He blew out a breath. I braced for his disappointment. It wouldn’t be the first time I’d felt the scalding heat of his ire, and it probably wouldn’t be the last.
“Well, I guess you better start trainin’ then, you ain’t in ridin’ shape. And youwilltell us when you ride. We wanna be there.” I’d never know how he could sound so harsh while his actual words were anything but. He might not understand, but I could always depend on them to support me. To believe in me, even when I didn’t believe in myself.
A soft, appreciative smile tugged on my lips. Holding out my hand, I said, “Thanks, Dad.”
His strong, calloused one gripped mine tightly as he pulled me into a hug. My throat tightened. I could count on one hand how many times he’d hugged me. He just wasn’t that kind of guy. So these random bursts of emotion were just as unexpected as they were meaningful.
Mama made a little gasp. “Huxson…” Oh God, was she crying? “Are you…are you sure?”
I pulled out of dad’s grip and aimed my words toward her. “I am, Mama.”
A sigh and then, “what changed?”
“She came in.” My voice turned thick. I rubbed the back of my neck. “She makes me want to be better. She helped chase away the darkness.” I thought of her words on that first night we’d met. They’d never been more true. “She breathed life back into me.”
Another little gasp from Mama as she wrapped me in a hug. “Oh, Huxson. I like this girl. How long have y’all been together?”
“About a week,” I admitted with a shrug.
I expected her reservation, or at the very least surprise, but I didn’t expect her next words. “Well, if this girl’s done that much for you in a week, I can’t even imagine what good she’ll do in a couple months, a couple years from now.”
I smiled softly. “I intend to find out, Mama.”
Chapter thirty-seven
Silence
Quinn
Every moment I spentwith Hux, I learned something new about him. Like, how he grew out his hair when he was a teen so Walker could play hair salon with him. Or that he’d been massively understating his artistic abilities when he’d told me he drew as a kid. He’d won multiple art contests at school, apparently, and had even been awarded a scholarship that he turned down for his rodeo career. Each revelation added another deep, complex layer to him that made me love him all the more.
We sat in the dining room around a massive dark-stained wooden table. Mr. Lane took up the head, while Mrs. Lane and Walker sat to his left, Hux and I to the right. Dinner had been delicious—fried chicken, fresh bread, roasted veggies, and mashed potatoes. But dessert had been divine. Hux's mom might be the best cook I’d ever met.
“You want another slice, sweetie?” Miss Dotty asked me.
I smiled, but shook my head. “Thank you, but I’m okay. If I have another piece I might go into a food coma. They’re both absolutely delicious, by the way,” I added with a giggle.
She smiled, scooping the slice she’d been poised to give me onto her husband’s plate instead. He opened his mouth to argue, but a single look from her and he sighed before digging into his third piece.
I guess there were some battles not worth fighting.
“So, Quinn,” Hux’s mom asked, “how did you and Hux meet?”
“Oh.” I let out a nervous laugh, remembering the incident in the grocery store. “It’s actually kind of funny, I guess. We met twice, you could say.”
“Twice?” She offered me a quizzical look.
Hux chuckled, placing a hand on my thigh beneath the table. A shiver went through me. “The first time she didn’t actually talk to me—well, not really. I was in H-E-B and I heard this girl singin’ from the aisle over. I just…” I looked at him, noticing the soft look on his face. “I had to find her.” He squeezed my leg.
I took over the story, adding, “I hadn’t realized anyone in the aisle was with me and I turned around and found him standing there watching me, or so I thought. I waved at him, not realizing—” I paused, “Well, you know, and I thought he was offended by my singing so I basically ran away.”
“What?” Miss Dotty's eyes twinkled with excitement. “Did you chase after her, Hux?”
“I mean… I tried. But I didn’t get far.”
“Well then how—” she started, but Hux cut her off.
“Turns out her dad is the guy who bought Broken Creek.”
