He started tapping on his phone, which had the Internet, realizing he could buy things online now. No one monitored how much time he spent online or what he did with his money. A simple search for beard oil overwhelmed him though, and he made a mental note to ask Emma about it when she returned to the ranch.
With his thoughts lingering on her again, he did a search with her name. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting to find. A secret website or blog? One didn’t come up. A LinkedIn profile? She didn’t have one.
She had some social media, but Ted did not, as all such things had to be deleted before prison, and he hadn’t set anything up again. He didn’t have a computer, and he didn’t want one.
Emma’s name also came up as a teacher, and he remembered that Ginger had said that afternoon that she’d come to the ranch ten years ago, after quitting her teaching job. And if she had a teaching job, she must’ve earned a degree in education.
Ted added a couple of words to his search, did some quick math on when she might have graduated given her age, and how long she’d been here…and her name popped up, along with Texas A&M International.
“In Laredo,” he said out loud, the word searing his eyeballs. He’d asked her if she’d lived in Laredo, and she’d said no.
He looked up from his phone, a keen sense of betrayal moving through him. He should’ve expected people to lie to him on the outside, especially a beautiful woman. People on the inside lied too. Everyone lied.
“Heyo,” Nate said as he came through the bedroom door. “How’re my boys?” He wore a smile though it was far too late for him to be working.
“Dad,” Connor said, bouncing to his knees. Nate laughed as he picked up his son, and he started asking him questions about that day, the cake, and his bath.
Ted groaned as he got to his feet. “I’m exhausted. I’m not used to working so hard.”
“You’ll get there,” Nate said, grinning at him too. “Thanks for helping with Connor.”
“Yeah, of course.” Ted gave his friend a grin, clapped him on the shoulder, and went through the bathroom and into his own bedroom. He closed the door to the hall and the bathroom, sealing himself in the room with the huge bed he barely knew how to sleep in. He took off his boots and lined them up in the closet. He put his dirty clothes in the laundry basket. He’d learned to be neat, neat, neat in prison, and he actually liked the organization and orderliness in his life.
He lay down, trying to sort through his feelings for Emma, his own desires to finish his sentence and start his life somewhere, and a brand-new idea that maybe he’d just stay at the ranch and be a cowboy.
The following evening, Ted sat on the tiny stool where he’d seen Emma sitting when she bottle-fed the foals. Patches was sucking hard tonight, and Ted had to really hold onto the bottle while the over-eager colt tried to get every last drop. “Slow down, bud,” he said to him, glancing to Ruby on the left. She watched the feeding with interest, and Ted smiled at her. “You’re next. Don’t worry.”
He did like these horses, and it was easy to see why Emma did too. He fed Ruby and washed out the bottles, his life already falling into a rhythm and routine he could see himself becoming bored with quickly.
That was one thing he’d loved about working in a law office. The unpredictability of every day. How he never really knew what the day would bring. Just like he hadn’t known he’d have to confront a man during an office party, or that that guy would be an undercover cop bent on making sure the lawyers he should’ve been working with got punished.
When he thought of the circumstances that had brought him to Hope Eternal Ranch always surprised Ted. The memories came at seemingly random times, and his reaction to them was never the same.
Right now, he only felt weighed down by his own reality. He set the last bottle to dry and reached up to scratch his beard again. “That’s it,” he muttered. “I’m gonna have to shave this off.”
“Oh, don’t do that,” a woman said, and he sucked in a breath as he spun toward Emma.
Relief and shock moved through him, a pair of odd bedfellows, and he didn’t have time to think. He only acted. “Emma.” He took her into his arms and took a deep breath of her feminine smell.
Flowers and sugar, with maybe a hint of pine and vanilla. He knew his hormones had kicked into overdrive then, but he didn’t care. She giggled, the vibrations of her laugh moving from her chest to his. “Hey, Ted.”
“You’re okay,” he said, stepping back. “And you’re back. I thought you weren’t coming back for a few days.”
“I had nowhere to go,” she said, tucking her hands into the back pockets of her shorts. She shrugged and looked toward her baby horses. “Thank you for taking care of them.”
“Anytime,” he said easily. And he meant it. He had a weird feeling that he’d do anything for her, anytime, and he didn’t know what that meant.
As if he’d forgotten, he reminded himself that she’d lied to him, and he shouldn’t get too attached to her.
“I got you some beard oil,” she said, extending a small vial toward him.
He just looked at it. “You’re kidding.”
“I found myself in the city,” she said, and Ted noted that she didn’t specify which one. “And I was at this bath and body shop, and I saw it. I thought of you, and I picked it up.” She shook it slightly. “Take it.”
He did, trying to figure out what exactly was at war inside him, and which emotion would win. “Thank you,” he said, ducking his head to study the vial. It had a bunch of essential oils blended together, and he removed the cap to smell it. “Oh, I like that.”
“It’s pine and eucalyptus,” she said. “I love eucalyptus. I have this spray I use in the shower. Mm.” She smiled at him, and Ted couldn’t help returning it.
“Thank you,” he said again, wanting to say so much more. But he also just wanted to enjoy this moment with Emma, when she’d done something kind for him. She’d thought of him while she was shopping.
He reached out with the hand not holding the beard oil and took hers. She let him too, and Ted decided he could ask her about Laredo later. He could ask her about everything later.
Chapter Ten
Emma had spoken true when she’d told Ted that she had nowhere to go. She’d called Fran while sitting in her car on the side of the freeway. Missy had been at school. There hadn’t been any problems. No one hanging around the house. No mysterious phone calls. Nothing unusual at all.
They’d decided to take a trip to see her parents anyway, just to get out of Texas for a few days. Emma had apologized at least a dozen times, and Fran kept telling her it wasn’t necessary. They’d known what they were getting into a decade ago.
Emma had not gone to their house. She had not seen her daughter. She’d texted as usual to make plans for this weekend, and Missy had responded with the news that she was on an airplane bound for Florida.
Fun! Emma had texted. And then she’d had nowhere to go. Since she didn’t have a lot of money, she’d decided to simply go back to the ranch. She’d have to face this music sooner or later, and she decided that if she could hold Ted’s hand while she did, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.