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“No! But I’m game to learn. Just promise me I don’t have to handle any horses. They scare me.”
“Well, some of the kids scare me, so we’re even.”
Audrey laughed. “If we survive the day, I say we go out to that little Italian bistro off Main. My treat. Deal?”
“Deal.”
“Well. We survived.” I held up my water glass in a salute.
Audrey groaned and struggled to sit upright. “You call that surviving? My ears are still ringing. And I think I might have a black eye.” She fished a compact out of her purse and flipped it open to inspect the damage.
“Billy can be dangerous with that rope. Let me see.” I leaned close to get a better look. “Looks okay for now. Tomorrow might be another story.”
“Oh, well.” She clapped the case shut and put it away. “Nobody will see it behind my mask and visor at work, and it’s not like I’m trying to impress anyone outside of there. Not my scene around here anyway.”
“I guess not.” I toyed with my spaghetti. “So, is it still your plan to get back to New York?”
“Eventually. I just need Kat to get better.” Audrey’s voice sounded cheerful, but her face was a study in dejection.
“How is she doing?” I asked quietly.
Audrey swallowed a long gulp from her glass, then shook her head. “It’s not good, Jess.” She sniffed and rested her chin on her hand, avoiding me with her eyes. “She talks like she’ll be back to normal in a week or a month, but we both know that’s just for Lizzy’s benefit. The truth…” She dropped her hand and stared at the table. “The truth is, it will take a miracle for her to see Lizzy’s next birthday, and I think she’s running low on those.”
“Oh, Audrey! I didn’t know it was that bad. Poor Kat!”
“Don’t tell anyone, will you? She doesn’t want it going around town, but it feels good to share with someone rather than keep it all to myself.”
“Of course. Is there anything I can do? Should I be visiting her? I can take her to the doctor or something for you.”
Audrey shook her head. “She usually doesn’t feel up to visitors, and I have all her appointments scheduled around my work. I just worry about Lizzy. She’s been getting in more and more trouble at school, and I don’t feel like I know how to help her.”
“What about her dad?”
“Hah. No. He’s no help.” Audrey finished her ice water, then pasted on a smile. “But really, that’s enough. If I wanted to fret about my troubles, I’d have gone home. I want to hear all the dish about your new boyfriend. Everyone is curious about him.”
“What do you want to know?”
Audrey’s eyes widened, and she leaned forward. “Let’s start withallof it? What’s he like? Is he a secret millionaire, or does he have a former wife locked away in the attic? Is he a CIA operative? Son of a congressman? Is he going to buy up all the ranches around here and turn them into a shopping mall?”
I chuckled. “Rumor mill must be working overtime, huh?”
“People either know facts, or they make up their own. So, who’s the real Austen Conrad?”
“He’s a nice guy. Smart, practical, funny, easy to get along with, good with kids.”
“Romantic?”
“In his own way.”
“And what way is that? Come on, details!”
I shrugged, laughing. “I don’t know! He’s always trying to do something nice for me. How about that?”
“Good, but tell me more. What kinds of nice things?”
“Well… he offered to cook me dinner. Brings me flowers at work. And he gave me the sweetest poem.” I frowned. “But just once.”
I still hadn’t figured out why he’d changed so suddenly on that. He slips a poem in my pocket, writes me the most endearing note ever, lets me read his journal, then says he’s not comfortable sharing his writing? I wanted to ask why, but it didn’t even seem like I could ask.
