Free Sunset Ridge by Carol Lynne Page A

must be like for a seventeen-year-old girl without her mother. “I should’ve introduced you to my momma. She always wanted a little girl, but God took the only one she ever managed to have.”
    Raleigh’s black sculpted eyebrows drew together. “She died?”
    “Yep, one of those crib death things that no one could explain. Her name was Jennifer. She was younger than I was by ten years.”
    “I’m sorry.”
    “Yeah, we all were. But the reason I told you about Jennifer is because you need to know that not all mothers are indifferent to their children.” Fuck. Had that really just come out of his mouth? “I’m sorry. That wasn’t the right thing to say.”
    “Maybe it was. I’ve never had someone to talk to about her. I know Uncle Gray’s mad at her for what she did, but she’s still his sister. Kinda like I love her even though I hate her guts.”
    “So instead of turning into her, why don’t you rise above her? Do you believe that you have to be a fuck-up just because she was?”
    Raleigh looked thoughtful for several moments. “You’re pretty good at this sort of thing. A lot better than Uncle Gray.”
    Ram leaned towards Raleigh and grinned. “He doesn’t know a whole lot about women. I think you scare him sometimes.”
    Raleigh let out a soft giggle. “Yeah, you may be right.” She tilted her head to the side. “Why do you suppose he’s never had a girlfriend?”
    Caught, Ram shrugged. “Umm, I don’t know. Maybe you should ask him.”
    “Are you kidding? Uncle Gray’s like a closed book when it comes to his personal life.”
    Or a closed door , Ram thought to himself. He turned into the driveway and parked in front of the garage. “I think I’ve got just enough time to change before dinner.”
    Raleigh opened the door but before she climbed out of the truck she turned to look back at him. “Thanks for the ride, and ya know, the other stuff.”
    “You’re welcome.”

    * * * *

    After Andrew Carlson left, Gray went upstairs to check on Raleigh before his nightly trip to the garage apartment. He knocked on Raleigh’s closed bedroom door. “Can I come in?”
    “Sure.”
    When Gray opened the door, Raleigh was already dressed in her customary T-shirt and pyjama pants. “Get all your homework done?”
    “Not quite, but I’ll be finished before ten.” Raleigh went back to her book.
    Gray watched her for several moments. He’d been impressed with her during dinner. He wasn’t sure why she’d suddenly had a change in her usual behaviour, but it had impressed both him and Andrew Carlson. “Thanks.”
    “For what?” she asked without looking up from her book.
    “For dinner. I appreciated the dress. Very nice.”
    With a dramatic sigh, Raleigh looked up at Gray. “Ram told me how important Mr Carlson’s business was to the ranch. You know I can act like an adult if you treat me like one.”
    Gray gave a quick nod. “I’ll remember that.” He started to close the door. “Good night, pumpkin.”
    “Good night, Uncle Gray. You know it’s been a while since you’ve called me pumpkin. I’ve missed it.”
    Gray paused before closing the door entirely. “I’ve missed it, too.” He smiled at Raleigh before shutting the door. He wondered if Ram was responsible for Raleigh’s new attitude.
    He turned out the lights and shut his own bedroom door before leaving the house. He climbed the stairs to Ram’s apartment and knocked. The nice thing about the bunkhouse was that it wasn’t visible from the garage so he didn’t need to worry about the hands seeing him enter Ram’s home.
    In one swift moment, the door opened and Ram reached out to pull Gray inside. He shut the door and pressed Gray against it. “I thought you’d never get here,” Ram said just before slamming his mouth against Gray’s.
    Gray wrapped his arms around Ram and held on. He had a lot to talk about, but his manager seemed to have other ideas. Accepting Ram’s kiss, Gray realised it was the best part of his