Red tilts his head so that his eyes are on the roadandon me. “So, it’s a bit like a crush then?”
I shrug. “That’s how I understand it from the books I’ve read and from what the women have told me.”
“Did Char tell you what it felt like?”
There’s no stopping the smile that curves my lips. "She came back to town for Austin, so I’m not sure whether anythin' she felt was the spirit workin’ her magic or their old feelin’s sparkin’ to life again. There was an undeniable pull between them though, anyone with eyes could see it. For Austin though, he had that god-awful rash and insomnia. As soon as they were together again, all of that went away.”
“I remember that,” he replies. “We all knew somethin’ was goin’ on with him, but it wasn’t until Char came back to town that we knew it was her.”
“Now it’s like they can’t get enough of each other. Char’s told me that they justknew. That deep in their hearts, they were made for one another. Their one true love,” I tell him.
“Rhett said he knew it was happenin’ when his heart kept tryin’ to jump out of his chest justthinkin’about Cora, and it would just get worse when he’d see her.”
"Lee always knew that if she was goin’ to be rewarded with the Call, she wanted Colt to be her soulmate. So, when he went back to Eagle for the weekend, she says it was like they were magnets and couldn’t stay away from each other,” I add. “Anna said somethin’ similar after meetin’ you.”
That gets him smiling. “True story. The minute I laid eyes on her, I knew she was meant to be mine. It was like my life before her was black and white and there she was, a lightning bolt of technicolor.”
“You want to know what she said after that first night at the bar when we all met?” I say quietly.
His mouth quirks up on the side. “I already know. She said you two went back to your motel room and you teased her about ditchin’ you for a ‘hot cowboy’.”
“Ha! I did too. You two really did tell each other everythin’, didn’t you?”
“Sure did. Now I’m curious, what else did she say that night?” he asks.
“She said that before we’d even walked into that bar, she knew her life was about to change. As soon as she saw you standin’ by the jukebox, she knew you were the reason.”
His smile turns soft. “She was one of a kind, that one.”
“Taken too soon,” I add.
“Far too soon.” We both fall silent, and I know it’s because we’re both thinking about and missing her.
“There is one thing I’m finally startin’ to believe,” he says, grabbing my attention. I turn my whole body toward him, watching his face closely.
“What’s that?”
He glances my way, meeting my eyes dead on. “She wouldn’t have wanted me to put my life on hold like I have done.”
“I think you’re right there,” I add.
“I’d say she’d be pissed as hell that I’ve been survivin’ rather than livin’.” I open my mouth to speak but no words come out. He looks over at me, a small smirk playing on his lips. “Cat got your tongue, Mags?”
“I’m just…speechless. That’s what I am, speechless.” I mull over his words. There’s one thing I can’t work out though. “What’s brought this on? Why now?”
Surprising me, Red reaches out and holds his hand palm up on the seat between us. Without thinking, I lace my fingers with his, fighting to ignore the jolts of awareness that shoot up my arm. When it gets to be too much, I go to pull away but he flexes his grip and my eyes snap up to meet his.
"Reckon it's been a long time comin', darlin’. Been walkin' around feelin' like I'm half a person since Anna passed and I’ve wasted a long time watchin’ life pass me by without realizin’. I’ve decided that it’s time to start livin’. Life’s too short to waste, if there’s anythin’ we should learn from losin’ Anna, it’s that.” He takes a big breath like he's bracing himself for something. What he says next confuses me even more. "What I’m askin’ is if you think you might be able to help me do that?”
Tears prick at the corners of my eyes as he bares his soul to me. Red Grayson, the man who has always been the rock for everyone else, is finally allowing himself to be vulnerable again. He’s willing to open his heart and hear the Call—if the mountain chooses to reward him.
What I don’t get is why he’s asking formeto help. Surely when he meets his One, he'll know…
When I don’t answer–I literallycan’tbecause my tongue feels ten times too big for my mouth–he sighs and with one last squeeze of my hand, he lets me go, putting his hand back on the steering wheel.
For a second I wonder if I missed something, my chest feeling tight like my heart is suddenly too big for my chest. It’s only when he smiles and nods down at my e-reader I’d completely forgotten about that the pressure starts to ease.
“Are you just goin’ totalkabout readin’ the new book or are you actually goin’ to start it? You never know, maybe you’ll find out who’s next in line for the Call.”
