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“They don’t really count records anymore. It’s all digital and downloads and streaming.”
“I thought vinyl was on the comeback.”
“Maybe for the kids who fancy themselves to be retro.”
“You have a player in the living room.”
“It’s an antique.” She poured his cup and set it in front of him. “But I fancy myself retro.”
Mike accepted a mug full of strong black coffee and sat back on his stool, his gentle smile all but gone. “You okay?”
“Of course, I’m okay.”
“You look like you’ve been up for hours.” Millie’s expression would shut up most men, but Mike Paul wasn’t most men. “This can’t be easy for you.” He knew the history more than anyone.
“You shouldn’t be okay either,” Millie countered. “I wasn’t the only one he left.”
“There’s a big difference between you and me,” Mike said quietly. “I always knew he was gonna leave. Hell, we talked about it a lot. And I—” He stopped abruptly, and she set down her mug, in the mood to fight.
“What?” Her tone was argumentative. She rested both palms on the counter and moved directly in front of him.
“Nothing.”
“Say it,” she ground out, anger building from deep inside, so hot and heavy, her words felt acidic. “Tell me what you were going to say, Mike Paul. Or so help me God, I’ll—”
“Kill me with your coffee mug?”
“People have been killed with less.”
“You’re not wrong.” Mike took a long drink and emptied his mug. He glanced up at her, and she saw the worry. “Cal and I are good. Always have been. We talk, you know that. But you’re still in love with him.”
Her mouth opened, the denial hard and flat, but it never left her tongue because what was the point? She’d loved Cal Bridgestone for as long as she had memory. Every milestone in her life had Cal in it. First trail ride. First skinny-dip in the pond. First kiss. First fight.First everything. And for a time, he’d loved her right back. Until he didn’t. Until something meant more to him than her heart.
Millie Sue, cursed as she was, couldn’t turn off her feelings no matter how hard she tried. No matter the distance between them or the mountain of hurt that filled it all up.
It was barely noon by now, and this day was already headed well into the toilet because Mike Paul was right. She was still in love with Cal Bridgestone and probably would be until the day she drew her last breath. It was how she was built. She had one heart, and she’d given it away a long time ago. The problem being it was never given back.
The house was silent as she rinsed and then put away their coffee mugs, then topped up Mr. Higgins’s food dish. She had errands to run and an early shift at the Sundowner, the place she co-owned with her cousin Zach. She’d also agreed to pick up little Nora from school and bring her back to the Sundowner, where she was to meet Vivian Bridgestone, who would take the little girl back to the ranch, or wherever it was Vivian was staying. She was a cool cucumber and not exactly on speaking terms with her family.
Seriously, there wasn’t a more screwed-up family in the region. Probably the country.
Her mood brightened a bit at the thought of Nora, who was, in fact, a little angel put on this earth by God in the midst of the Bridgestone storm. There wasn’t a sweeter child in all of Montana. Another Bridgestone who’d stolen her heart on sight.
She locked up and gave Mike Paul a quick kiss on the cheek. He’d taken over the family business, a veterinary clinic outside Big Bend, and was on his way to several calls in the area.
“I’ll see you later,” he said. And he would. Like most singles in Big Bend, their evenings ended up at the Sundowner.
With a soft smile, she waved him away and got into her Silverado. It took longer to get to town because of the snow, and for the rest of the day, Millie found herself one step behind. Which, in and of itself, was a welcome distraction because it didn’t give her a lot of time to think. She grabbed the items on the list Zach had left the night before, dropped them off at the Sundowner, and then took her truck in for service, which was delayed because they were short on mechanics. By the time she got to Big Bend Elementary school to pick up Nora, she had exactly one minute to spare.
She nodded to the other moms, most of them women she’d gone to school with, and did her best to keep a scowl from her face when Mary Margaret Christchurch headed over. The woman was the biggest gossip in town and no doubt angling for information about Bent and the accident, and Daisy Mae. The woman sucked the energy out of everything she touched, and Millie braced for impact.
“Oh my Gawd, Millie. How awful is it that Bent’s just hanging on by a thread? Why, I heard it’s been nothing but touch and go since they brought him in.” The woman didn’t give Millie a chance to respond or correct her very wrong assumption. “I also hear that Cal’s back in town.” Her features changed, subtly, but it was enough for Millie’s body to tighten. “That must be hard for you.” It wasn’t a question, so Millie didn’t feel a need to answer. She said nothing, and when Mary Margaret opened her mouth to spew more dirt, she was saved when Nora ran out and pushed right by the nosy woman.
“Miss Millie!” Her young, girlish voice was full of glee as she launched herself into Millie’s arms. Millie bundled her up into the big truck and didn’t give Mary Margaret another thought. What was the point? People like that would talk and gossip and fill in the holes with their own story.
Once they were settled, little Nora chatted away about the big butterfly she’d painted in class, and she’d just finished the very descriptive story when Millie turned onto Dry Lake Road. It didn’t take long to cross town on account it was home to barely eight thousand souls.
“Here we are, kiddo.” Millie parked her truck in the same spot she’d had since she was a teenager and grabbed Nora’s pink unicorn backpack. “Your Auntie Viv is gonna take care of you.”
