Life Should Be Beautiful (Summer Lake Silver #12)

Chapter Five

Alma ran her hand down Mac’s neck and patted his shoulder. He turned to look at her, and his big, brown eyes melted her heart. She hated to think what would have happened to him if she hadn’t intervened. She looked over at Beau. He was far more skittish than Mac. She guessed that he’d had an even harder life than Mac had – which was saying a lot – and he’d learned that humans were a source of pain and fear. She blew out a sigh. They might both be underweight and wary right now, but she was determined that, with time, they’d learn that humans could be a source of food and affection.

“They’re settling in well,” said Lily.

“It looks that way. I know it’s only been a few days, but they seem to have gained some weight already.”

Lily smiled. “They should have – they’ve been eating well. At first, they seemed to think it might be a trick or something; they’d sidle up and take a mouthful of hay and then retreat, as if they were expecting to be punished for taking some. Now, they’re munching peacefully through as much as they can manage.”

“You know I’m happy to pay for whatever they need, don’t you?”

Lily smiled. “I do. And I love it for them. I don’t like to think about it; it’s one of those problems that’s so big, and there’s so little that you can actually do but … We might not be able to stop a whole industry that loads horses onto Mexico or Canada-bound trucks to be slaughtered for meat, but you were able to stop these two from meeting that fate.”

Alma nodded. “I feel bad that I wasn’t even aware that whole industry existed until I learned about these two.”

She smiled when Mac turned and butted her shoulder.

“I think he’s telling you to keep petting him,” said Lily. “He’s already learned to enjoy the affection.”

“You’re a resilient old guy, aren’t you?” Alma patted his neck again. From what she’d figured out, he’d spent his whole life working on a farm. He had bald patches on his chest and withers from having worn a harness for who knew how many hours a day. She didn’t know his story for certain, but from what she’d learned in her research, most horses like him were considered to be equipment – machinery rather than animals – and were treated as such. He probably hadn’t even had a name. He’d just been worked until he couldn’t anymore. He was still sound, just old – he’d probably been replaced by a younger, stronger horse. He’d been sent to auction, and like so many of the horses there, he hadn’t stood much of a chance of finding a buyer who wanted him for who he was. He – and Beau – and most of the other horses who were older, unsound in any way or just didn’t hold much use to anyone, would have most likely been sold to a meat buyer.

While the slaughter of horses for meat was illegal in the U.S., the meat buyers bought enough horses to fill a truck and shipped them to Mexico or Canada. She shuddered. She hated to think how many horses met that fate every single day. After a lifetime of hard work, she believed that they’d earned the right to a peaceful retirement. Instead, they faced the horror of being transported hundreds of miles to a place where they would be killed. She could only imagine the terror those poor horses must feel.

Lily touched her arm, bringing her back to the moment. “I can guess what you’re thinking about, but you can’t dwell on it. There’s nothing you can do, and it’ll only drive you crazy if you can’t let it go. You saved these two – you need to focus on that.”

She smiled. “Thanks. I know better. I really do.” It was true. She’d run across so many injustices – so many horrors – in the course of her career, and Lily was right – it would drive you insane if you let yourself focus on what went on. More than that, it was pointless, thinking about it and worrying about it didn’t affect the outcome. It was a waste of time and energy. You either did something about it or you had to let it go. She’d dedicated her career to trying to make the world a better place – done what she could, not just sat back and thought about it. But she had to admit that even with all the ops she’d been part of, all the terrorists and other nefarious characters they’d taken down, she hadn’t made much of a difference. She could have lived her life out in a quiet small town like this, and the world wouldn’t be much worse off.

She patted Mac’s neck again. “Maybe one day I’ll figure out a way to stop that whole industry. For now, I’ll stick with celebrating that we made a difference for these two boys.”

“Good, because you’ve made all the difference in the world. They get to have the retirement they deserve. I’m so glad you brought them here. I’m thrilled to have them.”

“I’m glad that Cal told me about you. I think this has worked out well for all of us.” She’d heard people talk about the pets that they’d rescued being the ones who’d rescued them and she was starting to think that was true for herself. When she’d heard about Mac and Beau – and it was only in a post on social media that she’d seen their videos – it had provided the impetus that she’d needed. She’d bought them, and then not known what to do. It was pure chance that Cal had called her to catch up that week. She hadn’t spoken to him in months. When she’d told him about the horses and that she didn’t know what she was going to do with them, he’d suggested that she should come to Summer Lake – he’d told her about Lily and the riding stables, said that she boarded horses and he knew that she’d taken in a few rescue cases in the past. After she’d talked with Lily, Alma had finally told Gordon that their relationship wasn’t working for her and that she was leaving.

Lily nodded happily. “I’d have to agree. Do you want to stick around for lunch? I’m on my way to the trailer. I’d love for you to join me if you have the time.”

“Sorry. I can’t today. Perhaps next time?” She’d much rather stay and have lunch with Lily than go to The Boathouse and face Gordon, but she needed to get it over with. She needed to send him on his way once and for all.

“Whenever you like,” said Lily. “I’m always here.”

“I know. I’ll be back tomorrow, and can we set up some lessons? I’m looking forward to riding again, but it’s been so long that I’m sure I’ll have forgotten how.”

“Of course. Just come over whenever you like. We can set up some times for your lessons.”

“Okay. Thanks.” She checked her watch. “I’ve put this off as long as I can. I should go.”

“Is everything okay?”

“It is. There’s just some unfinished business I have to take care of.”

~ ~ ~

Davin looked up from the computer when Adam came in and set a mug of coffee down for him.

“How are they doing?” he asked.

Adam had been up to the house to talk to Clay about the travel schedule for the month ahead. “They’re good. Marianne says hi. She told me to tell you that if you don’t go up to the house to see her soon, she’s going to come down here to see you.”

He smiled. Clay’s lady, Marianne, was a sweetheart. He’d been avoiding her for a while because she’d met Zoe one evening when they were at the café over at Four Mile Creek. She’d asked about her a few times since, and Davin didn’t like admitting to her that he and Zoe only saw each other to sleep together.

“I’ll go find her for a chat tomorrow.”

Adam picked up Davin’s phone when it rang. He checked the screen and frowned.

“What does Kenzie want with you?”

Davin laughed. “I know I’m good, but I’m not a mind reader – I won’t know until I answer, will I? Give it here.”

Adam grinned and handed it over.

“Hey, Kenz. What’s up?”

“Probably nothing. But I wanted you to know that your friend from last night – Alma or Alexis, whatever she’s calling herself, is here with her ex.”

He had to smile. “Thanks for letting me know. She told me that she’d have to meet with him before he’d get the message.”

“Doesn’t look like he’s hearing it, if you ask me.”

He frowned. “Why? What’s going on?”

“Oh, wait.” Kenzie laughed. “Scratch that. Damn, she’s fierce!”

“Talk to me.”

“He looked like he was getting mouthy and he’s a big guy. Not like you and the rest of them – he’s not all super fit, superhero – he’s a bit paunchy if you ask me …”

He smiled through pursed lips. “Focus, Kenz.”

“Oh yeah. Sorry. He looked like he was getting a bit mouthy, but she just put him in his place. He won’t shut up, though. He just keeps talking. What do you reckon, should I go and pour a drink over his head – shut him up?”

“No. She can handle him, I’m sure.”

Adam raised his eyebrows. “What’s going on?”

He smiled. “Kenzie’s keeping an eye on Alexis and her ex.”

To his surprise, Adam picked the keys up from the desk. “Come on – we’re going over there.”

“No. I …”

“Yeah, do it,” said Kenzie who had apparently heard Adam. “You should come over – just in case.”

“What about Clay?” he asked Adam.

“Alec’s around. He’s down on the dock, fishing. I’ll shoot him a message – tell him to hold the fort for half an hour – he won’t mind.”

“Get your ass over here,” said Kenzie. “I’ll see you in a little while.”

Davin wasn’t sure that it was a great idea, but since Adam was already on his way, he followed him out to the truck.

Adam grinned at him as he fastened his seatbelt. “She probably won’t need your help, but you didn’t even know that she was meeting with the ex, did you?”

“No.”

“So, there’s no reason that we shouldn’t just be stopping into the restaurant, is there?”

“I guess not. But tell me – are we going because you’re worried about her or because you’re worried about me and want to scope out the situation?”

“Honestly? A little bit of both. I mean, I’d hate for her to have some trouble with her ex, and it won’t hurt if you’re there to help if she does, but yeah – I’m curious to meet her and make sure that … that she’s …” Adam glanced over at him before turning his attention back to the road. “I mean, come on – you’re my brother. I want to know what you’re getting into. This is different – isn’t it? This isn’t a repeat of the Zoe situation. Alexis might come to mean something to you.”

He nodded. He wasn’t going to say it out loud – it was crazy – but she already had.

When they arrived at The Boathouse, Kenzie greeted them with a smile. “I’m glad you came.”

Davin looked around. “Why? Is he giving her trouble?”

“Not how you might think. He’s just talking and talking and talking – he’s sucking the life out of me and I’m only watching. Your woman looks like she might be about ready to go out and end it all just so that she doesn’t have to listen to him anymore.” She jerked her chin toward a booth over by the windows.

Davin could see what she meant. Alexis was sitting across from a man who was talking. He wasn’t animated or agitated, he was just talking without pause. Alexis looked drained. Yesterday she’d seemed so vibrant, so self-assured and kind of bubbly. Right now, she wore a glazed expression, and all her life and energy seemed to have evaporated.

He exchanged a look with Adam.

“How do you want to handle it?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know that there’s anything to handle. I mean if it were up to me, I’d go over there, introduce myself as her new man and tell him that it’s time for him to leave.”

Adam grinned and took a step forward, but Davin put a hand on his arm.

“It’s not up to me though, is it? I know she wants him gone, but I offered last night. I said that I’d tell him to go, tell him to leave her alone, but she said that she could handle it. I have to respect that.”

“I suppose so. But what if we were to walk by their table – I mean we’d have to if we wanted to sit up there in the back like we sometimes do.”

Davin chuckled. “That’s true.” He glanced over at Alexis again. She seemed to have sunk lower in her seat while Gordon continued to talk. “Let’s do it. It can’t do any harm.”

Adam grinned and set off in their direction. Davin followed, watching Alexis the whole way. She looked up when Adam approached, and then her gaze fell on him. A rush of warmth filled his chest when a big smile lit up her face. If all her energy had drained away while she sat with Gordon, she looked as though she’d been plugged back in when she spotted Davin.

She jumped to her feet and came straight to him. “Hello! It’s good to see you.”

“It’s good to see you, too.” He reached out to touch her arm. He wanted to hug her or kiss her cheek or … something, and not just to make clear to her ex that he really was an ex.

“Who’s this?” Gordon’s expression was sullen; he reminded Davin of a sulky teenager.

Alexis looked up into Davin’s eyes and he gave her a slight nod. He didn’t know, but he hoped that she was asking for his help – he wanted her to know that he was happy to give whatever kind of help she wanted from him.

He couldn’t help smiling when she slid her arm around his waist. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and drew her closer to his side.

“I didn’t want to tell you because it all happened so quickly,” she said to Gordon. “I told you before I left that we were done, that my decision was final. I told you that you’ve had a wasted trip when you followed me here. I don’t want you to stay. There really is no hope that I’m going to change my mind. And as you can see – I’ve met someone else.”

Gordon pushed to his feet. “You cheating bitch!”

“Whoa!” Davin stepped forward and Gordon stumbled backward and sat down again. “You don’t talk to Alexis like that. You don’t talk to any woman like that.”

Gordon didn’t speak, he just glowered at Davin before turning back to Alexis. “So, this is it? You’re dumping me for him?”

“No! I ended our relationship weeks ago. If you respected me, you would have accepted that. You shouldn’t have followed me here – I’d already made my position perfectly clear.”

“And you’re with him now?”

Davin tightened his arm around her shoulders when she looked up into his eyes. For a moment, he forgot all about Gordon, forgot that Adam was there watching the whole thing play out. All he knew was that he couldn’t breathe while he waited for her to answer.

She held his gaze and gave a slight nod as she smiled and said, “I am.”

He grinned and gave her a squeeze – he wanted to kiss her, but it was better to save that for when they didn’t have an audience. Instead, he winked at her before turning to Gordon.

“I almost feel sorry for you. I would, if I thought you had any clue about what you’ve lost, but I don’t think you appreciated just what a gem you had in Alexis. Go home. You blew it, and believe me, I’m not going to make the same mistakes you did.”

Gordon scrambled out of the booth and stopped in front of them. He opened his mouth to speak, but then shook his head and walked away. He turned back after a few steps. “You’re welcome to her. She’s a cold, hard bitch. You’ll find out for yourself soon enough.”

Davin lunged toward him, but Alexis held him back with surprising strength.

“Let him go.”

Davin scowled. “He doesn’t get to talk about you like that.”

She gave him a rueful smile. “He might be right – I’m not easy.”

He met her gaze and held it. “Nothing worth having is easy.”

She chuckled. “Nice one.” Her smile faded. “But I’m serious, Davin. I’m not a sweet, amenable little lady who’ll go along to get along. I can be … difficult.”

He shrugged. “Can’t we all?” He thought he knew what she meant – and it didn’t put him off, if anything, it was part of her appeal. She wasn’t the kind of woman who needed him – not in any respect. She could fend for herself, physically, emotionally, no doubt financially. But he liked that about her – since she didn’t need him for anything, the only reason for her to be with him was because she wanted him. That felt pretty damned good to him.

He winked at her and said, “That’s okay, I like a challenge.”

She laughed, and Adam stepped forward. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m …”

“Adam?” she asked as she shook his hand.

“That’s right. How did you know?”

“The way Davin talked about you last night told me how close the two of you are. The way the two of you move together, whether walking by the table or in preparation to deal with Gordon in case he was an issue, screams out loud that the two of you operate as one unit.” She shrugged. “You couldn’t be anyone else.”

Adam grinned at Davin. “You talked about me?”

He rolled his eyes. “It’s hard to describe my life without mentioning you.”

Adam chuckled and turned back to Alexis. “You’re right, we’ve had each other’s backs for decades. We’re brothers.”

“I gathered that much. So, I fully expect that you’ll be wary of me, if not outright skeptical, at least to start with. I know, in your position, I wouldn’t be thrilled if my friend were to get involved with someone who was still dealing with the messy end of their last relationship. I’d like to reassure you, but I know that words won’t be enough to do that.”

Davin relaxed when Adam smiled. He could see that her forthright approach had gone a long way in winning him over.

“It’s not exactly your fault that he didn’t want to let go, is it?”

“Perhaps not, or perhaps I should have been more forceful or emphatic or … something, when I ended it. It’s just that he talks and talks, and my brain shuts down. I can’t …” She shuddered, and Davin tightened his arm around her, which made him realize that he was still holding her, and her arm was still around his waist. She smiled up at him.

“I can see what you mean,” said Kenzie who had appeared next to Adam. “Damn, girl. I was watching, and even from the other side of the bar, the way he was droning on and on almost made me lose the will to live.”

Alexis laughed at that. “It’s not quite that bad.”

“You sure about that?” Kenzie asked. “Anyway, I just came over to make sure that you’re all okay.”

“We’re good thanks, Kenz,” said Davin.

“Okay. Can I get anyone a drink?”

Adam looked at Davin, but he shook his head. “We need to get back to work.”

Alexis gave him a puzzled look. “You’re not here for lunch?”

Kenzie chuckled. “No. I called him because I was worried about you.”

“And when he said that you’d already told him you were capable of handling the situation by yourself and he wanted to respect that, I insisted that we should come just in case,” said Adam with a smile. “And only partly because I wanted to figure out what your deal is.”

She laughed. “Well, okay then. Thank you – all of you. I appreciate it.” She smiled up at him. “I’d better let you get back to work.”

Kenzie linked her arm through Adam’s and dragged him away. “I just need a word with this guy before you go.”

Davin shook his head, and Alexis laughed with him. “I like her.”

“Yeah, she’s great. She’s a piece of work but she has a heart of gold. Are you okay?”

“I am, thanks. Thanks for coming, thanks for stepping in and … for all of it.”

“Thanks for being so understanding. I really didn’t want to elbow my way into your personal business.”

She smiled. “I’m glad you did.”

“Yeah. Did you mean what you said?”

“About being with you?” She gave a slight nod. “After last night I think it’d be a crying shame not to at least investigate what might happen between us – don’t you?”

He nodded happily. “I do, it’d be a real shame. So … can I call you later?”

“I’d like that.”

“Okay. I can’t come over because I’m working but …”

“That’s okay – it’s almost Thursday.”

He tightened his arm around her and dropped a quick peck on her lips. “Almost, but it can’t come soon enough.”