All Chapters of The Journey Collection: Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

The blare of my alarm at four thirty was as unwelcomed today as it had been during my childhood. As I fumbled to silence the offending noise on my phone, I wondered what I'd been thinking when I agreed to this charade. I hadn't been fit for the part growing up, and I wasn't any better suited for it today.Moving through the house that once was as familiar to me as the back of my hand, I tried to remain quiet so I didn't wake Eason. I didn't flip on the lights until I was safely inside the bathroom. My disheveled appearance was a sight to behold. There wasn't much point in doing anything with it, either, so I washed away the remnants of makeup from the day before and ran a brush through my mop. It wasn't much of an improvement, but at least I no longer looked like I had stepped out of Night of the Living Dead. After I brushed my teeth, I moved back to my room. The Walmart bags were on the floor next to my suitcase, and I didn't bother to look at what I pulled out. I wasn't here to imp

The high of winning homecoming was wild throughout the town. There wasn't much that went on here, outside of cows and farms, so winning at football drew a crowd. Truth be told, losing attracted the same crowd; they were just in better moods following a victory. And there were two people the town coveted after a win-or maybe only one. Since we came as a package, I'd always believe it was two.The quarterback and the captain of the cheerleading squad.Austin and I were like royalty, and a win only served to cement that notion. It wasn't a secret to anyone who had ever stepped foot in Mason Belle, Texas. There were lots of unknowns in life; however, Austin Burin and Randi Adams weren't one of them. It was a given, like pancakes and syrup or gravy and biscuits, that the two of us would end up together. And the town's people salivated when we were together. It was a high I wished every kid my age could experience. Then again, it probably wouldn't be all that fantastic if it were ordinar

Jack needed to worry about getting better, not about the problems at the ranch. Unfortunately, there were decisions to be made, and I didn't feel right making them on my own. Thus far, Sarah and I had managed to keep the details of the fire damage from Jack. We had reached a point where that was no longer an option.The wooden door to his hospital room seemed to weigh a thousand pounds when I pushed it open, although that might have just been the burden I carried. Sarah glanced over her shoulder from beside Jack's bed and gave me a soft smile. She'd never been my type, nor had she been Charlie's, yet seeing her here, it was obvious how she had managed to steal my brother's heart. The role she'd played in Randi's life in high school trained her for the role she played as an adult, and she was perfectly suited to be a farmer's wife.Once I reached her side, I leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "Hey, girl," I said with a gentle squeeze to her bicep. "How's the patient?"Jac

The hair on the back of my neck stood before she had even entered the room. Other than the occasional encounter at the ranch, which I made certain were painful for her, I'd avoided her like the plague. If I could have gotten out of this room without having Sarah attack me, I wouldn't be sitting here now. This was a family matter. They needed to decide what they wanted to do, how they intended to do it, and how they planned to pay for it. I was merely a hired hand in the scheme of things.Yet when she knocked on the door and then entered, it wasn't me who played the part of the outsider. We were all on edge, and none of us knew what to expect. I assumed Jack would have some sort of reunion with the daughter he hadn't seen in six years, but he didn't so much as make a fuss over her. They didn't hug. They didn't even shake hands."Randi." Jack's icy demeanor left me uncomfortable when only half an hour ago he'd demanded to see her.My attention shifted back and forth between them an

"Are you sure you're going to be okay with him?" I asked Sarah after the two of us had struggled to get Daddy situated upstairs.She scowled. "Why wouldn't I be?"I pursed my lips, glanced at the steps, and then back to my sister. I held up my hands in surrender. Far be it from me to question her judgment. She'd been here. I had to trust that she knew what she was capable of and what was too much."It's not like there aren't people all over the place, Randi." She caught herself. "Sorry, Miranda. If I need help, I'll get one of the guys. What is it that you think is going to happen?"I couldn't answer that question without upsetting her, so I shrugged. I was making too big a deal out of this. Daddy wasn't an invalid; he just had a hard time breathing and got winded easily. Sarah was one of those people who needed to be needed, and this provided her with that outlet. The girls had gone back to school today, and Rand was running around the ranch, leaving her with mounds of time on