Naomi.
Then he corrected himself. Not someone like Naomi, because he’d already determined that she was one of a kind. It would have to be Naomi herself. He was thinking crazy. He’d been over this ground and knew what he wanted out of life. Absolute and complete freedom.
Being a father came at a stiff price. His own father had made no secret of that. At a young age, Luke had asked for a baby sister or brother. Luke’s dad had rolled his eyes and proclaimed that one kid was more than enough to take care of. Luke had never forgotten his father’s martyred expression.
Luke could have fun on a temporary basis with other people’s kids, like Archie. The little boy had a fairly long attention span for his age, but when the thrill was gone, it was totally gone. Luke handed the binoculars to Naomi and stood up, hoisting Archie into his arms.
Archie wiggled in protest. “Wanna get down!”
“That’s my cue,” Jack said. “Time to get this guy home. Can’t have him running around on a platform twenty feet in the air.”
“Great job on the platform,” Luke said. “It’s plenty sturdy.”
“Glad to hear it.” Jack continued to eye Luke with suspicion. “How about helping me get Archie down the ladder? Climbing up is much easier. I’d appreciate it if you’d go down and hold it steady at the bottom.”
“Will do.” It was a reasonable request, but Luke couldn’t help thinking there was an ulterior motive involved.
Sure enough, when Jack reached the bottom safely with Archie on his hip, he turned to Luke and lowered his voice. “What’s going on with you and Naomi?”
Luke glanced up toward the platform. He wasn’t sure how well sound carried. “We’re attracted to each other, and we’re both consenting adults.”
“I figured something like that.”
“Did Emmett say anything?”
“No, he didn’t.” Jack speared Luke with a glance. “Is he aware of this?”
“He is. I talked to him last night. He said I could ride Smudge over here.”
“That reminds me. You were at the Spirits and Spurs with Emmett last night. What was your take on this Clifford Mason guy?”
“Dresses like a rhinestone cowboy, but other than that, I know nothing about him. Emmett’s not happy that Pam went to dinner with him.”
“She did that because she’s the main sponsor of the town’s Fourth of July spectacular. Mason is providing the fireworks, and Pam’s paying for them.”
“Does Emmett know that?”
“He does now, because I told him. I also told him that rumor has it the guy is interested in Pam. He didn’t take that well. So FYI, he’s not in the best of moods.”
“Thanks for the warning. I’ll watch myself. He’s not totally in favor of my coming out here, so if he’s upset about something else besides…” Luke sighed. “I’ll just be careful.”
“Do that. Look, I don’t care what you do on your own time, for the most part, but Naomi is a great person, and you’ve made it clear you’re leaving.”
“She knows that. She’s fine with it.”
“Okay.” Jack didn’t sound as if he believed it.
“Wanna go home.” Archie laid his head on Jack’s shoulder.
“I know you have to head back, but I have a question.” Luke could see Archie was fading. He needed his nap. “If Emmett didn’t say anything about me coming to see Naomi, how did you figure out what was going on?”
“Mom asked me if I had any ideas about cleaning your hat. I know Naomi’s big on that green glop, and when I realized that was the liquid that had ruined your hat, I put two and two together.”
“My hat’s ruined?”
“It’s ruined, bro. You can’t treat a good hat that way and expect it to survive.” Jack looked rather cheerful delivering the news.
“Sorry to hear that.” Luke decided not to point out that Naomi had been the one to spill the energy drink on his hat. He’d had nothing to do with the accident. Oh, well. He’d resigned himself to this loss, but that didn’t make him happy to hear the hat was DOA.
“Just so you know, if you break Naomi’s heart, more than your hat is in jeopardy.”
“I’ve been completely honest with her, Jack. She knows I don’t intend to settle down.”
Jack gazed at him. “If you say so. But she’s one of ours. And you’re not.” He touched the brim of his hat. “See you back at the ranch.”
As Jack walked away and mounted up, Luke ran a hand over his face. She’s one of ours. And you’re not. That was true, and it was his choice. He’d never been part of any group, and he’d liked it that way.
So why did Jack’s words sting? He didn’t want to be tied down to this community, or to any community, for that matter. Sure, Jack had a close family, a loving wife and a cute kid, but they all came at the price of his freedom. Jack couldn’t pick up and leave whenever he wanted to. He had obligations.
Knowing that, Luke shouldn’t be affected by the dire warning Jack had thrown out. The guy’s threats were empty and meaningless to someone like Luke. They shouldn’t have any effect on him whatsoever.
And they wouldn’t. He knew who he was and what he wanted out of life. Many people didn’t, and they stumbled along without a plan, allowing circumstances to dictate their future. He wasn’t like that.
He waited until Jack and Archie rode away. Then he called up to the platform. “Still want some lunch?”
Naomi came to the top of the ladder. “More than ever. I’m famished.” She hesitated. “Did Jack give you a talking-to?”
“Oh, yeah. He and Emmett are both worried that I’m going to break your heart. But Jack was more direct. He promised if I broke your heart, he’d break my legs. Or something to that effect.”
“Good grief! Don’t these guys realize I can take care of myself?”
“Apparently not.”
“I find that rather patronizing…but sort of sweet, too.”
Luke took note of that. She might not like being considered a fragile flower in need of protection from men like him, but she didn’t mind having representatives from the community watching out for her, either. He’d be wise not to criticize either Emmett or Jack for their behavior. Naomi loved them both and was flattered that they cared enough to stick up for her, even if it wasn’t required.
But she’d welcomed Luke to her hideaway, and he’d had one hell of a time with her until Jack had shown up. Despite Jack’s obvious scrutiny of their arrangement, Naomi hadn’t told Luke to go away. She, at least, didn’t think Luke was taking unfair advantage of her. In fact, he’d be
