Chapter 13
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“I never would have pegged you as a guy who’d…”
“Want to stick his head in a horse’s mouth?” Tripp grinned as he said it.
Wendy swallowed back her own laughter, but it was no use.
She couldn’t help joining in. It wasn’t the thought of Tripp actually having a serious job that had her amused.
It was the visual he was offering her. “Yes, but what I was trying to say was I never thought you’d want to do something so… serious.”
“I hardly think dental work for horses are serious.”
She nudged him. They’d taken a break from the dance floor to get something to eat, and they were now seated at one of the many tables.
Wendy caught his eye after contact was made but she forced herself to say focused.
“I’m not expressing myself very well. The Tripp I know…
he goofs off. He’s not thinking about the future. He’s not—”
His expression had gone from playful to blank in a matter of seconds.
Shoot! She’d done it again. Without thinking, she placed a hand on over his.
“I was wrong.” It wasn’t nearly the apology he deserved, but it was all she could give at the moment.
“You’re more than I gave you credit for.
Sure, you’re still a charmer, but there’s… more.”
One corner of his mouth quirked and he scooted even closer to her, getting into her space. “You think I’m charming?”
“Ugh,” she muttered dragging her chair away from him. “Don’t test your luck. This truce isn’t going to last long with that sort of cocky behavior.”
Tripp laced his hands behind his head like he didn’t have a care in the world. Dang it all! The man was incorrigible. He knew just how attractive he was. Where was the humility?
Wendy rolled her eyes then got back to the subject at hand. “Okay, so you’re at a roadblock. Why? What is it about your current job that’s holding you back?”
He picked up his fork and took a bite of the salad on his plate.
Even the thoughtful way he chewed his food was methodical.
She couldn’t help but watch the way his throat bobbed as he swallowed.
Then he cleared his throat. “I like my job. It’s great.
And my cousin makes sure it stays interesting.
There’s always something new to do. Always work to be done. It’s definitely not boring.”
“So, you think that if you were to go into equine dentistry… it’d be boring?”
The seconds that ticked between them had her nearly regretting her question. There was no reason for her to regret them. She wasn’t being spiteful or rude. It was an honest question.
Finally, Tripp turned to look at her head-on. “Why can’t you get past your roadblock?”
Why was he turning the tables? They’d already discussed that she couldn’t get past it and what her thoughts were. “I don’t—”
He pointed his fork at her. “I think you do. I think you’re scared and you don’t….” He blew out a breath and nodded to himself. “Scared. You’re scared.”
She gaped at him. “I’m not scared. I don’t have anything to be scared about. I have a job. I don’t have to worry about anything. It would be a hobby.”
“Then maybe you think that if you love it, it’d be too hard to put your whole heart into it.”
Wendy continued to stare at him, unsure of how to move forward.
She didn’t like this kind of scrutiny. He was getting dangerously close to something she wasn’t sure she wanted to uncover for herself.
Swallowing hard, she forced the instinct to fight back away.
She shoved it down into the dark pit of her soul.
Then she took a deep breath. “You know, one of the hardest things to do is to look in the mirror and truly accept what you don’t want to see. ”
“What are you saying?”
She folded her hands into her lap and nodded. “You claim that I’m scared. Well, I think that would be a better description for yourself.”
One brow lifted and he offered her that all too familiar smirk. “Really?”
“Really. I think that you don’t want to put forth the effort and commitment it would take to stick with one thing.
” She could liken his behavior with the way he treated dating in the past, but she knew better than to go there.
“What happens when you finally choose a path, Tripp? Are you scared you can’t backtrack? ”
He turned thoughtful at her question. “Maybe I am.”
Wow. Tripp was actually listening to her. She hadn’t expected that.
His eyes locked with hers in a hard stare. “But I think the same could go for you.”
Immediately she waved a hand through the air. “This isn’t about me. We both know that I’m interested and I’m ready to dive in and write the book. I just can’t get past that initial… issue. It’s psychological, sure, but not fear.”
They each stared at one another for a long moment before the two of them released the pent-up laughter. It was a relief to have a conversation that didn’t end in one or the other drawing blood.
“So what are you going to do? Are you going to stick with your current job, or are you going to talk to your cousin about a change?”
Tripp shrugged. “Dunno. It’s not like I’m unhappy.” But the way he said it made her wonder if that statement wasn’t entirely true. He might not be unhappy in his job, but there was part of him that was hurting.
Like called to like. She could see the pain.
Feel how he sensed something was missing.
She wanted to reach out and touch his face, to drag him back to the present and ask him to talk to her.
But she didn’t. She kept her hands clasped tightly in her lap as she waited for him to work through whatever it was.
In moments, he lifted his eyes to meet hers again. “Have you thought about sending what you have to someone?”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know. Like a critique person. Someone who can tell you if you’re on the right track. Maybe that’s what’s holding you back. You’ve never done something like this before. Maybe you could use a mentor.”
The idea wasn’t half-bad. And at least he wasn’t berating her. She offered him one of the first genuine smiles she could muster. “Thanks, Tripp.”
“What for?”
“For… listening, I suppose.”
He huffed out a laugh. “Secrets and surprises, sweetness.”
They both turned back to their food and continued to eat.
Up until this point, they’d been on their own.
No one had ventured toward them to chat or ask why neither one of them had torn the other’s throat out.
It was nice, this truce they’d agreed to.
But it was only a matter of time before something triggered the war to begin again.
For now, Wendy was happy to let the evening continue as it was.
“You and Tripp seem to be getting on okay,” Serenity murmured from behind Wendy’s back.
Wendy jumped then spun to face her friends.
Hallie stood beside Serenity and the two of them were staring at her like she’d done something wrong.
Or maybe they were scheming? It was getting hard to tell with these two.
Wendy scoffed and waved a dismissive hand in the air. “He’s the worst and you know it.”
Hallie laughed. Serenity glanced in the direction where Tripp had gone about five minutes ago.
“I’m still mad at you, by the way,” Wendy added, glaring pointedly at Serenity.
Her friend didn’t need to hear the words that came next based on the playful grin on her face.
“You sent Tripp to come get me. You sent an enemy into friendly territory. Why would you do that?”
“Oh, come on. Clearly it wasn’t all bad. The way you guys have been looking at each other—”
Wendy cut Serenity off with a startled grunt of surprise. “What? We’re not looking at each other any differently than we usually do. Any sort of camaraderie you’ve witnessed between us is strictly for your benefit.”
“Yeah right,” Hallie joined in. “You can’t fake something like that. Well, maybe you can, but Tripp…” She exchanged a knowing look with Serenity.
They didn’t give Wendy a chance to ask what Hallie meant by that statement. Serenity popped her hip out and placed her hand there. “Okay, I’ll humor you. If this is some agreement so you don’t ruin the wedding festivities, then what’s next?”
“What do you mean, what’s next? We’ll tough it out for the wedding then go our separate ways.”
Hallie chuckled but she didn’t comment.
“You sure about that?”
“Of course I’m sure.” Wendy could feel the heat rising to her face.
She should have known better than to believe her best friends wouldn’t notice she was actually getting along with Tripp.
Ugh. She shouldn’t have allowed him to sucker her into a dance.
They’d spent far too much time in each other’s company this evening.
As if against her will, she glanced in Tripp’s direction. She didn’t know why a sudden pang of jealousy chose that moment to rear its ugly head. Nor did she know why she expected anything less from Tripp.
There he was, standing by another woman.
She was gorgeous, dressed in a red dress that was probably a little too short for a party like this one.
Her lips and her shoes matched the dress, and her honey blonde hair was pulled up into a flawless updo.
She was everything Wendy wasn’t, so of course Tripp had gravitated toward her.
Wendy swallowed down the sharp tang of disgust in her throat and turned back to her friends. “See? He’s not interested and neither am I. He’s over there hitting on whoever that woman is.”
Both women set their attention on the couple. Hallie frowned. Serenity cocked her head as if confused. But neither one of them argued with Wendy’s description of the scene. Tripp would forever be a lady’s man. He’d forever chase the next beautiful creature in a skirt, shallow as he was.
She’d known this from the start.
So why did her assessment feel so wrong? Because of a couple deep conversations? Ha. That was laughable. A zebra didn’t change its stripes just because it had the ability to fit in with the horses.
They’d had a nice evening leading up to this point but that was all it was. Now that they’d parted ways, she’d steer clear of him.
“Anyway, are you excited?”
Serenity didn’t immediately turn to her, still staring at Tripp and that woman. Then she startled and met Wendy’s eyes. “Hmm?”
“The wedding. It’s in two days. You excited?
I know you were married before, but…” She attempted a smile that she prayed made her look thrilled for her friend.
Because she was. Wendy was so happy that Serenity had found someone to love after losing her first husband.
The twinge of disappointment she felt was personal and never to be brought to light.
Her friend nodded, her eyes shining as they found her fiancé in the crowd. “I’m very excited. This week has been a dream come true and I’m so ready for our future.”
“That’s great.”
“And what about you?”
Wendy scoffed. “What about me? Nothing’s changed in my life. I’m still… just Wendy.”
Serenity rolled her eyes.
“I think what she’s trying to ask is what’s next for you?” Hallie jumped in.
Nothing. There was nothing that Wendy was running toward.
The book she wanted to write had been put on hold until she could get past whatever it was that blocked her.
Work was the only thing that filled her days.
She wasn’t interested in seeking out a relationship that would inevitably end when they realized she’d prefer to stay at home and watch movies.
This crazy wedding extravaganza week had led to the most time Wendy had spent out of her apartment in months.
Sure, it had been nice to get out, but now she was suddenly feeling drained.
“What about that book—”
Wendy stifled a groan,
but it was too late.
“Book? What book?” Hallie asked.
“Wendy is going to write a romance book. Then she’s going to publish it and sell it at the shop with the other books they sell.”
Hallie gasped with excitement. “Can I be your test subject? Like, you know, the people who read the book before it comes out?”
Serenity nodded. “Yeah, me too. We’ll tell you how good it is so you don’t have to worry when it’s published.”
Wendy could feel the migraine coming on.
She wanted out. She needed to leave. But her ride was currently flirting with another woman and there was no way she’d ask Serenity to leave her own party.
She’d have to stick it out in one of the less busy spaces.
“Yeah, sure. Why not?” She mumbled the words then lifted her nearly full glass. “I’m going to get a refill.”
She slipped away from her friends, not bothering to answer their questions on her well-being. Wendy was fine. She’d always been fine. Today was just a bad day and she wanted space.
Bypassing the table that served the drinks, Wendy headed for the side of the house.
Maybe she could just sit out front away from the loud music and all the people.
Her plans changed when she noticed a couple horses who were grazing in a fenced off area several yards away.
It didn’t matter that she wasn’t dressed for an animal encounter.
Wendy easily slipped off her heels and let them dangle by the straps on her fingers.
Then she headed for the creatures who wouldn’t pester her about her relationships, her book, or her future.