I tap repeatedly. I’m glad Hammer doesn’t respond right away, because I know he hasn’t learned this yet. He eventually shifts his weight, and I stop tapping. I move to the next leg until I’ve done it on all four, then I start over. After a few minutes of this, he finally lifts one of his legs completely off the ground.
“He’s doing it!” I squeal.
“He’s got a good trainer.”
I’m totally elated by the end of our session. Every minute I spend with Mickey and the horses makes me want more.
“Well done,” he says. “How about you brush him down and return him to his stall?”
“Me? Are you sure?”
“I trust you. Do it how I showed you the other day.”
I lead Hammer to the gate and turn. “Thank you, Mickey. No one has ever done anything like this for me before. How can I ever repay you?”
“You already have. The way you look at them and your enthusiasm when you work with them is refreshing. It’s renewed my love of these magnificent creatures. A few weeks ago, I was actually talking to Sara about retiring and trying my hand at something else. But after watching you, I get that I’m right where I’m supposed to be. So thank you.”
I lead Hammer away. It’s amazing being able to guide a horse ten times my size. He follows without question. I stop in the washroom and brush him down, then give him an apple. “You made me look good today.”
“Talking to horses now?” Aaron is leaning up against a wall.
“Were you watching me?”
“For about the last twenty minutes. You’re amazing, Devyn.”
I pat Hammer’s mane. “He’s amazing.”
“I think you’ve found your calling.”
“Maybe.” I take Hammer to his stall and unclip the lead rope.
“What do you mean maybe? Do you see the way they respond to you? I’m telling you, you have to keep doing this.”
I latch the horse’s gate. “I really want to. It’s exhilarating, the feeling I get when I’m with them.”
He glances left, then right, then pulls me into an empty stall. “Now you know how I feel every time I’m with you.”
He leans me against the wall and kisses me. I’m not normally up for public displays of indecency, but I swear, if he were to lay me down right here in the hay, I’d let him have his way with me.
“Oh, uh, sorry,” Luca says when he walks by. He points to the horse in the stall across from us. “I just need to get… You know what, I’ll come back.”
We laugh as Luca turns red and walks away. Aaron takes my hand. “Let’s go get lunch.”
I drop off the lead rope in the tack room. Before we get to the truck, he sneaks one more kiss. Andie comes out of her house. Judging by her smile, I can tell we’re not fooling anyone.
“You look happy today,” I say to her. “Does that mean what I think it does?”
She crosses her arms at the wrist like Wonder Woman. “Parole denied!”
“I’m really happy for you.”
Aaron sweeps her into a hug. “That’s fantastic. You were so sure this would be the year he got out.”
“I was. I pulled out all the stops. Even begged one of our state representatives to help me.”
“If anyone could do it, I knew you could,” Aaron says. “Which representative?”
“Congressman DeMaggio. He was so nice. He wrote a letter on my behalf…”
She keeps talking, but I don’t hear another word. My mouth goes dry. My palms get damp. Blood is pumping loudly in my ears. I feel like I might pass out. I lean over and put my hands on my knees.
“Devyn.”
I don’t respond. I can’t.
“Devyn! What’s wrong?” Aaron asks.
“I…”
“You’re sweating,” Andie says. “Let’s get you inside where it’s cool.”
“I have to go.” I walk away. Where I’m going, I have no clue.
Footsteps come up behind me. “Dev, talk to me. What just happened? One minute you were fine, then when she brought up the congressman...” He takes a step back. Anger I’ve never seen in him crosses his face. “Oh, shit. Is he the one you’re running from? Did you work for him or something? Devyn, did he harass you? Is he holding something over your head?”
I keep moving. “I have to go.”
“At least let me drive you home.”
My throat is thick with tears I don’t want him to see fall. “I need to be alone.”
“I’m not leaving you alone like this.”
“I’ll be fine. Please, Aaron. I need to clear my head.”
He grabs my hand. “But—”
I jerk away from him. “Drop it, okay? You don’t need to fix me. You don’t need to help me like I’m some damsel in distress. Just leave me the fuck alone.”
I know I’ve hurt him, but I don’t care. He steps back. “Fine. Go.”
I make it out to the road without looking back. Part of me wants to go left, in the opposite direction of the lodge. Just keep walking far from here and find a new life. I should. I would if it weren’t for him. With every passing day, the odds of him finding out about me grow larger.
But I don’t walk away, because one simple fact eclipses all the others: I love him.
Chapter Twenty-three
Aaron
“Devyn?”
She doesn’t answer.
It’s been hours since she stalked off. I’m relieved to see her door open, but it’s not Devyn in her room. It’s Lora, and she looks like the cat who ate the canary. “What are you doing here?” I ask.
She picks up a new pillow sham Devyn was embroidering. “Admiring her handiwork. I was considering asking her to do something for me.”
I take the sham from her, put it down, and motion to the door. “We really shouldn’t be in her private space.”
“It’s your lodge, Aaron.”
“But this is her room.”
Her phone rings. “I need to take this. I’m done here anyway. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Her voice trails down the hall as she leaves.
I glance around the room. Everything looks the same as we left it this morning. I open the drawer Devyn stuffed her notebook into. It’s still there, along with the money.
I sit on her bed and call her again. She doesn’t answer. Where the hell could she have gone?
Noise in the kitchen has me jumping off the bed and racing out. It’s Joe with the food delivery for the upcoming weekend.
“I can see from your expression you were expectin’ someone else,” he says. “Sorry to disappoint you. Picked up the food myself today. How about you help an old man unload?”
When I get bags from his truck, I glance in all directions, hoping for a sign of her.
Joe puts the meat in the refrigerator. “You kids really takin’ to each other, aren’t you?”
I hand him a huge package of bacon. “I don’t know. I guess.”
He shoves it into the fridge and laughs from deep in his belly. “You ain’t foolin’ no one.” He looks at the steaks in my hand. “Seems they put in a few extras. How about I make supper for you and your lady?”