Chapter 23 Grady
grady
. . .
I didn’t sleep at all last night, spending the remaining hours before dawn tossing in my bed.
I replayed the phone call on repeat, wondering what exactly I’d said that’d crossed the line.
Cleo seemed fine with the nickname, but somehow it was me telling her I missed her that triggered her sudden need to flee.
I was already up when Charlie came bouncing into my room thirty minutes before her alarm was supposed to go off. She climbed into my bed, her stuffed unicorn at her side, and curled up next to me. These moments were few and far between. She wasn’t overly affectionate unless something was wrong.
“What’s wrong, baby?” I asked, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
She pouted, a trait she’d perfected in her short six years, and turned to me with big, watery eyes. “Daddy, I don’t want the camp to be over.”
I hated that it was ending, too, even if it was for different reasons. “I know, but we’re gonna ask Miss Cleo if someone on the ranch can give you private lessons.”
She nodded, snuggling deeper into my side. “What if Miss Cleo says no?”
It was a possibility. While I didn’t want to lie to my daughter, I also didn’t want to ruin her day before it started. “We’ll just talk to her and see what she says, okay? I told you last night I can’t make any promises.”
Charlie was silent for a long moment. “I’ll be sad if she says no, Daddy.”
“Me too, kid. I know how much it means to you.” It meant a lot to me, too, but I couldn’t say that. She was too damn inquisitive, and I didn’t have half the answers she was looking for. Instead, I squeezed her tightly. “How about we do something fun tonight, huh? Just you and me?”
This kid rolled her eyes. “We do that every night.”
I pulled back and gasped. “Are you saying you don’t like hanging out with your dear old dad?”
“I wanna hang out with Miss Cleo, Daddy. Do you think we can ask her to come over for dinner?”
Jesus, kid. Just put me on the spot, why don’t you? “Uh, probably not. I’m sure Miss Cleo already has plans.”
Charlie gave me a wild grin full of mischief. “But we can ask, can’t we, Daddy? And we can ask her to make some cookies?”
“You’re gonna make yourself sick with all the cookies,” I warned.
She just shrugged and said, “Worth it. They’re so good.”
“Alright, you little cookie monster. Anything else to add to your list of demands?” I asked, brow raised.
Charlie tapped her finger against her little chin, looking ten years older than she was. “Will you play music for me? On the guitar?”
Her eyes darted to the corner of my room where my old case sat.
It was littered with stickers from small towns across the country and bands we’d opened for over the years.
Inside was the same old instrument I’d played for Cleo a thousand times.
I wasn’t sure if it was sentimentality that led me to keep it, but it was one of my most prized possessions.
“Alright, baby girl. I think I can do that.”
She clapped before turning and throwing her arms around my neck. Her squeeze was tight enough I wondered if I was going to tap out, but she relented and sat back on her heels. “Can we leave early, Daddy? I wanna check on the birdies in the treehouse.”
My stomach clenched at the thought of facing that particular memory, but I ignored it.
Now wasn’t the time to get cold feet about pursuing Cleo.
Not when I could feel her walls crumbling bit by bit.
Maybe I could talk to her this morning, try to figure out what had her running for the hills when we’d been so close to something. “Anything for you.”
The ranch was already packed when we arrived. It seemed like everyone had the same idea to show up early, which was pretty damn annoying considering the conversation I wanted to have with Cleo.
It didn’t take long to spot her. She was in the middle of an eager group of bouncing kids, laughing as they danced around her.
She pointed toward the chuckwagon, where a familiar big, surly man with a thick beard was cooking breakfast. It smelled like fucking heaven.
Bacon, eggs, and something sweet wafted through the air, covering the scent of horse shit that always hung around.
Casualties of living on a ranch, I suppose.
As though she could feel my stare, Cleo looked up.
Her smile faltered as she saw me. I’m sure I looked like an idiot.
When her eyes dropped to Charlie, who took off at a dead run in her direction, it returned.
My daughter slammed into Cleo, knocking her slightly off balance with the force of her attention.
I couldn’t help but laugh, especially as Charlie seemed to mutter an apology before wrapping her arms around Cleo’s waist in a hug. She closed her eyes, basking in my daughter’s embrace before they stepped apart.
I took my time walking up, stuffing my hands in my pockets so as not to reach for her hand when I stepped up beside them. Cleo glanced at me from the corner of her eye and tucked her hair behind an ear, giving me a view of pink-tinged cheeks. “Morning,” she mumbled.
“Morning,” I said back, keeping my voice low. “How’re you feeling?”
Cleo winced. “Better than I deserve, probably. It was a… long night.”
“I know the feeling. I didn’t get much sleep last night, either. Too much on my mind, ya know?”
Charlie looked between us. “Were you thinking about what we talked about, Daddy?”
“What were you talking about?” Cleo asked, shifting on her feet. Was that worry or anticipation in her voice? I couldn’t tell.
I cleared my throat, placing my hand on top of Charlie’s head. Here goes nothing. “Well, someone—and I’m not naming names here—wanted to know if you gave private riding lessons. They’re very sad camp is almost over.”
“It’s me!” Charlie shouted, throwing her arms in the air. “I wanna be able to ride like you and I wanna watch the baby birds grow! Have you checked on them this morning? I asked Daddy if we could get here early so we could check on them. Do you think they’re there?”
Cleo laughed—an honest to god laugh that had goosebumps skittering along my skin.
It’d been so long since I’d heard it. Especially since I usually got the forced, polite version that I often had to pry out of her.
“Well, I have checked on the birds. They were sleeping, so we’ll need to let them rest.”
“Oh.” Charlie’s shoulders dropped. “What about the lessons?”
This time, Cleo hesitated. Her gaze flicked between Charlie and me with question. “I’m not really the best one to teach—”
“Please, Miss Cleo?” Charlie begged, clasping her hands in front of her. “It’s gotta be you. I don’t trust anyone else to teach me.”
She crouched in front of my daughter, taking Charlie’s hands in her own. “Riding a horse is a lot of work. It’s not like riding a bike, so you’d have to practice regularly to make sure you don’t lose the skill.”
Charlie giggled. “Yeah, Daddy said he could teach me, but Momma and I just laughed at him. She said she’d never seen him on the back of a horse before.”
I smiled down at Charlie. “Yeah, apparently the thought of me on a horse was hilarious,” I said, glancing toward Cleo. When I did, I noticed the way her demeanor changed. How every muscle in her body seemed rigid with tension.
“Well, I’ve seen your dad on a horse, and he used to ride very well, but your mom’s right.
He probably shouldn’t be teaching anyone if he hasn’t ridden in a while.
” Cleo stood up. Her fingers danced against her thighs in anxious contemplation.
“Alright, Charlie. I have a few weeks before classes start in the fall. I’ll do it. ”
“You will?” Charlie and I asked at the same time.
Cleo nodded and plastered on the fake smile she seemed to have mastered. “Of course. We’ll make a horse girl out of you yet.”
“Did you hear that, Daddy?” Charlie turned toward me with a grin. “Miss Cleo said I’ll be a horse girl!”
“I did, baby girl.”
“I can’t wait to tell Momma. Can we call her tonight after dinner?”
“Of course. She’ll want to hear all about your day.” A muscle in Cleo’s jaw ticked as I spoke, and I hated it.
“Oh, Miss Cleo! Will you come to dinner tonight? Daddy said you probably had plans, but I told him I was gonna ask anyway.”
“Your dad was right. I have plans tonight.”
Charlie pouted. “You can’t change them to hang out with us?”
“It’s a Friday night tradition,” Cleo said gently.
“What about tomorrow?” I asked, stepping in.
There was so much I wanted to say, that I needed to say.
My best bet was going to be getting her somewhat alone to do it.
And I didn’t want her to put space between us because of what happened last night, or what she thought she knew about Liv and I’s marriage.
I could only imagine what she was thinking, the way she was likely beating herself up for flirting with who she thought was a happily married man. I wanted to set her straight once and for all, but there was a time and a place for that, and this wasn’t it.
“I couldn’t possibly—” she began when her youngest sister, Lennox, stepped up beside her.
“Hey, Charlie, girl!” she said, holding her hand out for a high-five. My daughter gave her one, beaming under all the attention. “What’s up?”
“Miss Cleo said she’s going to give me riding lessons! And we asked her to come to dinner tonight, but she said no.”
Lennox slid her gaze to her sister, whose cheeks were flushed entirely. “She did, huh? Why’d she say that?”
“Because we have plans, Lennox,” Cleo hissed. “Just like every other Friday night.”
Lennox’s smile grew into something fierce and wild. “Yeah, but aren’t they invited to the potluck too?”
“A potluck??” Charlie asked, turning to Cleo. “Can we come, Miss Cleo?”
“Charlie, we can’t go inviting ourselves to someone’s house for dinner,” I said, cutting in.
Lennox shrugged. “It’s an end-of-camp potluck, you should have gotten an email.”
Cleo sighed heavily.
“Hmm, must have gotten lost in the mail,” Lennox said, throwing a thumb over her shoulder. “I bet Charlie would love some of Mom’s homemade banana pudding, huh?” My daughter nodded furiously. “Yeah, I thought so. She’s a little sugar fiend.”
“Don’t I know it,” I chuckled. “She’s been begging for more of Cleo’s cookies.”
Lennox nodded, lips twitching as she said, “I’m sure she’s the only one, huh?”
“Lennox!” Cleo said, smacking her sister’s arm.
“No, Daddy likes them, too!” Charlie said, completely unaware of the shit storm she was creating.
“Oh my god,” Cleo muttered, looking utterly mortified, as I uttered a quiet, “Jesus Christ,” beneath my breath.
“Kids,” I said, clearing my throat. “They say the damndest things.”
“I’ve heard they’re super truthful, too,” Lennox said, hiding her smile. “Their little ears hear everything while their mouths tell it all.”
“Alright, well, I guess that settles it, guess you missed the invite,” Cleo said, putting an end to the conversation. When she looked at me, I couldn’t help but take a step forward. There were so many emotions in those blue depths. “Dinner’s at seven.”
“You can hang out after camp is over, though!” Lennox said, holding out her hand for Charlie to take. “Maybe we could see those riding skills.”