Page 37 of Tough Love

He folds the page in half and places it on the table.

“What ya readin’?”

“Nothing, some instructions for the post-factory gadget for my truck.” But his gaze is stuck on the sheet of paper, not meeting mine. Liar. I lunge for the paper. He dives for it, but he’s too slow. I leap over the sofa, and he groans, stopping before the chair, his face screwed up with something like regret, arms limp by his side.

With a frown, I open the paper. It’s a printout of a news article. The title in bold print is like a slap to the face.Talented Almost Olympian, Adeline Howard, Survives Freak Accident at Qualifiers.

Reed’s face turns pleading. “Huddo, sorry man, Ma found it. We only wanted to know what happened.”

I stare at the article. The image of a younger version of Addy. Her horse, Jewls, stands beside her. They make a stunning pair. And my gut sinks like a rock. Because I know exactly how this story went. And how much that mare meant to her. Absentmindedly, I hand the paper back to Reed over the sofa. He takes it tentatively. “She didn’t tell you?”

“She told me yesterday.”

“Fuck bro, sorry. I know what she means to you.”

With that, I snap my head up. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You know, like she’s your captain.”

As if some imaginary force slapped me hard on the back, the air in my lungs disappears. “Don’t be fucking stupid,” I finally rasp.

My little brother tilts his head. “Seriously, Huddo, you must be the only one who can’t see it. Even the dog can see it.”

“Howard is my client. She is our vet. That’s it.”

“Yup.” His eyebrows are raised and pinched.

“Fence line, Reed, now!”

I turn on my heel and stalk out the door and to the truck. I have no idea why I am angry at my family. If anyone deserves wrath, it’s me. For being so goddamn stupid. For letting my heart get involved when I am in no position to give it away. Not after last time.

Reed makes quick work of the fencing while I haphazardly help, lost in thought. How did things change so much in a month? I crank the lever on the strainers and make one last adjustment to the bottom wire.

“How’s the house coming along?” Reed interrupts my tortured thoughts.

“Fine.”

“You know, when you take over this place, you’re gonna regret building so far away from the homestead. All that drive time, Huddo.”

“I’ll live.”

I’ll live.The same thing Addy said to me after she told me about her accident. I push the thought out of my mind. The most we can be is friends. Captain or no captain, Addy isn’t interested in commandeering this ship. For fuck’s sake, she’s leaving after her six months is up. It’s a wasted effort thinking about it.

I huff a laugh at myself.

Reed raises an eyebrow at my muttering self-talk.

Don’t think about Adeline Howard.Tell that to my gut, my aching chest. To every hardened inch in my pants when she’s around. You may as well tell medon’t breathe.

The tantalizing scent of pot roast wafts from the kitchen to the dining table. Harry and Reed are already sitting down when I wander in. Ma rushes down the hall toward me, muttering something about burning veggies. I take a seat at the table. “What’s with Ma?”

“She’s been like this all day. In and out of the study, like a woman possessed.”

“Still digging up things she should leave well enough alone?” I ask.

“What’s she digging up?” Harry chimes in, putting his paper on the table.

“Ma found an article about Addy this morning,” Reed says.

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