Page 22 of The Pieces We've Lost

The problem was, she didn’t seem happy. I could tell there was something holding her back, keeping her here, but I didn’t know what it was. I wasn’t going to pry, though.

“Do you go to the rodeo every year?”

She stiffened at the question, and a wild look flashed through her eyes. “Yes. Just for one day,” she answered curtly, her eyes narrowing a bit at the subject.

Okay, don’t talk about rodeo.I could take a hint, even if it seemed like most of the time I ignored them.Change the subject, Colt. Come on.

“Uh, do you like cars?”

Her demeanor immediately changed, and her eyes lit up. “Well, I don’t like cars, specifically. I like classic pickups.” She bit her lip a little. Now this. This was something I could talk about.

“Okay, okay. So, tell me then. What’s your favorite brand?” I asked.

“Ford. One hundred percent Ford,” she responded.

“Great answer.”

She had great taste. All my family had ever owned wasFord trucks. They were reliable and great for work around the ranch.

“Thanks.” Her cheeks flushed a little.

“I prefer old vehicles, though, too. Cars just aren’t built the same way anymore. I preferred when they actually lasted ten years,” I joked.

“Well, unless you leave them to sit for over a decade,” she murmured a little sadly, leaving me to wonder what had happened to the girl that was in front of me a few moments before. The one who had seemed overjoyed to talk about classic vehicles.

That felt oddly personal. Or am I imagining it?I was really striking out here so far. I didn’t want to upset her. That was the last thing I wanted. I had to think of something we could talk about that wouldn’t make her retreat.

“What is your number one interest?” I decided on.

“That’s very broad.” She was toying with me. But I wasn’t going to fall short here. I could also play this game.

“I just want to know what you’re interested in. What makes you, you.” I shrugged. Was it weird that I was trying to get to know her? I mean, sure, I was leaving, but didn’t that mean there was nothing to lose in this situation?

“Fine, I really enjoy collecting stamps,” she deadpanned. “My collection is sitting at about seven hundred right now. I have American flag stamps, flower stamps, Christmas stamps, all of the stamps.”

“Really?” I was kind of intrigued but a little confused at the same time. It was a fucking weird hobby, but I wasn’t going to judge her. I mean, I asked her what she was passionate about, so I wasn’t going to make fun of her, no matter how weird it was.

“No.” She raised her eyebrows and broke her pokerface, her expression transforming into one of amusement. “I don’t fucking collect stamps.”

“I thought you were serious.” I tried my best to hold my laughter in. “I mean, I definitely thought it was weird but I wasn’t going to judge.” It was good to see this side of her personality. It was a stark contrast to the coldness from the bar.

“I’m a great actress.” She looked up through her lashes. “My main interest is hard to explain. It’s a really long story to be honest.”

“Well, I hope to hear about it someday.” It slipped out of my mouth before I could catch myself: the idea of a future with Ellison. Not necessarily afuturefuture, because even the idea that we could talk more after today was probably wishful thinking.

“Yeah, maybe.” She tried to hide the small curve of her lips, a small twitch of a smile. “So, what is your number one interest then?”

“I mean, roping is obviously one of my favorite things to do. It’s hard to picture myself not competing, but outside of rodeos and ranching, I always try to head back to my alma mater during football season. It brings back really good memories being in the stadium with all of my friends. We used to get pretty wild.” I chuckled, thinking about all of the trouble we used to get into.

“I loved going to football games when I was in school too. The atmosphere at UT Austin was always so fun. My parents always tried to go to NFL games when I was younger too. I’m definitely more of a college sports fan, though.” She added to the conversation, her face lively once again talking about something she loved to do.

I could talk about sports with her all day. I couldhonestly talk about anything with her all day if it meant she lit up like she did just then.

“I’m more of a college sports fan too. We don’t have any professional teams in Montana, so I think growing up with only college teams being close made my love for them grow that much more,” I explained. Growing up, I never went to a professional football or basketball game. Our weekends were always spent going over to Goldfinch for the Sapphire Gulch University games.

“So, besides your cowboy exhibitions, what’s your favorite sport?” she asked—her tone much more teasing than when she called me a show cowboy—her elbows perched on the table.

“Football for sure,” I answered. “What’s yours?”

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