Page 150 of The Last Second Chance
“Every once in a great while people can be not exactly right about something,” he said grudgingly.
“Oh for Pete’s sake. Are you saying you were wrong?”
“I’m not saying that. And I’m not saying I’m sorry either.”
Apologies and her father did not go hand-in-hand. They weren’t even on a first name basis.
“Exactly what is it that you are trying to say?”
“It wasn’t my intention to hurt you. I was trying to protect you,” Forrest said. “That’s what fathers do.”
“Yeah, well, eventually you have to stop protecting, don’t you?”
“Maybe when you’re fifty. You should have it all figured out by then,” Forrest predicted. Joey didn’t think he was joking.
“You’ve hated Jax since we started dating a hundred years ago,” she reminded him.
“I probably wouldn’t have liked anyone you were dating then. Except maybe Beckett. He’s a hard one not to like. He’s a good man, good leader like his dad. Too bad he’s married now.”
Joey felt a blush creep up her cheeks. She was hoping Donovan Cardona hadn’t broadcast that little tidbit about her ill-advised make out session with the middle Pierce to the world.
“Anyway, Jax has grown up a lot since you were both eighteen. He sure loves you.”
“Yeah, well, sometimes love isn’t even close to enough,” Joey said, her breath appearing before her in an angry cloud.
“I’d hate to think that you’d miss out on your chance at happiness with a guy who isn’t so bad just because of me,” Forrest said, keeping his eyes between Tucker’s ears.
Joey sighed as they crested another hill. From here, it looked like they were miles away from civilization. “It’s not just you. It’s him, too. You guys don’t make it easy to trust you.”
“I can’t say a lot about that boy, but all either one of us have ever done is what we thought was best for you. Maybe you could help us all out and do what’s best for you and we can just follow your lead?”
Joey cast her eyes heavenward at her father’s suggestion. He was trying, in his own special snowflake Forrest way. How her mother had not murdered him decades ago she’d never know.
They continued on in silence, the creaking of the saddles the only noise in the late afternoon silence.
“Shit.” Joey said, bringing Apollo to a stop.
“What’s wrong?” Forrest asked.
“Someone ripped up the chicken wire,” she said, nodding at the pasture gate. “It keeps the horses from chewing up the wood. I need to fix that before one of them steps on it and gets hurt.” She looked up at the sky and judged that she had enough daylight to get it done now. “Can you take Tucker back to the stables and get a hammer for me?”
“Sure, where do you keep ‘em?”
Joey told him where to find her tools. “Just tie Tucker to the hitch outside. If you take him back in with you he’ll think it’s dinnertime.”
“Got it. Anything else?”
“The staple gun if you can find it.”
She watched as he rode off at a peppier walk than what they started out on. He’d always had a decent seat. He wasn’t a natural like Evan was, but he had an aptitude and usually ended up enjoying their rides when Joey had been able to talk him into going out. Her mother on the other hand was convinced that horses were domesticated monsters and didn’t like getting any closer than a Facebook picture to one.
Waffles yipped happily at something halfway down the hill and chased after it.
Joey leaned over Apollo’s neck to get a better look at the wire mess. She was already off balance when she spotted the ground hog waddle out of a hole at the tree line just a few feet away. It hissed.
Apollo reared and without being steady in her seat, she felt herself slip.
“Fuc—”
