“Son, when a woman is mad, she will throw words at you. You duck. And you return with an even tone and say nice things to her, and the waters will calm down,” he’d said.
While he was grateful for the advice, Hunter just wanted to be on his way. And now he was, and the fear was trying to take over again. “Darn it all—I love her. This shouldn’t be so hard.” He took his hat off and threw it on the passenger seat. Who was he kidding? Eating crow was always tough.
He pulled in and circled around so the back of the trailer faced the barn. Cher Bear nickered from inside the trailer and kicked at the wall. He didn’t like to be inside if they weren’t moving. Hunter wasn’t about to pull him out and reveal everything all at once.
First, he needed to get Zoey …
The front door opened and Zoey tripped out in front of a bark from Honey. She scowled behind her. Allie waved at Hunter and then shut the door behind Zoey. Her grinning face and Honey’s massive paws could be seen through the lace curtain over the glass partition. Great. He had an audience.
Zoey lifted her arm to shield her eyes from the afternoon sun. “I’m sorry, talking to you wasn’t on my to-do list today.”
Hunter found himself chuckling. “Thanks, Dad,” he mumbled. “You look pretty, Zoey,” he said louder.
Her hand went to her shorter, much curlier hair. “The staples in my scalp were aggravating my extensions. They had to come out.”
“It’s not your hair—although I like that too.”
She glanced down at her faded and slightly tattered T-shirt and ripped jeans.
“Listen, I wanted to apologize for not listening to you the other night. I heard about the grazing rights, and I appreciate you thinking of us.” There, he’d said what he needed to say. As his mom would say, he could now meet Jesus with a clear conscience. That felt good. And even if she rejected him, he’d have at least some peace in his life—though he’d still have regrets.
He held his breath, hoping her heart was still as big and wonderful as ever and that she’d let him back into it.
