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By the time I finish cleaning out the horse stalls and laying down a fresh bed of shavings, Rhett is standing at his car, adjusting the sling on his arm.
“You okay?” I ask, peeling off my gloves. “You didn’t hurt yourself, did you?”
“No, I didn’t hurt myself.” He rolls his eyes. “You sound like my mother.”
“Your mother is a very smart woman. I happen to be very fond of Vivian, so I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“She’s fond of you too,” he says.
We stare at each other as our history swirls around us.
I can’t do anything but stare into Rhett’s eyes and remember how it felt to be with him.
To kiss him.
To touch him.
To be loved by him.
But those feelings came with a heavy price, and I have to stay strong.
He finally clears his throat and breaks the spell. “I watered the dogs, gave them each a scoop of food, and let them run for a little bit.”
“Thank you, that’s a huge help.”
Stuffing his hand in his pocket, Rhett retrieves his keys. “I should get going. Don’t want to be late for my first PT appointment.”
“Good luck.”
“Thanks.”
He opens the car door and turns to look at me.
“Mo, I’m sorry about your dad,” he says softly. “I knew he had a stroke, but I didn’t find out until last night how badly he was affected. If I’d known, I would’ve come back, even after…”
His lingering words slice through me, hitting something deep in my gut, and I have to stop for a second to catch my breath. He doesn’t want to say it out loud; I can tell by the heartache on his face.
“Even after I told you I slept with Charlie.” I choose my words carefully because I promised myself that moving forward, I’d always speak the truth. No more lies, even if they’re meant to protect myself or someone I love.
“Thank you, Rhett. That means a lot.”
“See you tomorrow, Mo.”
I tilt my head. “Tomorrow?”
“I told you I’d come by Friday.”
“Oh, right.” So much shit has happened in the last twenty-four hours, I completely forgot. “You don’t have to.”
“I know, but I want to.”
Monroe
I force myself to walk across the yard before I glance back toward Rhett. His vehicle nears the end of the lane and stops. I hold my breath, waiting to see what he’s going to do, secretly hoping that he forgot something—me, maybe—and would have to turn around.
Unfortunately, that’s not the case. Rhett flicks on his blinker and pulls onto the highway. A second later Tess’s little red car turns down the lane.
Tess Walker moved to town a few years back. She runs the floral shop on Broadway, a few businesses down from Dirty Dicks, and volunteers here during her free time. And on Sundays so I can have a day off. So, pretty much, she’s an angel. She’s become an integral part of my life and she’s a regular on the rare occasions Claire and I manage a night out.
