Ladd Haven (5 page)

Avoiding further thoughts of Casey and
Jimmy creeping into his mind, Troy hiked up the hill. He couldn’t
stand to even consider the two of them as a possibility. It was
probably all the talk about the recent double wedding. His parents
had gone and it was all his momma could talk about, other than
lecturing him on his decision to return home. She’d never once
mentioned Casey. After Jimmy delivered the news, he could see why.
His momma might not be happy about him skipping college to work
with horses, but she sure as heck wasn’t gonna upset him with the
news his girlfriend had hooked up with another guy.

Halfway up, Troy wondered how the
guests were going to manage the trip. For him this walk was nothin’
but for folks that weren’t used to hiking, he could see it as an
issue. Horses grazed to either side of him, their lazy swish of
tail a sign of contentment. The hotel probably had some horse and
buggy lined up to transport them. From what Felicity said, Mr.
Harris had tons of money and built expensive hotels all around the
world. He was leasing Ladd Springs land for his hotel. He didn’t
own it. Felicity did—a fact that still seemed incredible to Troy.
Nineteen-years-old and Felicity Wilkins was earning thousands of
dollars, maybe hundreds of thousands. Troy didn’t know any of the
details. All he knew was after Ernie Ladd died and willed the
property to Felicity, she was free and clear to make a deal with
Mr. Harris and allow his hotel to be built. Didn’t hurt that her
mother was engaged to the man.

Casey owned the other half. Thanks to
the fact her mother slept with Jeremiah Ladd eighteen years ago.
The man was a no-good dog, but as Ernie Ladd’s son he and his heirs
had rights to the property. Or so Casey’s mom believed. She was the
one who fought for Casey’s rights and won. Right after Felicity
received title to Ladd Springs, Miss Delaney signed over half of it
to Casey. Not only a straight shooter, but she was a fair woman
with a big heart.

Nearing the stables, Troy slowed his
pace. Beyond the stables were three pens and a huge granddaddy of a
barn, everything brand-spanking new. So new, it looked more like a
picture ad than a working horse operation. Venturing inside, Troy
was hit by the thick scent of sweet feed and freshly oiled leather.
A tack room sat to his right, a line of saddles set out front of
it. Down a wide center aisle there was a dual line of stalls. He
didn’t see any animals. Were there any horses?

“
Hello?” he called out,
looking for signs of Delaney as he continued in. But there had to
be. He could smell them. He walked over to a corner and peered
through a plate glass window. There was a desk, cabinets, several
pictures on the wall but no Delaney. Continuing toward the stall
corridor, he glanced overhead, admiring the tongue and groove
ceiling, the exposed wooden rafters. Troy figured it must have cost
some serious dough to build this place. Coming upon an oversized
stall, large by anyone’s standards, he deemed it to be a foaling
stall. Instantly he recalled the foal he helped Mr. Foster deliver
a little black beauty named Vegas. Looking back, that had been one
of the best days of his life. Not only had he taken part in saving
the life of an animal, but he earned the recognition from someone
other than his father. Troy’s heart skipped at a low whinny from a
horse. Drawn to the sound, he looked into the adjacent stall and
saw a beautiful chocolate brown Arabian.

Pulling up to the wooden barrier, he
reached a hand through the metal grill of the sliding door. “Aren’t
you a beauty? C’mon here, baby.” Ears perked at the sound of his
voice and the horse immediately responded. “That’s it.” Troy
allowed the horse to nudge him, a velvet-soft muzzle nibbling as
the animal checked the stranger out. The horse raised its head and
lightly shook its mane but didn’t retreat. Troy took this as the
animal’s consent to be touched and stroked the flat expanse of fur
between the horse’s eyes. Long lashes blinked, taking him in
without concern. Warm feelings spread throughout Troy’s chest. Man,
but this one was a fine specimen of horse. Did they get him from
Mr. Foster? He didn’t remember this fella and Troy remembered every
horse. Maybe they had more than one supplier for the
hotel.

“
Troy.”

Startled by the cut of her voice, he
whirled, grasping a cold metal bar as he said, “Miss
Delaney.”

“
Long time no
see.”

Standing there in jeans and tank top,
her long blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail, Delaney Wilkins
looped thumbs from her front pockets. Four inches shorter than him,
she stood rigid, as though on the defensive. She didn’t smile,
didn’t move. She simply stared with those dark brown eyes of hers.
Black brows and butter yellow hair made for a striking combination.
Troy always found her to be an attractive older woman, one who
didn’t take crap. He considered the gun he knew to be kept in her
boot and gulped. A stern tone wasn’t the kind of reception he’d
been counting on. “I hope you don’t mind me walking in uninvited,
Miss Delaney, but Mr. Foster said I might be able to find you
here.”

“
You’re looking for
me?”

“
Yes, ma’am.” Troy removed
his hat and advanced toward her. “He told me you were in charge of
the stables.”

“
I am.”

“
I was interested in getting
work. He told me to talk to you.”

“
Work?” Curiosity sparked
her black gaze. “What kind of work?”

“
With the horses,” Troy
replied. “I can train them, clean them, pick up after them.
Whatever you need, I can do it for you.”

She cocked her head and crossed her
arms. “Why are you looking for a job, Troy? Felicity told me you
were working a ranch in Kentucky.”

“
I was...” He dropped his
gaze. “But I quit.”

“
Quit?”

“
Yes, ma’am,” he replied,
hating the suspicion swirling in her gaze.

“
Why?”

“
I wanted to come back
home.” At this, her features softened a hair, giving him the first
hint of the woman he knew growing up, the one who treated Travis
and him like her own. “But I need work, Miss Delaney, and horses
are what I know. I’d make you a great ranch hand. Ask Mr. Foster—he
can vouch for me.”

“
Are you
drinking?”

Nerves fired at the blunt question.
“No, ma’am. No way. Not a drop.”

Delaney expelled a sigh and approached
him. Her eyes darted back and forth across his as though she were
looking for something, something hidden deep inside him. “Have you
talked to Casey?”

“
Yes, ma’am.”

“
And?”

Strands of resentment grew taut in his
chest. “And she dumped me,” he wanted to spit. She moved on with
that loser, Jimmy Sweeney. The thought scraped at his heart, made
him bleed fresh and raw. Of all people, why did Casey have to pick
him? The skinny dude was half-girl the way he always hung around,
quiet, not saying two words most of the time. My girlfriend. Two
words Troy could have gone his whole life without hearing come from
Jimmy’s mouth. “I saw her at the diner today.”

“
And?”

“
And...” he tightened his
grip on his hat, “she was with Jimmy Sweeney.”

“
So?” Delaney
pressed.

“
So?” Troy grew angry but
held himself in check. Did she need to drill it into him? Did she
need to rub his face in it? What the heck—
had everybody turned against him
?

“
Troy, stop playing games.
Did you talk with her?”

“
Dad gum, Miss Delaney, I
saw her at the diner with Jimmy. They were sittin’ in a booth
together. They’re datin’ now, I got the message. What else do you
want me to say?”

Delaney stared at him mouth agape, like
she didn’t understand English or something. What part didn’t she
understand? He got it. Casey and Jimmy were dating. Did she expect
him to be okay with it?

Because he wasn’t. He wasn’t
okay with it and he wasn’t giving up. It wasn’t like Casey was
married. Jimmy said
girlfriend
. That’s all the hope Troy
needed.

But first, he needed a job. “Miss
Delaney? Can I get a job or not?”

With a dumbstruck glance, she waved him
to follow. “C’mon. Let me show you around.” Relief washed over him,
the knots of doubt releasing as he did so. “I’m not saying you have
a job,” she clarified over her shoulder, “but I’ll show you around
just the same. I need to discuss it with Mr. Foster
first.”

“
Yes, ma’am,” he replied,
wondering why. The man said it was her decision but Troy wasn’t
about to argue. A chance was a chance and he’d take every one he
could get.

After a tour of the stables, Delaney
showed him around the barn, the paddocks. There were tractors and
wash racks, a feed room and another office. The second one in the
barn belonged to the groundskeeper while hers was in the main
building. Passing by a pen on their way back, Troy noted the dirt
was raked clean. It reminded him of the horse he’d trained for Mr.
Foster, the one they said went sour. Did they ever find a home for
the animal? He hoped they finished the job of training and hooked
the horse up with the right owners. He was a sweet animal. Nothing
wrong that a little TLC and rebuilding of trust wouldn’t fix. The
black foal instantly came to mind. “How’s that little foal working
out for you?”

“
Excuse me?”

“
The one you got from Mr.
Foster. Vegas. Did you take him and his momma?”

She nodded, realization lighting up her
eyes. “They’re here.” She pointed back toward the stables. “Fourth
one down on the left.”

“
Mind if I take a look at
him?”

“
Actually, Troy, I do.”
Surprise cut him in half. Slowing, she stopped. Turning her back to
the low rising sun, she cupped a hand over her eyes and said, “I
think it’s best if we don’t get your hopes up.”

“
My hopes?” he asked, his
heart sinking into his boots.

“
I need to think about it,
discuss it with Mr. Foster.”

Because she didn’t fully trust him.
Because he didn’t have a great track record of staying put. Either
by his own will or his own stupidity, Troy couldn’t manage to keep
a job for more than a few months. “I understand.”

“
Do you?” she asked
pointedly, the razored-edge of her question catching him off
guard.

“
Yes, ma’am. I’ve made some
mistakes, but I’m here to fix them.”

“
Fix them?” she looked at
him queerly. “How so?”

“
I know Casey’s with Jimmy
Sweeney now, but I’m going to show her that I’m worth a second
chance. I can be the man she needs me to be.” Casey had to see.
Troy had to prove it to her. She didn’t like that guy. She’d been
on the rebound from him and Jimmy took advantage. It was an
advantage Troy was gonna wipe clean. “If you’ll give me the chance,
I’ll prove it to you, too.”

Delaney ran a palm over her head and
blew out a heavy breath. “I believe you will. Unfortunately, I’m
not the one who matters.”

Chapter Four

Pulling up to Ashley
Fulmer’s house for the annual Memorial Day party, a swarm of
adrenaline pummeled Troy’s chest. One of the first ones here, he
was practically able to drive onto her front porch. The party
started at one and it was one o’clock on the dot. He’d never made
it this early before, but he’d been so damn anxious for the party
to begin he couldn’t wait. Now that he was here, fear battered like
a jackhammer. Why was he so nervous? What did he have to fear? If
he couldn’t win Casey back from a guy like Jimmy then he had no
business trying to get her in the first place. Jimmy was nothing.
He was skinny, stupid and totally not her type. Travis said the two
were taking college courses together, but that didn’t mean
anything. Travis was only trying to stir up trouble, rubbing it in
that
he
wasn’t in
college. So what. Troy parked and jumped out of his truck, slamming
the door closed. Casey understood his desire to work with horses.
She didn’t think he needed to go to college to do what he
loved.

Hiking the short distance to Ashley’s
house, Troy settled his gaze on the front porch. The house was
painted barn red, flower pots spilling over with color, a pink
hydrangea bush off to the side. There was an old wagon wheel
propped up on one end of the home and a line of rockers set out
across the front porch. Last year he and Casey had sat right there,
in those very rockers, talking about his plans to skip college. She
agreed with him. She told him he was the best horseman she knew.
Said he could do things with a horse nobody could. Pride mingled
with doubt. Did she still think so?

She’d wanted him back then.
They were friends, but then they were lovers. Vivid images of their
last night together overwhelmed him. Her body, her willingness. She
hadn’t been the least bit reserved. She’d forgiven him, heart body
and soul.
Could she want him
again
?

Troy dodged the front door and headed
for the back. He’d learn soon enough.

Casey sat in the backseat of her
stepfather’s truck, currently parked in the yard of Ashley Fulmer.
Hands shaking, she tucked them in the wedge beneath her belly.
Looking out over the sea of cars and trucks parked on the front
lawn, dread rose like floodwaters in her chest. The three of them
were here for Ashley’s annual Memorial Day picnic, but Casey
couldn’t bring herself to open the truck door. “I’m not going
in.”