“I’ll be out in a bit to help,” I say, the words feeling stiff and formal.
She nods again, then her eyes soften with something that looks uncomfortably like concern. “Are you okay?”
I stare at her, a bitter laugh threatening to escape. “What do you think?”
She points, her finger hovering in the air. “I meant. Um. Your shoulder?”
I look down. There’s a nasty purplish bruise blooming on my shoulder, a souvenir from my fall last night. I must have missed it.
I shrug, a movement that sends a sharp ache through the joint. “I’m okay. Just had a small fall.”
“Okay,” she says quietly. She turns to walk away, then pauses at the end of the hall, her back to me. “For the record,” she says, without turning around, “I’m sorry.”
I don’t get to ask what she’s sorry for. The wedding? The cattle? Last night?
She’s gone, disappearing before I can form the words.
I curse myself, my fists clenching at my sides. I get dressed, pulling on a clean pair of jeans and a flannel shirt, my movements jerky and angry.
I head to the barn, the morning air cool against my skin. I find her and Clara near the holding pen, their heads close together, whispering.
Clara is wearing a bright yellow raincoat and a pair of bright green boots, a splash of color against the muted tones of the ranch.
They look up when they see me, their conversation cutting off abruptly.
“Has Tex been here yet?” I ask, my voice clipped.
They shake their heads. “Not yet,” Sedona says.
“Damn it,” I mutter. “I’ll head to the south fence and find him and Jasper. They’re probably checking the posts after the rain last night.”
I’ve just walked out of the barn when I hear footsteps behind me. I turn, expecting my ex, but it’s Clara. She jabs a finger at my chest, her eyes flashing with anger.
“My best friend just lost her father,” she says, sounding fierce. “The only family she ever had. She’s having a hard enough time without you being an asshole to her.”
“Stay out of it, Clara,” I warn, and my voice is dangerously low.
“No,” she says, standing her ground. “I’m not going to stay out of it. She is here to help. We’re here to help. But you have to be a lot nicer, or else I will take my best friend away from this town and make sure you never get to see her again.”
“Stop it, Clara.” Sedona’s voice cuts through the tension. She’s standing there, watching our interaction, her face pale.
I look at them both, at Clara’s fierce protectiveness and Sedona’s quiet hurt, and something inside me snaps.
I turn to leave, but I can’t help myself. I have to have the last word.
“Your best friend didn’tjustlose the only family she had,” I say, the words dripping with venom. “That was a choice she made years ago.”
I don’t wait for a reaction. I just walk away, my boots crunching on the gravel, the sound loud in the sudden silence.
I walk away just like Sedona did all those years ago, leaving a mess of broken things behind me.
“Asshole,” Clara says, loud enough for me to hear.
But I don’t stop. I just keep walking.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Sedona
