Chapter 10
CHAPTER 10
B oone sauntered behind Tildi as she skipped toward the barn, scattering snow in her wake. As soon as she realized they’d be riding horses, she bolted for the door. He thought he was going to have to toast her ass to get one of Kenzie’s coats on her. She’d still managed to get out the door before he got her earmuffs on her.
How she could jump around like that after eating one of Ruby’s famous cowboy chipwiches was beyond him. He’d only taken two bites, but since she’d insisted on filling the center of her ice cream sandwich with rocky road ice cream instead of vanilla, he’d let her eat it all by herself.
Besides, he’d just thawed all the way out from patching fencing in the cold morning air. It was the coldest November he could remember in decades. He was going to have to watch her closely until she understood the dangers of going out in the cold.
He hoped that cast iron stomach of hers lasted because they had a lot of ground to cover before they’d reach the spot he wanted to share with her. He’d taken care of most of the fence patching required that morning so he could introduce his girl to his favorite spot on the ranch.
Up ahead, she tugged on the door to the barn, not paying enough attention to what she was doing. “You need to wait for me, Tildi.”
Without turning to look at him, she called out, “I got it.”
Shaking his head, he slowed his pace. Sometimes things were easier when he let her learn the hard way. Turned out that was most things with his girl. She wasn’t a brat. Far from it. But she was a tad on the headstrong side.
By the time he caught up with her, she’d planted one tennis shoe covered foot on the left hand door and was grunting from her efforts to pull open the door.
“You sure you don’t want my help?”
“Is it stuck or something? What if there was an emergency and the horses needed to get out fast?” She turned to face him, face red from her efforts and hands fisted on her hips.
He grabbed her under her arms and hoisted her out of the way. It probably said something about him with how much he loved moving her where he wanted her.
Reaching for the handle on the door, he slid it open. “After you, babygirl.”
She narrowed her eyes and glared at him, but he met it head on with a grin. She tried to hold onto her mad, but she couldn’t, laughing as she passed by him. “You could have told me it was a sliding door.”
After all she’d been through, she could still find humor in things. Most people couldn’t laugh at themselves, but his Tildi could. He loved that about her.
Warmth welcomed them into the stable. It had cost a shit ton of money to build, especially with the medical bay Trace had wanted. Now he could properly tend to the stock where they were stabled. Days like today made him appreciate the decision they’d made. It had been worth every penny.
Tildi’s laughter dried up as soon as she stepped inside the stable. She stared at the horses in their stalls for a full minute before glancing at him. When she spoke, she did it as if she were confessing some terrible flaw in her character. “I love horses, but I’ve never ridden one.”
Her words and the look that accompanied them pissed him off. Not at her, he was pissed at the people in her life who’d taught her she had to be the best at something coming out of the gate.
She stared at the scuffed wooden floor, waiting for… what? What was she used to when she couldn’t do something no reasonable person would expect of her in the first place? Fuck that.
He turned her to face him and pulled her close. “Tildi, I didn’t expect you’d know how to ride a horse. I’ve been looking forward to teaching you how for weeks. But, darlin’, even if I’d thought you did know how to ride, I wouldn’t be upset if you didn’t. We all have to learn new things. Look at me, bluebell. You are already as close to perfect as you’ll ever have to be for me. I wouldn’t want you learning in this weather anyway, for your sake and the sake of your mount.”
He took her hand and led her to Dollar’s stall. “This is Dollar. When I was growing up, other than my brothers, Dollar was my best friend. I promised to teach you how to ride, and if you still want to learn, that’s what I’m going to do. Once it’s warmer and you’re settled.”
He wasn’t sure she’d heard anything he said. Her eyes were trained on Dollar. And they were huge. He got it. At sixteen hands tall, Dollar was a lot to take in. Tildi didn’t even come to Dollar’s shoulder.
When he thought back on it, he couldn’t believe his pop had let him have Dollar. He’d just turned seventeen at the time. Dollar was so full of piss and vinegar his dad was about to geld him. Boone had volunteered to try and break him in and to his shock, his dad had let him try.
He didn’t know how he’d managed it, but he had. And Dollar had been the only horse he’d ridden since.
Tildi stared into Dollar’s eyes, and Boone wasn’t sure who was going to break eye contact first. They were both stubborn enough for them to be there a long time. He knew what his girl was going to do before she moved. She wasn’t about to back down, even when she was obviously terrified by his horse.
Sure enough, she extended a trembling hand toward Dollar’s muzzle. He caught her hand and brought it to his lips. “That’s my brave girl. Let me make a proper introduction.”
Weaving his fingers between hers, he curled his other arm around her shoulder and edged her closer to the stall. After he pulled back the upper half of the stall door, he extended both their hands, making sure his knuckles touched Dollar first.
A gasp escaped Tildi’s lips when the back of her knuckle stroked the horse’s muzzle. “He’s so soft.”
Boone wanted to laugh when Dollar snorted at Tildi’s words. “Here, babygirl. I’ll show you how to saddle him, and then we’ll ride him together. You’re going to love it. There’s nothing else like it in the world. And with me doing the steering, all you’ll have to do is enjoy. If you don’t like it, that’s okay, too. Remember our rules?” At her nod, he continued. “Do you remember the one about riding horses?”
She continued to nod but snapped her gaze to him when she realized what he’d said. “Daddy! We don’t have a rule about horses at all.”
“Huh. I guess you’re right. So, if you don’t like it, you won’t be in trouble.”
That earned him a real smile. “I get you. But I hope I like it.”
He did, too. He had plans for secret places they could go if they were on horseback that would be more difficult on an ATV.
Once they saddled the horse and mounted, they headed out at a gentle trot. God, she felt good in his arms. He wasn’t sure how long he was going to last with his arm nestled under her firm breasts and her tight ass rocking against his cock. It might kill him, but he’d die the happiest Daddy on the planet.
Not for the first time that day, her phone vibrated. He knew this because it was in her back pocket. “Who keeps calling you, bluebell?” She’d only been here a day. It sure as hell wasn’t any of her family in Tennessee.
“Oh, um, it’s no one. Not anyone I know anyway. It’s a wrong number.”
Seemed awfully persistent for a wrong number. “Did you tell them they had the wrong number?”
“I tried. I, um, I guess they don’t believe me.” She pointed to the left. “Are those mountain bluebells?”
Following the line of her arm, he spotted the clusters of bluebells scattered around the field they crossed. “That they are, darlin’. That they are.”
As obvious distractions went, it was a perfect example. She might think she’d gotten away with dodging his question. They might not have a rule about horses, but they did have a rule about honesty. And his sweet babygirl had just lied her ass off. What he needed to do was find out why.
Tildi
Tildi had thought sunsets on the ocean were the most beautiful she’d ever seen, and they had been. Right up until she watched the sun disappear behind the crests and ridges of the Wyoming Rocky Mountains. Of course, sitting on a waterproof thermal blanket, wrapped up with Boone in a thick woolen blanket helped since the snow hadn’t melted. He even managed a campfire.
“It’s beautiful.” She kept her voice at a whisper. To do anything else would break the spell.
Boone didn’t whisper, but he kept his voice low. “It’s always been my favorite place to watch the sunset. I found it when my folks were killed.”
She took his hand and pressed it to her chest, right above her heart. “I’m so sorry. How long ago was that?”
He squeezed her hand, but she couldn’t tell if it was intentional or a reflex at her question. “Seven years. Sometimes it feels like a lifetime. And sometimes it feels like yesterday.”
Tildi hadn’t lost anyone close to her, but she knew the feeling well. Time was a funny thing. “What happened?”
“They were hit by a drunk driver on their way home from a weekend getaway. I came home to see to the funeral and the ranch. I’d have told you there wasn’t an inch of this land that I hadn’t seen, but one day when I needed some time alone, I took Dollar out and wound up here at sunset. I sat here taking in the view and feeling more alone than I’d ever felt in my life. Then, damndest thing I ever saw, a great horned owl and a little pygmy owl flew in and settled on a branch of that poplar tree right over there.”
Tildi leaned forward to take in the giant tree, blue-green boughs blanketed with snow. “Is that normal? Two different kinds of owl like that?”
Boone shook his head. “Never seen it before or since. I figure the big brown one was male, and the tiny gray puffball was female. He towered over her, staring at me like he'd rip me into pieces if I messed with his girl. Just like dad used to be with mom. He could give her a hard time, but none of us kids better give her any lip. And god help anyone outside the family who upset her.”
He smiled at the memory and Tildi was so glad he had them.
Boone took back up the story. “Anyway, they just sat there and stared at me. After a few minutes, they flew off together. It may not make any sense, but I felt like it was my dad, taking care of my mom like always, saying goodbye.”
Silence fell after his words, but it wasn’t awkward. At least not the silence stretching between Tildi and Boone. She rested her head against his shoulder, trying to remain relaxed. Her hand itched to take the phone from her pocket. She’d turned the ringer off when her Daddy had noticed the last text she’d gotten.
She hadn’t lied… exactly. It might be a wrong number. It was a brand new phone Boone had gotten for her as soon as they’d docked. No one could be targeting her, not this soon. Whoever was texting was trying to scare he last owner of the phone number she was now using. Right?
Somehow, she wasn’t sure Boone would see it that way. Pretty sure he wouldn’t, actually. One hundred percent pretty sure.
If she told him now, he’d worry when there probably was no need. She wasn’t trying to stay out of trouble by not telling him about the texts. Not at all. She was just looking out for him.
She wasn’t lying by omission. The texts would stop coming in a day. Two at the most. A few dozen texts never hurt anyone. But even though they absolutely were probably not meant for her, they were still really scary.