AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“No worries, I think Kaylee—”
The room felt like it was spinning. Cutting him off, I said, “Listen, I’ve got to go. Take care.”
I hit end and stared at my phone. Then I turned it off and sat on the bed for what felt like forever. When the room began to feel like it was moving in on me, I stood and quickly got dressed. I knew if I tried to go to sleep, I’d end up waking up sweating, with a racing heart. I wasn’t really in the mood for that shit tonight. What I was in the mood for was to get shit-faced.
I made my way down the hall, waited for the elevator, and then stepped inside. Two women looked up, both smiling when they saw me.
“Evening, ladies,” I said, hitting the button for the lobby and tipping my cowboy hat at them.
“You’re Ty Shaw,” one of them said.
With a grin, I nodded.
“Oh my God. I can’t believe it. Ty Shaw!” the other one said, her blonde hair bouncy as she jumped a little and clapped. “I loved watching you ride.”
Buckle bunnies. A year ago, I’d be punching the elevator button of the floor to my room and going back up, probably with both of them.
“Thank you,” I said, giving her a wink. She practically melted on the spot.
“Where are you heading?” the blonde asked, then looked over at her friend. They were both pretty. One blonde. One brunette. Both dressed in jeans, boots, and shirts that showed off their impressive upper bodies.
“I’m heading to the bar, ladies. I need to get drunk.”
They both giggled as they each wrapped an arm around mine.
“What a coincidence—we’re headed there too.”
I smiled. “Perfect.”
Chapter Twenty-One
KAYLEE
“Thank you, Channing. I had no idea what to do. I tried calling Brock, Stella, and then Ty. I couldn’t get any of them to answer the phone.”
He laughed. “It’s fine. I’m just glad I heard the call come over and was able to take it.”
I smiled. “Me too. When I saw that cow with a calf coming out of her back end, I freaked. Probably not the best thing to do, calling 911.”
Channing laughed again as he tossed his bag into the back of the truck he’d driven over from the fire station. “I was getting off shift, so it really wasn’t a big deal. Plus, by the time I got here, you seemed to have things under control. I was impressed when I saw the towels, scissors, and iodine tincture.”
I gave him a half-hearted laugh. “I googled what to do when a cow is giving birth. As far as the iodine tincture, that was pure luck. I saw it in the tack room. I was relieved to know Mama was going to handle it all just fine.”
He grinned. “You did great, Kaylee. Thanks for letting me clean up in your house.”
“Oh gosh, thank you for being here, in case it didn’t go smoothly. I cannot believe I couldn’t reach anyone. I guess they all turn off their phones before bed.”
“Hey, before I forget, Ty called your phone a few minutes ago. I knew you’d been trying to reach him, and with it being so late, I figured you wanted to talk to him.”
My stomach lurched. “You answered my phone?”
He frowned slightly. “Um, yeah. I’m sorry. I was going to bring the phone out here, but he cut me off, said he’d dialed the wrong number.”
I was positive Channing could hear my heart now, pounding in my chest. What would Ty think of Channing answering my phone so late at night?
Shit. Shit. Shit.
I had never wanted to slap a man so hard in my entire life. What in the world would possess him to answer my phone?
Channing stared at me for a moment before he sighed. “Listen, I’m sorry if I did something wrong.”
I forced a smile. “No, it’s fine, just maybe next time don’t be going and answering other people’s phones.”
He laughed like I was joking. There was something in his eyes, though, that told me Channing had known exactly what he was doing. He’d wanted Ty to know he was here.
“Thank you again, Channing, for coming over.”
“Sure. I’ll see you around? Maybe we can grab some coffee or something?”
“I’ll see you around. Thanks again.”
I purposely avoided answering his coffee question. Channing started the truck and took off. As he drove down the drive, another truck pulled in. Brock parked and got out. He looked over his shoulder at the retreating truck, then back at me.
“Hey, I take it you got my panicked message.”
Brock laughed. “I did. Took everything I could do to convince Lincoln we didn’t need to wake up the kids and all drive over here. That I could handle it.”
I chuckled.
Brock looked back at the taillights in the distance. “Was that Channing?”
“It was. I freaked out when I couldn’t reach any of y’all, and I called 911. Channing heard it come over the radio and called in that he was getting off of his shift and would come by. Of course, after I made the call, I calmed down and figured out what needed to be done. Channing was here, though, in case a problem occurred, which didn’t happen. Mom and baby are fine—they’re in the barn.”
