It's In His Heart (A Red River Valley Novel) Read Online Free PDF Page A

Colorado. The cable company will be here day after tomorrow to hook it up.”
    Coop’s gaze raked the length of those long, graceful legs that stretched from here to heaven and . . . “Wait. Cable? Oh, no.” He shook his head. “If you want all the conveniences of city life, then go back to Albuquerque.”
    “I can’t.”
    Butch joined them in the den, and sat next to Ella. He sipped his coffee. “Mmm, Ella, you always did make a killer cup of coffee.” Then he gave Ella’s knee an affectionate pat like she was his long-lost daughter.
    “Dad,” Coop fumed. “Do you mind?”
    “Mind what?” Butch’s blank expression made Coop almost sympathetic toward his mother and four ex-stepmothers. Well, not his mother. She was so much like Ella. Always looking down on Red River and the people here. Always wanting to go on an adventure, live the lifestyles of the rich and famous. Please.
    Coop pinched the bridge of his nose. “Why can’t you go back to Albuquerque?”
    She fidgeted with a ring on her left hand, turning it in a complete circle. Her wedding ring. Guilt pinged his chest.
    “I’ve sold the house and put most of my belongings in storage. I’m leaving New Mexico.” She gave Coop a determined stare. “But first, I’m spending the summer in Red River. It’s the last thing I need to do to say good-bye to Bradley.”
    And there it was again. The guilt card.
    Yes, Bradley had been his best friend. Yes, Coop owed him. Big. But he absolutely, unequivocally, could not live under the same roof with Ella for the next three months. Not no, but hel—
    Wetness shimmered in her eyes and dampened the silky lashes that brushed her cheeks every time she blinked.
    No, no. Not tears. Anything but tears.
    She sniffed.
    Coop closed his eyes. Yep, he just went down in flames.
    “Aw, Ella. You’re too pretty to cry,” cooed Cal, looking bashful. His teenage crush announced itself in his lovesick puppy stare.
    Butch grabbed a napkin off the coffee table and handed it to Ella. She looked at it like it might be diseased, then used a tiny corner to dab her eyes.
    “Now, now, sugar,” Butch soothed her. “This is your place as much as Coop’s, and you should stay as long as you need. I’ll even fix up that old bathroom in the loft for you. That way you’ll have some privacy.”
    “And some cleanliness,” she said in between sniffles. “Thank you, Butch, but I don’t want to put you to all that trouble.”
    “Nonsense, young lady. I’m retired, and Cal and I live up here year-round now.” Butch thumped his chest and chuckled. “It’ll give this old man something constructive to do.”
    Coop made a mental note to remind his dad that blood was supposed to be thicker than water. After he sold his condo in Albuquerque to help pay for his legal fees, Coop had moved here to be near family. Thought it would ease the blow of his tarnished reputation back in Albuquerque, where most of his “friends” had stopped returning his calls. Apparently, neither his father nor his little brother understood the meaning of family allegiance.
    Butch draped his arm around Ella’s shoulders. “Bradley was like a son to me. I darn near raised him.”
    Ella sniffed, and dabbed, and nodded and sniffed some more. “He loved you like a father. He always said you were the reason he became a chiropractor—because you were a chiropractor.” She gave Coop a dismissive glance. “And, of course, because Coop wanted to be one, too.”
    Butch laughed. “Yessiree, always partners in crime. They looked out for each other since they were kids.” He hesitated and lowered his voice almost to a whisper. “And . . . you know . . . Bradley’s parents got into that cult stuff. Always leaving him alone ’til all hours of the night, forgetting to pick him up from school because they were at a ‘meeting. ’ ” He did air quotes with his fingers. “Even gave away all their money to the cult leader, then wanted Bradley to support them when he