"What are you..." he starts, but halts when he sees my face. "Is everything OK?"
"Hayes is hurt, and I really messed up." I wrap the ice bag in the towel before taking off like a banshee back through the house and out the front door.
"What? What happened?" Josh follows me onto the porch where I freeze, looking around the empty yard.
"He's gone."
"Well, I hate to break it to you, sis. But shearers aren’t the most reliable guys to date. They’re like Christmas—fun while it’s the season, but quickly gone until next year.”
“What?” I look at my brother like he has two heads. “What are you talking about?”
“Shearers.” He gives me a shrug. “They’re not boyfriend material.”
“You’ve dated one?”
“What? No! I just heard is all. Jeez, Kym. I’m just trying to be a supportive big brother here.”
I touch my hand to my forehead. “OK. But that’s not what the problem is here. Hayes was sitting there on the ground. I’d hurt him, so I ran inside to get this. But now..."
"He's gone," Josh adds in.
"Yeah." I sigh.He'll probably never want to even speak to me again.
"And how did he hurt himself, exactly?"
My hand goes over my eyes now. "That's something I'm taking to my grave, Josh."
"OK," he says, extending out the sound. "Well, I'm guessing his injuries weren't life threatening, so I'm sure he's fine taking care of himself. These shearers are tough as nails. You know that."
"Yeah. I just..." I look down at the icepack in my hand. "I liked him, Josh. And I never like anyone."
"I know."
"I blew it."
"You didn't blow it."
"I did, Josh." I lower my hands from my face. "Oh my god. I'm so embarrassed."
"Listen, without any details, I don't really know how to console you here. But maybe just give him a minute to recover from whatever it is you did to him and tell him you're sorry. Take him the rest of the pie. He seemed to like that a lot. Just…don’t expect to marry the guy. They’re only here for two weeks, Kym."
"OK. I get it." An ice pack and some comfort pie. I can do that. "Thanks, Josh."
He smiles and pulls me into a one-armed hug. "What are big brothers for?"
HAYES
The other shearers were busy doing their own thing when I hobbled back into the bunkhouse, heading straight for the showers to both make sure my manhood wasn't stretched out and bruised—not that any man would ever complain about an extra inch or two—and to wash away the shame of failure.
That’s what smarts the most. I can't believe I let her fall.
Kym is the first woman I've felt this kind of interest in in...forever. And the first thing I did when it seemed she might feel something too was fail to catch her when the dog bowled her over. Some protector I'd make. I deserved more than a set of squeezed balls.I didn't even check if she was OK...
"Dickhead," I mutter to myself as I shut off the water and a grab a towel to dry off. The hot shower felt cleansing, sure. But it didn't wash away the fact that I feel like I let the prettiest girl I've ever met down tonight. I'll need to try to make amends.
"Evans," one guy calls out as I walk from the bathrooms to my bunk room. "There's someone—"
"Not now, man," I interrupt, still walking with a slight limp. "I've got a splitting headache and I just need to rest up for the morning."
