“It’s my horse, Chey.”
Even as I said the words, a part of me knew I was going too far. But I didn’t know what to do to make her see how foolish this was. If she was going to be careful, attentive, and smart then fine. But she’d proven tonight she wasn’t paying enough attention, and all it took was one wrong move, one tiny, little misstep and she and the baby could end up hurt. It wasn’t a risk I was willing to take.
Downright fury blazed from her. “Fine, I’ll buy her from you,” she countered, crossing her arms over her chest.
“She ain’t for sale.”
Cheyenne growled in frustration, throwing her hands down at her sides. “Fuckin’ hell, Maverick! You’re such a goddamn control freak!” With that she stomped away. I took a step to follow. “Don’t you fuckin’ dare come after me right now. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll leave me the hell alone for a while,” she shouted, not even bothering to look back.
I watched her stalk towards the road to our place, her footfalls becoming quieter and quieter the further she got. With each step, my guilt grew, replacing the fear and anger.
“What the hell happened?” Cash asked.
I whirled to him. When had he gotten out of the truck? I hadn’t even heard him close the door. Ripping my cowboy hat off to rub at my brow, I grumbled out, “I fucked up.”
“How?”
I recounted the events to him. Cheyenne’s inattention, the horse’s nerves. All of it. It still sounded bad, but maybe I’d overreacted a bit.
Cash shrugged when I finally finished. “So, she fucked up. She’s human, you can’t let her not ride cuz of one mistake.”
“But she’s pregnant. What if she gets hurt?”
“What if she falls in the shower? What if she trips over that damn dog of hers that’s always on her heel? You gonna not let her bathe or get rid of the dog because of awhat if?”
“That’s the…” My words drifted off as I looked at him, shaking my head in disbelief. “Smartest thing I think I’ve heard you say in years.”
Cash chuckled. “I was due for a word of wisdom. You’re welcome.”
I rolled my eyes but I couldn’t hide the small grin on my lips as I righted my hat on my head once more. “I should probably go apologize.”
Cash placed a hand on my shoulder. “Give her some time to cool down a bit.”
“You just want my help with your damn truck.”
He grinned and shrugged, not even bothering to hide his intentions. “Might as well kill two birds with one stone.”
I shook my head but waved a hand in the truck’s direction. “Alright, let’s see what the hell’s wrong with this piece of shit.”
“Hey now, don’t talk about her that way… She’s sensitive,” Cash said defensively, going so far as to stroke the truck’s rusted hood as we came to its side.
I may not be able to fix or control the situation with Cheyenne at the moment, but I sure as hell knew I could fix this problem.
When Cash and Igot back to my house, Cheyenne wasn’t there, though Brandy was. Cash mentioned somethingabout noticing Charlie’s Tacoma heading toward my place earlier, so they must have gone off somewhere. I pulled out my phone to check in with Cheyenne when I noticed a message.
Chey: Went to dinner with Charlie. Be back later.
Well, that answered that.
As much as I wanted to talk to her and make things right, I was glad she could spend this time with Charlie. It was good they had each other through this. Lord knows, I didn’t have all the answers, and she needed time with her friends.
I turned to Cash. “Well, Cheyenne’s out at dinner with Charlie, so what do you wanna do?”
Cash’s face lit up. “How ‘bout a boy’s night?”
“First,” I said, grabbing a Coke out of the fridge, “Ryder ain’t here and I’m in no mood to deal with your antics alone. And second, it’s a Wednesday night.”
“So? Everyday’s a party if you want it to be.”
