A soft laugh forced its way out of Zane, and he shook his head at his partner. He raised a hand to stifle a sudden yawn. He’d slept a few hours in the late afternoon yesterday, but not since then. Ty noticed it and sighed, stopping their walk and turning to veer back toward the house. He took Zane by the elbow first, though, and pulled him closer until their chests almost touched. “Try to relax, huh?” he said in a low voice. He just barely let his lips graze Zane’s. “You’re no fun when you’re tense,” he whispered mischievously.

“Ah, but I am fun otherwise,” Zane said as he smirked.

“Only when you’re naked,” Ty assured him as he stepped away. “Come on. You can nap on the couch while Ma makes me and Deuce peel apples,” he added, almost sounding as if he looked forward to the prospect.

TY HAD just left Zane on the couch and was heading for the door again to track down Deuce when Mara stuck her head out of the kitchen doorway.

“Ty?” she called after him. “I need your help for just a minute,” she requested before moving back into the kitchen.

“I’m gonna get you a stepstool for Christmas this year,” Ty told her with a smile as he came into the kitchen behind her, obviously anticipating needing to get something off a high shelf for her.

Instead, Mara set out a plate and sat down in front of it, knowing Ty would sit opposite her. The plate was filled with rolled strips of leftover pie crust, baked and covered with cinnamon and sugar. She always made the little rolls out of her leftovers, and Ty had loved them since he had had to stand on a stool to see over the countertops.

“Oh, yeah,” Ty said with relish, and he reached out to grab one, popping it into his mouth as he pulled out a chair and sat down. “What’s up, Ma?” he asked in amusement. The roll was stuck in the side of his cheek like he was storing it for later.

Mara smiled fondly at him, but the smile fell quickly, and she frowned. “You brought your partner here to hide behind him,” she observed. “Why?”

Ty sighed and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. He was silent as he chewed, either contemplating how to answer or planning on remaining silent until they were interrupted.

Mara knew how her son’s mind worked, mostly. She didn’t understand his deep love for that Bronco or his absolute hatred of the Yankees or his desire to go out on his days off and shoot paintballs at his buddies. But she did know her boy well enough to know that she wouldn’t get answers out of him if he didn’t want to give them.

Even before he’d been trained by the Marines in case of capture, Ty had always been good at playing it close to the vest. If you found out something about him, he either wanted you to know it, someone else betrayed his confidence, or he was trying to get out of bigger trouble. The day he’d come to her when he was eight years old and admitted he’d broken a window with a baseball was also the same day she’d discovered he’d shot the oven with a BB gun.

Her lips twitched as she remembered. She still had that BB gun in the top of her closet. He’d never get that thing back.

Ty was looking at her speculatively, still trying to decide how or whether to answer. She took the opportunity to look him over with the critical eye of a mother. He looked worn and tense. His middle finger was slightly crooked, and she wondered how he’d broken it. His wrists also had light scars all the way around each of them. She knew the origins of those marks only because Richard Burns had called them while Ty was in the hospital recovering from being chained to a wall and bricked into a hole by a serial killer. She wondered how many other scars her son had accumulated that she couldn’t see.

Ty leaned back and sighed heavily. Finally, he shook his head and said, “I’ve been sort of… lost.” He shook his head in frustration as he searched for the right words to explain. “And Zane, he’s not himself lately either,” he continued. “I don’t know what’s wrong with him or with me or how to help either of us. I guess I’m hoping coming up here will give us some… answers.”

Mara nodded in understanding. She didn’t like to give advice, and she knew Ty would ask for it if he wanted it. Since he hadn’t, she moved on to the one thing she knew always helped Ty when he was antsy. “Feel like some hard work?” she asked him hopefully.

“Yes, ma’am,” Ty answered without hesitation.

“Got a whole pile of wood needs chopping,” Mara told him.

Ty was already standing. He grabbed several more of the crust rolls and tossed them into his mouth as he pushed his chair in. “Make sure I got time to shower before dinner,” he managed to say through the mouthful, and he was heading for the back door.

“Holler if you need help,” she called after him with a smile.

He raised his hand and waved over his shoulder before disappearing out the door. Mara smiled and shook her head. He wouldn’t call if he needed help. He never did.

ZANE inhaled sharply and opened his eyes as he woke with a jerk. He was looking up at an exposed beam wooden ceiling, and after a moment, his brain caught up. He sighed and let his eyes flutter shut for a long moment before he yawned and sat up. He actually felt pretty decent, even if the couch wasn’t the most comfortable he’d ever napped on.

He stood up and stretched his arms toward the ceiling as he listened to what was going on around him. He could hear the faint sound of music somewhere, a regular series of thudding noises, and the clatter of dishes from the kitchen. He walked over to the entryway and looked in to see Mara Grady turning away from the sink with a large bowl full of apples and a paring knife.

She jumped slightly when she saw him standing there, and then she relaxed and laughed at herself. “Not used to having you boys home,” she said with a grin. “Did you have a nice nap?” she asked.

Zane felt a smile pull at his lips, and he let it loose. Home. “Yeah, I did, actually,” he said, hearing the faint surprise in his own voice.

“Well, good,” Mara said happily. She sat at the table and reached for the first apple. “You want something to eat? I think Ty may have missed a few of these,” she offered as she pushed a plate of rolled dough toward him.

“Thank you,” Zane answered, a little bemused by her cheerful nature. Ty certainly hadn’t inherited that. “Mind if I get a drink?”

“Help yourself, honey,” Mara answered as she worked on the apples, peeling and slicing them and tossing them into a bowl.




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