Too tired and soul sick to keep up the mental wrestling match with himself, Travis finished his late meal, and sipped the tea. The hour neared midnight as he reached Honey Creek. The ranch houses were dark and quiet, and he shut the headlights off quickly to not wake Brady or Colton. Getting out of the truck, he stared up at the stars, brilliant in their bed of the dark heavens.
Thinking about his parents, gone now this last year, Travis recalled their love for one another. No matter how hard times became, no matter what trouble their sons got into, they never stopped trying, never stopped loving and supporting one another. They shared the kind of steady love and faith in one another that Travis always hoped to have in his life.
“Now that’ll never happen.”
“Where were you last night?”
Though he had not drunk anything stronger than the burger joint’s iced tea, Travis dragged himself to the kitchen feeling as though he’d imbibed heavily the previous night in hard whiskey. His head ached, his eyes felt gritty, his arms and legs seemed weighed down by pounds of lead. With a groan, he sat at the table opposite Colton.
“Just went for a drive.”
“Ah. And you couldn’t return a phone call? To, you know, maybe tell your worried brothers hey, I’m alive?”
“Sorry.”
Travis felt Colton’s gaze on him, but he didn’t want to look up and meet it. Of course, Colton, and Brady, had the right to be annoyed with him. Even so, what right did Colton have to look at him as though he studied an annoying cockroach?
“What’s going on with you, man?”
Unwilling to admit to either Addie’s second abandonment of him, or his fight with her, Travis shrugged. “Nothing I want to talk about.”
“Fair enough. Are you gonna be able to ride today? You promised to work the colts with me. I have to ask, because, really, you look like you tied too many on.”
“I didn’t, and I can ride.”
“Okay.”
While Travis swallowed a couple of aspirin with his coffee, and debated whether he was hungry enough to eat some breakfast, Brady entered noisily through the front door. “His truck’s parked out front,” he called.
“He’s here,” Colton replied dryly just as Brady popped into the kitchen.
“Ah, the prodigal son returns,” Brady commented. “You’ve been out partying, big brother?”
“Just driving.”
“Don’t nag at him, Brady,” Colton said.
“I wasn’t going to nag,” Brady protested. “I just asked if he was at a party. He sure looks like he’s had a few too many.”
Travis took a deep breath, but it didn’t help his headache much. “I am here, you know. You can talk to me.”
“Can’t when you’re not talking,” Brady replied. “You have as much ability to communicate as that house plant yonder.”
“I just hope he can ride,” Colton remarked. “I need you both today.”
Deciding that food in his stomach would make matters worse, Travis stood up and headed for the door, grabbing his hat from the rack as he did so. Colton had purchased five young horses at the county sale, and planned to break them in to sell later. Travis suspected he had taken on more than he could handle, but both Travis and Brady had agreed to help him out.
Picking a colt at random, he haltered a rangy sorrel, and tied it to the hitching post. His mind naturally roamed to Addie while he absently curried the red hide. Brady and Colton, chatting amiably about the prices Colton hoped to get for the colts after three months of working them, ambled in and also haltered and tied young horses.
If Addie takes the job, could I go to Dallas with her? We have the money to hire a few more hands to work the place. The colt eyed him with suspicion as he approached with the saddle, and sidled sideways, forcing Travis to slow down. Trying to focus his attention on the horse, he asked himself if he was up to the challenge of teaching the youngster when his mind wasn’t on his task.
“Easy there, kid,” he murmured. “It’s big and ugly and smells funny, but I know you’ve had a saddle on before. Just chill.”
With more soothing talk, he got the saddle on, and cinched it without the colt getting too upset. Bridling the colt with the bosal went quickly, and Travis led the horse to the round pen. His headache had started to recede, but the bright sunlight and heavy heat brought it back. He worked the nervous energy off the sorrel in the round pen, observing that the colt moved away from him nicely while paying him close attention.
Brady and Colton awaited their turn at the pen, sitting on the top rail with their horses standing behind them. “Are you sure you’re up for riding?” Brady asked. “You don’t look so hot.”
“Just a bad headache.”
Travis drew the sorrel to him, and inspected the horse’s expression and body language. The colt sweated heavily, breathing hard, yet nothing in his demeanor indicated he couldn’t accept a rider. Making certain the cinch was tight, Travis gathered the bosal’s ropes, and swung up into the saddle.
The colt’s head went up, but didn’t move as Travis just sat without asking him to do anything. He stroked the damp sorrel neck, murmuring to him in a soothing voice. Then he lightly asked the colt to walk forward with a squeeze of his legs.
The gelding moved obediently forward, his ears listening to Travis’s voice. Travis felt the colt relax, listened to his snorts, and then asked for a trot, clucking his tongue. Just then, as the colt broke into a faster pace, a sudden gust of hot wind pushed a small plastic bag across the colt’s path.
Travis, with the colt’s calm attitude lulling him into complacency, was caught by surprise at the colt’s sudden spin. The sorrel leaped forward, then exploded into wild bucks, his ears flat against his skull, squealing. A final twist of the horse’s back catapulted Travis out of the saddle and onto the hard packed earth.
Chapter 18
Not certain if she wanted to see Travis or not, Addie nonetheless looked for him at church on Sunday. Travis hadn’t called her, nor she him in the two days since their argument, and while she missed him, missed their calls, missed his voice on the phone, she suspected their short romance was already over.
She sat beside Callie in the church pew, Gus sleeping in Callie’s arms. Callie leaned toward her, and her voice was hushed. “There’s Brady, Riley and Colton, but Travis isn’t with them.”
Sure enough, the Hamiltons sat on the opposite side of the church, and hadn’t seen them. When Addie said nothing, Callie looked at her. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” Addie stared straight ahead at the pastor’s podium, observing the pastor collecting the notes for his sermon while talking to two parishioners.
“I hope Travis is all right.”
I do, too. “I’m sure he’s fine.”
“You really think it’s over between you?”
Addie glanced at Callie’s anxious expression, wondering if she was about to receive yet another guilty apology. “Travis didn’t give me much of a chance to explain,” she murmured. “He rushed off, blaming me again, and once again says he can’t trust me. If he’s too immature to talk about it rationally, then there’s nothing I can do.”
“I just feel so bad about spilling the beans,” Callie whispered.
“It’s not your fault. No matter how I approached it, the result would be the same.”
The parishioners left the podium, and the pastor cleared his throat. The piano music faded away, and he began to talk. Addie tried to listen, yet her thoughts ranged to Travis, and her upcoming interview. No doubt, he didn’t want to take the chance he’d run into her here at the service, and stayed home.
Hardly hearing the sermon at all, Addie fretted over the interview, still torn over whether or not she wanted to leave Honey Creek for good, or make a go of her new fledgling business. With Travis out of the picture, maybe I should do my best to get the job, then move away. Callie starts her new job tomorrow.
Feeling ashamed for hardly listening to the service, she silently prayed for forgivenes
s from the Lord as she and Callie walked outside.
“Addie.”
Turning, Addie found Brady and Colton, Riley in between and holding both their hands, approaching her. She plastered a welcoming smile onto her face, hoping they wouldn’t see how strained it was. “Brady, Colton, hello. Hi, Riley, how are you?”
“I’m fine.”
Brady gazed at her with sympathy in his eyes. “Travis isn’t talking to us, but we suspected you and he aren’t talking, either.”
Addie shunted her eyes from his. “I have a job interview in Dallas on Tuesday. He didn’t give me a chance to talk about it before he took off in a fit.”
“Poor kid.” Brady smiled sweetly. “He can be bull headed.”
“He got tossed Friday,” Colton added. “He’s okay, just very sore. That’s why he didn’t come to church.”
“What happened?”
“He was riding a very green colt, and the thing spooked, went to bucking. Travis has a hard head and he sorta landed on it, but Addie, he will be fine. No concussion, no stitches, just bed rest and aspirin for a while.”
“I’m so sorry that happened,” Addie said, worrying about Travis despite their reassurances. “You sure he’ll be okay?”
“It’ll give him time to think about what he wants in life,” Brady replied.
Addie snorted. “It sure isn’t me.”
“Addie, honey, he loves you,” Brady told her, sympathy in his tone. “I know you feel the same way. You two just have to talk things over.”
“I tried, but he wigged out.”
“And I’m sure he’s come to regret it.”
Brady suddenly hugged her. “Listen, kid,” he said in her ear. “Good luck with the job, but I hope you don’t get it. We need you here with us.”
Letting her go, he kissed her cheek. “Come on, little brother, we need to get home.”
Colton also kissed her cheek as he passed, offering her a sweet smile. Then they headed for the parking lot, leaving Callie to comment, “Don’t give up. Maybe things will work out okay.”
The drive to Dallas was a long and exhausting one, and Addie arrived at the hotel just as the sun began to set. To find herself in rush hour traffic again both alarmed and amused her. It seemed that every resident of Dallas needed to be on the highways at the same time she did. She had difficulty finding her hotel, and had to stop twice to ask for directions when her phone directed her to the wrong address.
Both times, she was not greeted with a smile or warmth as she had grown used to receiving in Honey Creek. Nor did the hotel staff offer her much more than a tepid welcome once she got there. And here I thought all Texans were friendly people. Or maybe this isn’t the real Texas. Not with all the people coming from all over the country.
Or maybe she didn’t really like the big city attitudes any more. Listening to the distant sirens as she collected her suitcase from the Toyota, she wondered if she ever really liked living amid the crime in the cities, the need to lock your doors, the almost constant worrying about her purse getting snatched.
Recalling the sight of a Mexican restaurant not far from the hotel, Addie decided to eat there for her dinner. But before she left her room, she made a quick call to Callie. When her sister answered, Addie heard Gus crying in the background.
“Hi, just called to say I made it safe,” she said. “I’m in the hotel.”
Callie sounded at the end of her rope. “Good, I’m glad. Gus is colicky again, so I have to make it fast.”
“How’s the new job?”
“Excellent. I love it. But I’ll have to tell you about it later. Sorry. Knock ‘em dead tomorrow. Love you.”
“I will. Love you back.”
She had still received nothing from Travis, and given his last words to her, he was happy she was leaving. Why did I ever think it could work between us? If he’s going to jump to conclusions every time I look sideways at him, then maybe I am better off without him.
She ate her dinner, finding the place almost full of diners at that hour on a Monday night. In Honey Creek, there’d be almost no one in a restaurant right about now. Chocking it up to big city life, Addie ate the delicious food, paid the check, and drove back to the hotel.
Trying to watch television, Addie half listened to the nonstop sounds of the traffic outside, more sirens, and wondered if coming back to a big town was really the way for her to go. She considered staying in Honey Creek, building her business – and running into Travis. Seeing him at church, at the store – and she still had to finish the case for him as well.
If he ever got married? Seeing that would kill me.
Rising from the bed where she leaned against the headboard watching the TV, she opened the curtains a fraction, and looked out over the big city of Dallas. “Maybe this is where I belong,” she muttered. “Once Gus is a little bigger, then maybe Callie will change her mind about moving out of Honey Creek.”
But Addie knew Callie would never leave. Honey Creek suited her, and she wanted Gus to grow up there. Moving to Dallas would mean hardly ever seeing Callie. But was that enough to keep Addie in the small town? Without Travis as an anchor, there were fewer reasons to stay, to plant herself in the community.
“If Travis wanted me, it’d be a whole different tamale,” Addie murmured.
Except Travis doesn’t want me.
“Ms. Baker, I want to thank you for taking to time to talk with us,” Jonathan Meyers said, offering her his hand with a smile.
“Again, thank you for this opportunity, sir,” Addie replied, shaking his hand and returning his smile.
Hiding her exhaustion and trepidation, Addie left the vast conference room where she had been grilled for hours by the managing partners. Then she had been taken on a quick tour of the firm’s impressive offices, and had been introduced to some of the staff. She returned to the conference room for another round of questions and talk before she was free to leave.
“We will be in touch, Ms. Baker.”
Smiling, almost feeling as though she should curtsy, Addie closed the door on the partners, and made her way to the elevators. The law firm took up four floors of a magnificent high-rise in downtown Dallas, and Addie had never felt more like a country hick than when she walked across the vast lobby to the main doors.
While she felt that she had aced the interview, Addie also knew how well lawyers could prevent their true feelings from showing on their faces. The three partners seemed impressed by her answers, yet she felt she was wise enough to also know that what she saw could also be a polite facade.
Behind the wheel of her Prius, Addie knew she was too tired and wrung out to head back to Honey Creek. She hadn’t slept well the night before, and feared falling asleep behind the wheel.
Before putting the car in gear, Addie called Callie. “I’m staying another night in Dallas.”
At work, Callie had answered her cell, but Addie heard the myriad sounds of children in the background. “How’d the interview go?”
“It went well, I think,” Addie replied. “I just got out. They seemed like they liked me, but sometimes lawyers are hard to read.”
“Don’t I know it.” Callie laughed.
“I’m tired, sis, and maybe I shouldn’t drive all that way to Honey Creek.”
“I’d rather you didn’t if you’re that worn out. Just get your rest, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Okay, bye.”
Addie stopped for a very late lunch at a deli, then finished the trip to her hotel room. After changing from her power suit into an old t-shirt and sweats, she sat on the bed to channel surf the television. Yet, the interview and Travis kept intruding into her attempts to veg out. I think I got the job, I really do. But is that what I want? What do I want?
“What I want, I can’t have.”
Travis.
Her cell buzzing at nearly six o’clock startled her. Addie picked it up, and her breath caught. It was the firm. “Hello, this is Addie.”
“Ms. Baker, Jonathan Meyers her
e.”
Her stomach muscles tight, Addie found it hard to sound nonchalant and yet cheerful. “Hello, Mr. Meyers.”
“I’m calling to inform you that we would like to extend the offer to you,” he said. “And welcome you to the team if you decide to accept our offer.”
I don’t believe it, it’s so unreal, I want the job, and at the same time I don’t. Lord, what do I do?
“Thank you, Mr. Meyers,” she replied, her mouth dry. “I would very much like to accept.”
“Good, good. I will have a contract waiting for you at the front desk. It will outline everything you need to know, as well as your earnings. You made quite the impression on us, Ms. Baker.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“I understand you live a distance away,” he continued. “Would two weeks’ time be sufficient for you to move to Dallas?”
“I think so. I will begin looking for apartments.”
“There are lovely loft apartments, quite spacious, I believe, near downtown. Within blocks of our offices.”
With quite the price tag, I’m sure. “I will look into them.”
“And if you have any questions, please give me a ring.”
“Thank you, I will.”
Addie clicked off her phone, her nerves strung tight and thrumming. I got the job. I can’t believe it. I should be happy, I should be turning cartwheels. But I’m not. Why am I not ecstatic?
Because of Travis.
She hadn’t heard from him since their fight. Thus, she had to accept that it was over between them. He had hoped she got the job, and now she did. Tears stung her eyes, but Addie wiped them away angrily.
I tried being upfront about it all, but you had to get mad. Didn’t you? You couldn’t have taken a few minutes to talk, to ask me to not accept the interview. But no, you got mad, and now I have a new job. In a town a long way from you.
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