“Oh. Well, brothers do that sometimes. Tell him not to bug you at work.”
She ripped open the other bag of ice and poured it on top of the other ice already in the ice machine. Glancing over toward the spot where Caleb had found her, she saw that he was still standing there. She’d missed him. She hadn’t realized how much until she saw him.
She’d have to ignore him the rest of the evening if he insisted on standing there. But when she took a second look, he was gone.
Her relief mixed with disappointment as she turned back to the bar and saw some people slide onto bar stools.
“What will you have?”
The couple ordered and she got busy making their drinks. She knew Caleb wasn’t watching her anymore. But she also knew he was not going to let this go. He’d find her again if she didn’t call him. Or he’d come back here and ask questions. That’s what cops did and she’d learned a few years ago that her brother was now a police officer. She didn’t want him asking questions here.
That meant he’d pull all the answers to those questions out of her. Good Lord, was she even ready for this? Julie knew this day made would eventually come. But now that it was here, all the memories, all the pain, all the reasons she’d left home came flooding back to her heart and her mind.
She pasted on the smile as she finished preparing the drinks and turned to place them on the polished bar. She had to focus on work. It might end up being her last night here, so she’d need all the tips she could get.
She glanced over to the spot where Caleb had been again. He still wasn’t there, but somehow she felt small and suddenly exposed, mostly because she knew he was right. She’d had no right to leave her family in the dark all this time. It was time to bring some light to the most painful ten years of her life.
* * *
Going to the Lone Creek Ranch to work on horses always felt like coming home. Hunter had had been regularly shoeing one of the boarded horses, Tenterhook, since the horse had been injured last winter during a barrel racing event with his owner, Tabby Swanson. The horse had thrown a shoe during competition, and had just been cleared by the large animal vet for additional training to strengthen his leg. Tabby was eager to get started.
Hunter had worried his business as a farrier would suffer when word got out about the accident, since he’d been the one to shoe Tenterhook the day before the accident. But the investigation into the murder of the Lone Creek’s ranch manager had proven it to be sabotage. Like always, Trip, the owner of Lone Creek Ranch, was a fair man. Despite his grief over the loss of his longtime friend, Trip had made sure the community ranches in the area knew the true story and didn’t fall prey to rumor that it might have been Hunter’s faulty work as farrier.
“I hear Tenterhook got the all clear for the next level training,” Brody said. Brody was the new ranch manager at the Lone Creek Ranch.
“Tabby is going to be elated,” Hunter said. “Trip’s on the phone with her now. To be honest with you, there were days she cried right here in his stall thinking that Tenterhook might need to be put down. But he’s doing well and is healing better than anyone expected.”
Brody nodded. “He’s a beauty. Do you think he’ll ever go back into competition again?”
“Beats me. Even if he doesn’t, he’ll be a good riding horse and live out his life.”
“It’s nice to hear good news.”
“I’m almost done shoeing him. He’ll be good to go.”
“Um, you have a visitor.”
Hunter glanced up at Brody as he tried to maneuver Tenterhook into a good position. “Visitor? Here?”
Something about Brody’s expression seemed funny, almost foreboding.
“Who is it?”
“Once you finish what you’re doing, come outside. I’ll keep her entertained until you’re done.”
Feeling a frown tighten on his forehead, Hunter stared at Brody as he made his way down the center aisle of the stable. That had to be the oddest conversation he’d ever had with Brody.
What the hell was that all about? Her? Why would someone come out to the Lone Creek to talk to him if they didn’t already belong here? If it were a client, they would have called and left a message.
Hunter finished shoeing Tenterhook and put his tools back in his case. He gave the horse a little nuzzle on his neck and then led him back to his stall. When he shut the gate, Tenterhook lifted his head over the top and whinnied. Hunter gave him another affectionate rub on the neck. They had become good friends over the years and he was happy his old friend was playful again.
* * *
It had been years since Julie had stepped foot on the Lone Creek Ranch. Even though she’d spent the night pacing the floor and changing her mind a thousand times, she’d woken that morning determined to take that first step. Dr. Matthews constantly talked to her in steps. That one step would lead to the next step and so on. It was the only way to heal.
Steps, my foot! Why had she come out to the Lone Creek Ranch? What good was it going to do either of them?
After telling Brody she was here to see Hunter, he’d disappeared inside the stable. She’d thought about getting back into her car and heading back to her small room at Margaret’s house. But before she could do anything, she heard boots coming closer. Her heart pounded in her chest as she thought of seeing Hunter after so many years. But it was Brody who’d emerged from the building.
“He’s just finishing up. He’ll be out the minute.”
She’d seen him before, but Julie couldn’t place him.
