“I should’ve said something sooner, but I’m really,reallysorry that I walked in on y’all. I should’ve knocked. Skylar is a very close friend, but I still should’ve respected his privacy. And Iamrespecting your privacy, I promise.”
Huh.
“He told you what happened, though, right?”
“He did, to a point. But he didn’t divulge the intimate details, and we only spoke in the strictest confidence. I haven’t told anyone. Not even Kess.”
Between the throbbing in my knee and the heat flashing up on my face, I was getting real tired of my body betraying me.
“But he didn’t tell you what happened at the MRI?”
Looking confused, Rowdy shook his head. “We’ve been missing each other over the last couple of weeks. I got invited to some brunch thing with him, Sam, and Desi, but Woody and I went to grab a pair of llamas from the rescue organization we work with, and we haven’t spoken since.”
I wonder what Sam and Desi think of all of this.
Rowdy drew back his chin. “Wait, back up. What happened at your MRI appointment?”
I took off my hat and scrubbed my hand through my hair. “Dr. Kleinfeld said I needed surgery, so I was rude to her, then bit Skylar’s head off when he tried to intercede.”
Looking at me sideways, Rowdy asked, “You yelled at him in front of his boss?”
There was a sharp edge to that question that was impossible to miss.
“I didn’t yell, but . . . yeah. Didn’t want to hear what the good doctor was telling me, so I pitched a fit right there. Embarrassed him pretty good.”
Now, I ain’t never seen Rowdy Lockwood angry, but in this moment, he waspissed.
And I deserved it.
“I apologized right away,” I was quick to point out. “And then felt so bad that I agreed to do the damn surgery.” I followed that with a light laugh, which, in retrospect, was a mistake.
“I don’t get it,” Rowdy said, putting his hair back in a messy bun. “Explain to me why any of that is funny. ’Cause I’m not laughing.”
Well . . . fuck.
I held up my hands like a prisoner with a gun trained on him. “It wasn’t funny. Not one bit of it. In fact, right after that debacle, I made it even worse when we ran into that Daddy Big Bucks guy.” I drew in a shaky breath. I really had made it so much worse.
“Wait, Rich was there?”
I nodded. “I acted like we were together to take the heat off Sky, but then I was reminded that pretending to be the hero in one situation while being a jerk in another wouldn’t win me any awards.”
Rowdy ran his finger across his forehead, like maybe he was deciding on whether or not to put his fist through my face, when Todd went running by us. On the wrong side of the fence.
His eyes snapped to mine. “I take it you don’t want exotics roaming freely on the property?”
I bunched my lips. “No, sir. I do not.”
Just then, Lane, Stevie, and Reed came tearing up on horseback.
“We got it boss,” Lane shouted, his expression stern as he pointed right at me. “Stay off the damn horse.”
Reed threw his head back in silent laugher.He told you.
Meanwhile, Stevie was looking between me and Rowdy.
“You good, Uncle Rowd?”
Rowdy’s angry expression melted at her words. She’d been calling him “Uncle” more and more, and I was starting to think it was less a cute nickname, and more a real designation.
