47. Bailey
Bailey
A fter about thirty minutes of sitting in my thoughts, I led Nova back down the trail. Once we reached the barn, I pulled him to a stop to dismount.
I untacked him as he drank water, then brought him into the barn. Red stuck his head through the opening in his stall, eyeing us. I searched for Lettie, but it was clear she wasn’t here.
Guiding Nova into his stall, I closed the door and found Reed packing his supplies into his truck outside the barn.
“Did you happen to see Lettie come in here?” I asked him as I bent to unbuckle the spurs on my boots.
“She left a little bit ago,” Reed said as he hefted a bucket of used horseshoes into the bed of his truck.
I straightened, my blood going ice cold. “Left? ”
“Yeah. Headed off into the trees behind the house all grumpy.”
Relief flooded through me knowing she hadn’t driven away. If she had, I’d peel after her like a bat out of hell. Lettie was not getting away from me this time.
There was only one place Lettie would be headed if she went off that way.
Reed looked at me then. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost, Cooper. What’s wrong?”
The leather strap attached to my spurs slipped from my fingers, landing with a thud in the dirt.
“I’ll tell you later. I gotta go,” I said before turning on the heel of my boot and beelining it for the creek hidden in the trees on the east side of the property.
That creek was the last place I saw her aside from her birthday before she drove three hundred miles to get away from me.
It was now going to be the place I made damn sure she knew how I felt, and that running was no longer an option. Not even leaving the room during a damn argument. Lettie and I were endgame, and that meant working through our battles, whether we liked it or not.
I wanted the good and the bad with Lettie, and it was about damn time she realized it.
** *
A short walk later, the sound of running water filled my ears. Lettie was sitting in the dirt, facing the creek with her back to me. Her caramel hair cascaded down her back, locks of it draped over her red shoulders.
Once this was cleared up, I’d rub aloe all over her body, touch every inch of her, just to prove to her that she was mine.
I didn’t care if addictions could be deadly. I’d let Lettie rip my damn heart out if she wanted. I already had once before, and while it hurt, I was so fucking honored to be touched by Lettie in this lifetime.
We were meant to be, Lettie and I. We were put in this lifetime together, next door neighbors. The universe couldn’t have been shouting at us harder if it tried.
I came up beside her, taking a seat in the dirt, leaving a few inches of space between our bodies. We were silent for a few minutes as we watched the water run over the rocks in the creek.
“I’m not scared of you,” she finally said.
“I kno-” She held up a hand to cut me off.
“No, Bailey. I’m not scared of you, but I am fucking terrified of losing you.
You’ve always been my rock, and five years ago, I may have been stupid, but I knew that life would never be the same if I lost you.
I looked forward to seeing you every day, to sneaking looks when you stacked hay or rode Nova.
If all of a sudden that stopped because I messed things up?
I wouldn’t know what to do with myself. There’s no me without you, Bailey. ”
I looked at her, but she kept her gaze on the water, a sadness in her features, overtaking the exhaustion that had been there the past couple weeks.
“You could never mess things up, Huckleberry.” I brushed the hair in her face behind her ear and she brought her eyes to mine.
“You don’t know that,” she whispered.
“I’d fight for you, for us. I could never give up on you. You’re ingrained in my entire being; a constant thought on my mind. There’s never a moment that goes by where I’m not daydreaming about you. How do you expect to be happy if you run from the things that bring you joy?”
She swallowed audibly as a tear slid down her cheek. “Leaving you without a goodbye was the hardest thing I’ve ever done, and I’ve regretted it every day since I left. I’m so sorry it took me so long to come back to you.”
My thumb brushed the tear away and I pulled her to me, wrapping my arms around her.
She buried her face in my neck as I rubbed my hand up and down her back in a soothing rhythm.
I was so tired of hearing her apologize.
“Don’t be sorry, Lettie. Be happy. As shitty as it is, life played out the way it was supposed to, and it brought you back to me. That’s all I care about.”
She nodded, pulling back slightly to look up at me. I kept my arms wrapped tight around her, needing to feel her against me.
“But I don’t want you to hide those fears from me. Talk to me about it rather than hiding it inside. It will only eat you alive that way,” I said .
She took a steadying breath, and I wiped another tear from under her eye. “From now on, I will. I promise.”
“Good.”
“Bailey, can I ask you a question?”
I nodded. “Of course, Huckleberry. Anything.”
“Why didn’t you move on?” she asked softly.
I didn’t even hesitate. “You leaving ruined me, Lettie. But I’d rather be ruined by you than be loved by someone else. I always knew you’d come back.”
I pressed a kiss to her forehead before laying her back on the dirt. Straddling her body, I looked down at her. “You’re mine, Lettie Bronson.”
A smile spread across her pink lips. “All yours, Bailey Cooper.”
I leaned down, pressing my lips to her softly. Our chests touched, her heart beating faster than I’d felt it before. At first, I thought it was because of me, but as her hands came up to cradle my face, I noticed how cold they were. I pulled back, looking down at her with furrowed brows.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, confusion clear in her tone.
“Are you feeling okay?” I knew what cold hands meant, but her heart beating faster than hooves pounding at the races made me nervous.
She nodded, reaching up for my face again. I grabbed her hand in mine, examining her fingers like I could find answers written on them.
“You’re cold,” I stated .
Her forehead creased. “It’s the creek. It’s always colder down here.”
“Lettie, it’s probably eighty degrees out right now.” Standing up, I reached down to pull her up. She put a hand out to steady herself, her palm like ice through the fabric of my shirt.
“Let’s go,” I demanded.
Her glacier eyes stared up at me. “Go where?”
“The hospital.”
She ripped her hand back like she was stung. “No fucking way.”
“Something could be wrong, Lettie. Don’t you feel your fucking heart? It shouldn’t be pounding out of your damn chest.”
She looked down at the dirt, shaking her head. “I’m not going to the hospital.”
I stepped forward, grabbing both her hands. “I won’t tell your brothers, I promise. Just go for me. Please.” I’d get on my knees and beg her if I had to. Her health was my number one priority in this world, whether she liked it or not.
She kept her gaze on the ground so I tipped her chin up with my knuckle. In her eyes, I found her acceptance to go. She was letting down the wall she’d built when it came to people caring about her, and I was the one she was letting in.
That was all I ever wanted.
“Can you walk back?” I asked.
She frowned. “Yes, I can walk. I walked out here, didn’t I? ”
So damn sassy, regardless of how she felt. “If anyone asks, just tell them I’m taking you to lunch or something.”
My hand wrapped around hers, the fit natural, like her hand was made to be in mine.
“Lunch, huh?”
I glanced at her as we walked the dirt path that led back to where my truck was. “Well, obviously you don’t have to say lunch. Wait, what’s wrong with lunch?”
“You really think they’re going to believe you’re taking a long enough break to go into town for lunch? Bailey, you barely give yourself a thirty second piss break in the middle of the day.”
“That’s not true,” I retorted. “All guys take at least an hour shi-”
“Okay!” She cut me off. “That’s all I need to hear.”
I smirked and knew that would be the last time I’d hear her poking fun at me about my inability to take a break during the day. My truck came into view as we cleared the trees. “Do you need anything from inside?”
She shook her head. “We won't be gone long.”
I hoped she was right.
Callan was instructing a lesson in the covered arena, a young boy who looked to be about twelve bouncing atop one of their older lesson horses as he trotted. “Where are you guys going?” Cal called over.
Lettie turned, her face red. “Gotta help his dad unclog the toilet! ”
I fought to hold back the laughter that wanted to erupt out of me. Opening her passenger door, she got in and saw the look on my face. “What if he asked us to bring him back some food or something?” she asked.
A chuckle escaped as I said, “You’re right. He definitely won’t be asking for anything from us after we unclog my dad’s toilet.”
An image of Lettie in a house, doing daily chores like dishes or mopping, crossed my mind as I rounded the truck to get behind the wheel.
I could see us in our home, a couple of babies, Lettie’s hair in a bun wearing the same clothes from two days ago, and me coming in from working on the ranch.
She’d complain about the dirt on the freshly mopped floor, but I’d pull her into my arms, thankful for another day coming home to her.
Lettie was my home. The woman I looked forward to seeing every damn day. I was so lucky to have her.
I’d get hurt by Lettie Bronson a million more times in this lifetime if it led me to being right here, where I was right now. With her by my side, just an arm’s length away.