“I won’t,” I whisper.
“Good,” Mom says, nodding. “Now tell me about this young man staying here this week. I feel bad that I haven’t been as present.”
I shake my head. “No, Mom. You don’t need to feel—”
She cuts me off with a stern look. “It’s my job to run this place. You’re already taking on so much.”
Theo hardly feels like something I’m taking on. “He’s nice,” I say. “Sad. Sad in a way I’m not sure can be fixed.”
Mom hums. “I saw you boys out riding yesterday. He seemed pretty happy then.”
He did, actually. Theo’s a natural on a horse. “You know how horses are. They heal you.”
“Maybe I should take Lucky out,” Mom muses. “So, this boy, Theo. He’s a nice young man. You like him?”
My cheeks heat. “I don’t know him, really.”
That’s not something that’s gonna work on her. She knows me too well. She knew I had a crush on Austin in high school before Iever said a word about it. Before I even knew myself, really. She’s no fool.
She proves my point by clicking her tongue. “Hunter.”
I sigh. “Alright, yes. I like him. It doesn’t really matter, though. He’s just here visiting, and then he’s going back home.”
“You could talk when he goes home,” she says. “Exchange numbers or something.”
Yeah, that’s fair enough. I suppose we could. “I’ll ask if he wants to.”
“Seems like he could use a friend if nothin’ else.”
Well, she’s right about that.
It’sdarkbythetime Theo shows up. I’m stepping out of the barn after doing my nightly rounds, and when he climbs out of his car, he looks even more dead on his feet than I feel.
Jogging toward him, I call out his name. He stops in his tracks, turning to face me. “Oh. Hi.”
“Hi,” I say as I approach. “You alright?”
“Huh?” His nose scrunches. “Yeah, I’m alright. Tired. Exhausted, really.”
I wipe my hands on my jeans. “Long day?”
It definitely seems like it has been. I think this is the most tired his eyes have looked, which is really saying something considering he was falling asleep in his breakfast yesterday morning.
“You could say that,” he says, glancing away from me.
I’m not really sure what else to say, so I just nod. “Alright, well, I won’t keep you. I’m just about to go to bed myself. That midnight feed will come sooner than I’d like.”
He turns toward me, something flashing in his eyes. “Can I join you?”
“Course. If you’re feeling up to it.” We just stand there for a few seconds, staring at each other. “Well, are you ready to go in?” I ask.
Without a word, he turns on his heel, heading up the porch and going into the house. I follow him inside, surprised to find him waiting at the bottom of the stairs. His chest rises and falls with a slow, measured breath, then his eyes fall to the floor before rising to meet mine. “Feel free to say no, but would you mind some company? I’m not sure I want to be alone.”
My stomach does something wild, twisting and flipping. “Sure. Wanna come to my room?”
When he turns and starts walking up the stairs, I figure I’ve done something wrong, but he bypasses his room and heads toward mine. I kick my ass into gear and take the steps two at a time to catch up with him.
Pushing open the door to my room, I gesture for him to go in. “Do you want to change into something more comfortable first?” I sure as hell will be. There’s no way I’m gonna lounge around in these jeans.
