Garrett put his arm around her, patting her back. “I haven’t known your sister long, but I hit her with my truck, and she still kept going. A broken arm and bruised leg will mend, and she’ll be as stubborn and strong as ever.”
“You think so?” Tara asked, wiping at her eyes.
“Why don’t we head down to the cafeteria and get a sandwich? Rebecca will call us when she comes out of surgery, and you can stay with her when she wakes up. Something tells me if she thinks you’re hungry, she’ll lie to get you to leave. Why don’t we save her the trouble and get a bite?” he coaxed as he led her down the hallway to the cafeteria.
“Order whatever you want,” Garrett said as he watched Tara pull out an envelope and check the prices on the wall. “I’m paying.”
“Riley says never accept charity. There’s always someone else worse off than you,” Tara repeated.
“How about we call it a lunch between two new friends. I want to get to know you. People buy their friends lunch all the time,” he said, reassuring her.
“I guess that’s true,” Tara said, biting her lip. “May I have a burger with fries?”
“Absolutely,” Garrett agreed. “I think I’ll get one, too. What do you want to drink? I’m in the mood for a root beer.”
Tara’s eyes widened. “I’ll have one, too.”
They gave their order and sat down a few minutes later with a tray loaded with their meals and drinks. Garrett managed to talk Tara into a piece of cherry pie, and he took an apple.
“Where did you and Riley come from? You said she stayed to make money,” Garrett asked as he picked up a fry and dipped it in ketchup.
“Riley says we’re not supposed to talk about it. Someone might tell my dad, and he’ll make me go back,” she said, taking a shaky breath and sipping the root beer.
“Why don’t you want to go back?” he asked.
“My dad blames me for my mom’s accident, and he’s mean when he drinks,” she admitted softly. “Mom wanted me to go to college, and Dad spent all our inheritance. Riley used hers to try to save the ranch, but he lied and didn’t pay the taxes as he promised. He swore I’d never go to college as long as he lived. A few days later, the bank foreclosed on the ranch. Riley woke me in the middle of the night, and we needed to leave if we ever wanted a chance for happiness. I didn’t want to stay with Dad, and I left with her.”
“How did your dad find you?” he asked, biting into his burger and digesting every single word Tara told him.
She paused, picking at her fries. “I sent a letter to my best friend to let her know why I left. He must’ve coerced her into telling him.”
“When you say he’s mean, what does he do?” he asked.
Tara put her hands in her lap. “He gets drunk and yells at me. He says I killed my mom and deserve to go to hell.” Her eyes filled with tears. “One night, I went to sleep, and he came home drunk. He tried strangling me. If Riley hadn’t burst in and pulled him off me, I’d be dead.”
Garrett passed her a napkin to wipe her tears. “You knowaccidents happen on ranches all the time. Your mom’s death wasn’t your fault.”
“Riley tells me all the time,” she said, blowing her nose. “He did other things, too. Riley resembles my mom. When he drinks, he forgets…”
Garrett stiffened, ready to go search for the son of a bitch himself and send him to hell. “Did he ever hurt her?”
Tara shook her head. “Riley said he didn’t, but I think she got tired of fighting him off. She wanted to wait until I turned eighteen, and then she suddenly insisted we leave.”
Garrett swiped his mouth. The burger tasted like sawdust as he imagined Riley dealing with her father.
“Listen to me. If Riley comes home tomorrow, I want you and her to stay with me. She’ll need help getting around, and I've started a job at the ranch. They gave me a large cabin, and you two can take the rooms while I sleep on the couch. Nobody will bother you there and your dad won’t find you either.”
“What about the bikers? Riley said we need to leave town,” Tara asked him.
“They won’t find you either. Mac told me he repaired the fence and no one can come inside like the other day when you drove the car to the farmhouse.”
Tara bit into her burger. “I can cook and clean. Riley loves to can vegetables, bake bread, and tend to the horses and cattle. I imagine she won’t feel like doing much right away, but we’ll figure out how to help pay the rent.”
“They gave me the cabin as part of my job. You won’t have to pay rent,” he assured her.
Tara’s mouth firmed and she shook her head. “Riley says if something comes for free, look for the strings attached. She won’t stay.”
“What if we made an arrangement? Can you cook or dolaundry? I’ll be ranching all day, and I hate washing clothes.”
