17. CT
17
ct
Logan enters the barn fifteen minutes before he promised to be here, and I shake my head, grateful to Dani all over again for suggesting this. Though I have to get him on board first.
“CT,” he greets as he approaches, reaching out a hand to shake. “What’s going on, man?”
Logan and I have been friends since we were little kids, we’d been best friends while Dani and I started navigating our feelings, we were friends while we dated, and then after I fucked up with Dani, he continued to be loyal, even when I told him he didn’t have to.
Why didn’t I think of this sooner?
I take a stance, legs braced and thumbs tucked into my front jean pockets. “I want you to come work with me.”
Logan pauses, taking a hand to his ball cap and readjusting it. “Come work with you? You got two-year-olds to break?”
“Not exactly,” I reply, biting at my lip before continuing. “I’m having trouble finding someone reliable, someone I can count on. I’ve got a few horses that need exercise every day, I’ve got clients to take care of and most want to bring their horses in for training. I have stalls to clean, a ranch to maintain, and cattle to watch. So, I need help.” My mouth feels like sandpaper when I finish, hating that I have to ask for help.
He nods slowly, glancing around the barn. “I’m not really a rancher.”
I sigh and let the disappointment I’m feeling show. “Yeah, I get that. You’re a horse trainer, a damn good one. This doesn’t have to be permanent, but maybe until I find some more help. I got the impression this could possibly help both of us?” I phrase it as a question. Dani didn’t tell me anything other than he may be looking for work, and I don’t want him to think I’m trying to pry into something that isn’t my business.
Logan’s eyes scan the barn, and he shrugs. “I suppose it couldn’t hurt.”
I let myself breathe a sigh of relief. “You’d be saving me a lot of time and grief. I can’t take another fucking Trent.”
He chuckles at me, reaching out a hand. “And hey, you need more than one person?”
I raise a brow and nod. “You got someone in mind?”
Stetson arrived not long after our initial conversation, eager to be a part of the “Trevors Ranch team,” as he put it.
And I was feeling nothing but relief over the entire situation. Finding reliable help on your ranch was one of the hardest things to do, especially if you didn’t have an endless amount of family to help out.
Hell, Graham was planning to come help while I was out of town, and I was grateful, but I didn’t like putting that all on him. He had his own work, his girlfriend, and a future stepdaughter to take care of. He couldn’t do it alone.
I took my time working with the boys, showing them where everything is and what needs doing on the daily, and like I thought, they took to it fast.
So much relief filled me that I nearly kissed Dani when she came over to practice on Lady that evening, but I didn’t. I refrained. But I could tell our last conversation was sticking with her, given the shy smile she sent my way.
I didn’t mean to spill my guts to her the moment we sat down, but I knew in my heart that I couldn’t hold it back anymore. Dani being around me, working with me again, showed me how much of a mistake I had made pushing her away.
And if she’ll let me, I’ll make it up to her.
Having her around was like the missing puzzle piece on the ranch. She was meant to be here. Meant to be with me.
I just had to show her.
The week passes fairly quickly, everyone taking to their new positions with ease, and my trust in them grows tenfold.
Dani also seems to be loosening up when the boys are around, and though it stings a little that she holds so much back in front of me, I’m still grateful she’s finally relaxing a little bit more each time she comes around.
Toward the beginning of the next week, Dani is packing her trailer and getting ready for her week at the show. She leaves today to head down to Denver, which is a four-hour drive, and gets home Sunday.
“You sure you don’t need help?” I ask again gruffly, growing anxious at the thought of her driving that far by herself. Not that she can’t do it.
“I’m good,” she says, stepping out of the tiny little living quarters she’ll be staying in while she’s there.
Great. Her, by herself, in a lot full of trailers and other individuals who would be staying in close quarters.
I rub at my chest as Logan comes out with Lady in hand. “Good luck, cuz.”
She smiles at him and takes Lady, leading her into the trailer. Logan looks over at me and smirks.
“What?” I snap.
“Nothing, just surprised you’re not begging to go along,” he says out of earshot from Dani. He has no idea how right he is, but I don’t want to step on her toes. I don’t want her to think I’m coming in to rescue her or, more accurately, trying to rescue her.
Dani comes back out of the trailer and locks the door. She’s wearing her cowboy hat today, and her hair is down. Her tank is white, setting off her tanned arms, and her jeans hug her ass so perfectly.
If I ever had a fantasy that wasn’t Dani before, this would be it .
She walks over to me and surprises me by pulling me into a hug. “Thanks so much, CT. I’m grateful for your help.”
I swallow hard into the hug, letting my arms fully wrap around her and pulling her tight.
Fuck, when was the last time we hugged? Must have been before we broke up. Not counting dancing.
“No problem. I’m always here for you.” The truth of my words is insurmountable. I’ll never not be here for her, no matter what that means. She pulls away, looking up at me with uncertainty before pulling away and smiling broadly.
“Wish me luck,” she calls.
“Good luck.”
Then I watch her pull out of the courtyard and up the long driveway. I wait until I can’t see her anymore, and then the rumble of my truck pulling in front of the barn snags my attention, and Stetson steps out, slapping his cowboy hat on with a grin.
“You sure you shouldn’t have just told her? She would have let you ride along.”
He’s not wrong. I doubt Dani would have told me no. But that’s not the way this will go. I won’t just bombard her with my presence. I’ll be there, in the background, waiting in case she needs me .
“Maybe next time,” I tell him as we load Poco, the palomino mare I’ve been training in my off time. I had no idea I’d be showing her this early in the season, or this season at all, if I’m being perfectly honest, but it was just the excuse I needed to be at that show to watch Dani’s back.
Then I’m off, leaving the ranch in the hands of my brother and Dani’s cousins, confident in my choice to return to the showing world.
And the world I shared with the love of my life.
Who says I can’t get both back?