Duke steps forward. “Caroline, I can carry you.” He reaches for me, and I bat his hand away.
“I appreciate it, but I really need to be able to pee by myself. For my dignity.”
They both roll their eyes.
Cash’s eye light up with mischief. “It’s not that different than?—”
“So help me God. Donotfinish that sentence if you know what’s good for you.” My face burns, probably bright red.
“What? What did I miss?” Duke looks between us.
“Nothing!” I say loudly just as Cash says,
“Oh, just that Callie can?—”
“Shut up, Cash!”
He puts his hands up again. “Okay, okay.”
Duke frowns.
I shut the bathroom door in both their faces.
We spend the week of forced rest reconnecting and creating new memories.
One day was spent entirely playing different card games.
Another day, we did some online shopping since I refuse to wear anything from the closet of my apartment.
One or both of them stand vigilant guard over the bathroom door as I shower. I know they would help but I need to get the independence of at least bathing. Cash brings me books and Lizzie’s coffee. I spend hours looking out over the ranch and getting lost in steamy romance novels, knowing that my own romance is happening around me.
I’m impressed by their cooking abilities every day. I shouldn’t be surprised by men who live alone and care for themselves, but I am, nonetheless. Cash brings Tank and Snapper up to visit. Snapper acts like a fool and Tank lies at the foot of my bed, his grey head laying on my legs.
I feel better enough to put my clothes away and to walk slowly around the second floor, peeking my head into bedrooms. I discover Duke’s bedroom is the same as mine except his walls are a muted yellow and he shares a hall bath with a fourth bedroom. The fourth bedroom is pink, Cash informs me he wanted me to have the pink room, but I deserved my own bathroom, so I got the blue room. I have no idea why he has so many bedrooms or why he chose the colors he did.
There’s an office up here as well but instead of bookshelves and art, there are hundreds of medals and belt buckles lining the walls around a desk that houses the ranch ledgers. I’m in awe of the evidence of his talent and amused by the pictures that line a table; pictures of him on bulls, accepting his first Championship buckle,and his parents.
But the ones I love the most are him with a tall gangly teenager, then a filled-out, lean man. Duke and Cash by the creek, splashing around. Duke at Cash’s graduation. Both of them on horseback, surrounded by steers. It’s a tiny glimpse into the entire life they had together before I stormed into it.
I reach the last door in the hallway. Cash’s door. It feels intrusive even though he told me to look around. His bedroom, his space, where I know he has had more than a few women and I’ve never even seen behind the door. I turn and walk away. I’ll leave it for another day.
“Callie!” I hear Cash calling so I lean over the stair banister and see him standing in the living room. “Hey, pretty girl, don’t you think you’ve been upstairs long enough? Wouldn’t it be nice to come down here?”
“Stop yelling!” Duke comes from the kitchen with a towel over his shoulder that reminds me of nights at the bar. “Want me to help you down the stairs, sweetheart? We can have dinner down here tonight.”
“Yes, please,” I tell him enthusiastically. I’m going stir crazy up here.
Once they have me seated in a chair at the little table, Tank at my feet, and three dogs zooming around the living room, Cash brings me a glass of lemonade. “Sorry, Hurricane, no whiskey for you; you’re still on meds.” He puts down two tumblers of the rich amber liquid before disappearing again.
Duke places a serving platter piled high with green salad and grilled salmon in the center of the table, while Cash puts a basket full of bread next to it. My plate is piled high and we all sit together, eating and laughing. I feel more content than I have in months.
We sit together and it’s like a family takes shape around me. We discuss the adventures I got up to when we were apart. I tell them about the hiking trips and falling deeper in love withMontana every day. About the tattoo and how I picked everything and how much those days together meant to me. I dissect my thoughts about the two of them being incomplete without the other. I make sure to mention I visited a doctor about birth control which causes Cash to grin widely and Duke’s cheeks to turn slightly pink.
“So, Sunshine, I’ve got some bad news,” Duke tells me, a serious look on his face.
I put my fork down and fold my hands in my lap. “Okay?”
“Lord, don’t look so afraid. It’s not that bad. Neither Cash nor I have worked in almost three weeks. Now that you’re moving around a little, we are going back to work.”
