Raising The Rancher's Family

From the window he watched her drive off. Had he ever been that carefree? He knew the answer to that. He’d been driven all his life. His mother, Elizabeth Pershing, had expected certain things from her only child. He had to uphold the blue-blood old Boston Pershing family’s name. And being the son of a Colorado rancher had already been a black mark against him. As hard as he tried, Holt never felt good enough to be a Pershing. He’d once overheard his grandparents say that Elizabeth had made a mistake marrying, and having a child with John Rawlins. Holt never doubted that he was the “mistake.”

The one difference between himself and his mother was he’d finally stopped trying to please the family. When he’d heard of John Rawlins’s death—and even with his Grandmother Pershing’s threats to disinherit him—Holt had quit his job and moved to Colorado to take over the ranch.

He walked away from his career and from the woman he supposedly loved. Melanie was everything a man could want. But when she wanted to settle down and start a family, he couldn’t take that step.

He wasn’t sure if he was capable of love.

“Leah, did you hear what I said?” Morgan asked.

“What?” Leah glanced at her sister, embarrassed that she’d been caught daydreaming.

“I asked if you think the church hall is big enough for Mom and Dad’s anniversary party.”

“Well, you should know better than I do. How many people will the place hold? Are we inviting the entire town?”

The always organized and composed Morgan looked anything but that today. “I’m not sure,” she said. “It’s just that we’ve got the town’s Founder’s Day celebration at the same time.”

Morgan was the only one of the Keenan sisters who had stayed in Destiny. Leah had taken off to photograph the world. Paige, with her law degree, took a job with the D.A. in Denver. Morgan’s dream had always been to teach school. But while she’d been student teaching in an inner-city school, she’d suddenly come home. To stay. She’d said that she’d changed her mind about her career, then soon after opened a gift shop in the Keenan Inn. Since then Morgan hadn’t traveled any farther away from Destiny than Durango. She’d been the one here for the family, especially her sisters.

Leah decided it was about time she and Paige helped out.

“When did you say Paige was coming home?” Leah asked.

“Not sure. The last time I talked to her she was working on a big criminal case. She’s hoping she’ll make it by the end of the month.”

Leah frowned. “That only leaves us two weeks before the party.”

“I’ll take whatever I can get.” Morgan smiled. “I’m just glad you could get so much time off. Three years is too long to be away.”

Guilt made Leah blush. “You always knew I was an eager kid with big dreams. I had to grab an opportunity when it was handed to me.”

“Are you sorry?” Morgan asked.

“Of course there are times,” Leah began, “that I missed the family.” So many nights she’d cried herself to sleep after she photographed all the pain and suffering. It was what hadn’t gone into print that truly haunted her. She sighed. “But Our World magazine gave me an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.” For the last three years, she’d led Morgan to think her life was so glamorous, but the faces of the children she had to walk away from would bother her always.

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