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That statement got a smile. The weight in his stomach eased, if only a little bit.
“Fine. How about you tell me how you managed to get the beautiful Dahlia to go on a date with you last night. I thought you said she wasn’t interested in you unless you could ride in the rodeo.” Her voice held a slight teasing note to it, but it was laced with something else he couldn’t place.
As much as he wanted to investigate it, he knew better. Adam grabbed the saddle and placed it on Bella’s back. This work had become second nature, almost like changing a tire or refilling the fluids under the hood of his truck. “I didn’t think shewasinterested in me. It just sort of happened.” He should be thrilled. But all he could think about was Faye and her date—how it had ended and why she was up so late. “Your turn.”
She shook her head right before she ducked to cinch the belt beneath Blaze’s belly. “Not so fast. I want to know how your date went. Did you take her home? Was there a kiss involved?”
Again, that strange teasing tone was mingled with something else. It sounded foreign and hard on his ears. He shot her a look before resuming his work. “What is there to tell? We danced. We talked. No, we didn’t kiss. I like to know the girl a little better before I do something like that.”
“So, I guess there’s another date lined up.”
Adam shrugged. “Yeah, I guess. Though I’d really like to learn a little more about these horses before I do that. It’s hard talking about what I’m learning when I barely know what I’m doing.” He gave her a wry smile. “The problem with wanting to impress a cowgirl with knowledge about horses is that she already knows what there is to know. I can’t exactly win.”
Faye snorted. “Dahlia isn’t a cowgirl. She’s a rodeo groupie. I doubt she knows as much as you do at this point.”
He stilled, his hands fingering the lead rope he’d just put on Bella. Now he knew exactly what that tone was. Faye was jealous. It couldn’t have been clearer. Only jealousy didn’t make much sense at the moment because she had found someone to date, too. “Actually, she’s a barrel racer.”
She snorted. “Same difference.”
Adam turned to study her while she finished saddling Blaze. There was no indication she had found a new romantic interest. Women were funny that way. He’d seen it time and time again when they came into the shop. They might have conversations on their phones with their friends, or he might overhear them talking to someone who came with them for the repair.
There was one thing all women possessed when they found someone they were excited to date. It was this… for lack of a better word…glowabout them. It was as if this new love was enough to fuel their soul—feed it and help them float from one thing to another.
Guys? Well, they were different. They were happier. They might even be more willing to hear bad news. But they didn’t talk as much in public places about the girl they were seeing. They were just generally in a good mood.
Faye’s eyes caught his, but for once he didn’t care if she knew he was staring. He moved to the stall wall and crossed his arms over the top of it. “Okay. Your turn. Who was the cowboy who took you home last night.”
“That’s none of your business.”
Adam laughed. “That’s not fair. I told you my story. It’s your turn to tell me yours. I’d wager you already talked about it with one or more of your sisters. Should I go track down Brielle and ask her who he was?”
Faye’s eyes widened and the blood drained from her face before erupting like a volcano and flooding her cheeks with scarlet. “Don’t you dare.”
He chuckled again. “So she does know what happened. I’m really curious now because she didn’t seem to be all that thrilled this morning.”
She shook her head as she broke eye contact. “It doesn’t matter because I won’t be seeing him anymore.” Her hand rammed against the stall door as she pushed it open and headed down the aisle without him. Wow. She was in a bad mood—worse than her sister was.
Instantly he felt a little guilty over bringing up the cowboy at all. Had something happened between the three of them that he wasn’t aware of? That painful twisted feeling returned to his stomach. There were a number of reasons why two sisters would be upset regarding a man, but the one that came to mind first was that they might be fighting over him.
Except Faye just said she wasn’t going to see him again.
He jogged to catch up to Faye and did so just as they exited the building. “Did something happen with your cowboy?”
“He’snotmy cowboy,” she muttered bitterly.
“Not anymore?”
She stopped and whirled around to face him, her eyes flashing. “What is your problem? You’re nosier than all those women in town who don’t have anything better to do than gossip about who is seeing who in this community. If you want to cluck like a hen, then there’s the hen house.” She jabbed a finger to her left, all the while retaining eye contact. “I don’t have time to gossip about who I’m seeing or not seeing. I don’t mind being your friend, but that doesn’t mean all conversation is on the table. Now do you want to ride today or not?”
Adam pressed his lips together firmly. Their relationship, or what it had been, had changed over the course of a week, and he had no idea why. And maybe that was the reason why he snapped. “You’re what’s wrong with people these days.”
“What?” she scoffed.
“You don’t know how to talk to people—to connect with people. Sometimes people ask questions because they care. Have you ever considered that? Last I checked, we’re friends. And as such, I should be able to talk to you when something is bothering you and not get my head bitten off.”
“You want to know what’s bothering me?”
“I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t.” Though their voices remained at a typical level, the tones with which they were speaking had turned hard. If they were friends before, they weren’t friends anymore.
