Tamara heard Amy’s footsteps before she peered over Galahad’s back and saw her stepmother approaching the corral. Amy had been ho
vering with maternal concern for the last six days, staying at the house every night instead of Jason’s place. She’d planned to shoo her out tonight, but from the glint of determination in her eyes, Amy might have already decided it was time she quit babying Tamara.
“I just got a call from the contractor and they’ll be out here first thing Monday morning. He said they should have the stable repairs done within a few days,” Amy said as she stepped up to Galahad’s head and stroked his velvety nose.
“Good. I’ll feel better when we can stable the horses at night again. Want to go for a ride with me?” Tamara set the brush down on a bench and reached for the saddle blanket draped over the rail.
“No, but thanks. Jason and I are going into town for an early dinner.” Cocking her head, Amy surprised her by suggesting, “You should go to the club tonight instead of sitting at home, pining for Connor. It might push him into coming around sooner.”
Funny, Tamara mused. Nan, Sydney and Avery had said the same thing when she’d joined them at the teashop a few days ago. Unlike all of her well-meaning friends and family, she knew Connor’s stubbornness outweighed hers when it came to their relationship.
Shaking her head, she replied with a sigh, “I doubt it, Amy. I’m sure after my big mistake of keeping quiet about the trouble around here that led to the fire, he’s dug in his heels. Besides, the thought of going out, being with someone else… I just don’t want to.”
“Fine, but if it were me, I’d quit letting that man dictate my life. You already let him drive you away for five years. How much more time are you going to give him?”
Amy pivoted and walked away without another word, but it only took Tamara a few moments to consider her words and conclude she was right. If Con wanted to go back to ‘just friends’ then fine. She wouldn’t waste any more time or energy on the man. She ignored the tight squeeze around her heart as she saddled Galahad and swung up. It would do no good to continue to fret over what she couldn’t change or wish he would change. With a heeled nudge to her steed’s sides, they took off across the sweeping meadow as she tried to work up as much enthusiasm for going to the club tonight as she had for the ride.
Connor pulled up on Dusty’s reins and brought the Palomino to a stop so he could take a moment and watch Tam riding. Bent low over Galahad’s neck, her black hair flying out behind her and her toned thighs gripping the steed’s heaving sides, the two blazed a trail across the wide expanse of pasture. It was a scene he never tired of looking upon.
Every time he thought of the potential harm she could have come to this past week while he’d had his head in the clouds fucking her, his body shook with fear. Losing her was not an option, and if that meant going back to their previous relationship then that was a sacrifice he was willing to make. But, damn, it had been hard, harder than he’d ever imagined. He missed her. Not just her delectable body wrapped around his every night, but the return of their easy comradery, hearing her voice every day, seeing the smile that lit her gray eyes to a silver sheen. All the things he’d missed so much when she’d lived in Boise and refused to talk to him, and he’d grown accustomed to enjoying again.
Nudging Dusty, he rode along the fence line, his job today to look for repairs that needed to get done. He wasn’t surprised to see Caden riding up; his brother had been nagging him daily over this latest rift between him and Tam, calling him everything from a stubborn fool to a pigheaded jackass. Because Caden was right didn’t change the fact he hadn’t been there for Tam when he’d needed to be, that he’d dropped his guard while fucking her. For his peace of mind, he couldn’t afford to make that mistake again.
“Find anything?” Caden asked as he pulled alongside Connor.
“A few loose rails, but I’ve already nailed them back in place.” Connor nodded to the herd grazing in the distance. “We can move quite a few more head into this pasture. There’s enough spring foliage already and the pond is full.”
“Yeah, I was thinking that as I rode out here.” Caden tipped his hat back and squinted toward the late afternoon, lowering sun. “Might as well call it a day. We’ve got time to get cleaned up and eat before heading to the club.”
Connor cut his brother a quick glance as they turned their horses back to the barns. The thought of going to The Barn held no appeal, and he knew what Caden was going to say to that. “I think I’ll pass tonight. I want to check on the plans for repairing the Barton’s stable.” That was the excuse he planned to use for showing up at Tam’s tonight. He hadn’t tried to contact her all week, thinking it best if they each took the time to come to terms with the reversal of their relationship, but his need to see her in person and ensure she wouldn’t pull another silent treatment could no longer be put on hold.
Caden shrugged, as if his decision was no big deal. “Sure, if that’s what you want. You may as well get used to being alone, because you and I both know you won’t be satisfied with anyone else.”
Connor didn’t have a reply to that statement as he wasn’t sure his brother was wrong.
By the time he joined Caden and Sydney for dinner and then returned to his place for a shower, it was after eight when Connor pulled in front of Tam’s house and saw her lit up porch. A familiar thread of excitement coursed through him as he hopped out of the truck, the same thrill he experienced every time he had showed up here to spend the night with her. He tried stifling it as he walked across the lawn toward the stable lit by outdoor floodlights, but that did little good.
The charred side of the stable had been removed and several supporting posts had been erected in its place, securing the roof. Enough progress had been made to ensure the structure’s safety, but he could see the horses were still kept out in the pasture as a precaution. Satisfied they were on a steady track toward final repairs, he pivoted and started back up to the house just as Jason and Amy pulled in behind his truck. He imagined he wasn’t Amy’s favorite person right now, but he couldn’t avoid talking to either of them as they waited outside for him.
Wondering why Tam hadn’t come out, Connor strode up to greet the couple. “Evening. I just stopped by to check on the progress of the stable and talk to Tam. It looks good.” He nodded toward the small barn.
“We were lucky to get a contractor out here right away to assess the damage and he’ll return Monday to start putting up the NE wall,” Jason replied, leaning against his truck and folding his arms across his chest as he eyed Connor with a cool gaze.
Instead of addressing that censuring look, he started to step toward the porch, but Amy halted him in his tracks with one short sentence. “She’s not here.”
Frowning, he whipped his eyes to her smug face. “Where is she?”
Cocking her head, she replied in a tone that indicated he should know the answer to that question. “She went to your club. You didn’t expect her to sit around here just because you two split up, did you?”
Connor jerked as if struck. He never imagined Tam would return to the club without him, not after what they had shared together. How could he have forgotten the girl never behaved the way he thought she should? “I see,” he returned stiffly, not liking the thought of her with someone else. What? Did you expect her to pine away for you forever? He hadn’t thought ahead, to what she might do or whom she might turn to next. His only concern had been for her welfare and safety, like always.
Amy’s face softened, and she reached out to lay a comforting hand on his rigid arm. “We both know our girl very well, Connor. It broke our hearts, Richard and I, when she accepted that job in Boise after moping around here for weeks, even though we tried to stay supportive when she first mentioned applying for it. We missed her, even though she came back a lot, it wasn’t the same around here without her.” She shook her head ruefully. “I venture to say she returned more during that time than you knew. She usually tells me everything, but she’s kept quiet about whatever happened that prompted her to make that decision.”
Connor glanced at Jason’s silent, rigid stance and then back at Tam’s stepmother with a resigned sigh. “I said something… hurtful, without thinking. I didn’t mean it, but the damage was done, and she refused to let me apologize. But that was different. Back then, we weren’t involved.”
A low laugh shook Amy’s shoulders. “Oh, Connor, you two have always been involved, in one form or another. She’s as stubborn as you in some regards. I’m guessing something happened that made you see her in a different way, a way you weren’t ready for, or didn’t want. You love her. It’s time you admitted that. Past time,” she chided gently.
He frowned. “I’ve never denied I love her, Amy.”