I swallowed hard. “Yeah, I sort of get that about Ty too. Where did you hear he was a player?”
“Oh, I overheard a group of girls talking at the café the other day. Ty walked in and grabbed a breakfast taco to go. One of the girls said she got it on with him a few months back. I guess he likes to screw them and leave them.”
Letting out a breath that made my lips rattle, I said, “Brock admitted he had some demons that kept telling him he didn’t deserve me. I guess he feels like he can’t open his heart up to anyone.”
She quickly sat up. “Really? This is interesting. Did he elaborate?”
“No,” I stated, sitting up and facing her. “It has something to do with his wife, though. I get the feeling he blames himself for the reason she died.”
“What makes you think he blames himself?”
With a half shrug, I replied, “I don’t know. It’s a weird feeling I have that I can’t seem to shake. I want to ask him more questions about how she died, but I don’t think he’s ready to answer them. I don’t want to push him.”
My phone rang, and I pulled it out to see Stella’s name. “Oh gosh, how do I talk to her after her son just had his mouth on my boobs?”
“With a big-ass grin on your face—that’s how.” Kaylee laughed and reached over, swiping my phone to answer it before passing it to me.
“Um, hello? Stella? Hi!” I fumbled around with my words. I hadn’t been planning on Kaylee answering the phone for me.
“Tone it down,” Kaylee whispered.
“Hey, sweetheart. You ready for that drink?”
I dragged in a deep breath. “Sure. I’ll be right down.” I hit end and climbed off the bed. “How do I look?” I asked, running my hands over my body.
Kaylee stood and gave me a once-over. “Like you just had an incredibly hot moment with a good-looking guy in his hotel bathroom.”
When she winked at me, I felt my entire face heat. Again.
“I hate you.”
Chapter Seventeen
LINCOLN
I saw Stella the moment I walked into the hotel bar. She had on a long-sleeved white shirt, jeans, and cowboy boots, and her hair was pulled up into a ponytail. She didn’t look a day older than forty.
“Hi,” I said softly, sliding onto the barstool next to hers.
I glanced around and saw a few other people in the room. A table with four guys caught my attention. They all had on cowboy hats, and on two of them, I could see their big buckles, just like the ones Brock, Dirk, and Ty wore.
“Bull riders?” I asked, motioning over to them with a jerk of my head.
Stella glanced that way. “Yes. Brazilians. They’re big in this sport.”
“Really?” I asked.
“Yep, who would have thought, right? Beer?” Stella asked as she pointed to her Miller Lite.
“Sure.”
Lifting her beer, she motioned to me, and the bartender nodded. “So, why don’t you just get to what’s on your mind, sweetie?”
I dragged in a deep breath and slowly blew it out. “How do you do it? I mean, two sons who ride bulls and another who rodeos? How are your nerves not shot?”
She laughed and took a drink of her beer. The bartender set mine down in front of me, and I followed Stella’s lead. Only I took a longer drink. My nerves were still on edge, and I hoped Stella couldn’t tell why I was flustered.
“I wish I could tell you it’s easy, loving a man who does something like bull riding for a living. Ty Senior did it when we first met. He won the state high school bull-riding championship. At first, I thought it was sort of sexy. Then I fell in love with him, and I did whatever I could to encourage him. It was something he was passionate about. Luckily for me, though, when I had Ty, something in his father switched, and he just stopped. Worked full time on my daddy’s ranch, the one we live on and work now. He walked away from bull riding and never looked back.”
My brows pulled in some. “Why didn’t Brock do that when he got married and had Blayze?”
She hesitated before taking a deep, cleansing breath. “I can’t tell you why he kept riding. Some guys just do. They get married, have kids, and keep on the tour. I can, however, speculate. Kaci and Brock were not meant to be together. At least, I think they were both just too young. They thought they knew what love was, and maybe they did.”
I sucked in a breath. “You don’t think they were meant to be together? Why?”
Stella faced me. “It’s not my story to tell, and when Brock is ready to share it with you, he will. But he’s holding on to some serious guilt about more than one thing. You’re the first woman he’s even looked at since he married Kaci. When she died, I think he went on a few benders and had a one-night stand or two. Probably did some things he regrets, but for the most part, he swore off ever falling for another woman.”