by Mari Carr
Dedication
For our cousins—our first and forever friends.
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Prologue
Hope Compton peeked from behind a mostly closed door into the ballroom of the local community center, which her family had rented for her sweet-sixteen party. When plotting with her cousins about how to best celebrate the milestone, it had seemed like a great idea to act grown up, wear a fancy dress and command the center of attention for once. Like the woman she wished to be someday instead of the wallflower she usually was.
The prospective fun and glamour had filled her with anticipation. Right up until she realized precisely how packed the place was. Brimming with cowboys.
Intimidating.
Her fingernails dug into the wood of the doorframe before she caught herself. She didn’t want to mess up the first manicure she’d ever gotten. Her aunts had taken her, along with her three cousins—Jade, Sterling and Sienna—to the salon to help them commemorate the occasion in style. After all, they’d each turn sixteen within a year.
The opalescent, sheer polish seemed to have survived intact. Whew.
Despite the fact that everyone in attendance was either a relative, friend or lifelong neighbor, she wished the other Compass Girls—as the old-timers in town liked to call them—would hurry. Surely somebody could convince Jade to come out of the bathroom without changing into her damn jeans. Bribing the tomboy with the next pick at the movies, including the dumb ones with more explosions than talking, should do the trick.
With Hope’s might-as-well-be-sisters by her side, she could handle her official introduction to the crowd mingling around the appetizers they’d all slaved over. The kid in her wished she’d filched a chicken finger, or maybe one of those mini hot dogs wrapped in croissant dough, before slathering on Sterling’s lip gloss.
“Quit tugging that curl.” Her grandmother, Vivi, tsked as she approached. At odds with the chastisement, the older woman’s hug generated a cocoon of safety and warmth that instantly set Hope at ease. “Your aunt Leah spent ages getting your hair just so. You look even more pretty than usual, girly. Your Grandpa JD would have had a heart attack at the thought of unleashing you four young ladies on Compton Pass. It’s a blessing he only ever had boys to contend with.”
“I’m not sure my fathers are going to do much better. Daddy already threatened to kick Dad out if he causes a scene.” Hope smiled as she recalled the near scuffle her gown—glittery pink and off-the-shoulder, with tiers of ruffles in the full skirt—had incited. Short, it left her legs bare. Well, except for her new rhinestone cowboy boots. She adored the gift from her mom. All three of her parents had signed their names on the card, though she knew who’d picked them out.
“Silas is gonna have a rocky few years.” Vivi chuckled. “Thank God he’s got Colby and your mom to hold him back when boys start knocking down the door of the foreman’s cabin.”
“What if nobody’s interested, Vivi?” Hope glanced away.
“Silly girl, what are you worrying about now?” Her grandmother didn’t dismiss her out of hand. She was always there to listen when any of her children, or grandchildren, needed an ear.
“I’m not bold like Sterling, or flashy like Jade, or everybody’s best friend like Sienna.” Hope sighed. “I’m boring.”
“Nonsense.” Vivi smoothed the wrinkles Hope’s fisted hands had made in the skirt of her dress. “You’re perfect as you are. Straightforward, smart, observant and sensible.”
“Thanks.” A smile tipped her lips. She admired all of those traits, even if other kids her age might not.
“Besides, I thought you were concentrating on your future. On becoming a pharmacist. There’s a heck of a lot of school and hard work between you and that goal. So when did you become boy crazy?” Her grandmother’s stare dug beneath the fluffy trappings she wore today.
“You know I’m not.” She waved her lovely nails in front of her. “That’s more Sterling’s thing. I just wonder sometimes why I haven’t really ever gotten all excited about anyone. You know, like Sterling and Jade. They’re always talking about Billy Hill, looking up his videos online, saying how cute he is, and arguing over which of them gets to marry him, but… Eh. He’s nothing special, really. I bet he’s not even fun to talk to after being so popular, so young. With everyone screaming his name during concerts and stuff… He’s probably stuck up and annoying.”
A musical peal of laughter rang from Vivi. “I bet you’re right, girly.”
“But what if I never find someone I want to get to know better?” She toyed with the hem of her dress. “All the boys in my class are dumb. They only care about fart jokes and who can punch the hardest.”
“Ah, is that the real problem?” Her grandmother squeezed Hope’s fingers. “Don’t rush yourself. You don’t have to fret about this. I agree, young men leave a lot to be desired. They’ll grow up. See what they’re missing. Decide they want to impress you with more than bodily functions or bravado. One day, someone will manage it too. When it happens, it happens. There’s no trying about it. No running either. I knew the moment I laid eyes on JD at a dance not so different from this one—except the barn was a lot less spiffy than this hall—that he was mine. He was my counterpart. Somewhere down the road, you’ll meet your other half. It could be tonight. Or years from now. Who knows? But there won’t be a sliver of doubt left in that big brain of yours when you find the right person. I promise.”
Vivi’s ironclad belief calmed Hope’s momentary panic. Why hadn’t she realized the unease bubbling inside her meant she’d been worrying about this so much lately? Ever since Sienna and Josh had seemed to get a little more serious than study buddies or even friends, it’d crossed her mind from time to time. A week ago, she’d even dreamed about going to their wedding. Minus a plus-one.
Her concerns melted beneath Vivi’s patient regard.
A grumble and several cheers echoed from the other end of the space as her cousins and aunts tumbled from the restroom with Jade in tow. Tomboy or not, she looked beautiful.
“Wow, Jade.” Hope trotted to her cousin and held her at arm’s length. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
“You owe me a double batch of those brown sugar cookies you like to bake.” Her gruff tone didn’t match the smirk she wore or the glint of excitement in her striking eyes.
“All right. We’ve kept the guests waiting long enough. Here we go, Compass Girls.” Vivi whistled, commanding their attention. The Mothers headed out to the main room to join their husbands. People clapped at the arrival of the four gorgeous women who’d made such a big impact on their community, each in their own way.
Hope beamed at her mom as she tucked in between Dad and Daddy. She did so much for people as a nurse. Through her work, she’d introduced Hope to her future career. On the weekends, Hope would accompany her mom to pick up supplies for her patients. She’d watched the Compton Pass Pharmacy owner dispense pills, check dosages and fight with doctors when he’d disagreed with the ridiculous demands of an insurance company. The ins and outs of the business had bored her cousins when they’d joined her, but Hope had been enthralled.
Like that, she’d known what she was meant to do.
Vivi promised her the same would be true when it came to picking her soul mate.
Lighthearted, she nodded to her cousins then pranced through the doorway into the main room of the community center. She linked arms with Sterling and Sienna. Jade tagged onto the chain too. They traveled as a unit toward the front of the room and the microphone there.
Her mom and dads cheered along with the rest of her aunts and uncles. Aunt Jody flicked at a te
ar, though she probably wished no one noticed.
As Hope scanned the room, her throat went a little dry.
“You’ve got this.” Sterling slapped her on the flank as if she were a green horse or a recalcitrant cow. “Go ahead, welcome everyone. Don’t forget to thank them for all those presents.”
Hope’s eyes widened as she spied the mountain of gifts wrapped in bright paper with shiny ribbons. For her. Wow.
“Thank you all for coming. I’m so happy you could make it here tonight. I’d like to share my appreciation for my family and all they’ve done to make this the best birthday ever.” She couldn’t remember what she’d said after that, but when she stepped away, the nod and thumbs-up from Vivi guaranteed she’d kept her composure and done the Compton clan proud.
With that, music began. People flooded the dance floor. Lots of things had supposedly changed around here since the times Vivi dubbed the good ’ole days. But Compton Pass never refused a good party.
Jade and Sterling grabbed a couple boys, whom Hope recognized as their neighbors in chemistry class. Josh claimed Sienna. Trent, whose dad worked for Hope’s dads, wandered close to her. Shy and a little gangly after this past winter of growing like a weed, his voice cracked when he asked, “Wouldya like to dance?”
“Um. Sure.” She didn’t quite know where to put her hands, so she peeked at Sterling and mimicked her cousin’s hold, though she gripped Trent’s shoulders a little less tightly.
A few slow dances passed with different partners while she suffered under the glare of her Dad, who held hands with her Daddy and Mom. The experience proved to be entertaining, though pretty awkward. Her classmates didn’t have much to say. Mostly, they swayed from foot to foot in one place until their turn was up. It wasn’t until Dustin snuck behind her while Owen and she finished their ballad, trapping her between them, that tingles raced along her spine in a decadent shiver.
Hope trembled in Dustin’s loose hold. He smiled at her and asked if she’d like to borrow his jacket.
“Thanks, but I’ll be okay.” Hope blinked. She glanced over her shoulder at her parents in time to see her Dad gesture to Uncle Seth, who manned the virtual music box that plucked songs off the playlists of the attendees’ phones. The way he cranked his fist in a circle seemed to imply that he wanted his younger brother to broadcast something faster. The tempo of the music changed to match her suddenly racing heart, which beat at least as loud as the over-enhanced bass notes. “I think we’re going to speed things up anyway. Next time?”
“Sure.” He nodded.
And before she knew what had happened, poor Dustin had been swept aside by her three cousins, who mobbed her. The four of them bopped around in a giant cloud of taffeta, tulle and sparkles to Billy Hill’s latest teen anthem. Why not? She’d only turn sixteen once.
They laughed the evening away.
Hope had never been as happy as when she closed her eyes and blew out the candles on the enormous strawberry-filled cake Vivi had baked. One wish in particular sprang to mind.
Late that night, as she lay wide-awake in bed, her face damn near splitting with an effusive grin, she recalled the excitement that had raced through her veins when Dustin and Owen had flanked her. Fierce and glorious, it’d left a lasting impression.
Relief unraveled so many knots inside her she feared she might melt all over her bed.
There wasn’t anything wrong with her.
She’d simply failed to realize until now that she was so much like her mom.
Suddenly the need to chat overwhelmed her. Not with her parents. Some things embarrassed her too much, though she knew she could go to them with an issue if she really needed to. There was a first line of defense she would rather try. She glanced at the door, relieved to find the sliver beneath it dark. Once her parents were in their room for the night, they weren’t likely to check in on her again until her dads rose at the ass crack of dawn. Ranch chores waited for no cowboy, especially not the bosses.
Hope reached over to her nightstand and grabbed her phone. She tapped the quick-launch icon on the screen. Immediately, one of the panels lit up.
“Is your bedtime later now that you’re sixteen?” Always a smartass, Jade wiggled her perfectly arched brows over the visual line. Their favorite feature of their phones allowed them to keep in touch at all hours. More personal than texting, the video chats made it seem as if they shared the main house like their fathers had in their youth. Especially for Jade, the only one of them who lived off of the ranch. Her family had a house in town, because Uncle Sawyer was Compton Pass’s Sheriff.
“Since when do you give a crap about the rules?” Sterling piped in as she joined their virtual pajama party.
“Ah, like you’re any better, cousin.” Sienna shook her finger at them all. “We have school tomorrow, remember? Don’t complain when you’re falling asleep during the history exam.”
“Forget the past. Live for today.” Sterling tipped her head. “So what’s up, Hope? Get a blister from all that dancing in those fancy new boots?”
“No. I wondered…” She swallowed hard. “How the heck does a girl find two boyfriends?”
“Whoa.” Jade sat up straighter in her black pajamas. “Seriously?”
“Yeah.” She nibbled on her lower lip. “I think I’m like my mom. I want what she has with my dads. But they don’t talk much about how they got together, you know? Is it weird to ask them?”
“Vivi will tell us.” Jade nodded, serious for once. “We can ask her after school tomorrow.”
“I’ve heard my dad talk about how stubborn your dad is. He says your mom and daddy had to convince Uncle Silas to join them.” Sienna spoke quietly. She wasn’t trying to offend. Just to inform. “He was gone for a long time. All our dads were, right?”
“Yes.” Hope knew her mom and daddy had been married before her dad came home from Alaska. “So maybe I need to start with one guy and then we’ll find another one together?”
Sienna tried to offer a serious suggestion. “Or maybe you should ask out the State twins. Roy and Dan are pretty funny. I bet they’d be up for a double date sans one girl.”
“Those class clowns?” Sterling objected. “They’re more likely to get in a spitball fight than swap spit with Hope. Or anyone else for that matter.”
They couldn’t help themselves. A riot of giggles and a few very unladylike snorts ricocheted between them.
“Girls!” Uncle Sam’s shout echoed through the walls of his and Aunt Cindi’s cottage, clear across the airwaves between Sterling and the rest of them. Heck, Hope figured she probably could have heard him bellow with her bare ears if her window had been open on the quiet spring evening. “Put those phones away or I’ll tell Vivi you’ve been abusing your privileges again.”
Their grandmother wouldn’t care much. After all, she’d bought them the gadgets for Christmas. She’d stifled every single one of their parents’ objections and said the Compass Girls should be as close as the Compass Brothers had been. She wouldn’t stand for it any other way.
“I mean it,” Uncle Sam roared.
“Okay, okay.” Sterling rolled her eyes. “We’ll talk more about it tomorrow.”
“Goodnight,” they all said in unison before clicking off, still smiling.
For now, Hope decided not to worry about dating. It seemed like a lot of drama, if Jennie Allen and her constant break-ups and make-ups were any indication. Aspirations for her career and the steps necessary to achieve them came first. Studying hard and doing well enough in school to get into a pharmacy program had to be top priorities. Someday the rest would follow.
It was enough to know what she wanted eventually. Vivi’s advice from earlier in the night floated back to her. Somewhere down the road, you’ll meet your other half. Now she knew her grandmother had been pretty much right. She fully intended to stumble across her other two-thirds.
Hope snuggled into her daisy-dotted pillow and dreamed of two strong cowboys whisking her onto one of their white horses
before galloping together into the sunset.
Chapter One
“Almost seven years later”
“You’re going to let your girlfriend throw out perverted shit like that?” John’s new colleague from his residency at the hospital, Damon, proved yet again that Hope had been right to consider the jerk an unsavory influence on her boyfriend.
The asshole had enhanced too many of John’s bad habits in addition to John’s ever-present tendency to wallow in negativity. When she’d called him out on the changes in his personality, he’d told her she could stand to be more supportive of his evolution. Bullshit. This was regression.
She couldn’t believe she’d tagged along to this seedy bar her dads and uncles never would have approved of her visiting, despite the fact that she was a fully grown, independent young woman. And now it was too late to flee because the chief prick, Damon, kept spouting off and riling his fraternity of surgeons-in-training. How could they be both so egotistical and so insecure as to shadow a dickhead like this?
Hope finally conceded to an obvious truth. She’d worried when Vivi’s ancient advice hadn’t held for her. She hadn’t known right away that John was the one or one of the ones for her when she’d crashed into him in the hallway of the hospital. It’d taken him weeks to seduce her away from her rotation duties in the R&D wing for a crappy cup of cafeteria coffee. Because he wasn’t meant for her. Never had been.
Why the hell hadn’t she listened to her instincts?
Oh, right. Her cousins kept hounding her to date. And seeing Sienna deliriously happy every single day had started to weigh on Hope. Was she wasting too much time, praying for a couple of Mr. Rights to waltz into her life? Turning over a few stones couldn’t hurt to speed things along, could it?
Well, look where envy had gotten her.
Hope tried to duck beneath Damon’s arm. He dropped his shoulder and pinned her against the back wall of a balcony overlooking the dance floor of Two Lefts. No one came up here, really, unless they were desperate to use the dingy bathrooms beside the sparse high-top tables where she’d been sitting with John. Every time she tried to squirm around him, he trapped her tighter.
