Under the Midnight Stars (17 page)

“Sounds perfect — I think he’d like that.” Brielle smiled and blinked back her tears. Her father had never been this open with her in his life. She welcomed the change.

She took another bite and pondered his words before she spoke again. “Dad … I was wondering … you said that you were gonna quit drinking tomorrow … Does that mean you’re going to the bar tonight?”

Roger lowered his head and nodded. “Yes, Gabby. There’s someone I wanna say good-bye to.” He looked her in the eyes again.

“Anyone I know?”

“I think you might’ve seen her in the diner — Sally Wheaton. I went to high school with her. She’s a waitress at the bar.”

Brielle became worried. She didn’t know if she was ready to hear whether or not her father was dating. Her mother’s memory was too recent. She stared at him in dismay.

“I know what you’re thinking. Don’t worry though, Sally’s just a friend. But in the future … when I’m healed and things are better here … well … who knows what could happen … I just know I have to start moving forward in life.”

Brielle couldn’t imagine her father with anyone else but her mother. And she didn’t want to. But there was no use worrying over something that hadn’t even happened yet. She decided to put the matter off for now. “Okay.”

They finished their meals while talking about how to better the ranch. Brielle was sure that Jack would want to be a part of the business now that horses were involved — at least part-time — in between being a firefighter. After dinner Brielle saw her father to the front door.

“Bye, Dad.” She stood on her tiptoes and gave him a peck on the cheek, and then a big hug, just as she used to as a child.

He hugged her back and chuckled slightly. “I’ll be back in a flash.”

She giggled. “I remember you used to say that all the time when I was a little girl.”

“You’ll always be my little girl.” He winked, donned his hat from the table next to the front door, and headed outside.

Brielle closed the door behind him and locked it. Then she went to the kitchen to tidy up and put dinner away. Exhausted, she went to the hammock in the backyard and carefully eased herself onto it, welcoming the comfort.

A warm smile crossed her face as she tried to envision the ranch up and running again. She wondered if life could ever be close to what it used to be. Her thoughts drifted back to her teenage years, during the lively bustling days at the ranch when her mother was still alive. She remembered complaining about the chores assigned to her and Jack, thinking that he had it easier because he was younger.

Jack’s chores had always consisted of mostly outside work. Feeding and tending to the horses. Cleaning the stalls. Keeping up on the yard maintenance. And ensuring that the upkeep on the fencing and other odds and ends got done. But he steered clear of anything to do with the cattle business, having made it clear to his disappointed father that it was simply not the path he wanted to take.

She, on the other hand, was confined to household duties consisting of mainly what she’d accomplished today, but only one or two chores per day. She’d always envied her brother’s chores, wishing she could be outside in the sunshine. Even Jack’s rainy day chores appeared fun. He offered her a trade-off once when she was seventeen and he was fourteen. She hadn’t gotten halfway through the strenuous physical labor during the stifling mugginess before she had begged him to trade back. Drenched in sticky sweat, with sore blistered palms, she had never envied his chores again.

Brielle’s heart grew heavy. She didn’t know how her mother had kept up on nearly all the cleaning by herself, along with raising a family. At the time she had taken it all for granted. She wished she’d had a chance to thank her before she died. She settled for now. “Thank you, Mom, for all that you’ve done for us,” she whispered sadly.

She stared up at the twinkling stars and sighed. Tears threatened to fall, but not tonight. She was hell-bent on keeping them at bay. Too many tears were shed over the last few days. For one night, though her heart was still filled with an agonizing emptiness she couldn’t escape, she was determined to be tear-free.

She thought of Colt, wondering if he were staring at the same starry sky, thinking of her. She secretly longed to feel his arms around her again. To feel his lips brush against hers. To feel his naked body conform to every inch of her own. She sighed heavily, angry at him for ruining their deep bond. For making her fall in love with the kind of man she despised.

“Damn you, Colt,” she whispered.

“I’m sorry, Brielle.” Colt’s voice was full of regret.

Brielle tensed and sat up, causing the hammock to teeter uncontrollably.

With casual swiftness, Colt reached out and steadied it. “Please let me talk to you.”

She crossed her arms and slumped back onto the hammock. “I don’t want to hear anything you have to say.”

“May I?” He carefully lay down next to her on the hammock.

“No! You may not!” She tried to sit up to protest, but instead had to clutch his chest to keep from falling. She eased back onto the pillow and quickly drew back her hand as if she’d just been scorched by a hot griddle. She crossed her arms defiantly, her demeanor filled with resentment.

“I won’t touch you, I promise.” He crossed his arms across his chest and stared up at the universe. “Just hear me out, and then I’ll leave and never look back.”

“Fine.”

“Hell.” Colt sighed. “My goal so far was to get you to stop long enough to listen. Now that I got my chance, I don’t even know where to start.”

After a brief moment of silence, he finally spoke, though his voice held a dismal undertone. “Well, for one, I don’t fraternize with drug dealers, Brielle. It just sort of happened. I…”

The sound of him swallowing filled the brief silence.

“I came home from work one night and Roy was at the house. There was a bag of marijuana on the coffee table…” He sighed heavily. “My mom…”

His voice cracked and tears filled his eyes, but he held them back and cleared his throat.

“She was in a lot of pain. The medicines weren’t working. A neighbor told her about how marijuana helps to dull the pain. But it’s illegal here in Texas.”

A chill ran down Brielle’s arms as a thread of sympathy knotted her gut. She bit her lip to keep from interrupting.

“She was desperate to try anything. So he contacted Roy for her and set up the deal. But the neighbor had ulterior motives. He came over and tried to take it for himself. He was all screwed up on drugs. I came home in the middle of it and then a fight broke out … actually, I walloped the neighbor senseless. Then his wife called the police. A squad car just happened to be around the corner. The neighbor and Roy scrammed as soon as they heard the sirens, but the bag was left sitting on the coffee table. I couldn’t let her go to jail. So I took the blame.”

Brielle’s heart broke all over again. But this time, it was for Colt, and the pain and suffering he’d endured. She placed a shaky hand on her chest. She dared not speak for fear of losing control of her emotions.

“I was sentenced to thirty days in the county jail. The second night in … she passed away…”

Quiet tears fell. He swallowed hard before he continued. “And then I was all alone, and I’d just had enough. Enough of jail … enough of Dallas … and enough of not being there for her when she died … The day I was released I left the jail, walked to the bus station, and left without looking back. I needed to get away from that life. I would’ve come back years ago, but I couldn’t leave her to die alone in that rat hole.”

He chuckled slightly through his tears. “How’s that for irony, huh? She ended up dying alone in the rat hole anyway.” He shook his head and clenched his jaw.

Brielle felt awful. She couldn’t believe how selfish she’d been over the last few days by avoiding Colt. Not being able to hold back any longer, she finally let her own tears escape.

“Oh Colt!” She propped up on an elbow to look into his eyes. “I’m so sorry! I’m sorry about your mom, and all that you had to go through for her. About Roy, and jail, and for
ever
doubting that you were the most honest, caring, loving man that you truly are!” She crushed her lips to his and kissed him with all of her heart.

Colt kissed her back lovingly. After a long moment he drew away just far enough to speak. “I love you too, baby,” he whispered huskily before he rolled on top of her.

Suddenly the hammock wobbled and tipped and slipped from under them. Colt instinctively rolled to his back, keeping Brielle tightly in his grasp as they fell.

Brielle cringed and tucked her head into his chest.

“Ugh!” Colt groaned as his back slammed into the cement patio.

“Are you okay?” She lifted her head to gaze into his eyes.

He chuckled softly and tangled his fingers into her hair. “I’m better than okay,” he whispered as he pulled her lips to his and kissed her hungrily.

After a long indulgent kiss, Colt pulled away to speak. With both hands on either sides of her face, he gazed into her eyes. “I’m so sorry for all the trouble and pain I caused you, Brielle.”

She shook her head. “No, Colt, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I wouldn’t listen to you. I was just angry. It wasn’t your fault. I should never have gone off to Dallas by myself in the first place.”

“You’re not the one who should be sorry. I’m at fault here. I should never have left unfinished business behind — especially not the dangerous kind. But I will
never
hurt you again … I promise.”

He gave her one last loving kiss before he gently rolled her off him. “You’re coming home with me tonight.” Colt rose from the hard slab of concrete and pulled Brielle to her feet.

“Oh, am I?” She seductively raised an eyebrow.

“Yep, you are.” He picked her up, threw her over his shoulder, and ran around the side of the house to his truck.

“Colt!” She couldn’t stop giggling. “You put me down!” She repeatedly swatted his rear, but he paid no attention.

He set her on her feet and opened the passenger door. He’d left his cell phone sitting on the seat — the tiny red light in the corner of the screen was flashing. He picked it up to see whose call he’d missed. “Huh? It’s a local call, but I don’t recognize the number.”

Brielle smiled and snatched the phone from him. “Let me see.” She focused in on the familiar numerals. Her smile disappeared. “It’s my dad. He hasn’t come home yet. He’s probably calling for a ride. He usually calls Jack, but he must’ve gotten called in.” Her lighthearted demeanor faded into a frown. “I’m sorry. I’ll go get him. Then I’ll come back to your place.”

“I’ll come with you.”

She didn’t want him see her drunken father. Her shame. “No. I’ll go. I’ll be back before you know it.” She gave him a quick peck on the lips and hurried through the front door of the house to grab her purse from the foyer table. Then she hurried back to her car on the other side of Colt’s truck. A heap of scrap plywood in the bed of his truck caught her eye. “Looks like you’ve been busy today.”

“Me and Jack, both,” Colt said as he stepped around the side of his truck to her car. He looked concerned. “It’s late, Brielle. I’ll come with you. It’s no trouble. You shouldn’t be out so late by yourself. It isn’t safe.”

“No.” She stood her ground. “Please, Colt. It’s embarrassing enough that I have to go retrieve my drunken father from a hole-in-the-wall bar, and listen to him scold me for doing so, without having you tag along to witness it all. I’ll have him meet me out front. I’ll just pick him up and head straight back home. Okay?” she pleaded.

He reluctantly agreed. “All right. I’ll be waiting for you.”

She beamed, her twinkling eyes nearly bringing light to the night sky. “Thank you. I’ll be right back.” She blew him a kiss, got into her car, and drove away.

Colt sighed heavily as he watched Brielle’s taillights disappear in the distance. He couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling in his gut. He knew what kind of lowlifes hung out at the bar. Especially one named Billy Collins. But also he knew that Roger wouldn’t let anyone lay a hand on her. Reluctantly, he climbed into his truck and headed home.

When he returned, he was surprised to see Jack’s car still parked in the driveway. He jumped out of the truck and hurried to the barn, where he’d last seen Jack.

Jack was sitting on a hay bale drinking a glass of ice water. He lowered his glass and frowned. “You’re back early. That can’t be good news.”

Colt furrowed his brow. “Everything’s fine between Brielle and me, but why didn’t you pick up your dad?”

“What?” Jack grabbed his cell phone off of the hay bale. “Damn. He must’ve called when I was in the house getting some water.”

“He called my cell too, but I missed the call. Brielle’s on her way to get him now,” Colt informed Jack.

“She went alone?” Jack sounded worried.

Colt shrugged. “She insisted on going alone. She was embarrassed for me to see him drunk.” He clenched his jaw. “But dammit — I feel like I’ve made a foolish decision letting her go alone.”

Jack paused for a few seconds. “If he only called me and you, and we both didn’t answer … then how in the hell do we even know he’s still at the bar?” he asked warily. “Maybe he hitched a ride with someone else?”