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Knox glanced over his shoulder. It wasn’t exactly a hot spring day, but it was warm and humid and a bead of sweat slid from beneath the brim of his hat.
“I think we just get busy.” He ducked under a low branch. “When life gets hard, I think we forget to take care of ourselves. It’s difficult to carve out time to do something you enjoy when you’re just trying to survive.”
I felt those words in my soul. I’m not sure if he’d ever spoken a truer sentence.
We didn’t talk much for most of the hike. Knox had this calming aura around him that made the silences feel natural. It was one of my favorite things about him. He was just…Knox. He was steady and trustworthy and loyal. Ty might have been the person I shared everything with, but Knox was that friend who loved you through anything and spoke through silences.
When we made it to the small creek, we sat down on a couple large boulders near where the water cascaded down a wall of rock. Cypress Falls had a few waterfalls, but this small trickle was nothing compared to the actual falls near the river. We didn’t go there often because it was a long, intensive hike, but the trek was worth it every once in a while. I lifted my face toward the cool mist spraying off the rocks with a content sigh.
“So, howareyou doing, El?” Knox asked. He watched the flow of water with his hands resting on his bent knees.
“I’m assuming you’ve talked to Ty.” He shrugged, and I sighed. “I was in fine form last night.” Knox didn’t say anything and I turned to him. “Is that why you wanted to come here? Because I had a meltdown and you’re worried about me or something?” My tone sounded more defensive than I intended.
Knox slid a finger along the wide brim of his cowboy hat. When his gaze met mine, there wasn’t an ounce of judgment in them. “I wanted to come here to hang out with you.” He took off his hat and set it carefully on the rock beside him. He ran a hand through his damp, sandy blonde hair. “And I wanted to apologize.”
“Apologize for what?”
“For being a bad friend.”
I frowned at him, shocked. “You’re not a bad friend, Knox.” I wasn’t sure where that thought had come from.
His jaw ticced. “Well, I haven’t been a great one.”
My lips turned down even harder. A sudden flare of anger heated my skin. “You weren’t the one who abandoned us, Knox. You’re not the one who should be apologizing.”
He studied me. It was strange looking at Knox without his hat on. It felt like a part of him was missing. “But I haven’t been around a whole lot the last few years.”
“You’ve been dealing with a lot. We both have. You’ve had to figure out how to run the ranch after what happened to your mom. I hold no blame over you, Knox. None at all.” I reached over and squeezed his shoulder.
His chin dipped. “And I appreciate that, but it doesn’t make it right. Now that Ty’s back, I want to try and make things better. Like they used to be.”
I glanced away, the thought of things ever being the way they used to sounded impossible.
“Look, El. I know what he did wasn’t right. You don’t have to be friends with him if you don’t want to. I understand that he hurt you. He hurt me too.” He took a deep breath. “But maybe you should just…give him another chance.”
My hands curled into fists. “What if I don’t want to?” What if my heart couldn’t trust that he wouldn’t break it again?
“Then don’t.” Knox’s arm dropped over my shoulders and I stiffened. “But I’m only asking you to try. And not for him, either, but for you. I know you say you hate him, but I think you miss him, too.”
My heart raced because as much as I wanted to deny it, Knox was right. I did miss Ty. I missed his friendship and I missed the way things used to be. But I wasn’t the same person I was three years ago. I didn’t know if I was capable of giving Tyson Ranes another chance.
Knox rubbed my upper arm and I leaned into him and his steady comfort. “I don’t know if I can.”
He nodded. “I get it.”
I squeezed my eyes shut at the hint of disappointment in his tone. It was hardly detectable, but I knew him well enough to hear it.
I put my hand over his. “But…I guess I could try.”
His head whirled toward me as he drew back, his mouth opening in surprise. “Really?”
I nodded, swallowing hard against the queasiness in my stomach. It wouldn’t be for Ty though, it wouldn’t even be for me. It would be for him. For Knox. Even though he was apologizing for not being a good friend, he wasn’t alone in that. There were two of us in this friendship and I hadn’t been there for him as much as I should’ve either.
“How about you, Knox.” I nudged him with a shoulder. “How are you doing with everything? I saw the big fundraiser is coming up soon. That’s a big deal.”
Every year, the Willow Hope Ranch held a gala in Knox’s huge, childhood home. His father was from old money, and his mother started the ranch as a non-profit shortly after they had gotten married. They’d held the fund raiser every year since the start of the ranch. Although, ever since the incident happened with Knox’s mom a few years ago, they hadn’t had it. This would be the first since she—since his mom was no longer able to plan it.
“Yep, it is.” He stared off in the direction of the waterfall, but didn’t seem to really be looking at it. I waited, sensing he had more to say. “Annabelle insisted we needed to do it again. I mean, we do need the funds. Even with Dad’s money, it’s hardly enough to sustain the main property, the ranch, and Mama’s medical bills.”
