by Flora Burgos
Ev cleared his throat and shook his head as Courtney sat up and gave him room to rise from the couch. "Yeah. It's just there aren't many reasons Sheriff would call, and none of them are good. I, uh, I need to call him back."
"Ev, you'll sit right here and call him. Just until he can tell you it's not bad, and then we will give you privacy, ok?"
Ev leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees as he ran his hand through his hair and then nodded his head while holding his neck. "Yeah. Ok. Shit."
It took him a couple more moments to compose himself before he looked up and took the cell phone that Devon held out in his direction. He stared at the phone in his hand for a moment before he sighed and dialed Sheriff back.
"Sheriff? Is everything— No." This was said as if it were ripped from him. "I— Yeah, ok. I'm on my way. Yeah. Thanks for telling me. I'm on my way."
He held the phone in his white-knuckled grip before bringing his hands up to cup his face and yanking at the hair that tickled his fingers. He didn't speak. He didn't make a sound. Courtney looked up at Devon, who was staring at the two of them like he didn't know what to do. She looked back at Ev and heard what sounded like a sob coming from him. She made eye contact with her brother again, and then they did what the Kincades were good at: they circled Ev and took over.
Courtney crouched down next to Ev on the floor and pulled his hands away from his face. His tortured eyes met hers, and even though she was sure that she had heard a sob, they were dry. He whispered out so softly it was barely audible, "My mom's gone. I didn't even think to call her last night, and now she's gone."
"Oh, Ev." That was all she said before she crawled between his legs and wrapped her arms around his waist. He surprised her when he took the comfort she offered and buried his face in her hair. The couch depressed next to him as Devon came over and took a seat next to him and wrapped his arm behind Ev, resting his palm on top of Ev's head while bringing his own down to where Courtney and Ev were. Courtney shook with silent sobs while she held the man who had become like a brother to her while her actual brother offered comfort to them both in his reassuring way.
The three of them sat like that for several moments before Devon pulled away and spoke, "Ok, we need to get you home. I'll be back in a bit. I’m going to get someone to keep an eye on the horses while we're gone. I rode over with Cole, so we’ll have to take your ride back home, Ev."
Ev nodded against Courtney's hair and pulled away. "Yeah. I need to take care of a couple of things as well. You guys don't have to come back with me. There's no sense in that, and Courtney is still at risk."
"Ev, I am NOT letting you go back alone. You have lost your mind."
"And I'm not letting my little sister follow you home without some protection, so it looks like you get us both."
THE RIDE BACK TO EV's home was tense and silent. Neither of the Kincades spoke because they didn't know what to say. However, they lent their comfort quietly, and Ev valued that more than he would have the useless platitudes.
Courtney was surprised to find herself nervous about seeing Ev's real life up close and personal for the first time. They had been casual friends before the threats had started, and she had never really pictured where he came from other than to think of all the things she would do to the girl who had broken his heart, should they ever come face-to-face. She had always imagined that this Katherine would show up at a rodeo, begging Ev to come back to her now that he was successful and on his way to the big time, and even though there was nothing remotely romantic between the two of them, should the time ever come, Courtney planned to plant a big ole kiss on Ev right in front of the bitch. After all, if she hadn't cared enough about him to make the sacrifices to be with him, then she didn't have any right to his life now.
Those thoughts were still weighing on her mind as they pulled to a halt and Ev killed the engine to his truck. He climbed out as Courtney did, and she made her way around the hood and wrapped her arm through his in a comforting gesture, hoping to lend just a little of that strength he was always giving her back to him. Devon climbed out of the backseat of the truck as a beautiful blonde woman a little younger than her rushed across the driveway. Courtney could see that her face was tearstained, and she didn't miss the way Ev stiffened or his eyes landed on the other woman and didn't shift away.
"Sean?" the other woman asked in a wobbly voice.
Ev didn't move, didn't so much as breathe, so Courtney took the moment to address the woman who she had a sneaking suspicion was Katherine, the ex. "Sean?" Courtney asked sarcastically. "Ev, who is this girl?"
Devon walked up to Ev and clapped him on the shoulder opposite Courtney before he could respond and said, "Alright, brother. Let's get inside and see what's what."
Courtney dropped her arm from Ev and watched as he followed her large brother, who could sometimes be a really nice guy, before she reached out a hand and said, "Hey, girl! My name is Courtney Kincade, Ev's girlfriend. I just realized who you are! That sweet little neighbor girl who followed him around in high school... Uh, Candy or something like that, right?"
Courtney watched as the woman looked up, trying to find Ev before looking back at her, still without taking her hand, mind you, and said, "Why do you call him Ev?"
Courtney gloated inside. She had something over this woman. This may not be the scenario she had pictured before, but she was going to make her suffer for the pain she had caused such a good man. Butter wouldn't melt in her mouth when she responded, "Well, goodness, honey, it's what all of his close friends call him." She leaned forward conspiratorially. "You must not know this, but his last name is Everett."
Checkmate.
She could see that one hit home, and she felt no remorse as the woman spat back at her, "Since I have known Sean Carter Everett since the day I was born and we spent the entirety of his high school career in a very serious relationship, yes, I would say that I do know what his last name is. And my name is Katherine, not Candy." Courtney watched with a satisfied smile playing at her lips as Katherine stomped away, in the opposite direction of the heartbroken man they appeared to care about in very different ways.
In the following days, when she wasn't doing what she could to comfort her friend, she was coming up with as many ways as possible to deter the she-wolf ex of his from cornering him and taking another bite out of him. She only felt a twinge of remorse when, while washing dishes in Ev's mother's kitchen after the service and when most of the people had left, she pretended to accidentally let it slip that they had been window shopping for engagement rings. They were hours away from leaving town, for what could be Ev's last time ever, and she would be a terrible friend if she left it to chance that Katherine came looking for him at some other time. She had played up her 'relationship' with Ev the whole time they were there. Ev thought it was for Devon's benefit, but Courtney had a feeling that her big brother could see right through her and only stopped short of ratting her out because he knew that she was trying to protect her friend. When they climbed into the truck and the town of Wolfe Springs faded into the distance, she gave herself a pat on the back for being a good friend and protecting herself at the same time, because Devon had yet to confirm her suspicions that he knew the truth. So she was holding out hope that maybe, just maybe, she could get by him this once.
Chapter 5
2 weeks later
IT WAS OFFICIAL THAT she had not fooled her big brother in the least when two weeks later, he walked out of her stand-up shower in a towel and talking on the phone.
"Right. Ok" He held a toothbrush between his jaws as he switched ears and said, "No, it's fine. I can leave Court here with her boyfriend." Here, he did air quotes when he said boyfriend. "If Cole's tracked them out of the country, all should be well. Just keep your ear to the ground and let me know if you hear anything new. Ok. Out."
"Well, little sister, you and the bull rider won't have to pretend to be loved up anymore. Cole has traced the threat out of the country, and you’re out of
danger for the time being. Just be smart and stay safe."
She shook her hand in resignation and asked, "How long have you known?"
"I suspected when I came in here that first morning because you got drunk the same night Cole rolled back into your life, but I couldn’t be certain until I saw the way Ev stared at Katy the whole time we were there. I considered interfering, but the man had enough on his plate, and at least you were fielding some of those emotions by keeping her at arm's length, even if you don't have a clue what you did." He shook his head. "So, I've known since the beginning. Your secret is safe with me, though. I think that you and Cole need to talk, but I also understand where you’re coming from, and you are my main priority, sister-mine. So, take your time to come around, and one of these days, hopefully sooner rather than later, the two of you will at least make peace and move on with your lives."
Neither of the Kincade siblings realized that it would be a little more than six years before they saw Cole La Barron again.
Chapter 6
6 and a half years later
IT WAS GUILT THAT LED to her downfall. Good old-fashioned parental guilt. She had no way of knowing that the one time she gave in to the loneliness and went home, that he would be there. Cole hadn't been to the La Barron Ranch, or even as far as she knew the state of Texas, in over half a decade, and she finally felt like it was safe to return home for a short visit.
Ev had been gone for weeks, and she just couldn't hack it by herself anymore. She had always known that at some point, he would no longer serve as her buffer, but she had assumed that there would be a chance for her to prepare for that eventuality. She couldn't have known that he was going to get a call out of nowhere and pull up stakes. He hadn't even taken the time to tell her he was leaving, just packed up and hit the road. She had gotten a text from him that he was headed back home and would give her a call soon. That was it. And she reeled. He had become her companion. There were the occasional hookups for him, and there had been a girlfriend or two along the way, but they never stuck, and before long, it was back to the two of them, beating a dusty trail and drinking together before going their separate ways. Never so much as a brush of lips happened between them, and she never took another man. She just couldn't. Now, he was gone, and she had nothing to keep her away from home. So, when her mother started the guilt trip and told her that her father had taken a spill from a horse and needed someone to fill in for him for a few days to move the cattle while he was out of commission, and Devon was still out of the country, Courtney could no longer put her off.
She was surprised that after being away for over eight years, walking back into her mama's kitchen, she still felt like it was home. She fell right back into her childhood routines and filled in for her daddy, taking care of the livestock, riding fence lines, and moving the cattle to the winter pasture. It was second nature, and being home was good for her rather than torturous, as she had feared with the memories of her and Cole. She was sitting at the dining room table, watching her parents play Blackjack and drinking a beer when her mom rocked her world, and by doing so changed the path of her future.
"Court, I've been hesitant to bring it up, but you know I still have that ring. I held on to it because neither of you ever came back home, but I'm thinking that now it's only right that you take it back over to the La Barron place. I can't in good faith keep hold of it when you're here and can take it over there and leave it. That boy may not come back, but leastways Clinton will see to it that it's returned to him at some point."
Courtney could swear that her stomach lurched up into her throat as her parents nonchalantly continued to play cards. Like bringing that up wasn't intentional. Like it wouldn't tear open scars that had never fully healed. Wounds so brutally carved into her soul that she had changed in a way that completely veered off the path she had always seen for herself. It was her daddy who broke the spell, and he did so by saying ever so gently, "Breathe, Firecracker."
On that reminder, Courtney gulped in air and then tipped the bottle up to her mouth to swallow the last of her beer in one gulp. Her mom started to speak, "Court, I—"
Courtney cut her mom off and said, "No, Mama, you're right. If you get it for me in the morning, then as soon as I finish up, I will run it over there. If you get me an envelope, I’ll put it in there. I need to return the house key anyways. There's no point in me having either anymore. The man has another wife and has for years now, so it's ridiculous to hang on to this stuff."
"Court—" her mom tried again, but she couldn't hack it, so getting up, she cut her mom off again.
"It's ok, Mama. I'm gonna go on up to bed and get some rest. I love you both." After dropping her empty beer bottle in the garbage, she walked back past her parents and dropped kisses to each of their heads on her way to bed. She lay in bed for hours, unable to sleep. Nothing had changed. She had put a block on all things Cole until her mom had brought it up, but it was undeniable that she had known that coming home would lead to a come-to-Jesus moment. On a groan, she got out of bed, grabbed her cell, and called the only person she could right then.
"Yeah?"
"Ev?"
"Hey, Court, what's up?"
"I just, well, I'm losing it and wanted to talk to you and maybe not go crazy. Mom dropped it on me that she still has my engagement ring, and I remembered that I have a house key. And this is the first time I've been home in years, and my best friend is off gallivanting after his ex. I need you, Ev. Can you come down? Just for a day?"
"Court, shit’s bad here for Peach. I can't take off yet. Give me a week or two, and I will carve out the time to come down for a day or two, yeah?"
"I hate that she still has her hooks in you just as much as he has his in me, and neither is even worth it."
Ev groaned, "Court—"
"No, sorry. I know. Don't say anything bad about the love of your life. Sorry. It just sucks."
"It's—"
"Not like that, I know. Sorry, handsome. I'm on edge. I didn't mean it. How's home?"
"It's good. We're working through things. Are you ok? You want me to call Dev?"
"No, he's going to be heading in this weekend anyway. We're going to have a get-together before I take off again."
"I hear you. Look, Court, I gotta go, but think about something? Maybe it’s time to put down some roots? Rather it’s there or somewhere else. We can't keep running the way we have all these years. I'm learning the hard way that running wasn't the best idea. I should have come home a long time ago. Eight years is a long time to avoid the past, darlin'."
"Yeah, yeah, I know. One day at a time is all I have in me right now, though. Any more than that, and I feel like I'm about to hyperventilate."
"Just take it easy. Take that stuff down to their place and slide it under the door or something, and then go back home and give me a call if you need anything. For now, though, put that shit out of your head and get some shut-eye."
"Aye-aye, captain. Thanks, Ev. I don't know what I would do without you."
"No worries, darlin', just chill. It'll be alright. Talk to you later, yeah?"
"Yeah."
She held the phone in her hand after the call disconnected and tried to slow breathe to calm her racing heart. Part of her was tempted to pack her bag and run right then, but she couldn't. She owed her parents and herself. She needed to face this head on if she ever wanted to move forward. When she could stand her own company no more, she went to the end of her bed, where she had left her flip flops, and slid them on before leaving her room and walking to her parents' kitchen. If nothing else, she could pour herself a glass of milk and watch television until sleep found her. She turned the corner and found her dad sitting at the table, two glasses of milk already poured.
"It was weighing on my mind, the look on your face when your mama brought that boy up, and I knew my firecracker would find her way downstairs at some point. I'm pleased that even though you've been gone from home for years, I still know you."
That
was the moment when she teared up. "Oh, Daddy." She rushed to the man who had always been her hero, and he stood up when she got close and pulled her into his arms. He sat back down and pulled her into his lap the way he had when she was a child. "I'm sorry. It's just so much. I should be over this by now."
Her dad let her cry for several moments before he gently kissed her brow and pulled away from her slightly. "Firecracker, I never should have let this go on for so long. Both of you heartbroken, neither coming home for fear of seeing the other. I'm going to tell you what I know, and what you do with that information is up to you, but I can't keep it from you anymore."
Wiping her face, Courtney stood up and walked to the counter to grab a paper towel to clean her face. "I'm not sure I want to know."
There was a tension in the air after those words left her mouth that she wasn't used to in her father’s company. She turned around to see that he was looking at her in a peculiar way. "Courtney, if you don't want to know, then you aren't the woman your mother and I raised you to be, because that is not the way a woman would act when the man she loved was forced into a difficult situation. And we both know that the only way Cole La Barron would have betrayed your trust was if it were life or death."
The color left Courtney’s face. The blood left her body, or at least that's what it felt like to her in that moment. "What?" she gasped.
"I don't know all of the details, and I know that your mother, brother, Clint, and I have all made it worse by trying to protect you from the truth, but his marriage was no love match. He was forced to marry her as part of an operation. To my understanding, the pregnancy came after she followed him home. Now, I'm not saying he isn't blameless, because had he kept it together, he could have finished his mission and explained everything to you himself, but I am saying that there were extenuating circumstances in the beginning."
