Page 127 of Dusty Spur Ranch Cowboys

“I know.”

“You remember why.”

“I do.” Her words come gently, which somehow makes them harder to hear. “You spent years teaching both of us that staying only ends with somebody getting hurt.” I close my eyes. “But this is the first place where leaving sounds like the part you’re dreading.”

I stare across the street at The Silver Bit, watching Riley wipe down the bar while Tommy throws his head back laughing at whatever story he’s telling. The lights spilling through the windows should feel like they belong to somebody else’s life, yet I keep looking at them like they mean more than they should.

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Is it?” Daisy asks. “Then why are you still there instead of halfway to the next town?”

I open my mouth, ready with the answer I’ve given myself a hundred times before, and the words refuse to show up. “I…”

Silence stretches between us.

Daisy chuckles. “That’s what I thought.”

“You think you’ve got me all figured out.”

“I don’t have to figure you out. I’ve had a lifetime of practice.”

I rub my forehead and let out a tired laugh. “That might be your most annoying quality.”

“It absolutely is.”

I smile despite myself.

“Think about what I said,” she tells me.

“I will.”

“You’ll try.”

“I’ll try.”

“There you go. That’s a little more believable.”

We talk for another few minutes before we say goodnight. After the call ends, I slip my phone into my pocket and stay where I am, staring across the street while Daisy’s words circle through my head.

This town’s different.

I tell myself she’s reading too much into it. Maybe I’m worn out from the show. Maybe I’ve been here a little longer than usual. Maybe I’m making a bigger deal out of this than it deserves.

Warm hands clamp around my waist. “There you are!”

A yelp flies out of me before I can stop it, sending a bird shooting from the tree overhead while my phone nearly slips from my grip.

I spin with my fist already coming up, and Willy throws himself backward, laughing so hard he can barely stay on his feet.

“You absolute menace!”

He presses a hand against his stomach. “That was beautiful.”

“I almost hit you.”

“I know. That’s why it was exciting.”

I gasp, still trying to catch my breath as I march toward him. He backs away with both hands raised.