“Wanted to get here and make sure you hadn’t killed my horses.” The glint in her eyes told me she wasn’t playing around. She wouldn’t have left if she thought I was any danger to her babies.
“Ever hear of texting or calling before just showing up?”
“And spoil the surprise?”
“Why are you really here?”
“Hmmm, let me think about that.” She tapped a fingertip against her lips. “Could have something to do with you and the princess being plastered all over the internet coming out of Gino’s.” She grabbed an empty feed bucket, turned it upside down, and sat. The frown lines on her forehead deepened to creases. “Wanna tell me what’s been going on?”
“Nothing.”
“Bull fucking shit.” She shot me a reprimanding look. “On the way up the road, saw a couple of guys, one was covered in blood. He said you punched him and that she’s back on the sauce. Also said you stole their equipment.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “It’s complicated.”
“I’ve got time.”
“With all due respect, Aunt Tricia, it’s none of your business.”
“Not how I see it.” She smiled sweetly, but I wasn’t fooled. She knew she’d catch more flies with honey. “The fact that someone trespassed on my property and then my numbskull nephew socked him in the nose makes it my business.”
I had to make an effort to ungrit my teeth and unclench my jaw before responding. “Montana fell down a ravine because of him. He was harassing her. I had to do something.”
“When I asked you to come here, it was to train my new horse, not roll around the hay with one of my guests.”
“Your only guest,” I reminded her. “Like I said, it’s none of your business.”
“You’re dumber than dirt.” She clucked her tongue. “So now you’ve had your fun, you’re running away. Too much woman for you, huh?”
“I guess so.”
“Tulsa?
“Headed there now.”
“Heard you went to see Mason yesterday. He said something about a concussion. Decided to keep that to yourself. How many does that make? Three this year?”
“Two, and I’ll make sure to thank him by kicking his ass next time I see him.”
“He didn’t want to worry your mom so he called me. He was concerned. All those times you were bucked off seems to have cracked your common sense as well as your skull.
“My daddy, God rest his soul, rode when he wasn’t fully healed, and that goddam near killed him. Jonah almost died more times than I care to recall. He would’ve too if I hadn’t given him an ultimatum. Look at your daddy. You want that to be your future?”
I took a second to pull back my annoyance before I answered. Tricia was just looking out for me in her own harsh way. “I’m not Granddaddy, I’m not my daddy, and I’m not Jonah. I need to keep riding.”
“Baby boy, what are you trying to prove, and who are you trying to prove it to?” Tricia pursed her lips. She was getting ready to give me a dressing down. “How do you think your dad would feel if he knew his son was following the same road he’d traveled? Do you know how many times he was bucked off over the years? How many times he hit his head? There were no regulations back in the day. No one cared if you rode with a concussion.” She turned her eyes heavenward as if asking for patience and strength. “There are other ways to make money. Focus on training horses.”
Tired, I scrubbed my hands over my face. “It’s not about the money. Ridin’ is my life. I can’t walk away.”
“But you can walk away from her.”
“She told me she doesn’t want me here.”
“There’s no reasoning with dumb.” Tricia stood and wiped her hands down the front of her jeans. “Well, that’s that. If you’re going, get. Guess I better go check on the princess to make sure she hasn’t drowned in that bottle of whiskey she keeps on the table. The two of you make a great pair. Stupid and stupider.”
“You don’t think she’d start drinking again, do you?” Fear made my heart thump.
“Hard to say.” She shrugged. “What I watched that girl go through took guts and courage. Poor thing has been to hell, and over my dead body will I let her go back there. I didn’t think she had it in her. She sure showed me.”
“She thinks you hate her.”
“I used to. Hated what she did to my boy, but they weren’t right for each other.”
My heart begged me to go with Tricia to check on Montana. To check that she wasn’t in her cabin drunk and scrolling the internet, reading ugly comments and fake articles. But I wouldn’t go near her. She didn’t want me, and besides, she would be better off if I wasn’t around.
“Looks like you’re in two minds about staying or going. You coming with?”
I shook my head. “Best leave things as they are.”
Chapter Seven
Montana
The unopened bottle of Tennessee Fire sat beside an empty glass and my open laptop. Every page screamed a variation of the same headline: Montana Chambers Found and Out of Control.
I imagined the bite of alcohol as it trickled down my throat. Imagined the buzz as it crept through my veins, dulling my pain like anesthesia.
I white-knuckled the edge of the table and stared the bottle down. Opening it would be so easy. Drinking every last drop would make it all disappear for a few hours. The angel on my shoulder looked downcast while the devil did an Irish jig.
Getting drunk would help me forget about life outside of the cabin for a while. Forget about Dylan. Forget about the paparazzi. Forget about people and problems.
Nothing
