Page 73 of Lost and Lassoed

Teddy flicked on the light switch and the soft white light above us flickered a few times before staying on. “So here’s the culprit,” she said, turning back toward me, and I couldn’t help myself. I grabbed her by the back of the neck and brought my mouth to hers.

I think I shocked her because it took her a second to catch up, but once she did, she wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me back. She kissed me like it was the easiest thing in the world. There was no hurry or urgency in this kiss. It just felt…right, I guess.

After a while, I pulled back and rested my forehead on hers. Her eyes were still closed, like she was taking this moment in.

“Riley missed you,” I said.I missed you,I thought.

Teddy’s eyes fluttered open. So fucking blue. “I missed her,too,” she said. “Hank’s going to keep that card on the fridge for the rest of forever. I’m surprised your household has so much glitter,” she chuckled.

“I haven’t looked in her room because I know it probably looks like a fucking unicorn projectile-vomited all over everything,” I said, shaking my head.

Teddy pushed up on her toes to kiss me again, and it took me off guard. I liked this, though—the way we were feeling things out. Everything we’d done had been well—hot as fuck, really—but I wanted this, too.

The quiet moments. The normal ones.

And this moment, when our foreheads were pressed together in Teddy’s laundry room, felt like the type of moment that made you want more, and fuck, I wanted it all.

“How are you?” I said. She’d been with me half the week, helping take care of my kid, and then she’d come home to take care of her dad. She had to be exhausted.

Teddy shrugged. “I’m okay,” she said. “Your dad has been by a few times with food, and Aggie and Dusty came over last night. My dad was really happy.”

I brought my hand up to her cheek and looked right in those baby blues. “How areyou,Teddy?” I asked again.

“I’m good,” she said, and I gave her a pointed look. “I’m tired,” she finally said after a few beats of silence. Her words were emphasized with a slight sag of her shoulders. “It’s hard to sleep. I check on my dad a million times a night—just to make sure he’s breathing.”

I pulled Teddy close and cupped the back of her head with my hand. “Riley got sick once,” I said into her hair. “It was just the flu, but she had this insane fever that made her almost lethargic. I did the same thing—checked on her all nightevery night. Even after she was better, I did it for a long time.” Teddy pulled back and looked up at me, and I stroked her cheek and fiddled with the end of her ponytail. “It’s hard, sometimes—to be the one people depend on.”

She nodded, and her eyes looked glassier than they had a second ago. I traced the pad of my thumb underneath one of them before I kissed her forehead.

“Your dad is lucky to have you, Teddy,” I said. “And so am I.” Because I was, and I wanted to have her forever. It scared the shit out of me—knowing that I might’ve found exactly what I’d always wanted—because that meant I could lose it.

Chapter 32

Gus

After Teddy left the laundry room—Riley came looking for her—I went out to my truck and grabbed my tools and started looking at the washer. Teddy and Hank’s washer was a piece of shit. Honestly, I should just buy them a new one.

Nearly an hour and a half later, after a lot of curses and a good number of kicks to the side of the thing, I figured out that the spin suspension was way out of whack and the drum belt was shot. Luckily, it was something I could fix myself.

I stood up straight and lifted my arms above my head to stretch my back and thanked my lucky stars that I was a rancher and not a Maytag repairman. My body hurt when I got home from my work, but in a good way. This washing machine business had just pissed me off.

I wiped my hands off with a rag and moved the washing machine back to where it was. I hoped it would work.

Now that I wasn’t focused on the washer, I could hear sounds coming from Teddy’s garage. I left the laundry room and went out the side door. The garage door was open. Rileywas sitting behind a drum kit, drumsticks in hand, banging the ever-loving shit out of them. Hank was sitting in a camping chair, plucking at the strings of an expensive-looking electric guitar, and Teddy was leaning against the garage door. I couldn’t see her face, but her shoulders were shaking.

I walked up behind her and put my hand on the garage door right above her head. “What’s going on out here?” I said, and Teddy jumped—guess she wasn’t expecting me.

“Dad!” Riley yelled. “Watch!” And then proceeded to hit each drum in front of her twice before finishing with a nice tap to the cymbal.

“You’re a pro, Sunshine,” I said. I was surprised Riley wasn’t levitating over her seat with joy.

“Did you know Hank was in a band?” Riley said.

“I seem to remember he was in more than one,” I said, nodding and smiling at Hank, who I hoped wouldn’t think anything of the fact that I was standing a little too close to his daughter.

“I want to be in a band,” Riley said. “Can girls be drummers?”

Before I could say anything, Teddy said, “Hell fucking yeah, girls can be drummers!” And a grin broke out on my face.

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