AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Well, I was having a hard time getting her to believe me, so I told her I’d fallen in love with someone else. Someone who needed me more and deserved all my attention. And I told her it was Jolene.”
“Ah. And I’m assuming that from Leni’s reaction, you failed to mention that Jolene was a horse. Or I guess, at the time, a foal.”
Chevy nodded. “Yep.”
Ford shook his head. “Wow. You are a total dumbass.”
“Yep.”
“So, what the hell are you doing standing here? Why aren’t you going after her?”
“Did you see how mad she was? She probably won’t ever talk to me again.”
“She won’t if you don’t go after her.”
“Don’t you think I should at least let her cool off?”
“No. I do not,” Ford said. “Not if you want to have any chance of saving this relationship.”
“Right.” He looked at Jolene.
“I’ll finish brushing her and put her away,” Ford said.
Chevy patted his pockets. Shit. His truck keys were in the house. “Thanks brother.”
“Just go.”
Leni had cried the whole way back to her house—big gulping sobs—in between screaming in frustration and then dissolving into tears again.
For ten years, she’d believed that Chevy had found someone else to love—someone better than her. And all this time, that someone had been a damn horse.
She pulled into the driveway and turned off the car. Grabbing a handful of napkins from the center console, she wiped the tears from her face and the snot from her nose. Not that it would do any good. Her sister would still know she’d been crying.
How could she not? One glance in the rearview mirror showed her puffy swollen eyes and red cheeks.
She tossed the napkins to the floor of her car, got out, and slammed the door. Hurrying up the porch steps, she almost collided with Duke as he was coming out of the house.
“Whoa there, darlin’,” he said, wrapping her in his arms. “What’s happened?”
“Your grandson happened,” she wailed as the tears started to fall again.
“Aw hell,” he muttered as he hugged her tight. “Just let it out.”
Her shoulders shook as she sobbed into his.
“You wanna talk about it,” Duke asked when she’d finally cried herself out. He pulled what she hoped was a clean handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to her as she sank onto the top porch step. “Lorna’s not here. I just ran into her as I was coming up to drop off a pan of homemade macaroni and cheese. She told me Elizabeth was picking her and the kids up, and they were going to lunch and to do some shopping before heading to the library to see Maisie for story hour. She said they were going to be gone most of the afternoon and asked me to put the mac and cheese in the fridge. I’m sorry you just missed her.” He lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “But I’m a good listener if you want to share your troubles.”
Her shoulders drooped. “Even if my troubles are the fault of your stupid grandson?”
He nodded. “Especially then.”
She wiped her nose with the handkerchief then balled it into her fist as she told him what happened. “I’ve harbored the worst feelings to this horrible boyfriend-stealing Jolene, and all this time, she was just a horse.”
“To be fair, she’s a pretty good horse. And she’s probably what saved Chevy that first year after you left.”
“Saved him from what?”
“From dying of a broken heart. Gosh, he was a mess that summer.” He tipped her chin up to look at him. “That boy loved you. Still does, I believe. Loved you so much that he let you go.”
