Chapter One #3
“My guess is he bought another horse.”
Carly rubbed the back of her neck, trying to ease the tension tightening her muscles into one big knot. “Yup. Despite promising he’d check with me before making any major purchases. Where I made my mistake was not spelling out what constitutes major.”
“You didn’t really expect him to listen, did you?”
“People can change.” Her flat voice lacked conviction, even to her ears.
“Others say the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.”
Touché. Had I been foolish to hope just this once he could try?
“What’re you going to do?”
“If he hasn’t taken delivery, I’ll try to talk him into getting out of the deal.” And after that she’d write the president and submit her resume to negotiate a peace treaty in the Middle East.
Carly chuckled. The nervous, brittle sound swirled around her. She might be optimistic, but she wasn’t delusional. “Who am I kidding? My father will go along with that about the same time Jerry Jones stays out of Dallas Cowboy coaching decisions.”
“How does he think he’ll come up with the funds to cover the expenditure?”
“He won’t. He’ll expect me to.” Carly’s chest tightened, and she pressed her left hand against her breastbone. Her frantic heartbeat danced against her palm.
“Then don’t.”
She shouldn’t, but letting her father suffer the natural consequences of his foolishness, even if he lost everything including the roof over his head, would hurt her brother too.
But Ryder would leave for college soon, provided he got his act together and graduated.
Time to make her father dig himself out of his messes.
Carly closed her eyes, inhaled deeply, held the breath for a second, and then exhaled, picturing herself on the beach, the warm sugar-like sand squishing between her toes.
The roll of the waves soothed her battered nerves.
“June third can’t come soon enough. I’m thinking about putting up a countdown calendar. ”
“A visual reminder that the end is in sight would help you get through the rough days,” Reese said.
And those would come as surely as bluebonnets sprang up every spring.
“A lot of the management information I’ve read says keeping the goal in mind and the steps needed to get there are keys to success,” Reese said.
Carly chuckled. “I love your business words of wisdom. I gather you’ve been to another seminar?”
“The one I want to attend isn’t until next month, but I’ve done research because we’re having staff issues at the bar.”
“In other words, you’re having as much fun as I am.”
“You got that right. They may be older than Ryder, but The True-Blue’s bartenders act like teenagers.
They think work should be one long party, and they wait until the last minute to ask for time off.
Then they get mad if I say no. Like Sunday.
So many asked off, I had to start saying no.
When I did, they threatened to call in sick, so Gramps and I decided to close early.
We figured we wouldn’t have much business anyway. ”
“What’s happening Sunday?”
“Girl, you’ve got to get out more,” Reese teased.
“Thank you, Miss Pot for calling this kettle black.”
“Point taken. I say we both get out Sunday. We can go to Owen Crawford’s homecoming party.”
“That’s why you’re closing early?”
When Owen’s mother Dany mentioned his return, she’d talked about having a few people over.
But if The True-Blue intended to close early, the event could rival the Texas State Fair in size.
That was the last thing Owen needed. Carly grabbed a pen and added calling Dany to the running to-do list on the legal pad beside the office phone.
“What do you think about him coming back? Are you interested to see if there’s still a spark?” Reese asked.
“If you were here, you’d see me rolling my eyes. Yes, Owen and I dated in high school, but that was almost fifteen years ago. I don’t see any reason to revisit the past.”
Not when I have plans, and the two men in my life mess it up enough as it is.
“Aren’t you curious how he’s changed?” Reese asked, pulling Carly back to their conversation.
“It’s not like I haven’t seen him since graduation. We’ve run into each other over the years when he’s visited his parents.”
Those handful of times they’d nodded and mumbled polite hellos, chatted about work, and pretended they were long-lost acquaintances catching up. All the while she wondered how her life would be different if she could’ve attended Texas A&M with him.
“Fine. You’re not curious about Owen. Go with me to the party, so I don’t have to go alone.”
Facing her first love with half the town crammed into his parents’ house, hearing friends talk about their careers, upcoming marriages, or their children while they gazed at her with pity because her life had stalled since college? No thanks. She preferred staying home with a good book.
“I’ll pass on the welcome-home shindig,” Carly said.
“No, I won’t accept an excuse this time. You need to get out and socialize. We both do. I’ll pick you up at one, and if you’re not ready, I’ll let myself in with my emergency key, hog-tie you, and carry you to the car.”
“Like you could lift me.”
“It’s all about leverage. Remember, we studied simple machines in third grade science. Don’t make me prove I can do it.”
“All right,” Carly said. A girl could only wage so many battles at once, and Lord she was tired. “I’ll go, but you owe me.”