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It’s for her. Her happiness is more important to me than my own.
I’ll do anything to make her happy.
Anything.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Ashley
I wake up tousled in Dale’s comforter. I reach for him…and find only an empty bed. Penny sits beside the bed, her tongue hanging out.
I pet her soft head. “Morning, girl. Where’s your daddy?”
I rise and pad to the bathroom. Afterward, I walk out, still naked, and put on the shirt Dale was wearing last night. I want to feel the soft cotton and wrap myself in his scent.
But it’s not on the floor where he left it.
Okay. Maybe he’s just anal about his laundry or something…
Except he’s not. He’s not into tidiness or his bed would have been made.
So maybe he just put the shirt back on. After all, his jeans are gone as well. He went out to the kitchen to start some coffee…
But his boots… They’re also gone.
A lump rises in my throat, and I instinctively look toward the night table. Nothing except a box of tissues and an old-fashioned clock radio. It’s six a.m. Dale’s an early riser, but this is ridiculous.
He’s gone.
He left me again. Alone. Alone in his fucking house. Alone with his dog.
She’s probably hungry. “Come on, Penny,” I say, leaving the bedroom and heading toward the kitchen. “Let’s get you some breakfast.”
Take care of the dog. That’s what I’ll do. It’ll keep my mind where it needs to be. Keep the tears at bay that are already threatening to pool in the bottom of my eyes. I check the pantry for a bag of kibble or something, but he must be out. Now what? I open the refrigerator. A plastic container sits on the top shelf. It’s marked Penny.
Dale makes his own dog food?
Warmth and love threaten to flow into me, but I stop them. He’s crossed the line this time, leaving me alone in his own home. I grab the container and pour two cups of its contents into Penny’s stainless-steel bowl. While she gobbles down her food, I refresh her water.
Once she’s done, I open the back door to let her out, but I go out with her to check the gate. I’m not going through that again.
She does her business, and I bring her back inside. Then I dress quickly and head back to the main house.
I enter quietly, hoping no one will notice me, until—
“Is that you, Ashley?”
Jade’s voice. My cheeks are hot as hell, and I know I must be about twelve shades of crimson. But I can’t ignore her. “It’s me.” I walk into the kitchen.
“Grab some coffee.” She smiles, gesturing to the pot on the counter. “Oops. Sorry. I mean orange juice. Darla’s off today.”
All I really want to do is go to my room and cry my eyes out, but I can’t be rude to Jade. None of this is her fault. I paste on a smile as best I can, grab the juice out of the refrigerator, and pour myself a glass.
“Where’s Talon?” I ask.
“Already in the orchard. Harvest is a busy time around here, as you know.”
I nod and sit down next to her.
“Can I make you some breakfast?”
God, no. If I eat I may puke. “No, thank you,” I reply.
She doesn’t drop her gaze from mine, but she says nothing more. Is she waiting for me to explain why I’m coming in at six a.m.? She’ll be waiting a long time.
Finally Jade speaks. “Talon says he had a nice conversation with you last night at Murphy’s.”
I nod. “Yeah. Your husband’s a good man.”
“He is that.” She sips her coffee. “Listen, Ashley—”
I gesture her to say nothing more. “I can’t. I can’t…talk about it.”
“About Talon? I was just going to say you don’t have to be embarrassed about this morning. You’re an adult, and we understand that.”
“I…uh…” Shit. Now what? “Thank you.”
“Talon goes a little bit crazy when Diana or Bree stay out late, but I’ve convinced him they’re adults now. It’s hard for a father of girls.”
I nod again. “I’m not his daughter.”
“No, but he feels responsible for you while you’re here.”
“That’s sweet of him.”
“That’s just who he is. He’s a protector.”
“Dee told me how he saved all those people in Iraq.”
“He did,” she says. “He didn’t get the recognition he deserved.”
“Why?”
She smiles. “He didn’t want it.”
He didn’t? There must be a story there, but Brendan’s words edge into my mind. The Steels seem to have a lot of secrets. Have they truly covered stuff up? And if so, why?
I’m curious, but not that curious. Right now, I feel mostly empty. I have no desire to look into the Steels’ history. And I certainly have no desire to go to work, where I’ll see Dale.
But I don’t have a choice. I’ve committed to this internship for three months, and I’ll honor my commitment. But damn, I’m not even a month in.
