Page 6 of The Cowboy Contract
The movie hit home in a number of ways. She totally understood what it was like to pine for someone for years. How hard it was to see them every day knowing they weren’t yours. The misery of realizing you might have missed your shot because you were too stupid—or too afraid—to reach out and grab what you wanted and tell everyone else to go fuck themselves.
Sighing—again—she dropped the last pair of bleachy smelling white socks onto the stack and carried them upstairs into the bedroom that had never seen a man.
And at this point, probably never would.
After depositing the pile into its designated drawer in her fancy walk-in closet, she wandered back through the pristine room, looking over the furniture and decorations she’d painstakingly picked out. At one point, this place brought her joy. Reminded her of all she’d accomplished and how hard she’d worked to bring the failing bar her dad started back from the brink.
But now it just made her sad.
Because she’d give it all up in a heartbeat to have someone by her side.
No. Notsomeone.
Le—
Her phone started to ring from where she’d left it on the coffee table. This time, instead of sighing, Paige groaned as she hustled down the stairs. No one ever called her for happy reasons. There was likely some issue with the bar and she’d have to get dressedand go in and spend what was left of her day off dealing with yet another shit show.
Grabbing her cell, she swiped across the screen without looking at the display since she was confident she knew who it was. “What now?”
Right when she noticed the telltale drone of conversation wasn’t in the background, a familiar voice carried through the line.
“I feel like I should call you later.” Leland’s tone carried a smile, but also had a hint of something else.
Tension maybe? Could it be stress?
“No.” Paige said it louder than she intended, worried he’d hang up. “It’s fine.” She rubbed her forehead, trying to ease the headache coming on. “What’s up?”
She didn’t want to be mad at him. Didn’t want to be disappointed Leland didn’t remember the promise—the pact—they’d made.
While hehadremembered her birthday, that seemed to be all he remembered. Even after she made a wish and blew out the candle he’d lit on her cupcake, Leland still hadn’t brought up their agreement.
Flopping down onto her sofa, she let her head rest back against the cushions and closed her eyes, waiting for him to explain why he was calling since it wasn’t to ask her to marry him and have his babies. Babies she wanted so much she could almost hear them babbling and blowing bubbles in her ear.
Except…
Paige sat up straight, pressing the phone closer, confirming that the sound wasn’t actually her imagination. “Is that a baby?”
“Yeah.” Leland got louder as the babbling started to change, shifting to something closer to a cry. “I’m babysitting Rosemary and Will tonight.”
Of course he was. If her ovaries weren’t so depressed they’d probably be exploding right now. “That’s nice.”
“It’s really not.” Leland grunted, the sound loud in her ear. His voice was strained and aimed away from the phone as he said, “Rosemary, stop poking me there.”
“It was a accident.” Rosemary’s little voice didn’t sound the least bit sorry.
“Sounds like you’ve got your hands full.” Paige smiled in spite of her shitty mood. It’s not that she wanted Leland to be tortured by the two small people he loved more than anything.
But it’s not that shedidn’twant him to be tortured by them either.
“That’s why I’m calling.” He paused as his nephew’s cry picked up to a wail. “Are you busy?”
She snorted. “Are you asking me to come help you babysit?”
“I am.” Leland didn’t even attempt to deny it. “But I’m willing to use bribery if that will help.”
“Oh yeah?” She stood from the sofa, knowing she’d go over regardless. “What are you going to bribe me with?” She tried to sound teasing, but for some reason—probably lack of sex and an abundance of disappointment—a hint of suggestion laced its way into the question.
“I guess that depends on what you want.”
