Lone Star Christmas. Jolene Navarro

home with your mother?”

      “Do you want me to leave?”

      “No. But it’s going to be Thanksgiving. I thought you might want to be with your family. Don’t you have stepbrothers?” He still wasn’t too sure why Ethan had asked to come with them.

      “Yes. I’d rather be here without my phone than being forced to hang out with them. I’d sleep in the barn if I have to. They’re not nice, and my stepfather thinks...everything they do is funny.”

      Jackie looked up. “What about your mother?”

      He shrugged and looked out the window. “She’s busy.”

      Max closed his eyes. And scrambled some ideas around in his brain. He could figure this out. The reason he had taken the boys and why he’d let Ethan join them was that he remembered the loneliness after his mother’s death. Like the world had gone on and forgotten her and him.

      With her gone, he didn’t exist anymore. Then he forgot her. He didn’t want that for his brothers.

      It sounded as if Ethan’s mother wasn’t any better than their father. He didn’t have any warm memories of her; it didn’t sound like she was any better with her own son. “Okay, here’s the deal. Extra chores for everyone, and Ethan’s in charge. I’ll make up a list, and each day for the next week you’ll make sure everything gets done before bedtime. Got it?”

      Ethan looked at him. “I get to stay and keep my phone?”

      “Yes, but you’re going to have limited use of the phone. It’s going to be hard work.”

      “That’s okay. It’s not like I have anything else to do.”

      He wanted to give them more than chores and work. “I also need each of you to make a list of your favorite things to do that don’t include electronics.”

      The younger brothers started talking over each other about swimming, food fights and playing fetch. Which they pointed out would require a dog.

      Jackie pulled up to the elaborate iron gate that marked the entrance to the Delgado Ranch. When Max had first arrived with the boys, he’d found the electric rollers jammed. It had taken all four of them to push both sides back. Now the rusted curves and cattle cutouts sat lopsided in the tall weeds. He should have turned back then and there.

      He needed to call Vanessa about the dogs. In the meantime, he was going to find ways for them to have fun. Glancing at the woman driving, he thought back to that summer so long ago. He wanted to see that smile again. When had she become so severe?

      Behind him, Isaac and Tomas had fallen asleep. Something else he needed to do. Make sleeping arrangements. They couldn’t stay in the house tonight. If it were just him, he’d sleep in his truck. He’d done it several times. He glanced behind him at his three brothers. But for now, it wasn’t just him.

      How had this become his life? He leaned his head back and shut his eyes. He could do this. It was temporary.

      Jackie pulled up behind Sammi’s truck at the Delgado ranch house. “The boys fell asleep. I have a few blankets in the back of the car. If you want to get Tomas, I’ll grab Isaac.”

      Max nodded before he got out of the SUV. “I think it’s gotten colder.” They leaned in at the same time and unbuckled the boys. She avoided looking at Max. They were too close, and parts of her heart were stirring. Not acceptable. She had forced him out of her heart years ago; she couldn’t allow him back in.

      She turned to Ethan. “Grab those blankets behind the seat there.”

      Just like the family she used to fantasize about, they made their way up the front walkway carrying the sleeping boys into the house. Of course, in her daydreams the furniture wasn’t covered in dust and neglect and her heart in guilt.

      For years, it had been Max she saw in those dreams. It took persistence and hard work to get him out of her head. Unfortunately, he had grown up even better looking than her imagination, but he still wasn’t the right one for her.

      Her feelings had to be buried the moment her father informed her who he was. He lost his mother because of her. Even if he could still like her, she didn’t deserve his love.

      If he ever found out the accident was her fault, he would hate her. That might be better. Now that he was back, those long-buried dreams had found their way to the surface.

      Ethan opened the door. Inside, they settled the boys on the sofas and covered them with the clean afghans and quilts. She said a soft prayer for the little guys and their big brothers. Looking up, she found Max staring at her and quickly turned away.

      She needed God’s guidance in all of this. It felt as if she was walking on dangerous ground with hidden trip wires ready to blow everything up.

      In the washroom, they found the ladder from the crawl space pulled down. “Sammi? Are you up there?”

      After a few thumps and some other noises, the youngest Bergmann sister peeked over the edge of the trapdoor. “Yep. It’s a mess up here. You got a whole colony of squirrels that need to be relocated, and they’ve been chewing on the wiring.”

      She disappeared.

      Max sighed. “This is all I need. Squatter squirrels and a house that has to have all the wiring redone.”

      Sammi’s boot appeared on the top of the ladder. “It’s not the whole house, but I do suggest you get a licensed electrician to check it out.” She hopped off the last step and turned to face them. “Hi, I’m Sammi Bergmann.” She held out her hand. “Pleasure to meet you.”

      Ethan had come up behind Max. “Really? You know we’re Delgados, right?” Bitterness laced his words.

      Sammi chuckled. “That’s okay. My last name might be Bergmann but everyone around here, including my family, refers to my mother as—” she lifted her hand to make air quotes “—‘that other woman.’ Or ‘the mistake.’”

      Jackie gasped. “No one blames you or loves you any less because of what your mother did to Daddy. She left you, too.”

      “Right. I know that. I’m just saying I don’t blame people for things that happened in the past or what other people did. Unfortunately, for the most part small towns don’t follow that train of thought. I think it’s from the lack of real entertainment.” She turned back to Max and Ethan with a smile. “How long are y’all in town?”

      “Until Christmas. Or sooner. Depends on when the boys’ aunt can pick them up, and how long it takes to get the ranch ready for the market.”

      Her eyes went wide. “You’re selling this place? Hasn’t it been in your family like, forever?”

      “Yes. But my uncle wants the ranch gone. He and my father argued all the time. Now that my father’s dead, there’s nothing to stop my uncle Rigo from cleaning house and getting rid of any properties not contributing to the family coffers.”

      “Sorry to hear about your father. So close to the holidays, too.”

      “Thanks.”

      Jackie leaned on the edge of the old washer. “You’re a Delgado. Don’t you have as much say as your uncle? You know, donating the buildings would be a great Christmas gift to the town. I just don’t understand why your uncle is so set against retaining Clear Water’s history.”

      Ethan snorted. “Our uncle hated our dad.” He looked at Max. “Can we go see the buildings? There have to be some creepy stories in an old abandoned town. I’m going to put that on my list of fun stuff to do. Maybe someone would want to open a dude ranch in a ghost town.”

      Sammi chuckled and headed into the kitchen. “That sounds entertaining, but I need to get back to the lumberyard. Sorry I wasn’t more help.”

      They followed her into the large kitchen. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a small pad of yellow paper. With a pencil, she