Beyond the Ridge

by L. T. Marie

  *

  After finding out from Angel that Coal’s parents were meeting her parents for dinner, Coal made the short trip home but decided if she wanted to fix things with Jay, now was as good a time as any before she lost her nerve. She called Angel to come get her because she needed her words of wisdom and moral support. Besides, she wasn’t sure that Jay wouldn’t turn her away and she didn’t want to take the chance of becoming stranded.

  “Hey, sweetie. You sure about this?” Angel asked as Coal climbed into her white BMW.

  “Yeah. I need to make things right. Or try anyway.”

  Angel pinned Coal with a hard stare. “You going to fill me in on this plan of yours?”

  “You want to keep your eye on the road before you kill us?”

  “Oh crap!” Angel swerved out of the way of an oncoming car, the passing driver’s blaring horn signaling they were as unhappy as Coal.

  “I guess that answers that question.” Coal placed her hand over her pounding heart.

  “Sorry, sweetie.”

  “It’s cool. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, and—”

  “Hold that thought.” Angel pressed the answer button on her steering wheel to accept the incoming call. “Yeah.”

  “Angel,” the caller shouted into the phone. “It’s Paula from Spice.”

  “Hey, woman. Why you calling me so early on a Friday night?”

  “I’m working tonight,” Paula yelled over the loud background noise. “Your cousin Jenn’s here. She’s drunk and she’s making a scene. I don’t need any slack, if you know what I mean.”

  “Shit,” Angel muttered. “I’m going to kill her.”

  “My thought exactly,” Paula said. “Can you come get her?”

  “I’ll be right there. Thanks, babe. I owe you.”

  Coal listened to the cryptic conversation but sat patiently until Angel disconnected the call. “What the hell was that all about?”

  “Oh, sorry.” Angel merged onto the freeway, which was in the opposite direction of Jay’s. “That was Paula, the bartender from Spice. My underage cousin is drunk, and you heard the rest. She can’t go back to her house after she’s been drinking, and Paula can get in a shit-load of trouble if the manager finds out she let her in. I hope you don’t mind, but we have to take a detour before we visit Jay’s?”

  “Of course,” Coal said. “I would have suggested it even if you didn’t ask.”

  “Thanks. So are you going to tell me about what you’re going to say to her?”

  “You have enough on your mind. How about we take care of Jenn then I’ll tell you everything. Deal?”

  Angel nodded as Coal laid her head back against the headrest and closed her eyes. She would help Angel with her problems before the time would come to face her own.

  Chapter Twenty-one

  The first thing Coal noticed when entering the crowded club was a tall, slender bartender with short dark hair and two gold nose piercings holding a woman Coal didn’t recognize from slumping to the floor. The skinny jeans, cropped tank, and baby smooth skin of the young woman screamed this had to be Angel’s cousin.

  “Thanks for coming. I don’t know what I would have done if you didn’t answer your phone,” the bartender said to Angel as Angel hooked her arm around the young woman’s inert form.

  “Paula, this is Coal,” Angel said. “Thanks for looking out for Jenn. We got it from here.”

  Coal moved to Jenn’s other side and threw one of her limp arms around her shoulders.

  “Fuck, Jenn, what the hell have you done to yourself?” Angel held Jenn’s head up, but Jenn’s body protested the movement. Jenn groaned. “Oh no you don’t, chica. Not on Manolo Blahnik pumps.”

  “Does she do this often?” Coal asked. She was having a difficult time maneuvering under the dead weight.

  “No. And if my aunt finds out, she and I are both going to get an ass chewing!”

  “Do you have this?” Coal asked Angel, but her attention was focused on the dance floor.

  “Yeah. We’ll meet you outside.”

  Coal absently waved her off as she tried to get a better view of the jam-packed room. When the dark hair came into view once more, she didn’t need to see the woman’s face that held the tall redhead in her arms to know that it was Jay. She’d recognize that lean, dangerous body anywhere.

  Her eyes remained glued to the two women wrapped in each other’s arms as her world once again crumbled all around her. She gasped as her heart hammered violently in her chest. The tears threatened. She was seconds from losing it.

  Jay had her arms wrapped loosely around the woman’s waist as the redhead’s arms were clasped behind Jay’s neck. The woman whispered something into Jay’s ear, provoking that grin that Coal had come to love. A smile that was no longer for her.

  Something snapped inside her, and she felt as though she were falling endlessly. She stood paralyzed with fear—dying inside. Jay couldn’t see her among the mass of people, but she was sure that Jay wouldn’t notice anything while in the arms of that beautiful woman.

  She found her way to the bar, ordered two shots of whiskey, and downed them before motioning the bartender for two more. This wasn’t how she’d planned her evening, but she knew of only one way to banish the memory of Jay in the arms of another woman. As the haze of alcohol overtook her, she welcomed the loss of her grief, if only temporarily.

  “Honey, what are you doing?” Angel asked

  “Drinking. Just go and take Jenn home. Don’t worry about me.”

  “Fuck that! I can’t leave you here. I don’t know what’s going on with you, but we need to go. Now.” Angel tried to wrap an arm around Coal’s waist to guide her off of the stool, but Coal pushed her hand away.

  “Angel, don’t—”

  When Coal tried to stand on her own, her legs gave out beneath her. Lucky for her, someone else was there to catch her.

  *

  “Jay?” Coal said.

  Jay tightened her grip around Coal’s waist to steady her. “Yeah. What are you doing here?”

  “Having a drink. Bartender, one more,” Coal said.

  “Baby, I think you’ve had enough.”

  Coal stiffened. “You know God damned well I’m not your baby!”

  Jay ran a shaky hand through her hair. The last few hours had been equivalent to riding an emotional rollercoaster. One minute, she was in DC’s arms, trying to banish Coal’s memory and the last words she’d spoken to her. The next, she spotted an inebriated Coal arguing with Angel, and she could think of nothing but making sure she was okay. Now that she had, no matter the pain that seeing her was causing, she knew deep in her heart there was no place else she’d rather be.

  “You got this?” Angel asked. She threw Jay a sympathetic smile and handed her a piece of paper with an address on it. “In case you need it.”

  “Thanks.” She watched Angel leave and pulled Coal tighter against her. “Come on. Let’s get you out of here.”

  “Why do you care?” Coal pulled away from Jay and, in the process, knocked over her shot glass, shattering it on top of the bar.

  Instinctively, Jay shielded Coal from the shattering glass. When Coal pulled away from her, she could overlook the stinging sensation against her forehead, but she couldn’t ignore the trickle of blood that seeped its way into her right eye.

  “Oh no!” Coal cried. She cupped Jay’s chin and brushed the stream of blood away with her thumb. “I’ve hurt you! Sweetie, I’m so sorry.”

  Jay closed her eyes, welcoming the heat of Coal’s skin brushing against hers. She’d missed the feel of her. The taste of her. And forgetting all about the night’s events, she placed her hand over Coal’s and kissed her palm.

  “I need you,” Coal whispered. “Jay, please.”

  Jay tilted her head and brushed a kiss over her lips. When Coal swayed toward her, Jay parted Coal’s lips with her own, searching, needing, wanting something that Coal could no longer give her. She’d spent the last few nights wanting
to touch Coal like this again. There’d been a time when Coal’s desire for her would have made her blood boil. But this was different. Coal was drunk. And the only words she kept hearing were the ones that forced her to accept that she couldn’t allow anything to happen between them. This is a mistake, Jay.

  “Hey,” Jay said breathlessly, breaking the kiss. “It’s time to go home.”

  “But I don’t want to go home…” The slurred words died on her lips as she slumped against her.

  Jay easily lifted Coal into her arms and carried her without further incident to the truck. As Coal slept off the effects of the alcohol, Jay secured her in the cab with a seat belt and followed the directions that Angel had given her to her house. She kept one hand on Coal’s thigh for the entire ride, the simple connection all that remained of their last few moments together.

  Angel was waiting for them on the front porch when Jay pulled up to the house. She carried a passed out Coal up two flights of stairs to a spare bedroom where she placed her onto a king-sized bed. She pulled the blankets up to cover Coal’s body and placed a tender kiss on her lips. I love you.

  Jay was headed back to her truck when Angel stopped her on the porch. She’d been so wrapped up with Coal it took her a second to realize she was at the house that her father had once violated.

  “Thank you,” Angel said.

  “Anytime,” Jay said, the pain of leaving Coal tearing at her heart. “I’m just glad she’s okay.”

  “You know, for what it’s worth, I trust you with my friend. And I’m sure when she wakes up, she’ll appreciate all you’ve done for her.”

  Jay smiled wanly. She knows it was my dad and she’s okay with it. “Please take good care of her, Angel.”

  “I will, honey.” Angel hugged her. “Promise.”

  Chapter Twenty-two

  “I’m sorry about last night,” Coal said. She took the wet rag from Angel and placed it over her forehead. She’d been sitting on the bathroom floor for hours, the light beige tile rendering her butt numb from the cold. She’d forgotten how many times she’d emptied the contents of her stomach, not that there was much left.

  “You owe me.” Angel wore a light pink bathrobe and matching fuzzy slippers and looked about as exhausted as Coal felt. She handed Coal a glass. “Drink.”

  “What is it?”

  “Ginger ale. It will help with the queasiness. Between you and my cousin, you’d think I was running a drunk tank.”

  “How’s Jenn feeling?” Coal sipped the gold liquid, grateful when it appeared it would stay down.

  “She looks worse than you, if that’s what you’re asking.”

  Coal grabbed her head, feeling a sharp pain begin to coalesce behind her eyeballs. “I should call a cab. I need to get home and into my own bed. It’s going to take a week to sleep this off.”

  “No need. I have time to take you home before my cousin wakes up. Better you’re gone before I have to give her a lecture.”

  “Hey,” Coal said to stop Angel from leaving the room. “I am really sorry about the way I acted yesterday. It was immature and you didn’t deserve it.”

  “Honey, you don’t need to apologize to me. I’m your friend, and if that brain of yours is still muddled, you forget that I’ve seen you so much worse.”

  “I hear a ‘but’ coming.”

  “But.” Angel’s expression turned serious. “You need to speak with Jay. She’s the one who took care of you. She loves you, Coal. It’s written all over that sexy face of hers.”

  Coal shook her head, the motion making her want to vomit again. She desperately wanted to believe what Angel was saying, but she saw Jay last night. Saw her in the arms of that drop-dead gorgeous redhead. She’d been right about being easily replaced. She wasn’t surprised, but it hurt so damn much. “I don’t doubt she cares for me, but she’s made it clear she’s moved on. It’s my fault. That’s clear. But because she has, I have to too.”

  Angel nodded as if she understood and left Coal alone to gather her things. On the way home, every bump and turn on the short drive made Coal feel as though she were seated on one of those amusement park teacup rides. She spent most of the journey with her hand over her mouth, afraid she’d lose it again but more concerned of the tongue-lashing she’d receive if she puked all over Angel’s immaculate white interior. By the time Angel turned into her driveway, Coal was ready to sell her soul to anyone who could get the earth to stop moving.

  “I do owe you.” Coal gave Angel a quick hug.

  “Damn straight. And I plan to cash in.”

  Angel drove away, leaving Coal to appreciate her newly renovated home for the first time in the daylight. Once she’d returned yesterday, the sun had already set, not allowing her the opportunity to admire the finishing touches such as the new stain or the bay windows that would allow more sunlight into her kitchen. Jay had done everything she’d asked for and more. She should have been more excited that a part of her life had come together, but without Jay in her life, she was more incomplete than ever.

  “Coal!”

  “Hey, Mom,” Coal said. She forced a smile, as her mom stepped from the golf cart. She hoped the shower she’d taken at Angel’s had removed the stench of stale alcohol and vomit from her breath, otherwise she’d have a lot of explaining to do. Last night had been unusual for her. She didn’t often drink to get drunk. A few beers here and there or a glass of wine among friends was more her speed. The hard stuff had always been reserved for when she felt trapped. Last night had been the second time in her life where she felt the walls closing in around her. The first time had been when Taylor had disappeared from her life without so much as a fuck you. Her mother had been the only one to see her like that. If her mother witnessed that behavior again, she’d know something was up, and Coal didn’t have the energy to explain herself today. Not today.

  “Darling, you don’t look rested.” Her mother leaned forward to kiss Coal on the cheek, staring at her inquisitively. “I thought you were going away to relax.”

  “I rested, Mom.”

  “Where? In the barn? Because I can tell you’re still not sleeping. And you’re so pale. Are you ill?”

  “I see the contractors are done,” Coal said. She didn’t want to be interrogated anymore. “Did you pay them?”

  “Yes, but Dino is coming back tomorrow morning to do the walk-through and a few small jobs at my house. He said to tell you he’d be here at eight a.m. The roofers will be here too.”

  Just Dino? She really is gone for good. “Fine. I guess I’ll get settled in and go check on Dax. How is he?”

  “He missed you. But why don’t you take a nap first? You have the whole day to go see him.”

  “You’re right. Is there anything else?”

  Her mother pursed her lips as if she had more to say but instead glanced up at Coal’s house one more time and shrugged noncommittally. “Nothing I can think of.”

  At any other time, Coal would have questioned her mom’s odd behavior, but she didn’t have the energy. After saying their good-byes, she wearily climbed the stairs and fell into bed, not bothering to take the time to remove her clothes. The sheets beneath her body were soft, and when she rolled over onto her side and her head sank into the pillow, she caught the familiar scent of wood and smoke. Inhaling deeply, she recalled the last time she lay in that bed, Jay had made love to her. She’d felt so carefree then. Similar to the way she felt when she rode her horse in the wind. Effortless motion without thought. The give and take between two individuals who connected in mind, body, and soul. Jay had possessed a way of making her feel whole. A way of making her feel accepted. Now, not only did she no longer feel complete, she felt numb. Somewhere between now and when she’d been a child she’d lost her identity, her true sense of self. As she cried herself to sleep, she wondered if she ever really knew who she was at all.

  *

  “Jay, you gotta go,” Dino said.

  “No, I don’t. And you know damn well why.”

 
Jay had been having this same argument with Dino for the last five minutes. She ditched the family party on Saturday and was glad she had after hearing that her father had attended and was drunk for most of the day. She couldn’t handle any more heartache, especially after leaving Coal at Angel’s the previous night. She was tired, weary in body and soul. And Dino was crazy if he thought she’d cover for him because he had a two-day hangover. Wild horses couldn’t drag her over to the Davis house today.

  “Damn it, Jay. I can’t tell Jane Davis I’m hung over and can’t do the work. Besides, don’t you want the bonus check? I know you need it.”

  Dino was right. She did need the money, but it wasn’t worth the price her heart would have to pay if she had to see Coal. She’d spent all day Sunday barely able to find the energy to get out of bed. She’d wanted to go check on Coal. Make sure she was all right. But Coal had made it clear that wasn’t her job. “I could wait a few days until you feel better.”

  “Oh, bullshit!” Dino said. “Get your ass over there right now and do what needs to be done or you can find yourself a new job!”

  Jay stared at her phone, listening to the dial tone. “Shit.”

  She slammed the receiver into its cradle and grabbed her keys. She took a pit stop at a local grocery store before heading over to the Davis home. She pulled over next to the wooden fence and climbed out of the cab. She called over to Dax then waited for him to approach while she pulled a carrot out of a brown paper bag. She took her time removing it and laughed when he snorted at her, his obvious way of telling her to hurry up.

  “Hey, big guy.” She tickled underneath his chin and offered him the first carrot.

  The large stallion nodded as his nostrils flared then kicked the ground hard with his front foot.

  “Yeah, I know. It’s been a few days. I’m sorry, big man.”

  Dax pushed open Jay’s bomber jacket and found the second carrot hidden in her pocket.