by Claire Adams
After all the time Emma and I had spent together and how I was feeling for her — the same way I hoped she was feeling for me — I should be able to hang out with Lacey whenever I wanted without worrying about how it looked. I almost told her that we could eat together tomorrow, but I’d already told that damned lie.
“Maybe we can see about the next day,” I said.
“I got plans Wednesday,” she replied. She didn’t seem too bothered about it either way.
I relaxed, but still felt like I was stabbing her in the back.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Emma
Thursday
I was getting the horses put back in their stalls for the night with Lacey, both of us dripping sweat from a hard afternoon of riding. I’d ridden Elroy for the first time, and it was like trying to herd a cat. He kept jumping around and straining against the reins. I didn’t know how Lacey would get him to the point where she could race him around three barrels the way she had Max. But since she’d trained Max, too, I had complete faith in her.
I closed the door to Lucy’s stall, the little pinto insisting on another scratch behind the ear before she’d let me wander off. Lacey had kept us rolling with laughter all afternoon with silly stories about her and Pete growing up on the farm. Right now she was in the middle of telling me about the time Pete fell off the tractor and had to chase it across the far field while she watched, wailing with laughter.
“You should’ve seen him running after it!” she said, giggling so hard tears were pouring down her cheeks. “His daddy was screaming at him to get after it, but laughing, too. I couldn’t even stand, I was laughing so hard.” She wiped at her eyes as she shook her head.
I was giggling, too. “How’d he fall off the tractor?”
Her dark eyes went wide, her shoulders shaking with the force of her laughter, so it took a few seconds for her to get the words out. “That was the best part! He saw me and his daddy talking out behind the barn and yelled out to us, asking if we wanted to see something neat.” She wiped her leaking eyes again. “Right after he stood up on the seat, the tractor must’ve hit a bump that made it go off course. He fell right off into the grass and was damned lucky not to get run over by the rear tire. Me and his daddy just busted up.”
We laughed together again while the horses whinnied, not quite knowing what to think of the sight of us bending to hold our stomachs. I could easily believe that Pete was silly enough to do something like what she’d just described.
Once we straightened up and got busy putting the barn in order for the night, another feeling dropped into my stomach, making me uneasy. Mostly because I hadn’t felt anything like it before. As I walked to the tack room to put away saddles, pads, halters, and everything else we’d used with the horses all day, it occurred to me that I was jealous of Lacey, and not just a little bit.
I hated the feeling. It was petty. She’d been nothing but nice to me. I relaxed a little, my stomach unclenching as I worked through it.
I wasn’t jealous of her because I thought something was there between her and Pete — I knew that wasn’t an issue. Not only had Pete and Lacey both told me that, but I could plainly see it in the way they acted around each other. Lacey kept after Pete the way she would an annoying younger brother, and Pete returned fire as often as he could. But the fact that she knew him so well — as well as I’d like to know him one day — rubbed me the wrong way.
I couldn’t really control the feeling. I wanted to know everything I could about Pete Gains, and it burned me up that some other woman already did. I was determined not to make a big deal out of this. I knew Pete would tell me whatever I wanted to know about his past. I just wished I didn’t have to ask. I wanted to know everything already, like Lacey did. That was my issue, though, and I was prepared to deal with it without messing things up between me and Lacey or me and Pete.
I’d just finished up in the barn when my cell phone rang. I pulled it out of my back pocket. It was Jack.
“Hi, stranger,” I said, smiling.
“Howdy, Em,” he replied. “I drove into town this morning to see my folks. You up for dinner tonight? We could hit up our local place.”
Pete and I didn’t have plans until tomorrow. I stayed after work a few nights a week, but I liked having a night or two to myself, too.
“That sounds great. You thinking the Round Rock Diner?” I asked. That had been our usual place back in the day, and it wasn’t far from my house. I needed to shower before I went anywhere else. Pete might not mind me stinky — hell, most of the time he stunk more than I did — but I didn’t want to inflict a day’s worth of sweat and dealing with horses on poor unsuspecting Jack.
“That’s just what I was thinking. Is eight o’clock too late?” he asked.
I glanced down at my watch. It was inching towards seven now. I’d stayed a little later than I’d planned, but Lacey and I’d had so much fun running the horses through their exercises. I loved that she was teaching me something new. I’d ridden horses for so many years. It was rare to learn a new task. I didn’t race or anything like that, but I could care for a horse with my eyes closed and one hand trapped behind my back.
“Yeah, that sounds great,” I said.
“Okay. See you then.”
I hung up, bid Lacy goodnight, and strode out of the barn. Pete was sitting on the porch, a cool beer in his hand. I loved the nights we just sat on the porch, drinking and trading stories until we ran out of time to make a good meal. Those were the nights we threw a frozen pizza in the oven and ran back to his messy bedroom for a quickie while we waited on dinner. I hated to miss that tonight, but I was excited to catch up with Jack after spending so much time apart.
I ran up to press a kiss onto Pete’s salty lips. “Jack’s in town tonight. I’m gonna meet him at the diner.”
Pete grinned up at me. “Shucks, I had a frozen pizza picked out, too.”
I laughed. I hoped I’d never stop giggling at how damned silly he was. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Goodnight, Em,” he said.
I went to get my car started and drove away. I thought about how different my life had become in just a few short weeks and was grinning by the time I parked in my short driveway. I went in, peeled off my dirty work clothes, and jumped into the shower, scrubbing my skin and washing the horse smell out of my hair. I blow dried my hair and put on a nice dress. I was out the door and in my car again in twenty minutes flat. I didn’t trouble myself with makeup. I didn’t even own any besides chapstick, but Kasey said that didn’t count.
I drove through Round Rock to get to the Diner. We used to hang out here after school most days, just gossiping, sipping on milkshakes, and stealing each other’s fries. I pulled into an empty space and went inside. Jack was waiting at the booth in the corner. I smiled wide when I saw it was our usual booth.
He looked up, and the smile that broke out on his face was just as familiar as the booth. Nothing in this old place had changed much. Kasey didn’t like coming in here because she’d hung out at another place across town, so it was my first time back since high school.
I slid into the seat across from Jack. “Golly, this brings back memories,” I said, grinning.
He ran a hand through his short blond hair. He never could keep his fingers out of it. At least it was tidy now. Daddy used to joke about holding him down and shearing him the way you would a sheep. “I haven’t been back here in years.”
“Me neither.”
The waitress wandered over to take our drink orders. I didn’t even need to look at the menu. Nothing in Round Rock changed that much. I ordered a burger, fries, and a chocolate milkshake, extra thick.
Jack was grinning at me when I finished my order. “You haven’t changed one bit, Flowers.”
I laughed. “Let’s see you order!”
He did just what I’d done — ordered his old favorites. The chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes, all of it drowning in gravy, and a strawberry shake.
“How’ve you been, Jack?” I asked, lifting my eyebrows. I leaned my elbows onto the table, still drinking in the sight of him. There’d been months at a time growing up that I didn’t go a single day without seeing Jack Terrance. Now, it’d been just about four years.
“I’ve been good, Em. Missing Round Rock some, but I loved going to school up in Dallas. It’s like a whole different world up there.” He whistled and shook his head, which reminded me of Pete.
“Dallas damn near swallowed you whole. Every time I came back to town, I swung by your house and ended up having dinner with your mama and daddy instead of you.” I didn’t add that I eventually just stopped going by after a while.
He laughed again, his dark eyes taking on a high shine. That reminded me of Pete, too. Damn, what didn’t nowadays?
“Didn’t you love Austin?” he asked.
I shrugged. “I liked it well enough. It’s no Round Rock.”
He had a damned deep laugh at that, and I joined him. Even way back in school, I knew this town would never be enough to hold Jack. He wanted bigger things while I was happy just where I was. Not that I minded Austin. It was lovely to visit, but that was about it.
The waitress brought over our milkshakes and waters first. I had to eat mine with a spoon it was so thick, but that was just fine by me.
“I never pictured you as a fireman,” I said, and spooned more milkshake into my mouth.
He grinned around his straw, not answering until he’d had a good long pull of that strawberry goodness. “Some guys from a local fire department came to speak at the college my freshman year. That got me thinking about it. I took extra classes over the summers and during the term so I could graduate a year early. As soon as I was done with class, I signed up. I had to go through training and shit, but I made it. Now I can’t imagine doing anything else.”
“That’s good, Jack. I’m glad you’re happy.”
“You seem happy, too, Em. I never seen you smiling the way I did that night at the bar. What’ve you been up to since college?”
“I’ve been working on a farm outside of town. Pete owns it.” I paused, but, this time, I knew just what to say. “We’ve been dating for a few weeks now. I take care of the horses on his ranch.”
“Dating the boss, huh?” he asked, his smile widening.
I smiled, too. It didn’t bother me anymore, really. I felt at home on the ranch, with Pete. “He got the ranch from his daddy right out of high school, and he’s kept it running since then. It’s such a beautiful piece of property. He has acres and acres. It reminds me of growing up working side by side with Daddy and Kasey. I basically get paid to play with horses all day.”
“I remember you running home from the diner after hanging out because you had to feed the horses or mow the side lawn or some other terrible chore,” Jack said.
I laughed out loud, covering my mouth at how loud it sounded in the mostly quiet restaurant. “It’s good honest work. That’s all I’m after.”
“That’s fair,” he replied. “I work hard as a fireman, too, just in a different way.” He puffed out his muscular chest. I couldn’t get over him not being the gangly teenager I remembered. I was sure I hadn’t changed even half as much as he had.
The waitress brought us our meals, setting a steaming plate of what looked like lumpy gravy in front of Jack and a burger and fries in front of me.
Jack took a good long whiff of his food, his eyes rolling dramatically back in his head. “Damn, I missed this.” He cut a big hunk of his fried steak while I bit into my burger. No place I’d ever gone outside of this diner made a hamburger this good.
“We have to do this more often,” I said. “Do you come home much?”
He had to get through a nearly overflowing mouthful of steak and potatoes to answer. At least that much hadn’t changed. The boy could still eat. “More than I did before. Being so close helps. You can come out to see me too whenever you like.”
“Pete gets out to Austin pretty often for rodeos and other ranch-related business. I’m sure I could tag along with him.” I didn’t care much for driving long distances and never had. I could ride a horse for hours, though.
Jack’s dark eyes were shining, and I knew that look from hours spent staring into them. He was about to jump on me about something, teasing until I yelled at him to stop. But as soon as he finished what was in his mouth, he said something that brought tears to my eyes.
“I’m happy for you, Emma. You seem to be doing exactly what you love. And, it really looks like you care about this Pete guy.”
I couldn’t help the grin that spread across my face at hearing that. I hadn’t meant to bring Pete up quite so much tonight. But when I talked about my life now, most of it involved him. We worked together all day and spent most nights together, either out or at home. I’d even spent a few full nights with him, waking early to the sounds of him frying up eggs and bacon in the kitchen as he hummed and slid around on the linoleum.
“I really couldn’t be happier right now,” I told Jack. “My work, my love life, things with Daddy and Kasey. It’s all perfect.”
He lifted his water glass. “Cheers to perfection, however it comes.”
Grinning, I lifted my glass to clink the rim with his.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Pete
Friday
I’d barely rested my ass in my seat on the porch before Emma’s cute little sedan turned off the main road and came tooling down the driveway. It wasn’t even five thirty. What in hell had gotten into her this morning? I knew she was an early riser, but damn. I was grinning by the time she walked up, always just so glad to see her. Half of me kept expecting her to disappear just as unexpectedly as she’d arrived, but she kept turning up every day.
“Howdy, pretty lady,” I said, and she smiled. I loved that. Making her smile.
“Howdy, yourself.” Instead of climbing the steps up to the porch, she rested her booted foot on the first step. “How does breakfast at the Texan sound?”
I slapped my empty belly. Well, mostly empty. I’d had a mug of coffee right after I dragged my ass out of bed. “Sounds damned good.”
She tilted her pretty head, her grin getting even wider so it was the brightest thing in the dark. I swear to God she glowed with some inner light I still didn’t understand but was happy to bask in.
“I thought you might say that.”
We took my truck into town, the windows rolled down so we could enjoy the coolest part of the day before the sun rose. Emma went straight for the old timers’ table in the corner, where we sat down side by side. I liked how easy she was with them. The waitress came over with some fresh mugs of steaming black coffee for us.
“I’m usually the one who picks the number,” Big Tom said, his dark eyes on Emma. “But I’d like to let the lady have the honor.”
A hush fell over the table. I wondered if Emma knew how big of an honor this was. The only time any of the other guys had been able to choose the number was if Big Tom had somewhere else to be that morning. I’d never chosen it. My chest swelled with pride at how well they’d welcomed her into the fold. I’d never brought a woman I was interested into the Texan. Most of them didn’t get up this early.
“I’d be happy to,” Emma said with a smile. After a moment, she nodded. “I’ve got it.”
We went around the table, starting with me, picking numbers while she told us lower or higher. I tended towards being unlucky and this morning was no different. It came down to me and Winston. I picked the second to last number.
Emma grinned, her green eyes teasing me so I knew before she even opened her mouth how this was going to go. “You lose, Pete.” She bumped me a little with her shoulder as the table erupted in laughter, the guys cheering her and poking fun at me, the way they had been my whole life. Being around them made me miss my daddy a lot less.
We ordered our usual breakfasts — why improve on a good thing? —
and kept chattering.
“You haven’t gotten sick of this old boy yet, Emma?” Laraby asked, sending a sly grin across the table to her.
She flashed those knockout eyes at me before answering. “Not yet.”
“It’s only a matter of time!” Tex announced, and the guys had another hardy laugh at my expense. I didn’t mind one bit. I was here with the prettiest lady in Round Rock. And, somehow, she hadn’t gotten tired of me yet.
“I don’t know,” she said, bumping my shoulder again. “He’s not so bad.”
“That’s the God’s honest truth,” Big Tom said, his weathered face suddenly serious. He looked from Emma to me. “You have to hold on when you find someone special in this life. I was fortunate enough to have my dream girl in my life for forty-six years before she passed. We met in high school, raised a family, and grew old together.” He smiled sadly, his old eyes glistening. “Not as old as I’d have liked, but I’m thankful for every minute I spent with that woman.”
Emma glanced at me, her eyes shining, and I felt that kick to my gut that I sometimes did when I met her eyes.
“Y’all remind me so strongly of me and my Luanne when we were young,” Big Tom said. “I can see what you have is really special. Don’t let go of that. You might not find it again.”
Emma shifted in her seat, clearly uncomfortable from all the attention. I didn’t know what to do or say. I couldn’t turn to meet her eyes again. Big Tom cracked a smile and went on talking about some nonsense going on at another farm just past the border of Round Rock, but I couldn’t shake the worry twisting in my gut. It kept churning, making eating breakfast hard. Emma seemed to relax as soon as the conversation steered away from us, but I couldn’t.
“Ain’t you hungry, boy?” Winston asked, eyeing me closely. He mostly kept to himself at these breakfasts, letting the chatter go by without adding much to it. But he watched everything. I had a feeling he knew just about everything about everybody in town.
I forced a big grin. “I’m just thinking about the work I’ve got to do on the farm.”
