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A few minutes later, Jodie caught Willow heading toward the barn and intercepted her with a bag of chips and a bottle of water.

Everybody. You know that.

Goblin appeared near the water spigot, keeping his usual careful distance. Jodie noticed him immediately. She filled an old bowl and set it beneath the shade beside the barn, then walked away without trying to coax him closer.

Mac watched the dog go immediately toward the bowl. But before drinking, Goblin watched Jodie, took a step toward her, then stopped and drank instead.

You’re easy to trust, Ranch Girl.

The thought hurt more than he expected.

Dammit.

He wasn’t angry that she cared about him. He loved that she cared about him.

Love.

That was a word he’d been thinking for quite a while now. He hadn’t said it yet, unsure of how she’d respond. He didn’t think she’d reject him—they’d spent too much time together for him to misread that things were getting serious. They were, and that’s why he wanted to be careful, to say it at the right time, when she wasn’t distracted with other things, so that it would sink in without her deflecting, or immediately running off to the next task or person who needed her.

He loved her.

And she’d lied to him.

No.

That wasn’t quite fair either.

She hadn’t lied about everything. She’d given him reasons for schedule changes that might even have been partly true.

That’s supposed to make it better?

“Hey.”

Mac looked up. Jodie stood beside him, studying his face.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah.” He wiped his hands on his pants and gave her a smile. “Just hot.”

Her gaze stayed on him for another second, studying that smile.

Ask me if I’m sure. Please.

His stomach twisted in knots. He’d spent the afternoon thinking about all the times she’d made decisions without giving him a chance to speak for himself, and here she was asking him directly.

And I’m lying to her face.

“Okay.” Jodie finally nodded. “There’s cold water in the blue cooler if you need it.”

“Thanks, baby.”

She smiled even as he watched the uncertainty in her eyes, and headed back toward Willow. Mac watched her go.

Beauty, bud.

Apparently neither of them had a monopoly on deciding what the other person needed to know.

Hypocrite.