by Lea Hart
“More than I imagined,” she answered as she pushed the horse’s lips up and started checking its teeth. “Can’t believe you came home in one piece. Your favorite stories growing up were always about men giving their lives in battle. I thought when you became a SEAL, you’d find your glory in the desert of Yemen or Afghanistan and come home in a box.”
“Disappointed I didn’t?”
Laughing, she shook her head. “Not at all, ’cause now I have a shot at torturing you and doing the job myself.”
The sound of her laughter was dark and inviting, making the craving deep in his bones hard, if not impossible, to ignore. A ton of weight disappeared as he watched her bright-blue eyes spark with mischief, and he knew that keeping company with Emily was going straight to the top of his to-do list. “Maybe I cheated death so I could come home and do the same thing to you.”
Sliding her hand to her hip, she gave him a smile. “Now how’s that possible, since I’m the one with the whip?”
More weight disappeared, and he let out a laugh. “Missed the hell out of you, Stitches.”
“That’s hard to believe since I haven’t heard a word from you since you left for college.”
“I knew if I kept in touch, I never would’ve been able to stay way.”
Confusion clouded her eyes, and he knew the sooner he could manage the overdue explanation he owed her, the better.
“Now that we’re going to be around one another from time to time, I hope we have a chance to get reacquainted and talk about what happened all those years ago.”
Emily stroked the horse’s nose and then wrinkled her own. “I’m more than happy to leave the past where it is. I also don’t know that I’m interested in keeping company with someone who used to tug my pigtails.” She pulled her long braid over her shoulder and twirled the end. “You also insulted me within a minute of meeting and told me I looked like a horse.”
“I can’t believe you remember that.”
“It would be impossible not to, since it was the first thing you ever said to me. My sweet little innocent heart was all but crushed by your mean words.” Emily pressed her hands to her chest and sighed. “It’s a miracle that I survived the experience.”
He rocked back on the heel of his boot and let out a chuckle. “You hauled off and punched me in the stomach and then told everyone I smelled like a stinky cow, so you weren’t crushed for long.” He lifted her silky braid. “I thought your honey-blond hair was the prettiest thing I’d ever seen, and my horse was my favorite thing, so…”
She blinked. “You trying to tell me you were being nice?”
“No, since I hated your know-it-all attitude and prissy ways and wanted nothing more than to put you in your place.” Sensing a shift in the energy, he leaned in and heard her sharp intake of breath. “Do you still know best, Emily?”
Her eyes widened…and darkened. Yes. Countless things had changed in the years they spent apart, but the current of energy they’d always seemed to share was the same. Maybe even a bit more potent, if he wasn’t mistaken.
After a long, tense moment during which Rick seriously contemplated kissing the hell out of that sweet mouth, Emily smoothed out his shirt and stepped back. “Not as often as I used to.”
“Well, that’s good news.” Maybe he’d finally get the chance to prove to her that he knew best. About them. He let her braid slip through his fingers and then traced the small scar on her chin. “I never thought you’d follow me into that fallen-down shack to see if the ghost sightings were true.”
She lifted her chin. “You suggested I wasn’t brave enough to confront the apparitions.
Had I known the floor was all but rotted, I would’ve kept my big mouth shut and stayed home.” She tagged the lead rope off the tie bar and held it out.
“Live and learn. That’s all we can do.” He took the rope she offered and felt the mare press her head into his hand. “Patience, girl. All the good things in life take time.”
Emily gave him a world-class eye roll, and he threw her a cocksure smile in response, knowing the time he’d spent getting his mind and soul back together had been worth it. They were two hard surfaces that ground against each other, creating the type of resistance that produced a spark capable of ignition.
Friction.
Sometimes it worked in their favor and other times, not so much.
He took one last look at the woman who’d never left his mind for a day and then led the horse back to the barn, knowing that it was time to see if that friction could ignite a new spark.
The kind that would make them give up the squabbling and give into the loving they’d always danced around.
Chapter Two
The next afternoon, Emily walked into the Beehive salon and waved to her best friend. “Am I late for my haircut?”
Vanessa looked at her watch and nodded. “A little, but I’d rather have you showered than on time.”
Weaving her way through the Saturday afternoon crowd, she gave Vanessa a squeeze before collapsing into the chair. “I was castrating bulls all morning, so the shower took a little longer than usual.”
“Don’t say that too loudly because you could have more than one woman asking you to take care of their husband.”
She looked into the mirror and grinned. “Some of the ladies have men at home who are more than deservin’.”
Vanessa scrunched her nose and then grabbed a brush, pulling it through Emily’s wet hair. “Maybe we shouldn’t be talking about that before we go to the boot scoot tonight.”
Groaning, she closed her eyes. She was not feeling fit for interacting with men, not since her encounter with Rick. With her luck, he’d show up and spend the whole night giving her hell. And why did that sound so much better than it should? “Do we have to?”
“Yes!”
“Why don’t we go over to Guadalajara’s and get some margaritas and fajitas, instead?”
Vanessa set the brush down. “Or we could just curl into a ball, let our eggs die, and give up on ever having anyone to spend a lazy Sunday morning with. Pancakes and wild sex can’t be found unless we get out there and make a little effort.”
She was not thinking about wild sex. Not when only one man was on her mind, no matter how hard she tried to shake him. “How much effort we talkin’ about?”
“A little lipstick, a cute skirt, and your red lizard boots.”
“I guess that’s something I can manage.”
“It’s time, chica,” Vanessa said quietly. “We need to get in the game.”
She tilted her head forward as Nessa draped her in a cape and frowned. “I’m not all that excited about jumping back in but can see by the look on your face that I don’t have much choice.”
“I’m more than willing to drag you out of the house kicking and screaming,” Vanessa said with a smile. “Though I’d prefer not to.”
Wiggling around, she let out a sigh. “Fine.”
“Sit still,” Vanessa instructed as she pulled out her scissors.
“Remember, only a trim.”
“We both know it doesn’t matter what I do, since you don’t bother with more than a braid or a ponytail.”
“I can’t have my hair flying when I’m elbow deep in a cow’s uterus helping get a calf safely into this world.”
Vanessa shivered and then tilted Em’s head down. “It is no wonder Heath broke up with you if that’s the sort of thing you said over supper.”
“He didn’t break up with me,” she said quietly. “We mutually agreed to part ways.”
“And good riddance, since there was never a more boring man on the planet. Bless his heart. How you listened to him drone on about his glory years in college and strategy for coaching the high school team on the regular is nothing I’m likely to ever understand.”
Emily tried to lift her head but couldn’t since Ne
ssa pushed it down to keep her in place. Which was probably a blessing since there wasn’t much she could say to refute her words. The man wasn’t the best conversationalist in the world, but he’d been kind and easygoing.
Everything Rick Blakely was not.
And there she went thinking about Rick again.
“Word on the ranch is that Aunt Celeste is trying to match you and Cody up. Is that true or just cowboys getting the gossip wrong?” Vanessa asked as she slid the scissors through Emily’s hair. “Because if it is, I’m going to be bummed since I wanted to take him for a spin myself.”
She waved her hand and snorted. “He’s all yours.” Looking in the mirror, she let out a small breath. “Rick chased him off, and I don’t need to start a war.”
The sound of scissors hitting the floor mixed with Vanessa’s intake of breath made her want to keep her eyes glued to the floor.
“Is that so?” Vanessa said as she slowly bent over and picked up her scissors and then shoved them in the container with the blue water. “Chica, are you telling me that a day has passed and this is the first I’m hearing about you and Rick’s first encounter since the summer after junior year?”
“Well…”
“Oh, hell to the no!” Vanessa yelled. “Tu eres loco if you think I’ll stand for that meirda.”
“I was just about to mention it but didn’t want you distracted.”
“As if,” Vanessa said as she stepped back. “Come to think of it, I didn’t see my cousin at all this morning. Did you wound him and leave him in a ditch?”
Sitting up straight, she threw her shoulders back. “We did nothing more than trade our usual barbs and insults. We didn’t yell or raise our voices since we’re adults and can control our baser tendencies.” Though if red-hot attraction for the man was considered a baser tendency, her control was nonexistent.
Vanessa raised an eyebrow. “Did you get kicked in the head by a bull this week? Because nothing you’re saying is making sense.”
“No!”
“Have you been taken over by evil spirits?” Tugging the neckline of the cape down, she pulled out the small cross Em wore. “No, you’re still protected.”
She batted her friend’s hand away and crossed her arms. “I’m a thirty-year-old woman and can behave maturely.”
Vanessa leaned over and patted her hand. “Of course you can.”
Slumping down, she let out a groan. “It’s not like I have a choice. Ms. Celeste made it clear to my employer that I was the only one to call on the ranch and take care of the horses and small animals, so misbehavin’ is not an option.”
“Ohhhhh,” Vanessa said as she pulled out a new pair of scissors and pushed Em back in the chair.
“What does that mean?”
“My aunt isn’t trying to match you up with Cody—it’s Rick she wants to get married off.”
“No way,” Emily answered confidently. “She made it very clear that she didn’t think he was in any way a candidate.”
“Never underestimate Celeste Blakely. The woman would never be so obvious. There are generals who wish they had a tenth of her skills in planning a battle.”
“I can’t argue with that.”
“Clearly, she thinks Rick is finally ready.”
“For what?” she asked, watching Nessa’s brows knock together.
“Stepping back into life. All the gossip you’ve heard is true, and he had to get his heart, mind, and body mended before she’d ever consider putting you two together. The last op he was on in Ramadi almost broke him, and the only company he’s been fit for is the cows.”
“Is that why I’ve never see him in town?” Emily asked.
“He comes to town,” Vanessa said. “He has breakfast with his daddy and the other old codgers at the Double J restaurant a couple of times a week.”
“Oh.” Her head was pushed down once again, and she did her best not to fidget.
“So what are you going to do about Aunt Celeste?”
Emily closed her eyes. “Nothing. The more I make a fuss, the more effort she’ll put into it. I doubt he has any interest in me, so I’ll let him be the one to disabuse his mama of the idea we’re compatible. All I can do is show up at the ranch and do my job, being as professional as I can.”
“And if that doesn’t work, you can see if all the fighting you two spent a decade on was just a placeholder for the inevitable love story you’re bound for.”
Emily cut her eyes over and frowned. “Did you hit your head this week?”
“No, just speaking the truth.”
“Nothing truthful about those words,” Emily muttered as she closed her eyes again. “When I was over there, he was just as arrogant and twice as disagreeable. He poked at me from the moment I stepped out of the truck and didn’t stop until I got back in.”
“It’s the adult version of tugging on your pigtails. He’s not sure if he wants to put himself out there, so he acts like a jerk. That way, he doesn’t have to worry about you rejecting him.”
Emily snorted. “Well, at least he’s got that part right.”
“You’re just not ready to open your mind to the possibility,” Vanessa said firmly. “People don’t fight and fuss with those they don’t care about. And since y’all were too young to do anything about all the intense feelings before, arguing and insulting was the only option.”
Emily gave her friend a faint smile and wondered if it was time to disclose how she and Rick worked out some of those feelings that last spring they’d spent together. “How come you never shared this theory before?”
“Time had to pass,” Vanessa stated flatly. “His behavior right before he left was crap, and nothing was going to heal that wound except years clicking by on the calendar.”
“Maybe,” she muttered as she thought about the two parallel stories that defined that time in her life. Her family, friends, and the whole town for that matter knew one story, and she and Rick knew another. Not wanting to think about the possibility of anyone ever knowing both, she focused on the whir of blow dryers, the chatter of the women catching up on gossip, and the sound of her heart beating heavily against her chest.
She decided that denial and avoidance were going to become her new best friends and folded her hands, praying the inevitable collision of the past and present wasn’t imminent. Liking the sense of relief the strategy provided, she vowed to keep her head down, avoid him as best she could, and tell her stupid, foolish heart that some dreams were best left alone.
…
Rick looked out the window of his best friend, Jack’s, truck as they drove through downtown Victoria. “Why do you always take the long way to the barber shop?”
“No reason.”
“My ass,” Rick said as he crossed his arms. “You realize driving past a woman’s place of business every time we come to town isn’t the way to get her interested.”
Jack scowled. “Considering the only significant relationship you’ve ever had was fourteen years ago and lasted less than four months, I’m not taking any of your advice.”
“What the hell are you talkin’ about?”
“The three and half months you spent not fighting with Emily senior year was the only real relationship you’ve ever had, as far as I can tell.”
“I’ve been with a lot of women over the years and don’t know why you’re making shit up.”
“Fucking women whose only goal is to bed a SEAL is not a relationship,” Jack said as he slowed down in front of the shopping center the Beehive was located in. “You do understand that, right?”
“Of course I do. And for the record, I’d rather have a woman want me for my trident and not the four hundred and fifty thousand acres filled with cattle and oil my family owns.”
“Whatever lets you sleep at night.”
“Pull in,” Rick said.
“Wh
at?”
“You heard me. Pull in and show me you’re worth listening to. Park the damn truck, drag your ass into that hair salon, and ask the woman out on a goddamn date.”
“No way,” Jack sputtered, running his hand over his buzz cut. “Men aren’t allowed in there. Dark, unspeakable things happen, and I don’t need to see them.”
“I knew you were too scared. A bunch of women getting their hair and nails done is too much for a man who spent years in the NFL taking down men twice his size.”
“Fuck you. I’m not scared of Vanessa and never have been,” he grumbled as he pulled into the shopping center and slid into a parking space. He opened his truck door and hooked his thumb over his shoulder. “I see Emily’s truck over there. Bet the big bad SEAL doesn’t have the balls to walk in there with me.”
Rick shoved himself out of the truck and gave his friend a big smile. “There ain’t nothing I’m afraid of, and that includes anything to do with Emily Conner.”
“Your eye twitched, so I know you’re lying.”
“For your information, Em and I had a real nice conversation yesterday, and I think she may be ready to—”
“Admit her undying love and take your cranky ass on?” Jack finished with a snort.
“No, but who knows what may be possible down the road?”
“Guess you really are on the right side of things if you’re saying something so optimistic.”
“Seems so,” Rick said as he thought about how much he’d enjoyed spending the afternoon with Emily. He ran his hand through his hair. “Maybe we should come back after we see the barber?”
“No way,” Jack barked. “It’s time.”
“For what?” Rick asked as he watched several women enter the Beehive.
“To face destiny once and for all.”
He watched his friend tuck his shirt in and then head across the parking lot. “Shit.” Scraping his hand over his face, he let out sigh and knew he couldn’t let Jack go in alone. A man never made his buddy go into combat solo, and Saturday afternoon at the most popular salon in Victoria was a battle space that couldn’t be underestimated. “Fuck me,” he grumbled as he caught up with Jack on the sidewalk in front of the building. “This is a terrible idea.”