Life Should Be Beautiful (Summer Lake Silver #12)

Chapter Eleven

Davin turned off the main road and onto the long driveway that led to Lily’s barn. He glanced over at Alexis and smiled when he found her watching him.

“What?” he asked.

“What am I smiling about, you mean?”

“Yeah.”

She shrugged. “Lots of things. Enjoying your company. Thinking what a handsome devil you are. Marveling at how different my life is now than it was just a month ago.” She chuckled. “Perhaps still basking in the afterglow of great sex. Is that reason enough to justify what I’m sure is the rather goofy expression on my face?”

He rested his hand palm up on the console and waggled his fingers until she placed her hand in his and interlaced their fingers.

“You don’t ever have to justify yourself to me. I was just curious what was making you look so happy because I like it, and I want to do whatever I can to make you smile like that as often as possible.”

She squeezed his hand. “Then just keep being you. Keep hanging out with me – and I don’t think either of us is averse to the idea of keeping up with the great sex.”

“Nope. You won’t get any complaints from me about that – or about any of it. I feel the same way – I enjoy your company and although the circumstances of my life haven’t changed in the same way that yours have since I’m still living in the same place and working the same job, I feel like everything’s changed.”

He glanced over at her, hoping that he wasn’t coming on too strong, but it was true. She’d moved across the country and begun a whole new life, while the only thing that had changed for him was meeting her.

The way she smiled made him relax. “I’m glad you feel that way. I think that whatever we’re getting into here – with each other – bears exploring.”

“I agree.”

She looked out through the windshield when he brought the truck to a stop in the small parking lot beside the barn. There was only one other vehicle there.

“It’s quiet here today,” Davin said.

“Lily told me that she’d rostered herself off for the weekend, but I thought there’d be others around.”

Davin eyed the beat-up old Tahoe. It looked familiar, but he couldn’t place it.

He stopped even trying when Alexis smiled and pointed. “Here they come.” Her smile faded. “Oh. I thought that they’d gotten used to seeing my car and were coming to greet me when I arrived last time. If they’re coming over to your truck, I guess they’re just curious about any visitors.”

“Let’s go see them. I bet they’ll be happy when they know it’s you.”

They walked hand in hand to the fence, and Mac came straight to them. He hung just far enough back that he was out of reach. Beau stayed a little farther back still. It seemed to Davin that he was taking shelter in his friend’s shadow.

“Hello, boys,” Alexis’s voice was soft and low. Davin watched the horses’ ears prick forward, and he couldn’t blame them. The sound made him want to lean in toward her as it traveled over his skin.

She brought her hand out of her pocket, and Mac came straight to the fence.

Davin chuckled as he watched the big guy move his lips over her hand as he took a treat while making as little contact as possible. He kept one eye on Alexis as she spoke in a low soothing monotone, and Mac slowly inched forward.

He felt bad for Beau, who was still hanging back. He was obviously interested but too afraid to risk approaching.

“Can I have one of those?”

Alexis handed him a packet from her pocket. “If you’re going to try with Beau, don’t be offended if he won’t come.”

“I know. I’m not expecting anything, but I have to try.”

She chuckled when Mac reached over the fence and snuffled at her pocket. “Okay, big guy! Can you show your brother that it’s safe?”

Davin moved farther along the fence, away from Mac and Alexis. “They’re brothers?” he asked in surprise.

“No. Not in the blood sense. I don’t think they’d ever met before they arrived at the kill pen.”

Davin shuddered. “I hate that name.” The term conjured up too many images from his time in the military. Not that he’d ever heard it until Alexis had told him about the horses, but it could be applied in far too many situations that he’d encountered.

“I do as well.” She rubbed Mac’s nose. “I’m just glad that it didn’t live up to its name for these two. Although I hate to think how many others …” Her words trailed off and she jerked her chin with a smile. “Don’t turn around too fast; Beau’s slowly inching his way toward you.”

Davin turned slowly and was surprised to see the black horse just a few feet away from him.

“Hey, buddy,” he said in what he hoped was a soothing tone. “I know you don’t know me, but I promise you I’ll never hurt you. I’m a friend – or I’d like to be, if you’ll let me.”

Beau took another cautious step toward him, and Davin’s heart raced. He didn’t know much about horses, but he figured that they were like any other creature – including humans – they could sense who was safe to approach. Even if their past history made them cautious to begin with.

Alexis’s eyes grew wide, and a big smile spread across her face as Beau took another step. Even Mac stopped and turned to watch. He let out a short whinny that sounded to Davin as though he was encouraging his friend.

Davin slowly stretched out his arm, holding a treat on the flat of his hand. Beau stood stock still, quivering. Davin held his breath, fully expecting the horse to spook and trot away. Instead, Beau stretched his neck, and seemed to lean forward, wanting to investigate but not daring to come any closer. Davin smiled when the horse stretched his lips and soft velvet briefly touched his hand. Beau took the treat and retreated a few steps, holding Davin’s gaze warily as he crunched.

“There you go, see. I told you I wouldn’t hurt you,” Davin murmured. “No one’s going to hurt you ever again. Your new mama’s going to make sure of it, buddy. And you’ve got big brother, Mac, over there.”

He would have sworn that Beau understood him when he turned to look at Mac. Alexis caught Davin’s gaze and grinned.

“Wow! That’s amazing! I’m thrilled – and if I’m honest, maybe a teeny bit jealous.”

“Shoot, I’m sorry I …”

“No! Don’t be – please! It’s wonderful to see him be so brave. Amazing that he trusted you. I’m jealous because of course I wish it were me, but that’s just about my little ego and that’s not what matters. What’s important is that he’s learning to trust.”

He turned to look at Beau again. The horse took another step toward him, and Davin held out another treat. Beau looked at him but then spotted something behind him and snorted and spun away, trotting off to the far side of the paddock.

“Crap! I’m sorry. I seem to have a knack for screwing things up for you guys,” Shayna said as she approached. “Did Beau really just take a treat from you?”

“Don’t worry about it,” said Alexis. “You didn’t screw anything up. It’s good to see you. And yes – can you believe it? I’ve been trying with no luck to get close to him ever since we arrived, and he went to Davin without hesitation.”

“He was hesitant all right.” Even as Davin said it, he couldn’t help feeling proud that Beau had trusted him like that.

Shayna grinned at him. “Beau’s like the rest of us – we all know that you’re a trustworthy guy, someone we can turn to.”

Alexis grinned at him and nodded. “It’s true.”

“I guess it’s a hangover from my days in the military.”

“No, it’s just who you are,” said Alexis, and Shayna grinned happily beside her.

“We’ve all tried to win Beau over, but as far as I know, you’re the first one he’s allowed to get that close to him.”

Davin shot Alexis an apologetic look, but she laughed. “I shouldn’t have told you that I was jealous – I can’t take it back and say that I’m not, but it’s nothing compared to knowing that he’s starting to trust.”

“She’s right,” added Shayna. “You can’t feel guilty that he chose you first. You have to be grateful that you’ve started him on the road to accepting us.”

“Are you out here by yourself today?” he asked, eager to move the conversation on.

“Only this morning. Mary will be here in a little while, and then Audrey will be teaching the kids classes this afternoon. I just fill in the gaps in the schedule when Lily needs me. I’m not even part-time here, more of an occasional stand in.”

“How many jobs do you have?” asked Alexis.

Shayna chuckled. “I do what I can where I can. I’m taking classes online to try and cobble a degree together. I work at the grocery store mostly, I teach a class or two at the gym. I’ve been helping out at The Boathouse lately, since Ben hasn’t put his team together for the summer season yet and I help out here when Lily needs me.”

“You’re a busy lady.”

“I am.”

“Did you grow up here?”

Davin was curious to hear the answer. He’d known Shayna for a while but only in passing. She was always pleasant enough, but he didn’t know the first thing about her other than she worked a lot.

Shayna’s smile dimmed. “I did.”

“Is your family still here?”

Davin’s heart sank. He could see the answer in Shayna’s eyes even before she spoke.

“I don’t have any family left. It was just me and my mom growing up. She passed three years ago. My dad killed himself when I was nine.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Thanks. Don’t look like that. You didn’t put your foot in it. It was a long time ago.” She turned to Davin. “He served in the first Gulf War, when I was just a baby. These days, they’d say that he had PTSD when he returned. Back then there wasn’t as much awareness, I guess.”

Davin nodded. “I’m sorry. Unfortunately, it happens all too often, even now.”

Shayna blew out a sigh. “I know. That’s why I do what I do.”

He shot a glance at Alexis and could see that she didn’t understand any more than he did.

Shayna smiled. “Sorry, that must’ve sounded weird. I don’t mean that I work a bunch of part-time jobs because my dad killed himself. What I mean is that I’m working on getting my degree in psychology because I want to work as a therapist – I want to help vets who are struggling after they come home.”

Davin reached out and grasped her shoulder. “Thank you.”

She gave him a puzzled look.

“I’m fortunate that I don’t struggle too badly.” He didn’t think that either she or Alexis needed to hear about the nightmares that sometimes disturbed his sleep – and left him in a fog for a day or two. He was lucky compared to most, and he knew it. “But I know that most of us do struggle in one way or another. We’ve all lost people we served with to suicide. We need all the help we can get.”

“I know.”

“I admire what you’re doing,” said Alexis. “And you’re doing it all by yourself? You don’t have any other family?”

“No. It was just me and my mom growing up. I have friends, of course.” She laughed, but it sounded a little hollow to Davin. “I didn’t mean to make myself sound like a sad sack. Summer Lake is a great place, and everyone looks out for each other. But yeah, no family.”

Alexis surprised him when she gave Shayna a hug. She looked a little embarrassed when she stepped back, but Shayna was smiling.

“If I had a daughter, I hope that she’d be half the woman you are.”

Shayna’s eyes sparkled with unshed tears as she said, “Wow! Thank you. I …” She sniffed. “I think of you as this super cool, super smart, tough but graceful lady, so that means a lot coming from you.”

Alexis chuckled. “That means a lot coming from you, too. Now, moving on before I get teary eyed and blow my super cool reputation; do you know if the trailer’s unlocked?”

Shayna grinned. “Right! Yeah. Lily told me she was a bit worried that someone might have been in there – but not to worry because you were on the case. She locked it up so that no one could get in. I told her she should leave it unlocked so as not to put whoever it is off before you can catch them with a camera. But she was worried since I’m here by myself this morning.”

Davin glanced over at the trailer, curious whether a flimsy lock would have been enough to put off the uninvited guest.

“Go check it out if you like,” said Shayna. “I bet you could get inside. I should get back to it. I’ve still got a few more stalls to muck out before Mary arrives.”

“They don’t expect you to do them all by yourself, do they?” Alexis asked.

Shayna grinned. “They don’t expect me to, no. But I love seeing the look on their faces when I do. For one thing, they don’t believe it’s possible for one person to get them all done before lunchtime – and I love blasting through anyone’s limits of what’s possible. And more importantly, when I do them all, it gives them an easier day. They do it all week every week and it’s hard work taking care of a barn.”

Davin exchanged a smile with Alexis. Despite not knowing her well, he’d always liked Shayna. Now, he was coming to understand why.

~ ~ ~

By the time they were ready to go out to dinner, Alexis felt more at home with Davin than she ever had with Gordon.

After poking around the trailer at the barn – the lock hadn’t kept them out – they’d agreed that someone was definitely sleeping there. Although that someone was very respectful of the space. Davin was particularly interested in finding out who it was and helping them. He’d told her the story of Adam’s fiancée, Evie, who had been living in her car when she first arrived in Summer Lake.

She looked up the stairs when he came jogging down them. He’d left her for a while this afternoon to collect clothes for the rest of the weekend and to check in with his other teammate, Alec.

It felt perfectly natural for him to be here now, for them to have taken turns getting ready to go to Giuseppe’s for dinner.

When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he came straight to her, resting his hands on her hips and planting a kiss on her lips.

“What’s that look for? Are you regretting asking me to hang out like this? Am I making myself too much at home?”

“No! I was thinking just the opposite. That I like it. Although, it surprises me. I thought I’d be happy to never date ever again after Gordon, and I certainly had no intention of sharing my space with anyone, but you …” She looked up into his eyes and smiled. “You took me by surprise.”

“I’m glad.” He chuckled. “But it’s early days yet. You might be sick of me by the end of the weekend and be glad to see the back of me when I have to go back to work.”

“True, I might. But I thought it was worth taking a chance since it’s only a couple of days. I thought the risk would be worth the reward – and I was right. Even if I kick you to the curb on Monday morning, I had some great sex.”

She laughed out loud at the shocked look on his face.

“Jeez! I was joking!”

He narrowed his eyes at her as he laughed. “You’re a cruel woman!” he said as he picked her up and swung her around.

He set her back down when he realized that she wasn’t laughing.

“I know you were only joking. I’m not offended. I’m more concerned that you might discover that you’re right.”

“No way. You’re not cruel. I haven’t known you for long, but I know that much without a doubt.”

“You’re right, of course. But even though I’m not cruel, I am too … hard for some.”

He held her gaze for a long moment, and her heart started to pound as she realized that she really didn’t want him to see her that way. It might be true – she hadn’t survived in her career for so long or been as successful as she was by being sweet and amenable – but she wanted Davin to be able to see beyond that.

She felt herself relax as he looked into her eyes and smiled as he trailed his fingers down her cheek. “You’re not hard, you’re strong. Not everyone sees that because they’re not as strong as you are, and you make them feel weak by comparison. When they feel bad about themselves, most people would rather blame someone else than take responsibility and look inward.”

He held her gaze for a long moment, and she nodded. He was right, she already knew it. Hearing him say it made her fall for him a little bit more.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and looked up into his eyes. “I’m not always easy, either.”

He wrapped his arms around her waist, and she loved the feel of being pressed up against his hard chest. “I like you just the way you are.”

“I know but I can be … difficult.”

He shrugged. “Are you trying to put me off?”

“More like trying to let you know what you’re in for.”

He smiled. “You think I might not be up to it?”

As she stared back into his eyes, he cocked an eyebrow, and it struck her. He might come across as fairly easy-going and mild-mannered, but he was a man who had no doubts whatsoever about his own capabilities.

She grinned at him, and he grinned back.

“Everyone thinks of the big bulky guys as the main threat, but they’re often wrong about that, aren’t they?”

He smirked but didn’t say anything.

She pressed a quick kiss to his lips. “It’s the dark horses like you we need to watch out for.”