A Breath of Heaven: El Camino Real Read Free Page A

on
Abby.
    She
shivered with nerves. “Nothing, Cade. Justice is just being a pain in the
butt.” She’d give anything in the world if Cade just wanted to give her one
kiss.
    “You
and that damn Native American hearing,” Justice shook his head, laughing. “The
only person I remember who has bat hearing like you is Charlee Parker. She used
to be able to hear a gnat fart from a mile away.”
    “You
know, I’ve never understood your relationship with Charlee. She used to be your
shadow when we were kids.” Jase turned serious as he surveyed the rapidly
changing look on Justice’s face. In a matter of seconds it went from amused to
sad to stoic. 
    “What’s
so hard to understand? It’s simple. We don’t have any kind of relationship
anymore. We outgrew each other. Charlee moved away. End of story.” Justice kept
his tone flat and impersonal. 
    Jase
pressed for more from his brother. “I know, I’m not saying you do. It was just
odd to always have her underfoot and then – Bam! – she moved away. I’ve often
wondered if something happened between the two of you.”
      
Justice looked off into the distance as if he were seeing something the rest of
them couldn’t bring into focus. “She went to college, now she’s in med-school.
I guess she’ll come back to take over her father’s practice someday. Who
knows?”
    Jase
smiled, hearing more in his brother’s tone than his words betrayed. There was
something more to all of this than he knew and one day he’d find out the rest
of the story. “If she does come back here to practice medicine maybe you should
go see her about that chronic grouchiness you’ve been experiencing lately.
There could be a pill you could take, Viagra might do the trick.” 
    While
the men bantered back and forth, Abby took the opportunity to ride off. At
least the topic had changed from her and Cade to Justice and Charlee. For that
she was grateful. Abby could only pretend sisterly affection or disinterest
around Cade for so long. Apparently, she’d have to be more careful if Justice
had picked up on it. Abby closed her eyes for a brief moment and sighed. When
had she began to look at Cade as someone more than a brother or a friend? Abby
pulled her hat down and groaned. Almost from the beginning, if she were honest.
He was her rock. Let anyone give her an iota of trouble at school and he was in
their face.
    From
the time Cade came to live with them, he fit in. They’d rode together, of
course; but they’d also camped, fished, played hide-n-seek, built treehouses
and went on vacations as a family. She could remember movie nights, card games,
and swimming trips. And through it all, Cade made his own place in her life
that no one else could fill. He was a part of her now, a part she couldn’t
imagine doing without. The only problem was – now she wanted more than mere
friendship or family camaraderie. Abby loved Cade with her whole heart, but as
a man – not a brother.  
    Everywhere
she looked, there were memories. Here she was, sixteen years old and she had
absolutely no desire to leave her home. Everything she wanted was right here –
the ranch, her family and Cade. El Camino was in their blood. Miles and miles
of rolling hills, flowing streams and stands of oak and cedar. Herds of
Longhorn, Angus, quarter horses and sheep – groves of pecans and peaches,
fields of cotton and acres and acres of hay meadow. Oil. Gas. Blue Rock. All of
the bounty of Texas was found on El Camino. Their land had supported them and
the family vowed to do the same for their home. Their relationship to the ranch
wasn’t so much one of ownership but one of custodian.
    When
she rode closer to the front complex, Abby turned for the office. She would
pick up whatever her dad needed before returning to the house and greeting
their guests. If it was up to her, and she thought Cade possibly felt the same
way, the party would only consist of family.
    “Hey,
Miss Abby.” Clifton Campbell, their