by Talty, Jen
“I’m not sure it’s a good idea for me to be involved.” She sucked in a deep breath and took a step back, blinking her eyes open. She smiled at Coco, who seemed to smile back as if to apologize for hurting her yesterday.
“Tomorrow morning you will be officially offered the job as manager, so we need you involved.”
She snapped gaze toward JD. “You were serious about giving me Ron’s job?”
“JW always planned on grooming you for that position.”
“But you weren’t on board?” she asked.
“It’s not that I wasn’t. But I will admit I’ve struggled with what’s been going on with Ron, and I wanted to see what you were all about. Now that I have, I believe you’re the best person for the job.”
Luke told her that things would fall into place, and if he believed that, then she had to believe it too. A big smile spread across her face.
“I take it that grin means you’re going to say yes to the offer?”
“Oh, hell yes,” she said as she slipped her foot into the stirrup. “And that’s to the steak and wine too.”
“I need to warn you, Coco’s still a little skittish,” JD said as he climbed up on Patch. “But he’s a good horse, and I swear to God, he practically hugged the doctor yesterday when they removed the tooth.”
“I bet. That can cause not only a lot of pain, but for a horse to behave very erratically.” She tapped her heels gently against his sides and tugged at the reins.
Coco decided to wait for Patch before moving forward down the path.
“Thank you for this opportunity,” she said.
“You earned it.”
Her eyes burned. For the longest time, she’d lived in fear. This was the first time in her adult life that she felt as if she were in the driver’s seat of her own life. “I want you to know that had Mark not threatened to tell my father where Luke and I were, I wouldn’t have ever let him do the things he did.”
“I know,” JD said. “But all of that is in the past. You and Tony have—”
Pop!
Bang!
Bang!
Coco squealed, raising up on his hind legs before taking off like a bat out of hell.
Annette leaned forward, squeezing her knees tight. She tugged back hard on the reins. “Whoa, boy,” she yelled, but Coco continued galloping across the open field. She glanced over her shoulder. JD and Patch were only ten paces behind her, but Patch wasn’t in much better shape than Coco with his fearful wide eyes and the fact he zigzagged across the path even though JD didn’t pull him in either direction.
“Try to lead him toward the woods. That might slow him down,” JD called.
She continued to do everything she could to calm the horse, but all she could get him to do was reduce his speed to a slow gallop.
Pop!
Coco jerked to the right, buckling to his front knees.
“No!” JD yelled.
Annette tumbled forward, smashing headfirst into the ground. She groaned as she rolled to the side, trying to get out from under Coco, but he rolled with her, crushing her ankle. “Shit.” She landed flat on her back with a thud, knocking the wind out of her. Blinking, she focused on the big white puffy cloud dancing across the light-blue sky as she concentrated on her breathing, doing her best not to panic.
“I’m right here.” JD pressed both his hands against her shoulders. “Your leg is pinned under Coco.”
“How’d that happen?” she managed between ragged breaths.
“Right now, I need you to just relax and do as I say, okay?”
“Okay.” She swallowed the bile that smacked the back of her throat. A sharp pain twisted through her arm. Her chest burned. She was in no position to argue; besides, she could barely think straight.
“Take it easy, boy,” JD said softly, kneeling next to Coco’s head. He stroked the horse’s nose. “Annette, when I say move, I’m going to need you to get out from under Coco. Can you do that?”
“I think so.” She lifted her head and moaned. The bright sun made it impossible to see anything. Nausea gripped her stomach, swishing and swashing the contents around, threatening to bring them back up the same way they went down.
“Oh shit,” JD mumbled.
“What is it?”
“I’m going to put my arm under you and pull as soon as I move Coco. Are you ready?”
“Let’s do this.” She sucked in a deep breath and held it until JD gave her a good tug. “Oh, God, that hurts.”
“I’m so sorry.” He drew her into his lap, cradling her in his arms. “I’ve sent a text to Luke. He’s called for help.”
Patch whined as he lowered himself to the ground next to a lifeless Coco.
“Is Coco dead?” she asked with a thick thumb wedged in her throat.
“I’m afraid so.”
“We were shot at, weren’t we,” she said more as a statement and not a question. “Someone killed the horse.”
“What concerns me is that they might have been trying to kill you.”
6
“It was all my fault.” JD paced in front of the daycare center. He held the phone to his ear and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“How can that be? You didn’t shoot the horse,” JB said.
“No. But I shouldn’t have saddled either horse.”
“I would have done exactly the same thing. Besides, we don’t know if whoever took the shot was going after the horse or her, and the fact that it appears they didn’t take a shot at you tells me it was her they were after.”
“Not making me feel any better, little brother.” Of course, the bigger issue was that he was about to be alone with a toddler, and it was that fact that had him in panic mode.
Well, the entire day’s events had him on edge, but he didn’t know how to take care of a kid, and it could be a couple of hours before Luke returned from the hospital with his sister.
JD tried to bribe Georgia Moon into picking up Tony, but between Annette asking him to do it, and Georgia Moon having business at the bull-riding school that needed her attention, this task fell on his shoulders. He should have tried harder to be the one to take Annette to the hospital, but he knew that was a lost cause.
“Are the police still on the ranch?” JB asked.
“Yeah. The detective will meet me back at the manager’s cabin in about a half hour or so. I left Heather and the doc out at the main corral with the cops. They found a shell from a hunting rifle, plus two bullets are lodged inside the horse.”
“What a clusterfuck,” JB said. “It kills me that Robert is still managing to fuck with our family.”
“Tell me about it.” JD stopped pacing and stared at the door. The daycare center ran on three cycles so that everyone could have quality care for their children regardless of the hours they were employed on the ranch. That said, Kitty never wanted any child to be in daycare for more than eight hours. That didn’t include special programs that parents could sign up for, but Whiskey Ranch encouraged tight family ties, and that meant a nine-hour daily cap on daycare.
There were always special occasions, but Annette pleaded with him to get Tony and bring him back to the manager’s cabin and feed him dinner.
How could he say no to that?
“JW suggested I pay Robert a visit in prison,” JD said.
“Maybe someone should pay Bella a visit,” JB said under his breath.
“Not a good idea, little brother, and you know it. Not even Georgia Moon should go anywhere near that woman, especially if they are up to their old tricks.”
“Do you think there is any way that anyone on this ranch could possibly know who Luke or Annette really are?” JD asked in a faint whisper.
“Anything is possible, but it’s doubtful. There isn’t a reporter that we’ve seen that wants to out the children of Joey Hill. They might want to interview them, but they don’t want to disrupt their lives. And no one would want to kill them because of who they are.”
“But we can all agree that Ro
n had a problem with JW bringing Luke back and subsequently hiring Annette,” JD said.
“And he was vocal about it. But damn, I have a hard time believing Ron could take a shot at a human being. He’s a little rough around the edges, but so am I.”
“Well, someone killed that horse and sent Annette to the ER, and we can’t leave her alone. Since she has a kid, I don’t think it would be good to bring her back to our place, so I was thinking I should camp out at her place.”
“Someone should.” A long pause filled the air. “Are you going to be okay staying there with her and her son?”
Georgia Moon constantly tried to get JD to date someone other than the occasional friend with benefits and she’d often dare to bring up Susanne, but never Zannie. The only sibling brave enough would be JB. He didn’t do it often, but when he did, it squeezed JD’s heart so tight he wasn’t sure he’d be able to take in a deep breath any time soon.
“I kissed Annette,” JD admitted.
“I’m not shocked by this information. It’s obvious to everyone you like her.”
“I haven’t liked anyone this much in years. She’s under my skin, but I’m standing outside the daycare center, and I’m not sure I can go in there and get her kid. Just the idea of being alone with him makes my heart race.”
“You’ve been around kids and babies before, and you’ve managed just fine,” JB reminded him.
“Not like this.”
“First off, he’s not a baby. He walks and talks and eats big boy food. So that should make this easier for you.”
JD laughed. “I can’t believe I’m talking to you about this. Like you know anything about kids.”
“I know I’m not afraid of them. Well. Let me rephrase that. I’m not afraid of other people’s children. I’d be terrified of my own, which is why, over my dead body, will I ever be having one.”
JD and Susanne learned that you don’t always get to plan when you had children.
Or when they died.
But JD didn’t ever plan on having another child either.
Only, right now, he needed to protect Annette, and that meant spending time with Tony.
“Listen, JD, you’re going to be fine,” JB said in his best grown-up voice, which also didn’t happen often. “The kid is what, almost two?”
“About that.”
“At that age, pots and pans are amusing. And if all else fails, mud pies. Lots of mud pies. Annette might hate you for it, but getting all muddy is always fun.”
JD laughed. “Are you sure we’re not talking about you watching two chicks mud wrestle?”
“Well, there’s that too,” JB said. “I’ve got to go. I’ll check in with you in a couple of hours.”
“Thanks, man.” JD tucked his phone into his back pocket and shook out his hands. Zannie had only been four pounds at birth, and while she had so many strikes against her, she’d been the most beautiful thing he’d ever laid eyes on. To this day, he could still feel her tiny little hand on his index finger, and her sweet smell would never leave his memory.
There were nights he sat under a cold shower wishing there was a delete key in his brain. The memories of his family were a double-edged sword serving to remind him that he was alive, and they were not.
And that he had failed both of them.
He pushed open the door to the center and stepped into the lobby.
“Why, Mr. Whiskey. What brings you by?” a young woman who sat behind the front desk asked.
“I’m here to pick up Tony Hannah. His mom was hurt today, and I’m going to bring him home.”
“I heard there were gun shots and she fell off a horse? Someone even said the cops came to the ranch. Should we all be alarmed?”
JD and his siblings had always done their best to be as honest as possible with all their employees. “It’s probably hunters not paying attention to private property signs, but since one of our horses was hit and Annette was injured, we will be sending out a statement shortly. I don’t think anyone has anything to worry about, but to be safe, keep an eye out for anything suspicious and don’t hesitate to call one of us if something is concerning you.”
“Jose chased off some young hunters last week in the northwest corner of the ranch. It could have been them,” she said, lifting the phone to her ear. “I’ll have them bring Tony right out. He’s such a sweet little boy.”
JD nodded, stuffing his hands in his pockets. He tried to act as if he didn’t have a care in the world; meanwhile, the only thing he could hear was the pounding of his heart.
“Mama,” Tony cried out as he came barreling into the lobby area. He skidded just short of JD. “No Mama.”
JD got down to Tony’s level. It amazed him how much the kid looked like his mother, especially in the eyes. “Nope. You’ve got JD today.” He held up his hand for a high five, but Tony hid behind the daycare provider’s leg.
“He’s always a little shy around people when he meets them for the first time,” the daycare provider said.
That would be all fine and dandy, only Tony and JD had been around each other a few times. Although, each time, JD either avoided the little boy or acted like an idiot, and Tony wanted nothing to do with him.
“Hey, Tony. Mom said you love to ride horses. Well, I brought my horse, Jax, and I thought we could ride him back to your place together. Would you like that?”
Tony stepped from behind the caregiver’s leg with his index finger in his mouth. “Vill Mama home?”
“She should be soon. But if not, she told me to make you a grilled cheese.”
Tony nodded. “Okay.”
JD lifted Tony into his arms, resting him on his hip. He didn’t know if he should keep talking to the kid or not, so he decided to take his cue from Tony. If he talked, then JD would talk back. Otherwise, silence worked.
He hoisted Tony up on the saddle and then climbed up behind him.
Tony took ahold of the horn with both of his chubby little hands. He glanced over his shoulder and smiled. “Can I sway gwiddy-up?”
“Go right ahead.”
“Gwiddy-up!” Tony kicked his heels into the side of the saddle and made a clicking noise. He rocked his little body back and forth as Jax moved slowly down the path toward the manager’s cabin.
In the distance, the sun lowered behind the mountaintops, turning the sky a fiery orange, mixed with purples and pinks. Birds flew overhead, singing evening songs. A light summer breeze washed over his exposed skin. The next ten minutes went by in blissful silence as he enjoyed the excitement and pure enjoyment of a toddler experiencing a horseback ride.
Simple pleasures were always the best.
“All right, little man. Let’s go get cleaned up for some supper.”
“Rilled Heese!”
JD laughed. He took Tony by the hand and walked with him up the front steps and into the house. “Dude. It’s grrrrilled cheese, but we can work on it.”
Tony skipped through the front door with his thumb in the air.
“Tony, you’re a pretty good kid, you know that?” JD scooped Tony up and twirled him around, making him laugh like there was no tomorrow. In this moment, JD had no idea why he’d been so afraid of other people’s kids.
Only, the next forty-five minutes proved to be the most exhausting moments of his entire life. Not to mention, messy. Between the food Tony tossed to the floor, the burnt cheese on the pan, and the toys all over the house, JD had no idea how parents, much less a single one, did this day in and day out. And then there was the bathroom and all the bath toys, and he’d be lucky if he managed to stay awake during story time.
“This one!” Tony jumped up on the sofa with a pretty thick book. He climbed right up on JD’s chest and stomach. He snuggled into the crook of JD’s shoulder and popped his chubby thumb into his mouth.
JD yawned, flipping to the first page. He glanced down at Tony, who had fallen asleep, hard. JD let out a long breath, wrapped his arms around the little snuggle bug, and closed his eyes, welcoming a s
hort snooze.
The longer JD dozed on the sofa with Tony passed out on his chest, the more JD’s heart ached. Ever since the accident that took both Susanne and Zannie, he’d closed himself off from feeling any kind of closeness to anyone except for his siblings. But even them he had a tendency to keep at arm’s length when it came to his emotions.
After Zannie died, JD put all his feelings into a bottle and locked them up tight. Occasionally they found their way out, but never in front of anyone.
He sucked in a deep quivering breath, inhaling the fresh scent of baby shampoo. It didn’t smell anything like what his sweet baby girl had smelled like, but it sent his mind on a trip down memory lane.
Tears stung at the corners of his eyes.
He could recall every second of his daughter’s short life. It had been a difficult existence. Zannie had to fight for every breath, and JD always wondered if Susanne hadn’t died before Zannie had been born if his child might have stood half a chance.
Susanne was a much better person than he’d ever been, and she certainly would have been the better parent. It should have been him who died in that crash, not Susanne.
And defiantly not their precious little girl.
The sound of gravel being churned up snapped JD from his dark past. He jerked, and Tony stiffened, making a moaning noise.
“It’s okay, little buddy.” JD pressed his lips against Tony’s temple.
The toddler settled right back down as headlights cut through the front window.
“Mama’s home,” he said but didn’t move a muscle. Not only was he plum tuckered out, but for the first time in a long time, he wasn’t ready to let go of his memories. Usually, he wanted to wrap up the pain and burn it. But not tonight. And if he was being totally honest with himself, it didn’t hurt like it used to. Actually, some of the memories made him feel good, and that he wasn’t sure what to do with except to hold on to it for as long as he could.
The front door rattled.
“Now that’s unexpected,” Luke whispered.
“What is?” Annette asked in her sweet voice.
