Chapter Nine #2
A wad of frustration filled his chest. He knew what he needed to do to alleviate the pressure.
He adjusted his own Stetson, shaking his head.
“I’m going stir-crazy staying off a horse.
I’ve ridden one-handed in the ring on horses trying to toss me on my ass.
I think I can handle staying in the saddle with a regular ride. ”
“Fair enough. I understand how it feels to be an unwilling patient.”
Jack had suffered a critical riding accident earlier in the year, breaking his C1 and C2 vertebrae. It was a miracle he didn’t die, much less that he wasn’t paralyzed. He’d undergone surgery and had pins holding him together, but he was on both feet and healed.
And not shy about getting right back on his horse.
“Let’s go.”
Jack silently walked to Abacus, Broderick’s well-mannered bay quarter horse. Clipping the leather lead line to the halter, he led Abacus to a crosstie.
With an anticipation he couldn’t even begin to hide, Marshall slung the leather halter on his shoulder, moving toward the buckskin mustang.
Flash’s ears perked up, the dark brown of his mane contrasting with his cream-colored coat.
Leading him out to the crossties behind Abacus, Marshall diligently brushed the horse down, losing himself in the routine of currycombing and hard brushing.
Years and years of making horses his life afforded him the ability to quickly adapt to his injury.
Father and son moved in unison, saddling up in quiet synchronicity. As he tightened the girth, Flash let out a sigh, broad sides deflating, allowing Marshall to make a snug fit.
After sliding the bit into Flash’s mouth, he took a deep breath.
During his days on the rodeo circuit, the boys used to issue challenges to each other.
One of them? Mounting into the saddle one-handed.
He reached back to his younger years, knowing he could do it.
Bracing his good hand on the saddle horse, he pulled himself up.
Settling into the leather, he felt a helluva lot better.
Applying slight pressure to Flash’s sides, he urged the horse forward to ride alongside Jack and Abacus. Golden rays of sunshine blanketed the snowy trail ahead of them.
Amid the sound of water lapping behind them and a stray call from a bird of prey, Marshall found conversation much easier. “Have you heard anything more from Shana on the investigation into finding Milla Jones?”
Jack adjusted the reins in his hand, guiding Abacus toward the tree line. “We’re still in a holding pattern. She’s hoping the DNA tests will reveal something useful.”
“How’s Jeannie doing with all of this?” Jeannie’s youngest daughter—Alayna—had childhood memories come back of Jeannie’s brother and sister and their possible involvement in a plot to harm the Steele family.
It was difficult to know how much of the memory could be trusted since it had been repressed for so long, but it was unsettling regardless.
Marshall had known that blending longtime business rivals into one family would be challenging. But no one could have foreseen just how complicated it would become.
Although if Jack and Jeannie hadn’t gotten married, would these secrets have stayed hidden? It was better knowing the truth.
Stillness found him. Steadied him. He’d needed this. All of this. Flash shook his mane. His horse also seemed to notice the way the sun set the icy water ablaze. Covered the snow in a golden glow.
Flash was a more even-paced horse than Marshall usually rode. The wind filtering through the expanse of land rustled leaves, bushes. Flash paid them no mind. No signs of spooking.
The creak of the saddle soothed his soul, giving him the bolstering he needed to say, “Dad, I’ve been keeping a secret from the family, and I think the time has come to let you all know.”
His father shifted in the saddle, his eyes concerned. “This sounds serious. Whatever you need, I’m here for you.”
“I know, and I haven’t wanted to let you down.” Marshall forced his grip on the reins to loosen. “I’m a recovering alcoholic.”
His father stayed quiet for a handful of heartbeats. “Thank you for telling me. What can I do to help?”
Marshall shook his head. “Just letting me get it off my chest means a lot to me. I’ve been dry for over four years, but I think the time has come to quit trying to fake people out with my bottles of nonalcoholic beers and tonic water.”
“We’re family, and I’m here for you whatever you need—Al Anon for family. You tell me.”
Marshall swallowed hard, relief rolling the boulder off his shoulders. He hadn’t even realized how heavily the secret had weighed on him until he was free of it.
Marshall lost himself in the movement of the ride, like a meditative rhythm.
“So, son, how’re things with you and Tally?”
His father’s intuitive question still caught Marshall off guard for moment. He sank deeper into the saddle, weighing his answer. “She’s doing a great job getting the house ready for the fund-raiser.”
“That’s not what I mean—” his father shot him a sideways glance “—and I imagine you know it. I can’t help but think she may have had something to do with what you’ve shared with me today.”
“How did you guess?” Face growing taut, Marshall tightened his grip on the reins until the leather bit into his palm.
His father looked at him sidelong, the shade from his Stetson obscuring his eyes a bit. “It was impossible to miss the sparks flying off the two of you that day we were over decorating.”
“She’s a very special lady.” And that was part of the problem. “I’m just not sure I can offer what she deserves.”
“Why do you say that?”
“It’s no secret I’m the loner in the family.” His mount’s ears perked up, rotating backward as if to eavesdrop.
“Just because you don’t throw yourself into the thick of every gathering doesn’t make you a loner. Your siblings have a way of taking over a room. You keep to the outskirts. No shame in that.”
“That doesn’t mean I’m right for Tally. She’s so outgoing, far from being a loner like me.”
“Not always. Your rodeo days included a full social circle.”
Bad example. “Let’s talk about something else.”
Jack pushed Abacus into a working trot. Then to a rolling canter. They’d always had other ways of talking. Again, Flash’s ears moved backward.
Marshall responded, squeezing his legs against Flash. His buckskin effortlessly transitioned to a smooth canter, and he found the mustang closing the distance on Abacus and his father.
Cool winter air and the rhythm of the ride opened him up. They reached the tree line and broke out into a walk.
Jack smiled, pivoting in the cognac-colored saddle to look at Marshall. He began to speak, sharing with Marshall a snippet of the past, a story he knew well. Once, the family went on a camping trip. Marshall, ever the curious adventurer, wandered off.
Jack continued, “It scared the hell out of me and your mother when we realized you weren’t in your room.
You were always so solitary. I wish I could say it was the first time we looked up and wondered where you were.
Usually, you were in the old barn with the horse or just across the room with your nose in a book being so much quieter than the rest.”
Marshall welcomed the distraction of his father’s change of subject. “I played that up, you know. It gave me the chance to slip away.”
“Do you remember where you were that day you wandered off in the snow?”
“I was building an ice fort. I must have been looking for a quiet space to read,” he said with a smile. His parents and siblings had been making a gingerbread house. It had been chaos.
“You built it because Breanna asked you to. She wanted to have snowball fights where it wasn’t boys against the girls, but where you were on her team.”
“I’d forgotten that.”
Jack reached down to give Abacus a pat on the neck.
“You’re a middle child in the way you keep to yourself and don’t ask for what you need.
” Gathering the reins, he guided the bay quarter horse to the right.
“For what my opinion’s worth, I say if you want this woman, you should stop overthinking things and go for it.
You’re one helluva good man, and I would wager she sees that.
Let her make her own decision. You’re not responsible for the world. ”
Could it really be as simple as that? Was he overthinking, as his father said? He wanted that to be true, to keep following the attraction and see where it led them.
And for that matter, he didn’t need to make a decision until after the fund-raiser.
The prospect of being with Tally, guilt free, filled him with a thrill that rivaled anything he’d experienced, a new hope for the future with her.
He ignored a niggling sense that Tally was hiding something.
He was just overthinking things, like Jack said.
Marshall was ready to embrace life and gear up for more from her.
Hell yes, he intended to fill their time together with romance—and desire.
Tally arranged and rearranged already perfectly spaced ornaments on the tree as if that could restore order to her life.
She needed to figure out a way to tell Marshall everything about her father. But with each passing day, it became tougher. Being with Marshall every morning and night had been a passionate fantasy come true.
From the speakers, the familiar notes of “Winter Wonderland” filled the air. Indeed. She felt those words. The sentiment. Her heart swelled in anxiety and ease all at once. This place—Marshall’s home—was the stuff dreams were made of.
Looking around at the nativity scene, the twinkling lights on the tree, she almost felt at peace. These were the holidays she dreamed of having. Wanted more than words. Her time here was about so much more than the job.
But before she could embrace even the thought of a future with Marshall, she would have to tell him everything.
Three successive rings disrupted her musing.
Reaching into the pocket of her black skinny jeans, she retrieved her phone.
Felicity’s smiling face lit up the screen.
Tally had taken the photo of Felicity when they’d gone for a short hike in the woods.
The light filtering through the trees seemed to accent her friend’s effortless, natural beauty.
With a smile on her face, Tally answered, “Hello, Felicity.” She played with the ends of her hair, rubbing the strands between her fingers.
“Hi. I’ve missed our talks since little Stella Rae was moved out of the NICU.”
“I’ve missed you, too. I’ll be up there tomorrow if you’re available to catch up.”
“I would like that. I actually have a reason for calling. I wanted to share some information with you about a scholarship that came across my desk. Have you considered going back to school to become a social worker?”
Tally was honored that her friend would think of her, but had to say, “I don’t think I could do your job.”
“You’re underestimating yourself. You’re a natural in more ways than some people who’ve been on the job for years.”
“I appreciate the vote of confidence. That means a lot to me.”
“If you decide it’s something you want to pursue, you know I’ll help you however I can with a recommendation and finding the right college program for you.”
She swallowed, envisioning her life as a social worker for a moment. What it would be like to intervene and give on that level? Tally felt her heart tighten. “Thank you. I’ll give it some thought.”
“I’m glad. No pressure, but the offer is genuine and real. Anyway—catch me up on your life.”
“I’ve been meaning to ask you something. As I was leaving the hospital the other day, I could have sworn I saw you in the cafeteria eating with Conrad Steele.”
A silence. Not a long one. But a noticeable one as Tally sank into the sofa, eyes trained on the fire in front of her.
“We ran into each other.”
“Hmm, I’m finding maybe you’re right about my instincts for counseling work, because I hear prevarication in your voice,” she teased as she brought her knees to her chest, phone pressed to her ear.
“He’s persistent,” Felicity said tightly.
Tally wouldn’t push Felicity before she was ready to share. Motion outside the window caught her attention—Marshall’s vehicle coming up the drive. “I appreciate the call, and the information about the scholarship, thank you. Let’s talk more tomorrow. I need to get back to work.”
“Let’s definitely do that. In person is always better.” Felicity’s voice echoed through the line. “Miss you. Can’t wait to catch up more tomorrow.”
“Me, too.” Tally ended the phone call, eyes watching the window. To the dying light. To the whine of the SUV’s engine as Marshall maneuvered to the garage and abruptly stopped short of it.
Flinging open the door, he sprinted out. Moving fast, a clear urgency in his steps because the SUV was still running. Concerned, she straightened, her attention homing in on him. Her eyes followed Marshall as he moved toward the older barn.
A glow lanced the darkening horizon. Not the haze of the sunset after all.
Flames shot from the older structure. The barn was on fire.