Chapter 16
Heart Like Mine - Miranda Lambert
Kinsley
“ W hy can’t I stay in my trailer?” I complained to my parents from the back seat of their truck. I’d just been released from the hospital and it couldn’t have come soon enough. I’d been going stir crazy in there.
“Because you’ll be all alone,” my mother replied. “You can spend a few days with us at the hotel, so we can watch over you.”
I sounded like a child, and I was more than old enough to make this decision myself, but it was hard to argue with your parents when they paid for everything. In that regard, I saw why Wyatt didn’t like taking money from people; that way, he didn’t have to answer to anybody. On the other hand, if you couldn’t go on without the help...
It wasn’t like I didn’t have any of my own money. I’d won a fair bit of prize money and gotten some sponsorship deals. I’d earned those, but I got that far because my parents had always gotten me the best horses, which didn’t come cheap, so I was very grateful to them.
“I won’t be alone if Abby stays with me,” I suggested, trying to find a compromise.
“Huh?” Abby sputtered from her seat. “I don’t think so.”
“Really? You’d rather stay in a hotel with them than on the rodeo grounds surrounded by horses and hot cowboys?” I teased, trying to tempt her with the allure of the rodeo life.
I saw both my parents smirking in the front seat; even they thought Abby needed to loosen up.
“Sounds like a fine idea,” Dad chimed in supportively.
“But—" Abby protested.
“It’s the rodeo, sweetheart, not a prison cell. The rodeo is in your blood; embrace it,” Dad encouraged.
I snorted, imagining Abby amidst the rodeo chaos in her fitted riding breeches and crisp polo shirt. She would look so out of place it wasn’t even funny, but whatever; it would be good for her.
Abby crossed her arms over her chest and slumped back in her seat, scowling.
“Watch your posture there, Dressage Queen, or you’ll turn into a hunchback.”
Abby shot daggers at me with her eyes. She was mad, but she’d get over it. We got along sometimes.
Dad pulled the truck into the rodeo grounds, and I leaped out the second it stopped with a quick goodbye thrown over my shoulder. I had horses to see.
I found both Gambler and Cherokee dozing in their stalls, both clean and shiny. I made a mental note to thank my friends for taking such great care of them.
“Hey, guys!” I cooed.
I let myself into Cher’s stall first and gave her a big hug, planting a kiss on her nose. Two days without seeing them had been too long. I didn’t do “no horse” days.
Cher nosed at my pockets, looking for treats.
“Did you miss me or the treats?” I teased her.
When I entered Gambler’s stall, he merely flicked an ear in my direction. He was much too dignified to beg for treats, but I gave him some, and he didn’t object.
“Just so you know”—I ran my fingers through his long black mane— “there are no hard feelings, okay?”
“I saw your accident.” Abby’s voice caught me off guard. I hadn’t heard her approach the stall. She stood with her arms crossed over the door, looking in. “Somebody posted it online.”
“Of course they did. It was epic,” I replied.
Abby rolled her eyes. “Hardly.” She rubbed her hand up and down Gambler’s face, fiddling with his forelock. Her eyes softened as she looked at him.
My sister and I had little in common, but we both loved horses.
Gambler’s head jerked up, startling us both, but it was just the approach of four smoking hot cowboys.
“She’s back!” Grady’s smile was wide and grew even wider when his eyes landed on my sister.
Nope, I hadn’t imagined that. Good luck to him.
My heart skipped a beat when my eyes landed on Wyatt. I felt the fluttering in my stomach like a girl with a schoolyard crush.
“Well, you guys are a sight for scrambled brains,” I greeted them.
They laughed, except for Wyatt, who scowled at my joke.
I let myself out of the stall and elbowed him in the stomach. “Lighten up,” I teased and gave each of them a hug.
“So, how’s my boy been behaving?” I nodded towards Gambler.
Finn started, “The horse? Or Wyatt? Both could use some tuning—"
“Great on the trail, same old in the arena,” Wyatt interrupted, his eyes dark, intense, and unreadable. I didn’t miss the way his walls seemed to be firmly in place, like he had retreated to a fortress.
“Did you try him on the barrels?”
“Yeah, he tried to overshoot the first one every time,” Wyatt answered.
I nodded and chewed the inside of my cheek. So, it wasn’t just me who had this issue with Gambler.
“We’ll figure him out.” Finn throwing an arm around Wyatt’s shoulders. “He needs something to do.”
“I trust you guys.” I eyed the men with a rush of gratitude for how they’d stepped up to help me out. “Let me buy you all a round at the bar,” I offered, grinning. “As a thank you for taking care of the horses.”
The reaction wasn’t what I’d expected. They all exchanged shifty glances, their eyes darting to Wyatt like they were waiting for his cue.
Grady cleared his throat. “I was thinking we should have a bonfire instead. You know, hang out, relax...”
I raised an eyebrow. Since when did these guys turn down a chance to hit the bar?
“Uh, sure, I guess. I can bring the beer,” I suggested, still trying to figure out what was up with them.
Rhett chimed in, “Or something non-alcoholic? And some snacks? Personally, I’m starving.” He patted his stomach.
Now, I was confused. These guys were notorious for their love of beer, and now they wanted a quiet night in? I studied their faces, noticing how they all seemed to look to Wyatt for approval like they were trying to show him they were following some kind of plan.
Wyatt shifted under their gazes, his jaw clenching. He caught my eye for a moment before looking away, and I could’ve sworn I saw a flicker of guilt there.
“Okay, what’s going on?” I demanded, crossing my arms over my chest. “Since when do you guys pass up a chance to go to the bar? And why do you keep looking at Wyatt like he’s the boss of you?”
“No reason at all,” Grady said. “We’ve been talking about having a bonfire all day.”
I didn’t believe him, but I also didn’t feel like starting a fight with Wyatt because whatever was going on was coming from him.
“Alright, well, I’ll text Maisey.” I pulled out my phone from my back pocket. After sending the message, I inquired, “You guys haven’t seen her, have you?”
“She was in the ring riding a little while ago,” Rhett replied.
Is she, now? I thought, barely containing my smile.
My phone dinged with Maisey’s enthusiastic reply of emojis. I linked my arm through Abby’s. “Let’s go.”
“Umm, maybe I should…” Abby hesitated, looking for an excuse to bail.
“Nope, you shouldn’t. You’re coming,” I declared.
“Of course you are!” Grady put his arm around my sister. He began pulling her down the aisle.
Although she was stiff, she went along. She looked back at me with round, concerned eyes, but I only shrugged and winked at her.
Together, we all made our way out of the barn, the surrounding air laden with the comforting scent of hay and horses. Tension rolled off Wyatt as I slipped into stride beside him.
He shifted away from me as if afraid he might break me. “How are you?” he asked.
“I’m fine,” I assured him. “You worry too much.”
“Nope, I don’t,” he replied, his statement tugging at my heart. “What?” he asked.
The memory of my drunken advances still burned with embarrassment. Maybe that was why he was so closed off, despite him being there for me in the hospital. “Umm, last weekend in my trailer... I’m sorry—"
Wyatt cut me off. “It’s not a big deal.”
I instantly regretted bringing it up. Why did I have to make things awkward?
“I just wanted to thank you for being there for me after my accident,” I said quickly, trying to regain some ground. “And for riding Gambler for me. It really means a lot.”
“It was the least I could do,” Wyatt muttered, still not meeting my gaze. “After everything...” His voice trailed off, leaving the weight of “everything” hanging heavily between us.
I studied his expression, searching for a hint of what he’d meant by that. After everything we had meant to each other? After everything we had put each other through? What?
The silence stretched uncomfortably. Part of me desperately wanted to ask him to clarify, to rip open that door we’d been slamming shut on each other for so long and finally lay everything out in the open. But the other part feared his answer, that “everything” might be his way of saying we were truly done.
As I looked at Wyatt, really looked at him, I saw something flicker across his features. A conflict, an internal war, was being waged behind those rugged walls he always insisted on keeping up.
He opened his mouth, closed it, then opened it again, seeming to struggle with what to say. “Kins, I...” He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “Dammit, this is harder than I thought.”
My heart kicked into high gear as I waited with bated breath. Could it be... Did he not want us to be over after all? Or was it the opposite? Did he want to end us for good?
Wyatt blew out a harsh breath, squaring those broad shoulders as if bracing himself. “Seeing you get hurt like that, it made me realize...” He trailed off again, jaw tensing.
I laid a hand on his arm. “What? Realize what?”
Wyatt’s jaw clenched. He shook his head minutely. “Never mind. Doesn’t matter.”
Just like that, the glimmer of hope that had sparked inside me sputtered and died. He was shutting me out again, the door slamming shut once more.
I opened my mouth, not even sure what I planned to say, but the words never came. The shuttered look on Wyatt’s face told me it would be no use. Not tonight, at least.
With an imperceptible shake of my head, I let out a frustrated breath. Fine, if that’s how he wanted to play it. I was sick of constantly running into this damn brick wall between us.
“Okay, well, I’m going to catch up with the others,” I muttered, jogging ahead and falling into step beside Rhett.
Rhett gave me a concerned look. “You good?” He glanced behind us to Wyatt.
I managed a tight smile and a nod, but my mind was racing.
When were Wyatt and I going to stop dancing around...whatever this was? The tension, the heated glances, the aborted attempts to open up—it was exhausting.
As we headed to the fire pit at the guys’ camp, I stole a glance back at Wyatt. He lingered behind, shoulders tense and jaw set in that stubborn line I knew so well. Our eyes met briefly, and I felt that same intense jolt—the kind that could ignite something deeper between us if we ever stopped stomping it out.
But then Finn called his name, breaking the moment, and Wyatt turned away.
Huffing an irritated sigh, I faced forward again. It wasn’t over between us, not really. But clearly, we were still stuck, trapped in this cycle of starting and stopping, opening up and slamming shut. When were we finally going to kick through this door between us instead of just rattling the handle?
One of these days, something had to finally give between us. One way or another, a door was going to open. I’d be damned if I was going to stop pushing against it, not when I could still feel that fire burning on the other side.