Coming home

chapter 14

Wade Slaydon. It had been a while since Luke let himself think about Wade for any length of time. He had fleeting flashes of what life today would be with Wade around. How Wade would have enjoyed watching Elizabeth grow. Wade would have congratulated Luke on his accomplishments and would have been right there to enjoy every one of them. Life sure would be different if Wade had stayed.

When Luke started this venture into horses, he had included Wade as a partner. They had thought for days to come up with a perfect name for the ranch after they got out from under the Smith brand. One day, after a long day in the saddle, they had crossed a stream that ran through the property and Luke came up with the Wading Brook. Luke thought it had been perfect, while Wade had said that top billing should belong to Luke since it had been all his ideal. Luke dismissed Wade’s concerns and went to file the paperwork the next day to get the name change rolling.

All the hours Luke had put into the ranch, since Wade left, was not only to be able to leave Elizabeth a legacy but also to somehow make Wade proud also. Crazy thinking, Luke realized, because Wade wasn’t coming back to even see the outcome. He would never see the first sale of their brand. They had started together, but Luke was left to finish all alone. Luke was in a world of his own when Claire and Elizabeth returned. He mumbled something about lunch and that he had some errands to run when he couldn’t seem to pull himself out of the what-if’s and left.

Luke needed time to himself. He had to get out and away from people so he could gather his thoughts and compose himself. He knew running away wasn’t the answer, but he couldn’t break in front of Elizabeth. He was the only one she could depend on now and he wasn’t going to let her down like he let down so many before her.

Luke had gone home to find a way to redirect his thoughts, which only made it worse. He tried to think of a reason to run to town but only came up with lame things to buy that could wait. He knew he needed to get back and make sure things were going smoothly with Claire and Elizabeth. He felt like he had thrown both of them to the wolves, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it just yet. He needed a distraction and if going to buy lame things was the only distraction he could think of, then that was just what he was going to do. He could make an equally lame excuse later of why he thought it was important.

It was nightfall by the time Luke returned. Claire hadn’t known exactly what to expect when Luke left, but she hadn’t expected to have so much time with Elizabeth the first day. She had gradually wanted to get to know her. Without Luke here, she had felt the need to entertain Elizabeth with busy work. Elizabeth had seemed to be eager to help, but it was still uncomfortable for both of them.

Since they had so much time on their hands, Claire decided to start clearing out her father's things to make room for Elizabeth's things. They ended up with three piles of boxes stacked in the corners of the room. One pile was to give to charity, one was to throw away, and one was to go in the attic to keep. Claire had already called a local charity to schedule a pickup. The latter two would have to wait until Luke saw fit to deem them with his presence again. She also composed a small box of things she thought James would want; a picture, a book, and some small mementos she thought would mean something to James.

To say Claire was upset with Luke taking off without a word as to when he would be back was an understatement. She had agreed to help determine if Elizabeth had bigger problems than just becoming a teen. She had also agreed to let Elizabeth help her. What she hadn’t agreed to was taking on Luke’s responsibility when it came to Elizabeth. If this was how he thought it was going to go, then he had another thing coming. He was going to learn that he couldn’t just throw them together and leave.

Claire took a deep breath and decided to try to find a calmer way of dealing with Luke. No one had ever infuriated her quite like Luke could. And another deep breath, Claire thought as she heard the kitchen door shut, signaling Luke’s return.