“What happened?” she asked as I pulled out of the driveway.
I noticed my hands shaking on the steering wheel. “John and Beth, ah… are upset about the, ah… split.”
Jolie turned around to glance at the kids in the backseat before turning back to me. We had talked to Tisha several times about the divorce. She was very aware of what was going on and why, but I still didn’t want to use the “D” word too often around her.
“What did they say?” she asked softly.
I cleared my throat. “They wanted to make sure you were going to be around tonight to chaperone the sleepover.”
“I don’t understand.”
I glanced at her again before looking back at the road. “They wanted to make sure it wasn’t going to be… a one-man show.” Again, speaking in code to try and outwit a couple of nine-year-olds wasn’t always easy, but it seemed like the two of them were pretty chatty in the backseat. Hopefully they weren’t paying attention.
“Why would they… Oh.” She seemed to think about it for a minute. “Well, I can see where they’re coming fr—”
“Don’t,” I growled. “Please don’t, or I swear I’m going to lose it, Jolie.”
She didn’t say a word for the next few minutes, and when we pulled down the long stretch of drive to the Wilde ranch, I asked her for a favor because I knew if I didn’t, I was going to burst wide open in front of the kids.
“Can you give me a few minutes to talk to Otto in private before you bring the kids in the barn?”
Chapter 18
Otto
Otto,
There’s a blizzard going on right now and we’re under at least eighteen inches of snow. It’s all I can do not to daydream of riding the trails with you on a hot summer day.
I can picture your smoking hot butt in tight jeans and the T-shirt damp with sweat and sticking to your back. You’d be wearing the green ball cap that day so I would know what was in store for me at the end of the ride.
Wherever you are, Otto Wilde, I hope you’re happy and getting plenty of saddle time on a good horse.
Love always,
Walker
(Unsent)
I walked out of the barn when I heard the vehicle approach, but the minute I saw Walker hop out, I knew something was wrong.
Before I even had a chance to say hello, he strode past me toward the barn door. “Come with me for a minute?”
I turned back to Jolie and was surprised to see her give me a slight nod of approval. Her eyes looked concerned, and I wondered if maybe I’d misjudged her before. I turned to follow Walker into the barn. The minute I rounded the corner out of sight of Jolie and the kids, Seth was on me.
His entire body trembled as he clung to me in a tight hug.
“Whoa, whoa,” I said, bringing one hand around his back and one to cradle the back of his head as he buried his face in my neck. “You okay? What happened?”
He didn’t say anything, just held on.
“Shh, it’s okay. You don’t need to say anything,” I assured him. “Whatever it is, I’m sorry. I’m here for you. You’re not alone.”
His trembling didn’t stop, and I had a hard time trying to determine if it was sadness, fear, or anger causing it. I heard the kids outside squealing with happiness. They probably ran over to the fence closest to the car to look at the horses I’d saddled who were tied to the rail at the side of the barn.
“If this is about bringing Jolie, you know I don’t mind. Right?” I asked softly. Sure, it had been a surprise, but I’d never keep her from seeing Tisha have a new experience.
“No, it’s not that.”
I rubbed Walker’s back and murmured reassurances into his ear as he steadied his breathing and calmed down.
“Sorry,” he mumbled after another minute. “I didn’t mean to ambush you.”
“Ambush me anytime, Sheriff,” I teased softly. “Do you want to tell me what happened?”
He pulled back from the tight hug and looked at me. I ran a hand along his jaw.
“My brother and his wife don’t think it’s ‘appropriate’ for me to be alone with the kids overnight anymore.” He used finger quotes for the word appropriate.
I felt acid begin to bubble in my gut. “What? Are they serious?”
He rolled his eyes, but I could see the shame in them. I wanted to kill his bastard of a brother.
“They’re serious. And they had the audacity to claim it was for my own good, the good of my reputation as sheriff.”
“What did Jolie say?”
“We haven’t really had time to talk about it. The kids were in the car.”
I smoothed my hands down his chest and rested them on his hips. Sunlight streamed in through the open windows of the barn, and I knew we couldn’t keep the kids waiting much longer.