"Yeah, I was pretty messed up by the time I started talking to Emily." He gave a self-deprecating chuckle that sounded flat even to his own ears. "Talk about baggage."
Riley continued to stare at him through narrowed eyes. "Was it... Was it because I broke up with you?"
Daniel let out a genuine laugh this time. "Not going to lie, Pockets, it hurt when you dumped me, but that wasn't what derailed my life."
"Nobody has called me Pockets since..."
He raised an eyebrow at her and hazarded a guess. "Since you broke up with me?"
"Yeah." A sheepish look crossed her face. "I think we should be allowed to outgrow childhood nicknames."
"Normally I'd agree with you, but you still tuck your hands in your back pockets and rock up on your toes when you're nervous or excited."
"I do not."
"You did it the day you arrived home after we let our horses into the corral." A small frown marred her face, and Daniel grinned. "At least I didn't call you Princess Sparkle Pockets."
Riley burst out laughing at this. "Those pants with the bedazzled pockets were my favorite."
"I know, and you refused to take them off, so your mom had to buy four pairs. You even slept in those things."
"I threw such a fit the first time your mom washed them. I was so afraid it would make the little rhinestones fall off."
He chuckled. "I remember that time you got mad at your dad when he called you Princess like he usually did, and you stomped your foot, put your hands on your hips, and demanded he call you Princess Sparkle Pockets."
Her laughter joined his, and warmth seeped over Daniel. He'd forgotten how much he loved laughing with Riley.
"I was only six. I outgrew sparkly-pocket pants a long time ago."
"I don't know. I recall you wearing them for a lot of years. You wore a more mature version all through your rodeo royalty days."
Riley scoffed as she pulled off the boxing gloves and threw them on the shelf. She headed for the door. "I was expected to wear them when I did rodeo stuff."
Daniel followed her. "Yes, but I think you enjoyed it more than the average cowgirl."
Riley spun around and glared at him. "Don't call me that!"
Daniel fell back a step. "Call you what?"
"That word. Don't call me that!"
Daniel scrambled to recall what he'd been saying before she turned on him. "What word? Cow?—"
"Don't!" She clapped a hand over his mouth, then quickly jerked itback again and wrapped her arms around herself. She squeezed her eyes shut and sucked in a deep breath.
What just happened?
Daniel took an additional step back, giving Riley the space she apparently needed and waited for her trembling and ragged breathing to subside. He had no idea why calling her "cowgirl" set her off, but the simple fact that it did, meant Riley had issues.
She didn't meet his eyes when she finally spoke. "I'm sorry... I... I..." She stopped trying to explain her behavior and walked out of the stables.
Daniel followed her again, keeping his distance. "Seriously, Ri, you need to talk to someone."
"I told you, I can't."
"Well, you can't let it keep eating at you."
She spun around again. "You have no idea what I've been through, so don't tell me what I can and can't do."
