I didn’t like people who went out of their way to make people feel small.
That was what I’d made my criminal career out of—making people feel like they had a right to take up space even if someone bigger and meaner than them told them they shouldn’t.
After busing our table, we both headed for the exit, and I dropped a five in the tip jar.
She smiled at me when I joined her at the door. “That was nice.”
“The old man is struggling,” I said. “Saw his wife at the grocery store last week, and she had to put a few items back because she couldn’t afford it. I didn’t like seeing that.”
Her shoulders slumped. “That’s awful.”
“Don’t feel too bad. I put a line of credit out at the grocery store for them,” I said as we walked to where our vehicles were parked side by side. “They can get what they need from now on. The lady at the front, the one who owns Brooks, is going to find a miraculous coupon the next time that happens.”
“You’re a good man,” she said softly as she made it to her car.
Her words felt like a stab right to my heart.
If she only knew just what kind of man that I actually was…
She opened her door and said, “Get in, Brawny.”
Brawny jumped inside and turned around to seat himself against the passenger side door like he did in my truck. His tongue lolled out, and he looked at us both happily.
A pang of sadness hit me that I was about to go home to an empty house again.
That really fuckin’ sucked.
But, I’d do just about anything, even be lonely as hell, to see that huge damn smile on her face like the one I gave her when Brawny jumped out of my truck and made a beeline for her.
“Thank you again.” She twisted so that she could put herself between the dog and the open door. “I can never repay you.”
“You don’t have to,” I said as I headed around the front of my truck. “Just make sure that bitch doesn’t get ahold of him again.”
“Oh, I don’t ever plan on letting her close to me again,” she promised.
I got in the truck, but made sure to say through the open window, “I don’t either.”
The ride home took me twenty minutes through mountain passes. By the time I arrived, there was very little light left, but I still had plenty of chores to do.
The farm that Apollo had purchased for me had a semi-working horse ranch involved with the property.
Over the years, they’d sold off more and more horses until only four remained.
Those four had come with the property, and I hadn’t had the heart to get rid of them, even though I’d known nothing about horses in general.
When I got to the barn, I immediately went to the first stall and looked over.
“Hey there, Shadow.”
Shadow, the white—though the vet informed me he was gray, even though he fuckin’ looked white—horse came up to the stall and stuck his head over the stall door. He looked down, likely looking for his friend, and didn’t spot him.
He looked at me accusingly.
“Sorry, buddy,” I said as I scratched him between his eyes. “It wasn’t my decision. He had to go back to his mama.”
The horse gave me the side-eye.
“I can make it up to you with a clean stall and a carrot, though,” I said as I caught my gloves and the shovel that were right next to his stall.
