Page 44 of Tough Love

She shakes her head and pops the cork on the wine bottle. “You want some?”

“Nah, I’m a whiskey man.”

“But there are beers here.”

“Yeah, nice for a change.”

Plus, I don’t want to end up wasted and miss a second of Adeline Howard in the great outdoors.

“I’m starving,” she says. I climb onto the blanket and pull off my boots and drop them onto the tailgate. She does the same and tucks her legs underneath her. She takes a sip of the cold wine in the plastic tumbler I brought along for her and sighs.

“What ya thinking about, Addy?”

“Everything”—she takes another sip—“and nothing.”

I chuckle and crack the top off my beer. It’s cold and refreshing, and I take a long mouthful. The work of my very enthusiastic mother lays between us. Entrées, meat on sticks, cheese, and two covered dishes with her famous Irish stew and mashed potatoes and veggies. I grab a meatball on a stick and pluck it from its stick with my teeth. Addy nibbles on the cheese and chopped-up carrot, celery, and cucumber.

“When do you find time to work on your house?” Addy’s gaze is homed in on the house across the vista.

“Weekends and some afternoons.”

“But that’s when I’m here. Hudson, am I taking up your free time?”

Free time, on a ranch?Yeah right.“Nope.”

She tilts her head, as if she doesn’t believe me.

“I swear, I still work on it.”

“Can I help you?”

“You want to help me build a house?”

“If you’ll let me.”

“You got any carpentry experience, Howard?”

She laughs and takes a sip. “Not really. But what I lack in skill, I can make up for with enthusiasm and work ethic.”

“I bet you would.” I stare at her. This woman who has buried her way into my heart. As much as I hate to admit it, Reed may be right. But how do I keep Addy and carry out Harry’s orders? Right now, it feels like it has to be one or the other. Maybe for tonight, we can just be Addy and Hudson.

Not vet and client. Not coach and rider. Not boss and employee—well, almost, at any rate. And what happens when her six months are up? She goes back to the city and drags my heart along behind her like some banged-up tin can.

It’s too much. I take another pull of beer and shove a meatball into my mouth before my mind can make me say something stupid. Or my heart cracks all over my face.

“You okay, Rawlins? You went quiet there.”

“Yeah, I’m okay.” But my voice betrays me, raspy and shot through. I clear my throat. “What are your plansafteryour time is up in Montana?”

“I don’t know yet.” Her focus drops to the food between us. “I was hoping Justin would extend my contract. But I’m not exactly his favorite employee.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m off equine for another month.”

“What the hell? That’s what you moved here for.”

“Yeah, I was kind of annoyed when he told me, but I don’t know, maybe I should be doing other things.”

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