“How about if I join you here for a while?” She took the answering sigh to be a yes and turned to lie down, her head resting on Beau’s big body. She clutched Swain’s shirt to her chest. “I miss her, too,” she whispered.
Two hours later, she woke with a start. Nestled there in the comfort of Swain’s essence, she had finally relaxed into a restoring, deep-REM sleep. Beau still snored beside her.
“Well, this is pathetic, isn’t it, sleeping among her soiled clothes on the floor of her wardrobe?”
Beau growled softly in agreement.
But she didn’t feel pathetic. She felt better, stronger. She climbed to her feet.
“Come along, Beau. You’re staying with me while she’s gone. Consider yourself a hostage. When she does get back, she’ll have to come see me to find you.”
Beau rolled up onto his chest, his long tail thumping against the floor. He stood as she gathered Swain’s clothes and stuffed them into a duffel. She’d get Mary to show her how to launder them.
She hesitated in the kitchen. If Beau was coming with her, she needed to gather his things. She called downstairs to the office and asked John if someone was available to help her. Less than a minute later, Javier and Rob clomped up the steps.
“If you could just get that dog bed from the bedroom,” she told Javier. “And you carry his kibble,” she added, pointing out a nearly full forty-pound bag of food to Rob. “I’ll take his bowls.”
They formed an odd parade, with Beau leading the way to the house and Lillie a few steps behind, carrying two oversized dog bowls. Javier followed, sneezing repeatedly from the dog hair flying off the bed, and Rob brought up the rear grumbling about the weight of the dog-food bag.
Mary had returned with Dani, who opened the door for them. The wiry twelve-year-old wrapped Beau in a tight hug. “Where ya going, boy?” She released the dog and straightened to glare at Lillie, Rob, and Javier. “Where y’all taking Miss Swain’s dog?”
Lillie almost burst out in laughter. This ninety-pound kid was standing with her hands on her hips, ready to take on all three adults. She resembled a bantam rooster looking for a fight.
“Danielle Marie, you better mind your manners.”
In spite of Mary’s reprimand, the kid wasn’t backing down.
“It’s okay, Mary.” Lillie set the bowls in the sink to wash them and smiled at Dani. “Beau is so sad that Swain is out of town, I thought it would cheer him up to stay with us until she comes home.”
Dani nodded. “That’s a good idea.” She hugged Beau again. “Don’t be sad, boy. We’ll play with you.”
Rob put the bag of dog food in the pantry and Lillie asked Dani, “Could you put Beau’s bed upstairs? He’ll sleep in my room. Left at the top of the stairs, first room on the right.”
“I can do that.” The big hairy pillow dwarfed the girl, but she gamely wrapped her arms around it and summoned Beau to follow. “We’ll find you a nice sunny spot,” she told him.
“Be quick, sweetie. Lunch is ready.”
“I will, Mom,” Dani called over her shoulder.
Mary turned to the adults. “Everybody sit down. Lunch is shrimp salad and fresh fruit. There’s enough for everybody.”
Javier and Rob didn’t argue. “Thanks. That sounds a whole lot better than the baloney sandwich I was planning to eat,” Rob said.
“Yeah. I was having Chinese leftovers from last night,” Javier said, laughing at Rob’s expression of exaggerated shock. “What? You think I eat tacos all the time?”
“You do eat tacos all the time,” Dani said, skipping back into the room and sliding into a chair.
“Only while I lived with my mother. She can’t cook anything but Mexican food. My cousin and I have our own place now. We eat pizza and Chinese and cheeseburgers,” he said proudly.
“Now that’s something to brag about.” Mary’s sarcasm was lost on Dani.
“Mom won’t let me have pizza but twice a month. Can I move in with you and your cousin?”
“No, you can’t, young lady,” Mary answered for Javier.
Lillie listened to the friendly banter around the table. Having company should have taken her mind off Swain, but it only swelled the ache of her absence. She missed feeling Swain by her side.
She wasn’t sure why Swain was gone, but she did know one thing. It was time for them to talk…about everything. Promise be damned. She wouldn’t let family secrets steal her happiness.
*
The cell number went straight to voice mail again, so Lillie hung up. Swain must have forgotten to turn her phone back on when her flight landed. Or maybe she didn’t want to talk to anyone. Including Lillie.
She composed her thoughts as she stripped and climbed into bed. Beau had refused to sleep in his bed until she pulled it right next to hers. She settled against the pillows and punched in the number again. This time, she left a message.
“Swain. It’s me, Lillie.” She knew she sounded nervous, so she took a deep breath. “We need to talk. If you left because of me, we need to talk honestly about why. If you have another reason, a job or a girlfriend in Florida, I’d still like to hear about that. Please, Swain. Please call me. Please come home.” She ended the call and stared at the phone. “Please come home. I miss you,” she whispered.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“I don’t know, Manny. I like training as much as riding, so I don’t think I’d like working just as a professional rider. Besides, I have Beau to think about. I’d have to travel to follow the polo tournaments. I’d have to go overseas for a while, too, to really make a name as a rider.”
Swain sat back in the lawn chair and took a big swallow of her beer. It was easy enough after arriving the day before to find old friends who were happy to have her help exercise the ponies they were training. Today, she’d risen early and ridden pony after pony to keep her mind busy. Now she sat outside the stable, around a cooler full of beer with a group of grooms and exercise riders, to relax after the grueling day.
“You have a boyfriend?”
The other men laughed at Carlos’s surprise.
Swain snorted. “Yeah. He’s the only male who’ll ever lay his head on my bed. He sheds hair everywhere, has big teeth and dog breath.”
“You’re dating my girlfriend’s brother?” Tomas teased, bringing another chorus of cackles from the group.
Swain clarified for Carlos, who still looked confused. “He has dog breath because he is a dog…a big dog.”
She was glad to see her friends again, and sitting around the cooler with the guys at the end of the day used to be one of her favorite pastimes. But today, her heart was still back in South Carolina. What had Lillie been doing?
*
Lillie did need to have her hair trimmed, but that wasn’t why she was waiting to be Gloria’s next customer. She couldn’t just sit around and do nothing until Swain returned. She wanted to hear some town gossip, and the flamboyant hair stylist she had met at the newspaper office would probably have her pulse on the news and be more than willing to share it.
“Lillie, sugar, how are you doing? Abigail’s funeral was so wonderful. Short, but beautiful.”
“I’m very well, thank you. It was brief, but Grandmum made all the arrangements herself. I guess she wanted it that way.”
“I just love your accent.” Gloria settled her in the barber chair and ran her fingers through Lillie’s long hair. “What can I do for you today, hon? You looked lovely at the funeral, but I did notice a few split ends. Time for a trim?”
“Just a slight one.”
“I’ve got some really good shampoo and conditioner made special for wavy hair like yours. I have to order it all the way from New York City. Would you like to try it?”
“Yes, please.”
Gloria waved away the shop assistant who usually did the shampoos and led Lillie back to the sinks. She chatted away as she worked. The thorough massage of her scalp was relaxing, but not so relaxing that Lillie didn’t realize Gloria was also p
umping her for information. Had the will been read? Did she already know what it would say? Would Lillie divide her time between England and South Carolina? Was she learning to play polo like Abigail?
The shampoo done and Lillie resettled in the chair, Gloria started combing out the abundant curls.
“Have you heard from Swain? What in the world is she doing down in Florida anyway?”
Ah, now they were getting to the subject Lillie wanted to talk about.
“You know about her going to Florida?”
“Honey, Gloria knows everything.”
“Really. She’s only been gone a day. I guess she came by to see you before she left?”
Gloria looked up from her task, her gaze meeting Lillie’s in the mirror. Her eyes were kind. “She didn’t come see me, sugar. I cut Annie’s hair yesterday. Do you know Rob’s wife, Annie? He told her at lunch and she told me when she came in the shop yesterday afternoon.”
“Did Rob say why she went to Florida?”
“He said she might be checking out a job down there, but the boys really think—” Gloria acted as though she realized she was saying too much.
“What do they think?”
Gloria shrugged and went back to clipping the ends of Lillie’s hair. “It doesn’t matter. Men are always wrong. If it’s not a sport to watch or something to eat, it’s more than their brains want to handle.”
“Please tell me.”
Lillie heard nothing but the snipping sound of the scissors while Gloria decided how much to reveal. “Rob told Annie they think it has something to do with you. Did y’all have a spat or something?”
Lillie averted her gaze. “No, nothing like that.”
Gloria stopped, her scissors raised in midair. “Oh, honey. You’ve fallen for her, too, haven’t you? Don’t feel bad. All of us girls in town who lean that way, or even half that way, have made a play for her. How could you resist those big blue eyes and long thick lashes? I just hadn’t pegged you as a sister.” She patted Lillie on the shoulder and sighed. “It’s not you. That Swain, bless her heart, is just a hard dog to keep under the porch.”
“Sorry?”
“That’s a Southern expression.” Gloria smiled. “Let me see if I can explain. In the old days, the houses around here were built on stone pillars, so air could circulate under them and keep them cooler. The huntin’ dogs would always crawl up under their owner’s porch to bed down for the night. There was always one dog, though, that would just crawl up under the porch of whatever house looked good at sundown.”
Lillie frowned. “You’re saying that Swain sleeps around a lot?”
“No, hon. Not a lot. She could if she took every chance offered her. I’m just saying that more than one woman has tried to tie her under their porch. When that happens, Swain gets spooked and backs off. I reckon she hasn’t found the right porch yet.”
*
Five beers later, Swain was buzzed. She waved off the guys’ protest when she announced she was calling it a night and walked slowly through the gathering dusk, absorbing the sounds and smells of stables that ringed the polo arena. As she passed their stalls, several horses poked their heads out and nickered to her.
She’d always loved this community. She had friends in this town. She’d fulfilled Abigail’s request and shown Lillie everything that was important. She didn’t have any further obligations there. It wouldn’t be hard to pick up a training job and resettle here, the place where she’d learned about horses and polo. It’d felt like home once.
But that was before South Carolina, where she had her own stable, her own team. The minute she set foot on the Wetherington farm, she belonged there.
“Hola, mi dulce. I had heard you were around.” An attractive Latino woman was propped against Swain’s truck. “You do not answer your phone and you do not come to see me, so I must come find you.”
“Lolita, hello. I figured you would be married and have a bambino by now.”
“Many boys have tried, but I cannot forget your kisses.”
“Then I must go now and ask your Papa for your hand in marriage.” Swain laughed at the woman’s scowl. Lolita wasn’t one of the barn help. Her father was a rich Argentinean who owned one of the best polo strings in Florida. She’d be married one day, but only to the man her father chose. In return, Papa turned a blind eye to his daughter’s romantic trysts as long as she was discreet.
Lolita pouted. “You are a brute, but a sexy one. So, if you make me come many times tonight, I will forgive you.”
Swain was tempted. Lolita was a beautiful woman, with none of the complications she’d left behind in South Carolina. But a night with Lolita wouldn’t substitute for one minute with Lillie.
“As beautiful as you are, I’ve ridden too many ponies and drank too much beer today. The only thing I plan to do tonight is sleep,” Swain said gently.
“You are turning me down?”
“I’m sorry, but yes.”
Lolita studied her for a moment. “You must come back to us, mi preciosa. Where you live now makes your eyes very sad.”
It was nearly dark and two large trucks shielded them from prying eyes. Swain gently kissed Lolita’s pouting lips. “If I do, mi tesoro, you won’t have to come searching for me. I’ll find you.”
*
Lillie sat on the balcony of her bedroom, watching Javier and Rob work with a couple of the ponies. Time was dragging by so slowly while she waited for Swain to return. Had she listened to Lillie’s message?
She picked up a long, heavy lens resting by her feet, snapped it onto her camera, and began clicking off shots. She lowered it after only a few minutes. It was getting too dark to shoot from that distance. She returned the lens to its case and thumbed the switch to view the frames she had just taken, deleting them one by one. Her breath hitched when the next image blinked onto the camera’s view screen. Swain’s handsome blue eyes and sexy half smile looked up at her.
She hadn’t yet downloaded the photos she’d taken at the polo match. Some were very good. The next best thing to spending time with Swain was sorting through pictures of her, so she went inside to retrieve her laptop and get to work.
*
Swain toweled off after her shower and pulled on a soft pair of boxers and a T-shirt. She flopped across the bed and grabbed the television remote. After flipping through the channels twice and finding nothing that held her interest, she turned it off. She stood to pull the covers back and climb between the sheets. When she reached to turn out the bedside light, she noticed her cell phone and powered it on before she had time to stop herself.
Lillie had called many times but left only one message.
“Swain. It’s me, Lillie. We need to talk. If you left because of me, then we need to talk honestly about why. If you have another reason, a job or a girlfriend in Florida, I’d still like to know about that. Please, Swain. Please call me. Please come home.”
She closed her eyes at the rich tones of Lillie’s voice. This wasn’t about Abigail any longer. This was about her and Lillie. She played the message again. Nearly a thousand miles away and it still wasn’t enough distance to lessen Lillie’s hold on her. She didn’t have the strength to resist her entreaties any longer. Running from her wasn’t working, so it was time to change tactics and chase her away instead.
She’d been wining and dining Lillie in the style to which Swain expected she was accustomed. But that wasn’t the life Swain lived most of the time. She was used to being the one in the kitchen, cooking for the Lillies seated in the dining room. She was more comfortable sitting around the cooler with the guys at the barn than mingling at a wine-and-cheese party. Dinner for her some nights was tuna right out of the can. When she did cook, Beau’s tongue was her rinse cycle before she put her plate in the dishwasher.
It was time to pull off Lillie’s blinkers and show her how different their worlds were. That should send her running.
Chapter Twenty-Five
The barn was quiet when Swain arrived back a
t the farm. She threw her bag on the bed and opened it to sort the dirty clothes from those she hadn’t worn. When she lifted the top to the hamper to throw them in with the other laundry, she was surprised to see it empty. She was sure it was nearly full when she left.
She went downstairs and whistled for Beau, but got no answering bark. Where was everybody? She finally found John in the tack room, methodically polishing saddles. The fact that he hadn’t come out to greet her when he heard her whistling for Beau was a sure sign he was put out with her.
“Hey, where are the guys?”
“Javier and Rob are out on the trails, exercising Finesse and Sunne.”
“You seen my dog today?”
“Yep.”
“You want to tell me where?”
“Up at the house with Miss Lillie.”
“Oh.” Swain glanced toward the house. Was she ready to face Lillie yet? She looked back at John. “You want to tell me what’s eating you?”
John put down his rag and glared at her. “You got a new job in Florida?”
“No. Is that what you think? I didn’t go to Florida for a job.”
“Somebody down there you needed to see?”
Swain frowned. John had never pried into her personal life before now. “No.”
“How about we stop playing twenty questions and you just tell me why you left me here with those three sad pups whining after you.”
Swain looked down at her boot as she scuffed it against the concrete floor. “I needed some space to think, okay? Waiting to find out what’s going to happen here is driving me crazy. Wait. What three pups?”
“That big idiot dog, sweet Miss Lillie, and young Dani, who’s told me ten times a day that you promised her polo lessons.”
“Oh, yeah. I did. How’s Lillie?”
Call Me Softly Page 18