“I’m here if you ever need me,” he’d said. “Wild River is only a plane flight away.”

But there was no true conviction in his voice. He was so certain that she’d step into her old way of life, paparazzi and all, without a look back. He had her pegged all wrong, but it wasn’t up to her to inform him. He’d pretty much laid his cards on the table the other night.

I’m never going to propose to a woman ever again.

She asked herself why couldn’t she have stayed and allowed her fiery fling to flame out? Since when had Macy become such a stick-in-the-mud that now, suddenly, she held dear traditional values? Since when had she wanted the clichéd husband and family and white picket fence?

Since she’d met Carter and fallen in love, that’s when. With him, she wouldn’t accept anything less than having his love.

She’d kissed Carter one last time in front of the airport’s security gate, then brought her mouth to his ear and whispered, “I’ll never forget you, Carter. And please reconsider about your father.”

She hadn’t waited for his reaction. She knew he wouldn’t be happy with her last words, but she had to say them. She’d whirled around with her overnight bag in hand and made her way through the security line without ever once looking back.

Memories of Carter consumed her thoughts. She kept going over the irony in her mind. For the time she’d lived at Wild River, she’d thought that Carter’s ownership of her mother’s cursed ring meant there was no hope for the two of them. She’d believed that no good would actually come from Carter falling in love with her, or her him. Their fate was cast. But the staggering truth was sharper and more painful. Carter simply didn’t love her. It had nothing to do with a curse or the diamond rings.

Thoughts of her gorgeous white-clad cowboy, astride his stallion, racing into town to sweep her up and ride into the sunset would be left for the late show in her dreams. It was the only place for them. And as soon as Macy realized that, her heart would stop aching, her stomach would stop clenching and she would get her head back in the game.


* * *

Carter had worked from sunup to sundown for the past eight days. He made appointments he really didn’t need to make, had meetings in his Dallas office with each one of his employees that were unnecessary and worked alongside his capable ranch hands in the barns and on the land. He dove into his work with uncanny vigor. His actions caused attention, garnering raised eyebrows and a few tactful questions from those close to him. None of his attempts helped him shake the feeling that he’d lost something valuable, something that couldn’t be replaced. This afternoon, as he stood by the corral fence watching the new colt lumber around the arena, separated from his mama and trying to find his own way, Carter felt one with him. Just like Midnight, he faced the uncertainty and stumbled around.

Earlier today, Carter had looked up an old girlfriend’s phone number. He’d stared at the screen that, with one tap of his finger, might have hooked him up with a woman, and then he cursed at his own stupidity.

“What the hell.” Instead of making that call, he’d grabbed a cold beer and strode outside.

He took a few gulps quickly, letting the foamy brew slide down his throat, and thought about how often in the past week he’d been tempted to call Macy. He’d thought about her at least twenty times a day. He wondered if she’d fallen right back into step with the Hollywood scene. And the more he thought about her, the more it irked him that she’d left the minute after he’d given her back that ring. Maybe that was all she’d ever been after. Maybe she saw her opportunity to play on his generous nature with well-rehearsed tears. She’d admitted she was broke. Just maybe, she’d played him for a fool. She might, at this very minute, be going after the other diamonds she’d sold at the Waverly auction.

Carter winced at his own suspicions. He’d been tainted by Jocelyn’s deception, and because of her he’d vowed to keep up his guard around women. His wavering trust was as thin as a split horsehair.

He swore an oath and told himself he was right to let her leave. They’d had a brief affair with no talk of a future between them, no talk of anything beyond the here and now. That night in New York, he’d seen a woman being hounded and pursued against her will and he’d intervened. His protective streak had kicked in big-time, and he told himself that’s all it was. He couldn’t watch Macy being badgered like that, and another round of protectiveness had kicked in when he’d seen the extent of her vulnerability. He’d invited her to Wild River because she’d needed an escape, a safe place to hide out, and not because she was beautiful and witty and the distraction he’d needed at the time.

“Hey, Rock,” he said when the golden retriever ambled toward him. “How’s it going, boy?”

The dog plopped his forlorn body down beside him. Rocky had been a victim of Macy’s departure, too. He’d spent the first five nights in her bedroom, waiting eagerly for her to appear. He’d sniffed in her closet, under her bed, in the bathroom, and when Carter would pass by her room, the dog would look up with a question in his disappointed caramel eyes. It was one thing to work through his own sense of emptiness with Macy gone, but seeing it expressed so damn desperately on the dog’s face was like a sucker punch to his gut.

“Yeah, I miss her, too.” Carter had been insane to think that he wouldn’t.

He polished off his beer in one quick gulp and strode to his Jeep. “C’mon, Rock.”

He knew the dog would follow in hope that Carter would lead him to Macy. That wasn’t going to happen. Rocky would just have to forget her, and in time he would. Carter might not be so lucky.

He sped off with the dog in the passenger seat. Rocky stuck his head out the window, and the warm August air hit his face and ruffled his whiskers in the breeze.

Though he didn’t have the first clue why, Carter drove across town and slowed as he approached his father’s house. He parked the Jeep in front. On a deep, unsteady breath, he turned his head to face the shack where he’d grown up, and he stared for a long while. He didn’t really see a broken-down porch with wood planks missing or window shutters loose on their hinges. He didn’t really see the dirt and neglect. He looked beyond that this time, to see something entirely different.

A chance.

He got out of the Jeep with Rocky at his side. “It’s a ten-minute visit,” he said to the dog. “And then we’re outta here.”


* * *

An hour later, Carter’s restlessness and jumpy nerves got the better of him. He powered the Jeep along the highway that led to Wild River Ranch and took the turnoff that led to the inn. He thought about that mysterious Gold Heart Statue, and whether his friend Roark was in any danger. He went over the facts on his mind about that text Roark had sent… Anything to keep him from thinking about Macy.

Rocky’s ears perked up when he heard Bill Fargo’s call of hello. Carter pulled the Jeep alongside Fargo as he walked the grounds. “Hey there, out doing your rounds?”

The old man smiled. “That’s what you pay me for.”

Carter nodded. “Got time to take a break?”

The old man looked at his watch. “I was just about to.”

Carter parked by the front of the inn and climbed out. He walked with Fargo to the shaded gazebo steps and they sat down. Rocky sniffed all around first, his nose down as he moved along the perimeter, picking up Macy’s scent. When he finally looked up, it was with recrimination.

Where the heck is she? the dog seemed to be asking.

Carter ignored him and stretched his legs out, his boot heels scraping the cracked stone steps that surrounded the gazebo. “How’s it going?”

Fargo looked out across the field. “Fine. No sign of trouble. Everything’s been kinda peaceful-too peaceful actually, without Macy stirring up trouble.”

Carter swiveled his head and caught the man’s knowing gaze. “Yeah.”

“Haven’t seen you here for a while,” Fargo said. “Not since Macy left.”

“I’ve been busy.”

“I bet you have. Busy ignoring the truth. Maybe even afraid of dealing with it.”

Carter should take offense. The man worked for him, and though his tone wasn’t disrespectful, his words certainly were. “What do you think I’m afraid of?” He gave Fargo a pass due to his age. Carter was curious to hear what he was getting at.

Fargo took his hat off and ran his hand through his shock of graying hair. “I was busy like you once upon a time. So busy, in fact, that I let a woman slip right through my fingers. The perfect woman for me. It was a messy thing, it was. And I’m sorry I ever let her go.”

“What happened with her?”

Fargo’s self-deprecating laughter touched the very ends of Carter’s soul. “I lost her. Oh…it was a long time ago, but in some ways it was yesterday. I’ve been lonely for her all my life. I’d hate to see that happen to you.”

“Me? That won’t happen to me. I’m never going to let it.”

“You’re too busy, Carter,” he said with a shake of his head. “Ignoring what’s right in front of you. Too busy denying what you’re feeling in here.” He thumped a finger into Carter’s chest right over his heart. “And letting what’s going on in here,” he said, pointing to Carter’s head, “make the wrong choices for you.”

Carter drew a deep breath.

“Don’t let pride stand in your way, son. If you care about Macy-”

“How do I know she feels anything for me?” Carter asked. “And how can I believe her? She’s an actress. As soon as she got the ring back, she left the ranch.”

“Did she get what she really wanted? If you think she was after that diamond ring, you’re thinking with your ass.”

Carter’s eyes snapped to his.

“Pardon me. I’m an old man, and I tell it like it is. That girl was devastated when she left the ranch. I heard it in her voice. I saw it on her face. Maybe the only acting she was doing was when she pretended it didn’t kill her to leave Wild River. I know one thing, it’d be a shame to let your fears and suspicions hold you back from finding out the truth.”

Carter drew a sharp breath. The old man was confusing him, and when he got that way he became cautious. Carter didn’t need someone telling him how he should feel and what he should do. He’d done all right for himself so far, with only a misstep or two in his life. But who could blame him? He’d had a rotten upbringing and was proud of what he’d accomplished under the guidance of his uncle.

Carter changed the subject abruptly and spoke with Fargo for only a few minutes more before taking his leave. He couldn’t let Fargo persuade him into making another blunder. He wasn’t about to go after Macy, hat in hand, only to have her turn a cold shoulder to him and laugh in his face. Though a large part of him said she wouldn’t do that, Carter couldn’t be sure, and he wasn’t good at taking foolish chances.

The next day, he wandered around the ranch with no real sense of purpose. His work was all caught up and his desperate restlessness couldn’t be ebbed. He’d taken off on his favorite mare and rode roughshod over the terrain, pushing his horse hard and coming back exhausted and spent. The day after that, he paid his cousin a visit to shoot the breeze and drink hard liquor until he couldn’t see straight. Brady had driven him home that night.

That next afternoon, Carter sought Bill Fargo out to finish the conversation they’d begun the other day. But Fargo didn’t answer his phone or respond to the text message Carter had sent him. Henry hadn’t seen him today, and neither had Mara.

Carter strode into his bedroom, frustrated. He had to shower and change for a business dinner in Dallas he’d rather not attend. As he slipped his shirt off, he noticed a plush velvet ring box sitting on his dresser. His heart leaped in his chest. It looked like the same box he’d given Macy. There was a note attached.

Carter opened the box first. To his amazement, the legendary Tarlington diamond caught the light and reflected back at him with a twinkle. There was no mistaking the iconic ring with the T-shaped configuration. Its brilliance was matched only by its uniqueness. Mystified, Carter set the ring down and lifted the note.


Dear Carter,

You bought a very expensive ring at Waverly’s during the Tina Tarlington auction. I outbid you, or rather, my assistant outbid you for Tina’s prized ring from the man considered her one true love. I adored Tina’s work and once spent time with her. I’d hoped she’d run away with me, but it wasn’t to be. In any case, I’ve had my eye on you, Carter, and think you are a good man. You have fallen hard for Tina’s daughter, without a doubt. I’d like you to give this ring back to her. Whether you return it to her as a favor to me, or give it to her as a pledge of your love, it’s up to you, but I wouldn’t be a fool if I were you. Macy is worth far much more than a mere diamond ring.