But the judge didn’t listen. The judge thought he knew best. He was a man, after all. He claimed he knew what a young man needed. Work. Discipline. An attitude adjustment.

The very same things Taylor’s father had said.

It made her furious. And heartsick. Because both men were wrong. And Doug—as well as thousands of young men and women—continued to struggle and suffer because people were ignorant about mood disorders.

“You sound unsure,” Troy said.

Her lips pursed. Troy was perceptive. She had to be careful what she told him, determined to protect Doug as much as possible. “The ranch life is new to him,” she said after a slight hesitation. “It’s an adjustment.”

“Ranching is hard work.”

True, and Doug was never supposed to be a ranch hand. He’d gone to school to be an electrician. He was smart and good with his hands, and was very patient with complicated things. He could succeed. He just needed support. He needed someone to give him a chance. But people didn’t want to hire young adults with problems. Taylor was discovering that too many people didn’t want to be troubled by other people’s problems, which made her worry about the future. She worried about Doug being able to have the future he wanted and deserved.

“The physical work isn’t the issue,” she said after a moment, picking her words carefully, not sure if Troy was friends with the owners of Hogue Ranch. In a small town, you could never be too careful. “It’s the… environment. It’s not the best place for him.”

“What would be better for him?”

“He wanted to be an electrician. He took all the courses and passed all these tests. He just needs to be given a chance, an apprenticeship. And it’ll happen. It will.”

“So the ranch is just a stepping stone to the next job,” Troy said.

“Yes.” She smiled, wanting to believe it. Needing to believe it.