thick black lashes. “I got to speak one last time to Tom before he died. It’s made me feel real bad that you didn’t. I was hoping he’d left you some kind of final message.”
    “I’m grateful for it, too.” She took a long slow sip of her coffee, then smiled. “A double shot, no less,” she noted, remarking on the strong brandy content of the coffee.
    “I reckoned we both needed it.”
    Lost in her thoughts for a few moments, Jenny stared into the creamy tan color of the drink. Both hands were cupped tightly around the warm mug. “I’m going to stay awhile. Daddy wanted me to take some time....”
    She had a life in Los Angeles— an excellent job, a new business venture, a condo, friends. But she’d had a life here once, too. It had been so long ago, but she could still remember how much she had loved it. She had always remained a rancher’s daughter at heart. She didn’t really want to go back to L.A. right now anyway. There was a lot at stake here, a lot to lose if she made thoughtless, selfish decisions. Tom had left her choices, and she needed time to make the right ones.
    “That’s good,” Hawk responded. “But hey, nothing needs to be decided right now. I asked Jack to write down your options regarding the ranch. No one expects you to take in everything he told you tonight and make a decision tomorrow.”
    She stared at his concerned face in consideration. “Peter and I have an oral partnership, so I’m a little familiar with the mechanics of one.” The brandy was potent, rushing through her system, helping her calm and center herself a bit.
    “Well, just in case you’re wondering, there is nothing stopping you from being a partner in both businesses, unless they compete with one another. I don’t think fashions and cows do that.”
    That made her smile. “No, but I don’t know if I want to divide myself like that.” She stared at him thoughtfully. “Do you have the ability, the money, to buy out my interest?” Tom had hinted in his letter that he might not, but she thought she should ask.
    Hawk stared back at her and shook his head. “No, I don’t, and frankly, I’m not likely to within ninety days, either.”
    She nodded. “I could put the money together to buy you out. It might take a month or so, but if you could give me a figure sometime in the next few days, I could start working on it.” She thought he should know she might consider an option the attorney hadn’t mentioned. “I guess my buying you out, though, would depend on how much....”
    “I don’t want to sell my interest, Jenny,” he cut her off. “This has been my home for half my life.”
    Well, she probably couldn’t force him to sell his interest in place, nor did she really want to, for that matter. “What if we sold the entire place and split the profit? You could buy another ranch,” she suggested.
    The anger that gathered swiftly on his face was as vehement as his response to her. “I don’t want another ranch. I could never find a place this good, or one that meant as much