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“You knew about the job for days. I didn’t.”

“I hadn’t decided.”

“You didn’t tell me there was anything to decide.”

“We’ve only known each other a couple of weeks, Beau.”

“Yeah.” He looked at me for a long second. “I figured I mattered enough to know if Monday was your last day here.”

“I was always leaving Monday.”

“That was before.”

“Before what?”

His jaw tightened. “Us.”

I lowered my voice. “This is my career.”

“I know.”

“I can’t walk away from a yearlong contract because I met someone two weeks ago.”

“I never asked you to.”

“You could have.”

Beau frowned. “Could have what?”

“You could have asked me to stay.”

There it was. The thing I hadn’t even admitted I wanted.

If Beau asked, I could make him the reason. I could turn down the job and tell myself I’d done it for a relationship instead of admitting I wasn’t sure I wanted the life waiting on the other end of that contract anymore.

He didn’t give me the escape. “I want you enough not to ask you for a life you don’t want.”

My throat tightened. “You don’t know what I want.”

“No.” He held my gaze. “Neither do you.”

That pissed me off because it was true. I’d always known what came next. Another contract, another city. As long as I kept moving, I never had to decide whether any particular place was home.

Beau stepped closer, but he didn’t touch me. “I don’t want you here because the town needs somebody to plan festivals. I don’t want you at my ranch because I can give you a place to stay between jobs.” His voice stayed quiet. “I want you when there’s nothing to fix.”

I couldn’t answer that. What was there to say, when he was right?

“I need to get the horses ready.” Then he walked out.

I stood there staring at the opening in the tent until somebody asked where the extra volunteer badges were.

The festival still needed me, so I went back to work. For the next four hours, I did everything I was supposed to do.

The festival was a success. Everybody told me so. Orville cornered me near the heritage tent and announced that we had to make it an annual event. Ruby hugged me and said she’d known from the beginning I was exactly what Mustang Mountain needed.

Every compliment should’ve felt good.

Instead, all I could hear was Beau telling me he wanted me when there was nothing to fix.