“Scared of what?”
“Too much.” I shook my head. “Cleo, you’d tell me if I was making a mistake, right? I sound like a broken record, but I’m terrified of him breaking my heart. That might finally breakme.”
When was the last time I’d felt happy? I couldn’t remember. I’d been focused on everyone else’s welfare and happiness that mine had gone to the wayside. This was the one thing I’d considered allowing myself.
Cleo wrapped her arms around my waist and hugged me tight. “If that cowboy breaks your heart, you know I’d be here to help put back the pieces. So would Mom and Dad and Lennox. Hell, Bishop might even lend us some glue,” she chuckled, resting her chin on my shoulder. “You’re not alone, Josie. You’ve never been alone. Opening your heart to a man so clearly head over heels in love with you isn’t bad.”
Love. The word filled me with dangerous excitement.
“Isn’t it too soon for that? I mean, we haven’t known each other that long?—”
“When you know, you know,” Cleo said. There was such conviction behind her words, such surety.
I pulled my lip between my teeth, glancing at the empty sink. “Is that how you felt?” I barely dared ask the question. It was dangerous. We both knew I wasn’t talking about her deadbeat husband.
My sister didn’t answer me at first. Part of me didn’t expect her to. Cleo was a private person, even with us. “I regret losing it every day, Josie.”
Cleo stepped back, and I turned to face her. “How did it feel seeing him again?” I asked, taking the risk that my assumption was right, and there was more to the story of the guy at the bar.
She pressed the heel of her hand against her chest. Her eyes were lined with unshed tears. “Like I couldn’t breathe. I had no one else to blame but myself because I never chased what Iwanted. Grady… He made his fair share of mistakes, don’t get me wrong, but I’m far from innocent. I don’t know why, but I convinced myself our relationship wasn’t worth weathering the storm. Like you, I was scared of what was to come. I didn’t know if I could make it through.” Cleo’s tears fell freely now as I swiped beneath her eyes. “But this hurts so much worse than if I would’ve ridden it out, Josie. Seeing him live his dreams without me is torture.”
I pulled her into my arms as she wept—as she mourned a life she could’ve had and the emptiness of a love lost.
Could I walk away from Lincoln? Could I handle the crushing weight of disappointment that would surely come if I didn’t try? I had a clear picture of the life we could have, the way he’d put everything he had into building a future by my side.
“Don’t be like me, Josie,” Cleo whispered. “If you love Lincoln, you go get him. You let him know without a doubt that you are his, and he is yours.”
I nodded, hugging her tightly. “I love you.”
She laughed, pulling back with red-rimmed eyes. “I love you, too. Now, go get your cowboy.”
Dad was walkingout of the barn alone by the time I’d slid into a pair of boots and ran his way. I came to a halt in front of the double doors, out of breath and already sweating.
“Woah, where’s the fire?” he asked with a chuckle. “Everything okay?”
I placed my hands on my hips, sucking in a lungful of air.Maybe I needed to start working on cardio again.“Yeah, I was just looking for Lincoln,” I said, trying to peer over his shoulder. “Is he in there?”
Dad nodded, pursing his lips. “Yup, he’s in the tack room.”
“Thanks, Dad?—”
He held his hand out, gently touching my arm. “Josie, sugar, can I have a minute?”
Oh my god.Now was not the time for a father-daughter chat. Adrenaline was coursing through my veins, and each moment I kept my feelings bottled up was wasted time.
I shifted on my feet. “Can it wait?”
“No, sugar. I—I’m afraid it can’t.”
Dad hesitated, which was never a good sign. That man was as steady as a rainstorm. There were only a handful of times I’d ever seen him less than level-headed. He took off his hat, spinning it in his hands. “I got a call from Ellis this morning. Several, in fact. He had some pretty outrageous claims to make…”
Fucking dick.I thought I’d have the day before dealing with his shit. “I’m sure he did,” I said, crossing my arms.
“Ellis said he saw y’all at the bar last night. That you fired him without cause, that Lincoln assaulted him, and that you’ve been cheating on him since the beginning of y’all’s relationship. Now, I know better than to ask if that’s true,” he said, holding his hands up. “Quite frankly, I’d always thought he was a bit of a prick. But I did have a talk with Lincoln about what happened last night.”
I tried to keep my voice even when asked, “And what did Lincoln have to say?”
He wouldn’t have lied. Part of me was grateful for that. I didn’t know how I was supposed to start that conversation with my dad, and Lincoln had taken that fear away from me, so I didn’t have to worry about it. There’d be a time and place to go into details, but I couldn’t think of that right now.
