“Sure.”
Mallory stared for a few moments before reaching up on her toes to kiss me. I gave her a quick kiss on the lips and stepped back.
“Y’all better get going before it gets too late.”
“Right, we do need to get going. By the time I get home and give Laney a bath to get all that grime off of her, it will be past her bedtime.”
“That grime is called dirt, and it’s what happens when kids are allowed to let loose and play.”
Mallory scoffed. “Maybe for ranch kids, but not my Laney. I’m glad she had an older outfit on since that one is ruined.”
I pinched my brows together. “Mallory, that was a snobby ass thing to say. These kids out here are no different than Laney.”
She sighed. “I know, I’m sorry. I’ve never told you this, Tripp, but I come from a very well bred family. They own a few companies back home, and to be honest, I grew up very differently from you. Finishing schools, nannies, butlers…the whole thing. I moved to small-town Texas because I didn’t want my daughter to grow up with a silver spoon in her mouth or have a mother like mine.”
“But you do see you’re slowly going down that path, Mallory? You just hired a nanny for Laney.”
Her eyes filled with frustration. “I’m a single mom living away from my family and I need to have some form of childcare. I guess with my choice for a nanny it shows the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.”
“Can you make it up to your car okay?”
She stared at me and shook her head. “Why don’t you ever touch me anymore, Tripp?”
“What?”
“Come on. It’s clear that you’re pulling away. Is it because of…the race?”
I stared at her for a good minute. I was sure she’d wanted to ask something different.
“The race has been on my mind a lot lately.”
She nodded. “Right. At least you know the woman standing next to you when you’ve won the mayoral race will be a polished, well-rounded woman.”
My stomach dropped. I needed to be honest with Mallory, and the sooner I did it, the better. I didn’t see the same future as she did. I had to stop lying to myself and admit that I was still very much in love with Harley.
“Mallory, I need to—”
Harley and Laney came walking back to us.
“Well, she went potty!” Harley said.
“She pooped!” Laney added.
We all laughed, everyone but Mallory.
Mallory picked up Laney. “Say goodbye, sweetie. We need to head home.”
Laney waved. “Bye, Hemi! Bye, Harley! Bye, Tripp!”
‘’Bye, Laney!” Harley said as I waved and said goodbye too.
After they’d started to walk toward the house, Harley broke the silence.
“You don’t want to walk them out?”
“Nah, they can manage. Let me get this crate taken down, and I’ll bring it up to your car.”
Harley’s cheeks turned a slight pink. “Thank you. I just need to check on this calf. Trevor put her and the mom in one of the stalls.”
“Okay.”
I headed over to the crate and started taking it apart. Harley was talking to the calf in the stall, and I couldn’t help but smile. It made me think of all the times she would sit in her daddy’s barn and sing to the animals. She’d always been a sucker for the four-legged creatures.
After taking the crate apart, I walked outside and set it up against the barn. When I walked back in, Harley was standing on top of the stall reaching for something.
“What in the hell are you doing? You’re going to fall.”
“No, I won’t. There’s a cat up here. I think she’s stuck.”
“Harley, get the fuck down before you break something.”
She reached up on her toes. “I’ve almost got her.”
“Harley!” I said firmly. All I could think about was the time she fell and broke her arm trying to help a damn baby bird back into the nest.
“Just. A. Little. More.”
“Son-of-a-bitch,” I said as I headed over to get her down. Before I got there, her foot slipped. My heart fell as I watched her tumble into the stall next to one of dad’s new stallions.
“Harley!” I cried out as I ran and pushed the stall door open.
“Wait!” she said. “Don’t come in here, Tripp.”
“What?”
I looked at the horse standing over Harley.
“Back out slowly so you don’t spook him.”
“But…”
“Tripp, please!” she quietly urged.
Slowly backing out, I watched as Harley stood. She appeared to be okay.
“Are you hurt?”
She held out her hand, and the horse took a step closer to her.
What in the hell was she doing having him move closer to her?
“Harley, Dad said that horse is not the least bit tamed.”
“Shhh. It’s okay, baby. I’m not going to hurt you.”
I groaned internally at the softness in her voice. My heart raced.
“What happened? I heard a scream,” Trevor called out as he ran into the barn.
“It’s okay, Trev. We just need to talk softly and not spook him.”
Trevor’s eyes about came out of his head as he looked at Harley in the stallion’s stall.
“What in the fuck is she doing in there?”
“She fell in.”
He jerked his head to look at me. “That horse kicked Ryan yesterday and broke his damn jaw, Tripp. We need to get her out.”
“Would the two of you…please…shut up.”
We both looked back into the stall. I held my breath as I watched Harley move closer to the horse.
“Hey there, handsome boy. Looks like we’re gonna get to know each other.”
He snorted and bounced his head a few times.
“Oh, I know, big guy. You’re the boss.”
Hemi whined at my feet. I reached down and picked her up.
When the horse put his mouth against Harley’s hand, Trevor grabbed onto my arm.
“Do you want some oats? Is that what you want?”
I turned to look at my brother. “Dude, did you grow a pussy overnight? Get the fuck off me and get her some oats,” I whispered.
He looked at his hand and jerked it back like he had just gotten bit. “Right.”
Trevor got a small bucket and walked into the other stall. Harley was backed against the wall.
“Move slow, Trevor, and shake it a bit so he knows what it is.”
Trevor did exactly as she said. Harley reached for the bucket and the horse jumped some. He kicked at the ground, and I swore my heart rate went through the roof. I was going to kick her ass when she walked out of that stall. Because she would walk out. It was Harley. The fucking animal whisperer.
She took a handful of oats and put it to her mouth as the horse watched her. He nickered and she responded with a sound of her own as she held her hand out for him to eat the oats.
Taking a step closer, Harley ran her hand down his neck. Trevor and I shared looks. We both shook our heads and smiled.
“There ya go. You going to be my new boyfriend?” Harley asked while he bopped his head up and down.
I rolled my eyes and let out a deep breath.
Slowly moving alongside the horse, she ran her hands along him. She stepped away and casually moved to the stall door. The stallion turned and followed her. When Harley put her hand on the door, the horse nudged her back.
“Oh, you’re not ready for the date to end?”
He dug at the floor with his hoof.
“Fine, one more kiss it is.”
Taking the oats, she again put it to her mouth and then reached it out to him. When he finished eating the oats, he turned and walked away.
Harley slipped out of the stall and looked at me. I could see tears building in her eyes, and her breath sounded shallow. “I think I broke a rib.”
“What?” Trevor and I both said at on
ce.
“It’s not broken, just bruised.”
The three of us let out a sigh of relief.
“Thank you so much, doctor,” I said, extending my hand.
“No worries. Remember to keep icing it once you get home and take the pills I’m prescribing for the pain. No heating pads, no compression bandages.”
With a nod, I replied, “Got it.”
“And rest your body.”
I laughed. “Well, I’ve got a dinner and dancing tomorrow that I have to squeeze into a dress for…”
He lifted a brow at me and gave me a stern look. It reminded me of my father.
Shit. Speaking of, I forgot to call them!
“We’ll make sure she gets plenty of rest,” Trevor said.
“Good. The nurse will be in to get your discharge papers, and you’ll be all set to go.”
The second the doctor was out the door, Tripp was standing in front of me. “I’m so angry at you for doing that!”
“She’s not hurt, so will you let it go? Jesus, Tripp. You sound like her husband.”
Tripp and I stared at Trevor.
“What? He does. I’m going to call Dad and Mom and let them know Harley is okay.”
“Hey, my phone must have fallen into the stall, can you have your folks call mine? They left earlier today and didn’t stay for the barbeque. I told them I would call them.”
Tipping his hat at me, Trevor flashed that smile I’m sure landed him a lot of women. “Sure thing.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Still the same ol’ charmer.”
Tripp let out a frustrated sigh.
“You haven’t changed a damn bit, have you? Always doing something to save a damn animal.”
I didn’t respond. There was no sense in arguing with him. It had been a stupid thing to do, and I knew it. The worse part was the stupid cat had jumped down and walked out of the barn like nothing had happened.
“I’ll need to stop by the clinic after I pick up Hemi from your folks’ to get her some food.”
Staring at me like I had two heads, Tripp started laughing and took off his cowboy hat. Pushing his hand through his hair, he shook his head and plopped the hat back on his head.
“Did you hear the doctor say you had to take it easy?”
“Yes. And I will. But I have things that I still need to take care of.”
“You’re not going in there getting a damn bag of food.”
“I’ll have my dad get it for me.”
He looked directly at me for the longest time. There was something in his eyes, but I couldn’t read what it was. The door opened and the sweet older nurse walked in.
“Harley Carbajal?”
“That’s me.”
She gave me a warm smile. “You look like a beautiful girl I used to know back in college. She had the same last name.”
“Really? What was her first name?”
“Tanya. Oh…she used to turn the heads,” the nurse said as she winked at Tripp. “Especially when she got out on the dance floor. The poor men didn’t stand a chance as soon as she started to dance the salsa.”
I let out a chuckle, but quickly stopped when a pain shot up my side.
“Tanya, you say? My father’s sister’s name is Tanya.”
“No!” the nurse replied.
“Yes! Let me show you a picture of her. She went to the University of Texas.”
“Oh my goodness, that must be her. I went there, as well.”
My Aunt Tanya was a world traveler. She and her husband had been to almost every country. We only ever saw her at Christmastime.
“She’s in Africa right now with her husband. They’re on a safari for their anniversary.”
“Well, how exciting.”
I pulled up a picture from Facebook and showed her.
“That is her. What a small world. I just adored her. Lord, was she fun to be around.”
“She still is.”
“I bet,” she said with a warm smile. “Tell her LoriBeth Williams from UT said hello. Did she ever pursue her desire to be a photographer?”
One quick swipe of my finger, and I pulled up a photo Aunt Tanya had taken in Iceland.
“Yes. She works for National Geographic. That’s how she met my Uncle Bob. He’s one of the editors.”
“Well, what an exciting life she must lead.”
I nodded. Aunt Tanya was the reason I had caught the travel bug when I was in college. The irony of this situation—me being in the hospital with Tripp here and Aunt Tanya being brought up again—wasn’t lost on me.
After going over everything, I was finally discharged and walked out to Tripp’s truck.
One quick stop at the Walgreens in Uvalde, and we were heading back home to Oak Springs. It was only a forty-five-minute drive, but the second I leaned my head back, the pain meds took over and I was out.
The feeling of warm arms carrying me caused me to let out a contented sigh. My entire body felt like I was lying on a cloud.
I was placed gently on what felt like a bed. I opened my eyes to see my bedroom curtains and then Hemi appeared in front of me. I smiled.
“Hemi,” I whispered. I pulled her to me, her warmth comforting me even more, and I drifted back to sleep.
Light shining in from my bedroom window had me squinting. I went to stretch and stopped when I felt the pain in my side.
“Shit,” I mumbled as I managed to get myself out of bed. The smell of coffee and bacon filled the air. My mother must have been making breakfast.
Walking slowly, I headed into my bathroom and brushed my teeth. A quick splash of water on my face caused a start as I stared at myself in the mirror.
“I look like death.”
A quick ponytail and better wash of my face to remove the dirt and make-up from yesterday made me realize I needed a lengthy shower.
“Mom! I’m jumping in the shower,” I called out as I turned on the hot water.
I wasn’t sure how long I stood in there before Hemi came running in.
“Hey there, beautiful!” I said as I stepped out of the shower. My rib was killing me and as much as I wanted to reach down and pick up my new puppy, I knew I couldn’t.
“Hank. Crap, I need to pay him for Hemi.”
I dried off and wrapped the towel around my body. I needed to get my cell phone back. I was positive Toby had texted to confirm about tonight. I hated to break the news to him that things weren’t going to work out between us, but the sooner I did it, the better.
“Come on, Hemi. Let’s go see what your grandma is making for breakfast. Have you met Lady?”
I walked down the hallway and noticed the guest bedroom door open. The bed had been slept in last night, and I was surprised my mother hadn’t made the bed before starting breakfast. That was one of her biggest pet peeves. It was so late when we got home from the hospital, she probably overslept and wanted to get a quick start on breakfast.
As I walked into the living room, I headed to the landline phone. Paxton had teased me for having it, but it was a good thing I did. I started to dial Tripp’s cell. After calling it over and over for years, I had the damn thing memorized. His number would forever be engrained in my memory. I’d always thought it was strange he didn’t change it. I figured for sure he would have gotten tired of me calling him so much.
“Mom, that smells so good,” I said as I took out the Oak Springs phone book and looked up breeders to get Hank paid for Hemi.
That’s when I heard it. A cell phone ringing. In my house. And not my cell phone.
Closing my eyes, I turned while saying a prayer.
Please don’t be his. Please.
It stopped ringing the moment I heard Tripp’s voice. In stereo.
My eyes sprang open and standing before me was Tripp.
“Oh my God. What are you doing here?”
He kept the phone to his ear. “You’ve been asking me that question a lot lately.”
I hung up and walked over to him. “
Yeah, well, this time you’re in my house. So, again, what are you doing here?”
“Taking care of you,” he said as he put the phone in his pocket.
I laughed, then stopped, my face pinched when the pain hit me. “Really? I don’t need to be taken care of, thank you very much.”
His eyes moved down my body and there was no denying the look of lust in them. I realized I was standing naked with only a towel wrapped around me.
Tripp’s tongue ran over his bottom lip like it often did when he was turned on. Some things never changed. My core pulled tight, and I wanted to accidentally pull my towel off.
Squeezing my eyes shut, I chastised myself for thinking that way. I needed to take back the power in this stand-off. I came to my senses.
My fingers snapped in Tripp’s face, causing him to look up at me. “Um, hello? My eyes are up here?”
A sexy grin moved over his face, and I was pretty sure I let out a small moan.
Ugh. Asshole.
“Why are you in my house, Tripp? Didn’t you have to meet your girlfriend last night for a late night fuck session?”
He jerked like I’d just slapped his face.
“Ah…no. Not sure where you heard that.”
I scoffed and made my way toward my bedroom to get clothes on.
“From her. Y’all didn’t hide your conversation too much in the barn yesterday.” Glancing over my shoulder, I added, “Remember? The nanny was there last night.”
Anger moved over his face.
“You didn’t get the whole conversation then. I told her I was staying at my folks’ place last night.”
I pressed my lips together as I walked to my dresser. It was hard to hide my joy over hearing that Tripp had turned Mallory down. I took a moment to revel in that bit of news before turning around to him. “I’m sure you’ll make it up to her tonight.”
He didn’t say a word and that shot down any happiness I had briefly felt.
I grabbed the first thing I saw in my drawer, and damn it all to hell if it wasn’t a pair of red panties.
The second drawer down wouldn’t open. I tried jerking it. The pain shot through my entire body causing me to wince.
“Let me. Don’t hurt yourself.”
Tripp gently moved me. I couldn’t help but notice how his thumbs brushed over my skin as he touched me.