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She wandered into the barn and stopped by her horse’s stall. It didn’t matter how long she stood there, running her hands down the animal’s back or leaning into her strong body; Dianna couldn’t shake this sense of foreboding that seemed to have latched on.
Normally, she could pull herself out of a funk like this. She had gotten to the point in her life where she knew what it would take to return to a peaceful state.
This time felt different. She couldn’t put her finger on it.
“Hey.”
She jumped, causing her horse to sidestep. Dianna faltered with her animal but managed not to stumble or topple over. Her wide eyes swung around, finding Tristan leaning his folded arms on the stall door.
“What are you doing here?” she demanded, a scowl crossing her features. “You’re not supposed to be here for another ten minutes.”
His brows creased. “You don’t look pleased to see me.”
Oh, if only he knew what was about to happen. However, this was not the right place for a discussion like that. The last thing she needed was to associate her favorite location with the conversation she knew she had to have with Tristan.
“It’s not that. I just wasn’t ready for you to show up.” Dianna moved her hand along her horse’s neck once more and offered Tristan a nervous smile. Something niggled at her—like she was making a mistake. But she’d gone over the whole thing in her head. Breaking up with him made sense. She’d run all the scenarios.
Tristan tilted his head, his gaze drilling into her and causing her to grow even more uneasy. Could he tell what she was thinking? He knew; she could feel it. And if she was right, why wasn’t he saying something?
Maybe he was feeling the same way she was.
Even as the thought crossed her mind, she was surprised she didn’t feel more relief with it, which only confused her more.
Head pounding, she tore her gaze away from him and let the awkward silence continue to grow. He’d been early; he could wait until she got what she needed out of her visit with the animals.
“You okay?”
She stilled, refusing to meet his gaze. “Sure, why wouldn’t I be?” It was one of the first big lies she could remember telling anyone. If she were being completely honest, she’d tell him she hadn’t been able to sleep and her appetite had all but disappeared.
“You’re not quite acting yourself.”
She allowed herself a peek in his direction. “Sometimes you might think you know someone better than you actually do.”
“Is that what this is?”
She bit down on her tongue to prevent herself from saying something she might regret. If she wasn’t careful with her words, she might get into more trouble than she originally thought.
“Dianna.”
Glancing at him once more was the worst mistake of her life. His gaze captured hers, refusing to release her. He wasn’t going to give up that easy. So much for postponing the conversation until later. She let out a sigh and faced him. “I’m fine. But there’s something really important I think we need to discuss.”
“I know. It’s why we’re going on our date.” He glanced at his watch. “In about three minutes.”
Dianna shook her head. “Actually, I think that might not be such a good idea.”
He frowned. “Are you feeling sick?”
“In a manner of speaking.”
“But you said you felt okay.” He straightened, opened the stall door, and wandered inside. The stall wasn’t very large in the first place. But with him taking up part of the space, she suddenly felt more claustrophobic than she had in her entire life.
Dianna sucked in sharply and moved backward, earning herself a confused frown from Tristan.
He reached out and grasped her hand. “Hey. I just want to make sure you’re doing okay.”
She couldn’t help it. Something came over her that she hadn’t experienced in years. She yanked her hand from his grasp and looked away. “You need to stop that.”
“Stop what?” He chuckled, but it sounded strained and hollow. “Over the past few weeks, it’s felt like you and me are meant to be together.”
