Chapter Six – Ensley
Ensley
“I pulled up the sandwich place my mother was talking about. It’s a short walk if you’d like to head there together.”
I hit the elevator down button so hard, I winced at the pain that shot through the tip of my index finger.
“Is that a no?”
I turned to face Colt and gave him my best glowering expression. “Listen, I’m only doing this because your mother forced me into it. I don’t have anything to say to you.”
The elevator doors opened, and I hesitated a long second before getting in.
Once we were inside, Colt faced me. “Ensley, if I’m going to be staying in River Falls for good and working for my father, we’re bound to run across one another. Don’t you think we should…”
Folding my arms over my chest, I asked, “We should what?”
“Talk. Settle things between us.”
“Settle things between us?” I echoed with a humorless laugh.
“Okay, maybe that wasn’t the best choice of words. But I really would like to try and explain.”
“You had plenty of chances to explain. Actually, 3,652 days, give or take a few. Let’s just get through this lunch, and whatever it takes to get you on board with your father’s clients, and then I’m done. I’d really prefer to never have to speak to you again.”
The doors opened, and I nearly sprinted out of that little box. I’ll never be able to ride in an elevator again without fearing it might get stuck.
“Is that really what you want? To just ignore me the rest of your life?”
“You’ve done it to me for the last ten years, so it shouldn’t be that hard, right?”
Colt sighed. “It’s complicated, Ensley.”
I laughed again. “Sure it is. So complicated. You left the woman you supposedly loved, not so much as a reason why and with a note that really said nothing. Spent the last decade wandering the globe and, oh, what else? That’s right…never contacted me. Not. Once.”
“I know it was wrong. I regret it more than you could ever know.”
I hated how my heart loved hearing those words. Right now, though, I needed to focus on my head, not my heart. Stopping, I turned to face him. “I’ve moved on, Colt. I told you already, you being back in River Falls makes no difference to me.”
Colt arched one brow. “Then why were you so against this lunch?”
“Just because I’ve moved on doesn’t mean I want to be your friend, either.”
“Does your being with Doug have something to do with this?”
I hated that Colt was under the impression I was dating Doug. Though, I recalled Doug, on the other hand, wanted him to believe it. He’d even suggested making Colt jealous, which I’d refused to go along with. I was serious when I said I wasn’t about to play games. That wasn’t my style.
“I’m not dating Doug. I did before, but things didn’t work out with us. We’re just friends.”
“He didn’t make it sound that way when he left your hotel room last night.”
I exhaled a heavy sigh and started walking again. “I drank too much at dinner last night. It was… It was a shock to see you. He helped me back to my room, that’s all.”
We walked for a few minutes in silence.
“I know you won’t believe me, but I am sorry I hurt you, Pip.”
The use of the old nickname made me close my eyes for a second. I pressed my lips together tightly and remained silent.
Colt held the door open for me at the World Market Deli, and I stepped inside. It smelled so good, and my stomach growled.
We both read the menu on the wall, neither of us speaking. I stepped forward and smiled at the young girl behind the counter.
“What can I get for you?”
“I’ll have the Rachel, corned beef on rye, please.”
“Is the Swiss cheese and Russian dressing okay?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
Colt stepped up beside me. “It’s all on the same bill.”
The young girl flashed a wide smile as she gave him a long look. It took everything I had not to roll my eyes. Yes, Colt was handsome, even more so now that he was older. His dark hair was hidden by a baseball cap, but those honey-colored eyes still sparkled.
“I’ll have your pastrami Reuben on rye. Please make that two, as well as your house salad, Italian dressing on the side, please. The other sandwich and salad will be to go.”
“Any drinks?” she asked, batting her eyelashes at Colt. Did she have any idea he was at least ten years older than she was?
He glanced at me, and when I nodded, he said, “Two fountain drinks, please.”
When he pulled out his wallet, I put a hand on his arm. “I can get it.”
“Thank you, but I’ve got it.”
I took the offered cup and headed to get my drink. I spotted a table in the back corner and almost grabbed it. Instead, I walked to a two-seater right in the middle of the restaurant.
Colt saw where I was sitting and motioned to the table in the back. “Might offer a bit more privacy.”
“Why do we need privacy to talk business?”
He stared at me with a frustrated expression before finally giving up and sitting down.
“I already asked Gatlin to contact your father’s clients and let them know about his heart attack. I was going to move them over to my schedule, just until your father was back on his feet, but now you can reschedule them all.”
“Thank Gatlin for me.”
I nodded.
“Dad said he has about twenty people on his client list, does that sound about right?”
Shrugging, I replied, “I don’t have the numbers on hand. I’d say around twenty-five. Most of them are horses he’s done since the beginning. They weren’t willing to let me take over because I’m a woman and all that bullshit.”
Colt shook his head. “They don’t know what they’re missing. From what I can remember, you were damn good at your job. Are you still doing cold shoeing?”
“Yes.”
“Me, too. I can’t stand how I smell if I do it with heat. Smells like horse shit.”
I felt my mouth twitch with a smile, but fought it.
“I’m not really sure what your mother thinks I can do to help you. You worked for your father before, and literally nothing has changed. His office is exactly the same. He still does everything on paper, even his billing system. You might want to upgrade that to something digital and easier.”
A young gentleman brought us our sandwiches. “I’ll hold off on the other two until I see you’re about done, then we’ll get them made.”
Colt flashed him that brilliant smile of his. “Thank you so much. I appreciate that.”
I figured we would eat in silence, but Colt wasn’t having it.
“Do you just service River Falls?”
With a shake of my head, I replied, “No. I have clients all around the area. I also take care of all of our horses on the ranch.”
“Figured you did. How is everyone? Have Caden and Rachel gotten married and popped out a few kids?”
I looked at him in surprise. “Have your mom and dad not told you anything?”
He shook his head. “Not about the Wildes. I guess it was an unspoken thing. I didn’t ask, and they didn’t tell.”
I leaned back and wiped the corners of my mouth. “A few years ago, Caden asked Rachel to marry him and she said no. Turns out she was a bigger bitch than I had originally thought.”
He screwed up his face. “I never did like her.”
“Yes, I know. You were spot on. Anyway, Caden is now happily married to Lilibeth. As of just days ago, in fact. She owns a store on Main Street in River Falls. They had a baby not that long ago, too, a couple months. Also, Emeline is married to Levi, and they have a new baby, as well.”
Colt leaned forward. “Wait—I thought Levi was married to Caroline.”
“Divorced. I’m not sure if you knew this, but he had two kids. A son and a daughter. His daughter died in a car accident.”
“Jesus. I’m so sorry to hear that.”
“He and Emeline are thriving. They have Rhett, Levi’s son from his first marriage, and their son, Jackson. They also adopted two foster kids who are Rhett’s best friends. Their names are Katie and Jimmy.”
His brows shot up. “Holy shit. Instant family. Is Emeline still into horses?”
I smiled. “She runs the stables on the ranch.”
“Good for her. And Caden and Gatlin, are they still working on the ranch?”
I nodded. “They are. Caden is pretty much in control, and I think once both of my uncles retire, Gatlin will take on more roles. Right now, he’s living his best life, working on the ranch and bartending at Billy’s.”
“He bartends?”
Laughing, I said, “He does. Not all the time, mostly on weekends.”
“Still as carefree as he ever was?”
“Indeed, he is. I swear, nothing bothers him. He’s also a crazy flirt.”
Colt smiled, then took the last bite of his sandwich. “He isn’t dating anyone seriously or anything?”
“Gatlin?” I laughed. “I think it would have to take a special kind of woman to put up with my younger brother. He has a big heart, but he’s also like Peter Pan.”
“Peter Pan?”
“Never grows up. Never takes anything too seriously. He just lets life roll off his back.”
“That’s a bad thing?”
I gave a one-shoulder shrug. “I don’t know if it is or not. That’s just not how I live my life.”
We sat for a few moments in silence before he asked, “When did you start having panic attacks?”
Rolling my eyes, I replied, “That’s something new. Like I mentioned, it’s only happened one other time.” I lifted my gaze to look at him. “You seemed to be pretty familiar with what to do. Do you get them?”
He shook his head. “No, the, um…the daughter of the rancher I worked for used to get them a lot.”
An instant rush of jealousy hit me, stealing my breath. All I could do was nod, since I couldn’t seem to find my voice.
“She was only twelve when she got her first one. The ranch hands learned early on how to help her if she ever had one around any of us.”
“How old is she now?”
“Twenty-eight.”
I nodded again, and couldn’t help but wonder if anything had ever happened between them. “What’s her name?”
“Lori. Her father, the owner of the ranch, is Judd Murray. Super-nice guy and treated his employees like family.”
“You must have really loved it there to stay as long as you did.”
His eyes met mine, and I could tell he wanted to say something, but we were interrupted by the same young man who’d brought our food out earlier.
“Here is your to-go order.”
Colt smiled. “Thanks again.”