Chapter Fourteen
Tanner watched the little rental car all the way to the end of the driveway. He drew in a ragged breath when it turned out onto the highway; when Everly turned out onto the highway – and left.
White noise filled his head as he tried to process the events of the last few minutes. He flinched when a hand came down on his shoulder.
“What the hell just happened?” asked Travis.
“She’s… She’s gone.” His heart felt as though it cracked when the finality of those two words hit him. She was gone. She’d left. That was it. He blew out a big sigh. She’d lied – she’d been lying to him the whole time.
He turned to look at Zeke.
“What happened?” Travis asked again.
Zeke met Tanner’s gaze. “I just did them both a favor.”
“What do you mean? How?” Travis asked.
“Neither of them knew what they were getting themselves into. I set them straight.”
Tanner just stared at him. Everly had known what she was getting herself into. He’d made no secret of his past – hell, from their very first conversation at the bar, Everly had teased him about the way he flirted with women. He’d been honest with her from the get-go – he’d been up front with her so that she could decide for herself about him.
But she hadn’t done the same with him. She’d lied. Lied. The Everly he’d thought he knew wasn’t a liar. The girl he’d thought he was falling in love with wouldn’t have deceived him – especially not about something so important.
Zeke shook his head. “You’ll get over it, Tanner. It’s for the best. I’m not gonna stick around.” He turned to Travis. “I’ll see you later.”
Tanner didn’t say a word. He just watched Zeke climb into his truck and turn it around before heading back up the driveway just as Everly had done only minutes ago.
“Are you okay?” asked Travis.
“No. I’m not. I need to get out of here.” He was relieved to find his keys in his pocket. “If anyone notices that I’m missing, tell them I’m fine.”
Travis scowled. “Not happening, kid. Where are you going?”
“For a drive. I don’t know. I have no fucking idea. I just need to get out of here, Trav.”
“Keep your phone turned on – promise me that, and I’ll let you go.”
“Okay.” Tanner started heading for the side of the house, glad that his truck was parked out of sight from the back porch where his family was all gathered – no doubt having a good time, with no idea about what had just happened.
“Can I tell them what went down?” Travis called after him.
“Sure, why not?” He didn’t want to talk about it with anyone. He’d rather the rest of the family did their inevitable postmortem of his brief relationship with Everly while he wasn’t around. He stopped abruptly and did a U-turn, heading back into the house through the front door. Seeing that there was no one in the dining room, he hurried in and grabbed a bottle of bourbon from the liquor cabinet.
When he made it back to the front door, Travis was standing outside it, arms folded across his chest as he barred Tanner’s way.
“Not happening, Tan. Go for a drive if you want to, but if you’re going to drown your sorrows, you can do that here.”
Tanner glowered at him. “For fuck’s sake, Trav! I’m devastated, not stupid!”
“So, where are you taking that? And how do you plan on getting back?”
“I’m going down to Dailey Lake. When this is empty …” he held up the bottle “… I’ll sleep it off right there.”
Travis gave him a rueful smile. “You got a sleeping bag in the truck? It’s going to be a cold one tonight.”
“I do. And thanks. But would you fuck off now and let me go?”
Travis stood aside. “Now that we covered all of that, yes. And I’m sorry about how this worked out, Tan.”
“Yeah, me too.”
When he was halfway up the drive, a ranch truck turned in off the road. It slowed as it approached, and Ford gave him a cheery wave. As the trucks drew level, Ford put his window down, but Tanner just shook his head and drove on by.
When he reached Dailey Lake, he knew that coming here had been a bad idea. Was it really only yesterday that he’d brought Everly here? He parked the truck in the same spot and sat staring out at the water. How had he been so wrong about her? She seemed so straightforward – and honest. He let out a short, bitter laugh. What a fool he was!
But why, though? Why had she lied? It didn’t make sense to him. So, she had a kid? Why should that be a problem? He blew out a sigh. It wouldn’t have been a problem – not to him. Even now, part of his mind wanted to know what the little guy might be like.
Of course, when Zeke had asked him if he was ready to be a father, he’d had to answer honestly, and the answer was no. He wanted to be a dad someday, but he hadn’t even had a serious relationship in his sights – until he met Everly.
Movement on the mountainside caught his attention. A herd of elk was sheltering from the wind at the tree line. Yesterday, he’d loved seeing Everly’s reaction to this place – the place he called home. This morning, he’d been wondering how he might convince her to make her home here with him. Now… Now, none of it mattered anymore. She was gone. End of story. He’d give himself a couple of days, and then he’d take the lesson and move on.
The words sounded right in his head, but the heaviness in his chest told him that his heart wasn’t ready to hear them.
He sent Brooks a quick text to tell him that he’d be off grid for the next little while. The guys would need to keep an eye on the mare between them, and call Janey if there were any problems. He might want to drink the world away, but he had to make sure the horses were taken care of first.
With that done, he screwed the top off the bottle of bourbon. Just as he brought the bottle to his lips, movement caught his attention again. This time, it was a truck – a ranch truck – sending gravel flying as it sped toward him.
“For fuck’s sake, Trav!” he muttered to himself. He hadn’t minded Travis telling the others what had happened, but he hadn’t expected him to spill on where he was, not this soon, anyway.
He watched the truck approach, wondering which of his brothers had followed him. Probably Ty, maybe Kolby.
He screwed the cap back on the bottle when Ford climbed out of the truck and turned his collar up against the wind as he hurried toward Tanner’s passenger side.
He got in and slammed the door behind him before swiping the bottle from Tanner’s hands.
“Hey! I already promised Trav that I won’t drive afterward.”
“So he said. But you might want to hear me out before you drink any of it.”
“Why?”
“Because she didn’t mean to lie to you.”
“What the fuck does that mean? Are you trying to say that she accidentally lied somehow? Because if you are, you need to tell me how that works. I don’t get it.”
Ford held his hand up. “Whoa! Slow down. Hear me out. We talked this morning; she told me about her little boy.”
Tanner thumped his head back against the head rest and looked up through the sunroof. “Well, lucky fucking you! I’m happy for you that she felt able to be honest with you; I just wish she could’ve done the same with me.”
“Stop it, Tanner! I get it, you’re hurt, and you have every right to be. I just want to tell you a bit more of the story.”
Tanner scowled at him, hating that Ford knew more of the story than he did in the first place. “Go on, then,” he ground out.
“She told me about her boy, about Ashton. She…”
“Why?! Why would she tell you and not me?”
“She was trying to tell you, Tan.”
“ Trying ? What does that even mean? How hard is it to just open your mouth and say, oh by the way, I have a kid ?”
Ford scowled. “Stop behaving like a kid, would you? Calm down and listen. She said that she didn’t tell you at first because she didn’t think it would matter. And I get that. If I were a single parent, I’d wait a while before I told someone I just met about my child.”
“Yeah, I get that, too. But we were… At least, I thought that we were more than that. She didn’t feel like someone I just met. I thought… But obviously, I was wrong.”
“I don’t think you were. That’s what I’m trying to tell you if you’d let me finish. She said she didn’t tell you at first, but then she wanted to but just never found the right moment. And don’t fucking interrupt me again. She said she tried telling you, but something always got in the way.” Ford frowned. “She said she was about to tell you when you almost hit the deer last night, and then again this morning when you got the phone call about the mare.”
Tanner rested his elbows on the steering wheel and pressed his fingers into his temples. He thought back to last night. His heart started to pound as he remembered the conversation they’d been having before the deer jumped out in front of the truck. She’d been talking about how different their lives were, and that there was something he didn’t know about her – something she needed to tell him.
He leaned back in his seat and stared out at the mountains. This morning, when he’d been so happy to wake up with her in his bed, what had she said? She’d said that there was something he didn’t know about her – a big thing – and that if he still wanted to figure out a way to see more of each other after she told him, then she’d love to.
He glanced over at Ford, who was sitting staring out at the lake, as if he had all the time in the world.
“Say something.”
Ford shrugged. “I’ve said my piece. It’s up to you what you want to do with it.”
“You’re right. I can see it now; she was trying to tell me.”
“Yup.”
“But…”
Ford cocked an eyebrow. “But what?”
“Fuck!”
“Yup.”
“What do I do?”
“First thing you need to do is decide if her having a kid really is a problem for you.”
Tanner shook his head slowly. “I love kids. I… I’ve always known that I wanted to be a dad someday.” Zeke’s voice filled his mind. Be honest with yourself – you’re not ready to be a father, are you? “I told Zeke that I wasn’t ready to be a father, but that was only because it was all such a shock. Look at Wade. He’s a great dad – even though we all thought he never wanted kids.” He nodded to himself. “I could do it. I could be a good dad. I… Or a stepdad. I don’t know what the deal with his father might be.”
“He’s not in the picture.”
“Jesus! Did she share everything with you?”
Ford made a face at him. “She was feeling uncomfortable – and who could blame her, left to have breakfast like that with a guy she barely knew. I’m not saying it was your fault; I know you had to get down to the barn. But look at it from her point of view. She was in a strange house, in a strange situation, I imagine it was something of a relief for her to have someone to spill her guts to.”
“Yeah. I guess you’re right.”
Ford held his gaze for a long moment before holding out the bottle of bourbon and asking, “So, do you want this?”
“Hell no! Take it with you, would you? I need to get up to the Remington place!”
Ford chuckled as he climbed out of the truck. “Good luck.”
“Thanks.” Tanner started the truck and put his window down as he pulled alongside the other truck. “Seriously, Ford. Thank you.”
Ford nodded happily. “My pleasure. Go on, go get her.”
He made it up to Remington Ranch in record time. He’d thought about calling her on the way, but he didn’t know if she’d want to speak to him. He couldn’t remember exactly what he’d said to her before she said goodbye, but he’d been so stunned, so hurt, that he knew it wasn’t anything good.
He preferred to take his chances and catch her by surprise. If whoever was working the front desk wouldn’t tell him her room number, he’d have to call Shane.
He came to a stop in front of the lodge, and jumped out of the truck, not caring that he parked it diagonally across two spaces. His heart was pounding as he jogged up the steps. A girl he didn’t recognize greeted him with a smile when he entered the lobby.
“Hi. How can I help you?”
“Everly.” It hit him for the first time that he didn’t even know her last name. Shit. Why would he expect her to trust him about her kid, when they hadn’t even gotten as far as her last name?
The girl gave him a puzzled look. “Excuse me?”
“Everly,” he repeated. “She’s a guest here. She’s…”
“I’m afraid I can’t give you any information about our guests.” The girl was eyeing him suspiciously now. She took a few steps toward the door behind the desk that led into the back office, and called, “Shane!”
Tanner was relieved to see Shane stick his head out of the office.
“This guy’s asking about one of our guests.”
“It’s okay, he’s a friend,” he reassured her. He came around the desk to Tanner. “You’re looking for Everly?”
His heart sank as he nodded. Shane’s expression didn’t give him much hope.
“Sorry, bud, she checked out this morning.”
“This morning?”
“Yeah. Honestly, when I saw that, I thought she must have gone to stay with you. But from the look on your face …”
“No. I … We had a bit of a misunderstanding.” His mind raced. Had she been planning to stay with him? Or had she been intending to go home all along?
Shane frowned. “Let me check with Corinne, see if she knows anything. Come on through.”
Tanner followed him into the back office, where he sat at the big desk and picked up the phone.
“Hey, Corinne ... Yeah, everything’s fine. Sorry to disturb you on a Sunday. Have you heard anything from Everly? … He’s here looking for her, and she checked out of her room this morning … Okay.”
He looked up at Tanner. “She’s going to see if she has any messages from her.”
Tanner held his breath as he waited.
“Okay… Right… Shit. Okay, thanks, Corinne. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“What did she say?”
“That Everly’s gone home to Napa. Apparently, there’s some deal with her stepdad’s family, and she needed to go back.”
Tanner just stared at him. He’d already known that he had a mountain to climb after the way he reacted this morning. That mountain was starting to look a lot like Everest. How was he supposed to win her back when she’d already left town?
Shane gave him a sympathetic smile. “Anything I can do?”
Tanner blew out a sigh. “Thanks, but I’m not sure there’s anything even I can do.”
Shane laughed. “Don’t give me that shit. You’re no quitter. And you’d be a damn fool to give up on Everly.”
Tanner shrugged. He didn’t know what to think, let alone what to say.
“I’m telling you, Tanner. I saw the two of you together. You’re not going to be able to go back to the way things were before you met her, and from what I saw, you’re not gonna be able to move forward without her, either.”
Shane got to his feet and grasped Tanner’s shoulder. “You’ll figure it out.”
As he made his way back outside to his truck, Tanner wasn’t sure that he would – or even what figuring it out might look like.