Page 9 of Bray
“Sometimes you just need to go out, and tonight’s one of those times,” she continued. “Besides, it’s my treat since I’m manifesting that I’m winning this week. Plus, I’mforcingyou.” She set her hands on her hips. “No matter what my eyes tell my stomach, I can’t eat a whole tray of nachos by myself. Well, I can, but I shouldn’t.”
It was time to resign myself to the fact that I was going out. She was going to get her way, because she always did. The extrovert forces the introvert out into the world. But I was holding firm on one thing. “I don’t want to go to a place for drinks. I serve drinks thirty hours a week.”
She gave me a look, one she’d used in the past often enough, like when she was deciding if I needed bangs–I did not–in seventh grade.
“That is a good excuse,” she admitted. “Nachosandburgers then. We’ll call Molly and see if she has the night off. Ellie, too, since she’s prego and we’re not gonna drink. You should see her eat these days. She can eat Trig under the table and that’s impressive. Come on, you need to get out. Do fun things. Meet someone.”
I laughed at the last.
“Meet someone? I’m not you, Lay,” I reminded. “No one’s interested. Trust me.” I had to make her own big brother pretend to be my boyfriend. Pretend! “If we’re together, they’ll only see you.”
She was so pretty with her blonde hair. She had it pulled back in a loose braid that was over her shoulder. Long tendrils framed her face in a way that looked simple and natural. If I did that, I’d look like I’d been through a tornado.
Her personality, bright like the sun, drew people to her. She was liked by all. Popular, but she was also kind. Generous and patient.
Proof of that was being friends with me.
She abandoned my closet and came to sit next to me on the bed. “First, that’s total bullshit. I’m just as single as you are.”
“Only because Chris Gomez was a dick ghosting you like that and you’re better off without him.”
She waved a hand as if she was well over the guy who she’d dated a few times then disappeared, only to reappear and hide behind an end cap of canned peaches to avoid her.
“Second, you’re the amazing Katie Camden. Horse whisperer. Even if you have to wear jeans out tonight.”
I smiled. “Yeah, I can talk tohorses.So exciting. People want me to talk tothem,which doesn’t work out so well.” Case in point the night before and memauling Bray in front of a bar full of people, and worse, his two friends. “I even have horse colored hair. I probably have the scent of them embedded in my skin.” I tipped my head and sniffed my shoulder.
She eyed me. “Your hair is gorgeous. I’d give my right boob for hair like that.”
I laughed as I put my hand up to the wet mass that hung down my back.
“Lai, I–”
A huge crash came from downstairs, making me jump. Lainey gasped.
We stared wide eyed at each other for a second before we flew out of my room and down the stairs to see what happened.
“What the hell?” Lainey said, skidding to a stop in the living room.
The large front window that looked out over my grandmother’s flower bed was shattered. Glass was strewn everywhere. In the center of the floor, right beside Grandpa’s old recliner, was a huge river rock.
“Careful!” she said. “You don’t have shoes on.”
Diverting away from the mess, I went to the front door and flung it open. Hauling down my driveway was a dark pickup, but it kicked up so much dust behind it I couldn’t notice anything else about it.
“I’m calling Colt,” Lainey said, pulling out herphone to get in touch with her brother who was the sheriff.
As I stood in my open doorway, all I could think about was that I could never escape my problems. Not only did I have to wonder who hated me enough to break the window, I had to figure out how I’d pay to fix it.
6
BRAY
“Where are you?”Colt asked when I picked up his call.
“Driving between jobs. Why?” I reached over and turned down the stereo.
I was in my truck with my work trailer towed behind. My job was to take care of horses’ hooves. I trimmed, shaped and shoed them. The animals needed this routine care so I went to ranches in the area and tended to the horses, taking all my tools with me. I’d been on the east side of town at the Marsden ranch where I took care of four horses. The place was on my monthly rotation, but a roan threw a shoe so it took me twice as long as I expected. I was now behind,having two more jobs to get to before the sun went down.
