The Rancher's Family Wish by Lois Richer

very much.”
    “I’m glad.” She rose and walked with him to the door, handing him the hat he’d hung on her coat rack. “Come again.”
    Tanner thought the words were rote, said out of politeness, but he grabbed at them anyway.
    “Thank you. I’d like that.” He studied her, one arm wrapped around each child. “You’re a blessed woman, Sophie. And so are your kids. You have each other and that’s a lot.” Before he revealed his envy of her, Tanner dragged open the sticky door. Another project. “Good night.”
    “Good night,” they called.
    He climbed in his truck, started the engine, but sat there for a moment, watching as the front door closed, the downstairs lights snapped off and the bedroom lights winked on.
    What would it be like to have someone like Sophie in your life with a family who was always there for you?
    Tanner drove home imagining someone with Sophie’s laugh waited for him at Wranglers Ranch.

Chapter Five
    T he homeschoolers’ visit to Wranglers Ranch was like nothing Sophie expected, mostly because Tanner’s efforts outdid her highest hopes for the afternoon.
    After a general welcome, he escorted the students on a ramble around the ranch that the children in wheelchairs could easily handle. He paused periodically at stations he’d specifically set up to illustrate different aspects of ranch life.
    “Wranglers Ranch is home to a small flock of Navajo-Churro sheep,” he explained. The curious children gathered around him, eager to touch the lamb he held before they moved on to examine multicolored balls of wool spilling out of a handwoven basket. “We sell the wool to artists who use it for their work. On a ranch it’s important to have different sources of income.”
    Sophie’s appreciation for the cowboy grew when, after they arrived at the horse station, he hunkered down to answer the smallest child’s query.
    “That’s a good question,” he praised the disabled boy. “We put those hoods on our horses’ heads to keep out flies. If we don’t, the flies will lay their eggs in the animals’ eyes. That would make them really sick and sometimes cause blindness. We want our horses to be healthy.”
    Tanner’s explanation about the brook’s importance drew giggles when he said its most important function was to cool off cowboys on hot summer days. He introduced Moses, who delighted the children by escorting them to the remains of an old covered wagon that had once rumbled through Wranglers Ranch. Sophie found herself listening to the man’s history lesson as carefully as the children did. Their rapt expressions made their formerly dubious parents smile with approval. Sophie was glad she’d suggested the ranch to the homeschool association. Positive word of mouth from these moms and dads could help Tanner gain new clients.
    “Can we come back and ride your horses sometime?” Beth’s friend Bertie asked in a loud voice. “I want to ride the white horse and go really fast.”
    “You’ll have to ask your parents about coming back, Bertie.” Tanner winked at Sophie. “But maybe you should choose a different horse. Methuselah doesn’t go very fast because he’s quite old. Actually he’s a grandfather so mostly we let him eat and rest.”
    “Oh.” Quieted for the moment, talkative Bertie fell into step with Beth as Tanner continued the tour. At the completion of it, when the cowboy had finally answered all the kids’ questions, their host invited the group to enjoy lemonade and a snack on his new patio.
    After ensuring everyone had been served, Sophie turned to find Tanner next to her, offering a glass of lemonade. “Thank you.”
    “No problem. Thank you for making all these snacks. This should cover it.” He held out a check.
    “Tanner, I don’t expect you to pay for food I made for our homeschool group.” Relieved that the parents weren’t near enough to overhear, Sophie shook her head in refusal.
    “I insist. It’s important for Wranglers to track all its