by Cat Johnson
Tyler raised a brow when he saw Justin. “Just as we’re done cleaning stalls.”
“Rohn wants us all inside.” He turned to go back out before Tyler pissed him off.
“For what?” Tyler asked.
Justin paused and glanced back. “I don’t know. Some sort of meeting.”
“About what?” Colton repeated Tyler’s question almost exactly, but he needn’t have because Justin still didn’t have an answer.
“I don’t know.” He did leave this time.
Tyler and Colton knew the way to the house just fine on their own. He didn’t have to walk with them and endure more razzing or inane questions.
Back in the kitchen, Justin saw that Rohn was alone. He glanced up when Justin came through the back door.
“They’re right behind me.” He tipped his head toward the two cowboys he could hear stomping their boots on the mat outside the door.
“A’ight.” Rohn nodded and pulled out a chair from under the table.
“Bonnie better now?” Justin asked.
“Yeah. She looked like she was going to start bawling again so I suggested she get on the phone and call Phoenix.”
Justin supposed the phone was the next best thing to being there. In fact, he would call or text Phoenix himself, if they were going to have that kind of relationship. The kind where he and she talked all the time while they were apart, and did so much more when they were together . . . but they couldn’t have that.
At this point in his life, he couldn’t have any kind of relationship at all. Just work and home. That would be his existence and he’d learn to be okay with it.
The overwhelming presence of Tyler and Colton encroached upon Justin’s thoughts as they moved into the room and began questioning Rohn regarding the impromptu meeting.
“If you sit down, I’ll tell you.” Rohn frowned up at the pair. When they’d finally settled in chairs and stopped chattering, he said, “Now, I know you’ve all seen Phoenix—”
Tyler threw his hands in the air. “About time we talked about her.”
Lifting a brow, Rohn waited. When Tyler didn’t interrupt again, he continued, “You’re probably curious, so rather than have y’all speculating, I’m going to answer your questions now, and then I don’t want to hear another word about her.”
Rohn glanced around the group. Amazingly, Tyler and Colton both kept their mouths shut.
So did Justin. He was too involved in this to make any comments.
The whole thing had been risky. He’d taken a huge chance, trusting a complete stranger. Driving her all the way from Arizona. Delivering Rohn and Bonnie to her on a silver platter.
It had all worked out, but he was very aware that it could have gone another way. She could have been a wacko who’d lied to him about everything with the intention of hurting or taking advantage of his friends.
He pushed that pointless thought aside. She hadn’t been bad, and he’d helped unite a family. And all it would cost him was a few days of missing her. He figured that was about how long it would take for him to get her out of his mind.
Wasn’t that how these things worked? He’d only been with her for three days, so he’d get over her in that time, maybe less.
At least Justin hoped so, as Rohn launched into his explanation. “Phoenix is my daughter, and Bonnie is her mother. We were very young when she was born, so she was adopted and raised by a couple in California. Now that she’s an adult she’s going to be part of our lives. Any questions?”
Justin noticed there were a few gaping holes in Rohn’s explanation. But he wasn’t about to ask.
Apparently, neither were Tyler or Colton. Both kept quiet.
“All right, then.” Rohn planted his palms on the table and pushed up from his seat. “Back to work. I want to try bucking those new broncs today to see how they do.”
That was it, then, back to normal . . . or what was Justin’s new normal.
Work. Home. No Phoenix in his life. That was his life now, what he’d have to learn to accept.
He stood up too and felt the cell in his pocket vibrate. As Tyler and Colton headed out the door and Rohn turned toward the hallway, probably to go check on Bonnie, Justin pulled the phone out of his pocket.
It was a text from Phoenix.
On the bus. Not as fun as road trip with you. Wish you were here.
So did he, but he couldn’t say that. In fact, it was better if he didn’t respond at all. Yeah, it would hurt her now, but in the long run they’d both be better off. He shoved the phone back into his pocket and headed for the door.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Phoenix wrestled her bag out of her car and dropped it onto the ground. She slammed the trunk and turned toward the welcome sight of her apartment building.
Home sweet home. Finally. It had been a long trip, made even longer by the fact that Justin had all but ignored her the whole way home.
She’d texted him half a dozen times and so far had only gotten one response. If it hadn’t been for that one reply, she would have assumed the texts weren’t going through and probably would have called by now.
But that single-word response told her volumes. He was getting her texts. He just didn’t want to talk to her.
Good.
That was it. That was all she’d gotten from him. One word after she’d texted that she’d arrived in Phoenix, had gotten her car back and it seemed to be running fine.
No response to all the texts she’d sent from the bus. Nothing after the text telling him she was getting on the road back to California. Now, about five hours later, she held the cell in her hand and contemplated what to do next.
She’d promised back in Oklahoma, when he’d already been acting odd as they’d said good-bye, that she’d let him know when she was home. She’d keep her word and typed in two words.
Home safe.
Hitting Send, she refused to wait to see what, if anything, came back. She shoved the phone in her jeans and reached for the handle on her suitcase . . . and felt the cell vibrate.
Crap. She had to look. She wasn’t the type to be able to wait and never had been. Phoenix had been the kid who woke before dawn to tear into the gifts under the Christmas tree before her parents were awake. She was no different now.
That the response had come back so fast had to be good, right?
As she dropped the handle of the bag, her hope grew.
Maybe there was a good reason he’d been so unresponsive yesterday. Maybe, while she’d been bored on the bus and texting him, he’d just been really busy at work all day, and then so tired he went to bed early that night.
She pulled out the phone and read the text. It was a single letter this time.
K
Just when she thought it couldn’t get worse than his last one-word reply, she realized she’d been wrong. That one letter was like a slap in the face.
Maybe he was driving. Texting while driving was dangerous, but he might have risked it. That could be why he could only type one letter, because he had to get his eyes back on the road and his hands on the wheel.
And maybe pigs would start to fly.
She sighed. She always did this. Made excuses, kept hoping even when she probably shouldn’t . . .
But she’d believed Bonnie was her birth mother and that had worked out.
Drawing in a bracing breath, Phoenix decided she’d reach out one more time. She couldn’t let that one letter be the final communication, so she typed up what could be her last text to Justin.
Thank you for everything you did for me this week.
The ride. Your truck. Bonnie’s address. I couldn’t have found her and Rohn without you. I appreciate it and you.
She hit Send.
There. Now the ball was in his court. He could do with it what he chose, but at least she knew she’d reached out and left things the way she wanted them.
Refusing to wait around for the reply that might not come, she shoved the phone into her pocket one more time and grabbed
her suitcase.
It had been a very long day and night on the bus, followed by the drive from Arizona to California. Thank goodness Kim had talked her through a substantial part of that time. Together, they had worked out how to tackle the next problem facing her—telling her parents.
Kim had said that because Phoenix’s parents loved her and always would, they’d be happy that she was happy.
Phoenix hoped Kim was right.
Getting dumped by Justin was one thing, but Phoenix couldn’t handle having her parents angry with her, too. That would be more than she could bear, and all just as a new school year was about to begin.
She sure had some shitty timing when it came to making major life decisions such as seeking out her long-lost birth parents and getting involved in a new—and failed—relationship.
Her apartment looked just as she’d left it. Homey but messy, it was a very welcome sight.
After hotel living for days, and then a night spent in a bus seat, she would appreciate sleeping in her own bed. But before she could indulge in even a much-needed nap, she had to call her parents. She had ditched another phone call from her mother while she’d been on the bus yesterday, figuring it was better to let her mother assume she was busy than to lie about where she was again.
Besides, how could she have explained all the background sounds that could have tipped her mother off? The people. The road noise. A giant bus filled with travelers wasn’t exactly a controlled environment.
Unpacking could wait. So could laundry. This phone call couldn’t.
Dumping her bags inside the door, Phoenix pulled her phone out of her pocket. She reprimanded herself for noticing there was no reply from Justin and dialed her parents’ house number before she let herself obsess over it as she walked to the sofa.
Falling heavily onto the cushions, Phoenix wished she could pull out a pint of ice cream, put on a chick flick, and forget about the world. At least for a little while.
Sadly, that wasn’t in the cards. She had something else to do.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Mom.”
“Hi. I tried calling you yesterday.”
“Yeah, I saw the missed call. Sorry.” Phoenix left the apology without explanation. No more making up bogus excuses. “I need to talk to you and Daddy about something.”
Her mother hesitated. “Okay. Phoenix, are you all right?”
“Everything’s fine. I just want to talk to you both together in person. Can I come over this afternoon after he gets home from work?”
“Sure. Come over for dinner. I’m making fajitas.”
This conversation was going to be hard, but at least she’d be well fed. “Sounds good. I’ll see you later. I love you.”
“I love you, too.” There was another pause. “Phoenix, are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah, I’m good. ’Bye, Mom.”
Phoenix disconnected the call and drew in a huge breath. There were still a few hours before she had to go to her parents’ house. She should take a nap. She hadn’t gotten the best rest dozing in her seat on the bus last night. And the drive alone had been enough to wear her out.
But there was a restlessness inside her. She knew she’d never be able to nap, so she scrolled through the numbers on her phone and dialed Kim.
When her friend answered, Phoenix said, “Any chance you’re free?”
“Yup. I’m free as a bird until that calendar page flips and we have to report for the start of classes. Ugh, I just depressed myself thinking about it.”
“Can you come over so we can be depressed together?”
“Sure. Are you okay?”
Phoenix let out a breath as she felt the full force of everything weighing heavily on her mind. “No.”
“All righty. Then I’ll pick up a bottle of wine on my way.”
She wasn’t sure she should be drinking before this conversation with her parents. And between the lack of sleep and the depressing fact that Justin had pretty much blown her off for no apparent reason, she was already feeling close to tears without alcohol.
In spite of all that, Phoenix said, “That sounds good. Thanks.”
Chapter Thirty-Seven
“Dang it, it’s colder than a witch’s tit out there.” Colton came into the kitchen accompanied by a gust of cold wind.
From his seat at the kitchen table, Justin cocked a brow at Colton’s colorful metaphor. He waited for him to close the door before saying, “It’s December. What the hell did you expect?”
Colton screwed up his face unhappily and reached for a coffee mug in the cabinet. “Doesn’t mean I have to like it.”
The door opened again and Tyler pushed through. “God, I really hate shoveling snow and now I have to do it at four different places.”
Tyler took off his hat and knocked the snow from it before planting it back on his head. “I hope there’s coffee.”
Justin nodded. “Yup. I put on a fresh pot when I got here. And Bonnie put out the leftover Christmas cookies for us.”
That got Colton’s attention. Mug in hand, he came over to the table and eyed the open tin. “Any of the ones with the jam in the middle left?”
“No. I ate the last one of those.” Justin laughed at Colton’s scowl. “Sorry. You should have gotten here earlier.”
“How the hell early did you get here that you had time to make coffee and eat all the good cookies?”
Justin shrugged. “About twenty minutes ago, I guess.”
Because his life for the past few months had consisted of nothing more than going to work and then going home, with an hour or so a day spent in the garage lifting weights to try to keep some semblance of sanity, it wasn’t like he had any reason to be late.
“You trying to make us look bad?” Tyler asked.
“You don’t need me for that.” Justin grinned at his own little joke. His life was so uneventful, it didn’t take all that much to amuse him nowadays.
Colton grabbed a peanut butter and chocolate cookie from the tin and glanced at Tyler. “Why are you shoveling snow at four houses?”
“I had to clear the drive over at Janie’s. Then I ran home and did my parents’ driveway. While I was there I saw the neighbor’s place wasn’t done. The old man’s still using a walker after that stroke he had, so I did the driveway and the walk and wheelchair ramp for them. And now we’re going to have to shovel here.”
“Tough being a saint, huh?” Justin hid his smirk behind his coffee mug as Tyler shot him an unhappy glance. He didn’t feel too bad teasing Tyler. Their area rarely got as much snow as they’d gotten from the last storm so it wasn’t like Tyler had to suffer often.
“Yeah, yeah. Shut up.”
“At least you get paid for shoveling here at Rohn’s. That eases the pain a bit, no?” Colton asked between bites of cookie.
Tyler scowled. “A little.”
The sound of footsteps on the stairs alerted them to someone’s approach. Judging by the heavy step and boots, Justin wasn’t at all surprised when Rohn came through the kitchen doorway. What was a surprise was how exhausted he looked.
“You just waking up?” Colton asked, eyeing Rohn.
“Yeah.” Rohn rubbed a hand over his face.
“What’s up? Bonnie keep you up late last night?” Tyler waggled his brows, but by the look of Rohn, tired and cranky, Justin figured they’d all better be on their best behavior.
Rohn raised a brow at Tyler as he moved toward the coffeemaker. “Yes, she had me up late, but not in the perverted way you’re insinuating, boy. She decided we needed to shampoo all the upstairs carpets before Phoenix’s visit. If they were gonna dry in time, she figured it had to happen last night.”
Colton looked from Rohn to Tyler. “Between Tyler having to shovel extra snow for his girl and you having to play janitor for yours, you’re making me glad I’m single. Right, Justin?”
The sound of Colton saying his name caught Justin’s attention, which had previously been completely focused on Phoenix and t
he impending visit Rohn had mentioned. He knew she’d planned on visiting, but he hadn’t realized it would be so soon.
Justin looked at Colton but had no idea what he’d been asking him.
Figuring if it was important he’d ask again, Justin ignored Colton and turned his attention to Rohn. “When is Phoenix coming?”
“Tomorrow. We’re picking her up from the airport, which is another reason I was up half the night. Bonnie’s obsessing over the weather and worried about flights.”
“She staying here?” Justin asked, trying to sound casual but feeling anything but.
He might not have seen her in close to four months, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t thought about her, or the decision he made to ease his way out of her life. He hadn’t done such a great job. He hadn’t texted or called, but he also couldn’t bring himself to delete her number. He still had it saved in the contacts list on his phone.
It twisted his heart just a tiny bit every time he had to scroll past her name to get to a number he needed.
“Of course she’s staying here,” Rohn said.
Justin’s head was spinning. If she was here, he’d definitely run into her. How would he act? How would she?
Unaware of Justin’s turmoil, Rohn continued, “Bonnie wouldn’t have it any other way. We’ve got the guest room. Tammy has room at her house, too, but we want to keep Phoenix close. She can only stay for the week, and then she has to get back. School starts up again the Monday after New Year’s.”
“Rohn?” Bonnie’s voice came from the direction of the staircase.
“Yes, dear?” he called back as the rest of them sat by, smirking at his compliance.
“Can you come up and help me with the mattress in the guest room?”
“What in the world are you doing with the mattress?” he called back.