"It never gets old, does it?" His voice was quiet, almost reverent.
"Never. Although, I have to say watching a human birth is a bit more exhilarating."
"I can imagine."
Thirty minutes later, they turned away from the fence as the new momma continued to clean her baby. The little guy was already trying to figure out how to get his legs under him.
Daniel and Riley walked side by side, checking all the other cows.Only one other cow lay down, but she lazily chewed her cud and showed no signs of being in labor.
They both came to a stop outside the door to the trailer.
"I'll take the first shift," Riley said at the same moment Daniel motioned over his shoulder and said, "You can sleep first."
"I don't think I'll be able to sleep, so you may as well go ahead." She waved toward the door. "I rested a little bit today, so I should be good for a few hours."
"There's plenty of room inside the trailer for both of us." He watched her carefully as though wary of how she might react.
She backed up a step and wrapped her arms around herself as she shook her head. "I can't...be in there...with you."
Daniel's gaze went heavenward again for a long moment. Then he walked over to the propane heater and went through the steps of lighting it.
It's just as well Riley never tried to light it. It was considerably more complicated than she'd thought.
Daniel stopped when he reached the trailer door again. "Is it...is it insomnia or...nightmares that drive you to the punching bag in the middle of the night?"
Riley drew in a sharp breath. Had he seen her in his little gym? Or did he figure it out because she didn't put his gloves away in the right spot.
"How...?"
His gaze dropped to his boots again. "I sometimes have trouble sleeping too."
So he had seen her. But why did he have trouble sleeping?
Again, Riley wondered what Daniel's "garbage" was.
Daniel lifted his gaze to her face. "So, which is it?"
Riley licked dry lips. "Nightmares." The word was barely audible.
"I'm sorry." Daniel rubbed his jaw again, this time swiping his hand over his mouth too. "Me too." He squeezed his eyes shut. "Sometimes I wish it could just be insomnia." He reached for the doorknob.
"Daniel, wait." Riley rubbed her hands on her arms to combat the chill that swept over her. "What... What causes your?—"
The ringtone of Riley’s cell phone split the night air, cutting off her words.
"Who the devil is calling you at this hour?"
Riley pulled her phone from her back pocket to find Paige's goofy grin from her contacts on her screen. "It's Paige."
"It figures. Tell her 'Hi' for me." He turned back toward the door once again.
Riley swiped up. "Hi, Paige."
"Guess again, Riley Darling." The deep menacing voice that came over the phone did not match Paige's bright, bubbly voice.
Riley's audible gasp came out as a cry of alarm. A cold chill hit her as she felt the blood drain from her face and the hair on the nape of her neck stand up. Her mind scrambled to process how Collin's call had gotten through. She'd blocked him.
But the caller ID showed Paige's face.
