by Ali Parker
Chapter 11
David
The best thing about building a new round pen was trying it out, and my brother Mason couldn’t wait to get our newest horse in the pen. I’d brought her out, leading her by a rope, and handed her over to my brother.
As he took off her lead and put her in the pen, I noticed how petite she was compared to most horses. Silly enough, it made me think of Sarah, such a tiny little lady too. Man, I couldn’t get her out of my head. I tried to focus on Mason who wasn’t having any luck. The horse snorted and twitched nervously, not used to the pen. “Calm her down or pull her out, Mase.” I kept my voice low as not to spook her any more than she was.
Mason glanced my way and spit on the ground and I waited for him to tell me to mind my own business. With a smile, I leaned against the fence quietly, folded my arms, and watched him work his magic.
For some reason, it made me think of that first day that Sarah showed up on the ranch. She’d been so determined and full of spirit. I knew I wanted to break her too. I remembered the noise she’d made when I scooped her up behind me into the saddle. It was a lot like the noises she made when I slid deep inside her. The memory of her spread out on my truck had me adjusting myself. If I didn’t stop the reminiscing I’d have to go up to the house and take a cold shower.
Ted shouted from beside me, “You’re supposed to work them, not let them work you.”
Mason gave him the finger and continued.
“He’ll get her. She’s never been in before.” I walked away, taking a rest against another post. I didn’t care to be near Ted after what had happened, but he followed, resting his arms against the fence.
“You really liked that one, didn’t you?” He cut a glance in my direction and I knew he wasn’t referring to the horse.
“Why? You regret not sleeping with her too?” I didn’t care how bitter it sounded, I didn’t want to talk to Ted about Sarah.
“You gonna be pissed off at me for the rest of our lives?” He kept his eyes forward, but I studied his face and my fist twitched as I imagined it making contact.
I spit on the ground. “You took what was mine.”
“Bullshit, if she was really yours she wouldn’t have strayed that easily. We’d only had a couple of drinks and she’s the one who made the first move. You know I wasn’t the only one. When I say, I did you a favor, I’m not just trying to get under your skin, Davey. I mean it. She wasn’t good enough for you.” He met my eyes and dammit, he meant it. The fact that he made so much sense made it hard to hate him. “Are you going after that agent?”
“Her name is Sarah, and she took off without even asking me about Ella. She didn’t even leave me a number.”
He nudged me. “I don’t blame her. Mama told her that you and Ella were engaged and from what I heard—”
“What?” I yelled so loud I spooked the horse.
“Yeah, why do you think she took off out of here? Mama told her you were engaged and Ella rubbed it in with a bunch of talk about how you were going to run the ranch together. Mama told her to say it. She thought that city girl was going to come here and talk you into leaving. I thought you knew.”
“No, I thought she just left not wanting the drama of my mother bringing around my exes. I’ve been so damned mad I didn’t ask.” My gut twisted into knots.
“Well, don’t go upsetting Mama over it, she’s sick enough already. She’s scared you’ll run off. You know her and Dad need us all more than ever. They aren’t getting any younger or healthier from the looks of things. She had another one of those coughing spells earlier.” He took off his cap and swatted a bug on the fence.
“I won’t say anything to her. I know she means well. But I’m letting Ella have it if I ever see her again. I hope I don’t, and you’re right, by the way, you did me a favor.” Without another word, I patted his shoulder and walked off toward the house. I had to find Sarah. I had to tell her it was all a big misunderstanding. At least then I could get on with my life with a clear conscience.
I went to the kitchen to get a drink and ran into Luke who was peeking underneath the lid of whatever Mama had left to simmer. “Mama’s gonna tan your hide for disturbing the pot.”
Luke startled and dropped the lid. “Not if you shut your trap. She’ll never know.”
“You mess up her stew and she will. She always says she knows when we interrupted the process.” I got a glass out of the cupboard and filled it with water from the tap.
Luke leaned back against the counter. “She only says that when it don’t turn out to suit her.” We exchanged a chuckle.
Mama was the best cook I knew, but she never was satisfied with her talents even though she never got any complaints from us boys when it came to her cooking.
“What do you have going on today?” I gulped down the water as he shrugged.
“Nothing. Chores are all done. I’d rather not hang around here.” He snatched a cookie from the crock and wasted no time shoving it in his mouth whole.
“I need help finding Sarah and was hoping you’d go with me to Perryville to use a computer.” I raised a brow waiting for him to admonish me for my lack of computer savvy, but instead he gave me an affirmative nod.
“Sure.” Then a slow smile spread across his face. “You like her, don’t you?” He gave me a teasing nudge and since he was about to help me out with the Internet, I decided to let it slide.
“Yeah, yeah, I like her. I’m just not sure it’s enough.” I set the glass in the sink and walked to the door. “You coming?”
***
We made it to the Perryville Public Library in record time. When we went inside, Luke cursed quietly and hesitated on going to the desk. I stood beside him feeling nostalgic for the smell of books and the quiet atmosphere that always took me back to elementary school when my teacher had taught us to always be as quiet as possible when entering a library.
“What’s the matter?” I kept my voice as quiet as possible and nudged my brother forward.
“I dated her.” He gestured toward the front desk and I looked over to the librarian who stood at the counter.
The woman was sixty if a day, with a bright green pantsuit and the type of chunky jewelry that only little old ladies wear. My eyes widened. “You dated her?” I motioned to the old woman and searched my brother’s face for any sign of humor. Surely he was joking. He glanced to where I’d gestured and let out a long breath of frustration.
“Not her, you moron, the blond sitting at the computers.”
I noticed behind the old woman and the round counter there was a table in the back corner where computers were lined up for public use. Upon seeing her I let out a soft whistle. “She’s a looker. When did you date her?” The girl, who filled out her soft pink shirt nicely, moved from chair to chair wiping the screens.
“Last year. I forgot she worked here.” His face lit with a smile as the girl noticed us and crossed the room.
“Luke.” She flashed a sassy smile and I wondered what my brother had done to warrant such a saccharine smirk.
“Cindy. Hey, how’s it going?”
“Fine, is this your brother?” She cut her glance to me, flashing big green eyes that seemed to inspect me thoroughly. “You look alike.”
“This is my brother, David. We’re here to use the computers.”
Cindy turned her attention from me to Luke and closed the distance between them. “Are you looking for work? I’ve got some local job listings at my desk.”
Luke stared at her as if he were reliving whatever the two had shared and from their body language, I had a feeling every inch of her was charted territory. I decided to break the tension. “Actually, I’m looking for someone.”
Cindy gave me a wink. “Aren’t we all?” She placed her hand on my brother’s arm and smoothed down the sleeve of his shirt. Her eyes found his and the twitch in her brow made me think she was reliving a few memories as well. “You should call me.”
I couldn’t tell if Luke liked the idea o
r not, he was smiling but his eyes were wide with fear. “I might do that.” He flashed me a nervous glance. “We best get busy. We’ve got somewhere to be later.” He nudged me and I agreed as we strolled toward the computers and took a seat.
Luke took charge pulling up the search engine as I was wracking my brain trying to figure out where to look first. “What’s her name or the name of the agency?” He pressed a few more keys and waited for me to speak.
“Shit.” I rested my head in my hands and scrubbed my face. “I don’t even know her last name.”
Luke slouched in his seat and released a breath. “You don’t even know who we’re looking for? You exposed me to that psychopath blond and you don’t even have this girl’s name?”
“What the hell happened between the two of you?” I glanced across the room and found the girl stacking books, her eyes glancing toward Luke as if she could eat him alive. “She looks like a good time.”
“I don’t want to talk about it. She looks sweet and innocent, but she’s… I don’t want to talk about it.” He poked at the keyboard again, this time scrolling through a list of talent agencies. “Do any of these names ring a bell?”
As much as I was intrigued, I hated to press him about the girl, so I skimmed the list of names and agencies and shook my head. Not one of them sounded familiar. I’d been so busy getting to know her body that I hadn’t gotten to know her. Maybe this was all for naught. Maybe I’d pushed her with too much too fast and that was the reason she bailed. Maybe it was all too serious for her. And why wouldn’t it be.
A noise whipped our heads around and Cindy was on her knees picking up the books she’d dropped. She glanced at Luke and smiled, giving him a playful “Oops”.
Luke shifted in his seat. “This is all I can do without a name and quite frankly, I’m ready to get the hell out of here.” His eyes widened and his head nudged toward the girl across the room who’d made sure to toss her hair and sway her hips as she walked by.
My stomach contracted tightly as I realized what I had to do. “I can get her name. I just have to call Norm at the Dew Drop.” That was the last damned thing I wanted to do. I nudged Luke. “Go ask Cindy to use her phone.”
He threw me a hard glance. “You owe me.” He waved her over.
She sauntered over. “How can I help you men?”
Luke wasted no time entertaining her. “Can we use your phone?”
“Oh, that’s right, you don’t have a cell phone. Guess that’s why you never called me after the last time.” She rolled her eyes and reached into her bra. “Here you go, honey.” I could tell that Luke hated the fact that our daddy wouldn’t let us have phones. It was a rub that we’d given up on years ago when Dad lost the chance to have a cell tower on our property. The communications company went with the neighbors instead and when Dad heard how much they were paying the Langston’s next door, he banned them indefinitely. No phones allowed other than our antiquated land line.
“Thanks,” I said, taking the phone which was still warm from her ample breasts that impressively concealed the phone— which wasn’t that small.
“You’ll have to use it outside. No cell phones allowed inside the library.” I stood and excused myself, leaving Luke to mouth “you owe me” before I walked away.
Getting Norm to cough up her last name was like pulling teeth from an alligator. The bastard’s smug tone made me want to punch him all over again.
“I really shouldn’t give out my client’s information. You know how people are about their privacy these days.” His voice was so full of arrogance I could almost feel it through the phone.
“Look, Norm, I’m about three seconds from driving back down and blackening your other eye. This is important.” I kicked a patch of loose gravel.
“Threats will get you nowhere, son. I want an apology; a public one at Kinsey’s. You can consider it your farewell performance. I heard you skipped out on him.”
“Fine, I apologize. I’ll even tell everyone I did, but I’m not getting back on that stage again.” I waited for his response, but instead he huffed into the phone as if my apology wasn’t good enough. “Dammit, Norm. Tell me.”
“Her last name is Myers. M.Y.E.R.S. I can’t tell you anything else. I do have protocol to follow with my clients.” The phone went dead.
“Dammit.” I’d wanted her number and he knew it. But the name would have to do. “Sarah Myers.” The name felt warm on my lips and I stood there a moment remembering her straddling me in the barn. I had to find her.
I went inside and found Luke warming up to Cindy, or so it seemed. As soon as he saw me, he turned his attention to the screen. “Please tell me you got her name,” he said.
“Yes, Sarah Myers. M.Y.E.R.S.” He typed in her name and a listing at Thunderbolt Management popped up along with Sarah’s picture. My heart stopped seeing her again. I cleared my throat. “That’s her.” Relief put a smile on my face and the apology I’d given Norm was well-worth the feeling of joy I had bubbling inside. “Give me the number.” I hadn’t given Cindy back her phone and I didn’t bother asking to use it again as I snatched the number and went back outside, dialing as I went.
I’d never been so anxious in all my life as the phone rang. My nerves vibrated through me and my heart pounded so hard at the idea that I might get to speak to her and hear her voice.
“Thunderbolt, how may I direct your call?” said a voice that was much too deep to be Sarah’s. I don’t know why I expected her to answer the phone, but I was too giddy to think straight.
“Sarah Myers, please. I don’t know the extension.” A lump rose to my throat and I was overcome with angst. Seconds felt like minutes as I waited for the lady to respond.
“Ms. Myers is no longer with us. She’s been gone for several months now.” The woman on the other end sounded apologetic, but my voice still showed my disappointment.
“Where is she?” I blurted. “I mean, how can I reach her? Did she leave a forwarding number?”
The woman made a sound that told me I better watch my tone or she’d hang up. “I’m not at liberty to say, sir.”
I softened my voice. “Please, ma’am.” I figured I better break out the southern charm and give a desperate plea. “I understand your situation, and I respect it, but it’s vital that I speak to her. I need to speak to her as soon as possible. My life depends on it.” It wasn’t a lie, I felt that way. I needed Sarah like I needed air and water. “Please.”
The lady’s sigh sent chills down my spine as it sounded through the phone. “Look, I can’t just give you her information, but I do know her, and I can give her a message if you like.”
“Please,” I blurted again.
“Easy, boy. Like I said, Sarah’s a friend, so don’t make me regret this. What’s your name, sweetie? I’ll pass your message along.”
“Thank you!” Hard emotion welled up in my chest, and I took a deep breath to choke it back. I spilled so frantically I had to repeat it three times. After thanking her so profusely she giggled, I hung up and went back inside the building.
Luke was standing with Cindy across the room. He had her pinned against a shelf and it seemed that his first impressions and memories of her had turned to bygones. I approached them, hoping I wasn’t interrupting. “I left a message with her old agency, so we can go when you’re ready.” I handed Cindy the phone and thanked her. She smiled and tucked it into her shirt.
I walked on ahead as Luke said his goodbyes and God knows what else to Cindy. When he finally showed up at the truck I had to ask. “What’s the story with that one? You sure changed your mind about how psycho she is.”
“She’s a psycho, all right, but she’s also good in the sheets, if you know what I mean. Besides, I told her I wasn’t going down the same old road this time.” He shook his head as he stared out the window.
“What road would that be? Is she clingy?”
“Yeah, she’s clingy, started naming our kids and planning our honeymoon the next morning.”
/> His disgust beckoned my laughter. “Well, good luck with that.”
“Well, I remembered she did this thing.” He cut me a glance, his smile spreading his lips wide and pinking his cheeks. “It might be fun.” He nudged my arm. “What about you, you haven’t ever gone through this much trouble over anyone, so I doubt your obsession with Sarah is just for fun.”
I raked my hand through my hair. “No. I think she’s the one. Dammit all to hell. I don’t know what I’ll do if she don’t call.”
“You’ll go after her,” said Luke. It grew quiet after that and though my brother was still beside me. I was totally alone with my thoughts of Sarah.
Chapter 12
Sarah
After hours of scrolling through submissions I felt as if my ears might start bleeding. Not one of the girls sounded distinct, their voices all bleeding together so badly that I had to double-check the names a few times and still wondered if it was just one girl with thirteen personalities. The male singers fell just as flat. There were a few that I could keep in mind for contacts, but only once I got through this situation with David.
Rowena was dead set on him and I knew it was just to put me in my place. My only hope was that if I went through the trouble, he’d still be interested in pursuing his dream. I couldn’t help but think it could have all been too good to be true and maybe his dreams were more in line with what his fiancée had said.
The day seemed to drag on and I still hadn’t worked up the courage to call Kinsey’s, and the number was burning a hole in my handbag. I couldn’t do it. Not yet.
I remembered him up on that stage, his voice booming out over the crowd, commanding their attention with his original lyrics. The songs in his set were amazing. I thought of one, the last one he’d sang that night, and hummed it softly. I closed my eyes and rested my head back against my chair.
“What song is that?” Rowena’s voice made me jump. She hovered over my chair and looked to the computer screen which was set to the last demo I heard.