Trailer Park Heart
Page 30
Noticing again how sweaty he was, I asked, “How long have you been out here?”
His smile wobbled. “Let’s just say, I’m not going to need to come back and do it again tomorrow. Today was a pretty good workout.”
“You’re ridiculous.” I laughed. “Also, you’re a legit stalker.”
He shrugged for the fifteen millionth time. “You’re a hard woman to find.”
“I’m usually at home. You know, doing home things.”
He looked at Max. “Good to know.”
“That wasn’t an invitation,” I rushed to say.
His gaze moved back to mine. “You would always pretend you forgot something. I would watch you rush through the gym to the locker room, pretending like you couldn’t see us. It was my favorite part of practice.”
His conversational jumps were giving me whiplash, but my stomach started pooling with heat before my mind could fully comprehend what he was saying.
“I don’t remember it like that at all,” I argued weakly.
“Little Ruby Dawson, I don’t remember you as a liar.”
I glared at the smug smile on his lips. “Did you really run this area of town to get my attention?” I asked him, desperate to change the subject.
“And out front of your house. Like I said, I wanted to apologize.”
“Go ahead then.”
His smile disappeared, and he took three steps closer to me. I could smell his aftershave and the musky scent of his sweat. How had I gotten to this point in my life? How did I have a son I was trying to keep secret from super sleuth over here, also known as Clark City’s most eligible stalker.
His sharp gaze flicked to Max again and it took all my willpower not to jump between them and wave my hands around like a crazy person. For the first time since he’d walked back into town I wanted his attention on me and me alone.
“I don’t believe you don’t know who his father is,” Levi stated boldly but quietly so my son couldn’t hear.
Frustration pulsed in my blood, but I played it cool. “That doesn’t sound like an apology to me.”
A smug smile tugged at the corners of his lips. His green eyes met mine and I tried not to compare the color to the windswept country grass that was unbelievably lush from the amount of rain we’d had last week. “But…” He took another step closer to me, dropping his voice. “I understand that you might have reasons for keeping it quiet. The people in this town can be… difficult.”
“Judgmental is the word I usually use.” I scratched behind my ear, putting a sound barrier between Max and me. “Also, assholes.”
His rumble of laughter chased a tingle down my spine. “I’m not trying to uncover all your secrets, Ruby. I was just surprised that you had a son. More surprised that you didn’t make that man marry you and take care of you.”
Lightning flashed in my blood. “I don’t need a man to take care of me, Levi. And I certainly wouldn’t use a child to tie one to me.”
Not that I could have if I wanted to. Max’s dad was long out of reach. Now if only the rest of his family would follow suit.
Er, not die. I meant, move away. And not bother me.
His hands shot up, pumping the air in an inane effort to placate me. “That’s not what I meant. Of course, you don’t need a man to take care of you. You’re independent. You’re empowered. I get it.” His tone suggested that he did not, in fact, get it. He continued, throwing the past back in my face and not doing anything at all to endear me to him. “I just… I know living with your mom wasn’t in your long-term life plan.”
I pressed the back of my hand to my forehead and tried not flinch. “What I want to know is why you think after all these years and a lifetime of hating each other you know me so well? Why on earth do you think you know all about my life plans and what I want? We were not friends in high school, Levi. And I haven’t seen you in almost a decade. Where is this coming from?”
“We weren’t friends,” he agreed. “But that doesn’t mean I didn’t know you. Or that I don’t know you now.” I gaped at him like he was an idiot. His voice dropped and his eyes heated with something that looked like pleading. “You know me, too.”
“I don’t. I have no idea who you are or what you want or where you’ve been for the last seven years.”
“Oklahoma,” he answered quickly. “Working a cattle ranch. And before that Wyoming. And before that Colorado. And before that Texas. And before that, well, before that I was at UNL.”
Squinting at him, I asked, “See? I had no idea you wanted to be a cowboy.”
His open expression turned into a scowl. “I needed some… space from this place.”
Now that I could understand. I turned my head and surveyed the miles and miles of cornfields rolling in every direction. The cicadas buzzed in a rhythmic symphony, giving the outdoors a primal soundtrack, beating in time to my frantic heart. The horizon was a long, endless line in the distance, dipping and rising, but never ending. The sun hovered just above it, puffy pink and purple clouds gathered close, the prelude to a spectacular Nebraska sunset no doubt.
And yet it was sometimes hard to see the beauty of this place from this far in the dirt.
It wasn’t that Levi’s exodus from Clark City was a total secret. Plenty of people had whispered news about him over the years. Whether it was friendly commentary in the diner or Coco or Em handing out gossip, I’d kept up with him from a distance. Not on purpose of course. Or at least that’s what I told myself.
The University of Nebraska at Lincoln, or UNL, was where he’d gone to college. Also, where he’d graduated magna cum laude in business administration. Everyone had thought that meant he would come straight home and let his father groom him for the family business. It was the career path Logan was supposed to take after he was finished sowing seeds in the Marines. Levi was supposed to step up to the plate once his brother was gone. Take a more responsible path. Make his family proud.
Instead, Levi had disappeared. Nobody seemed to know where he was, except for maybe Rich and Darcy, but if they knew, they’d stayed quiet.
Eventually Mercer got in touch with him and the update had trickled through the gossip circles of Clark City. Levi had gone to Texas for grad school. He’d wanted something more substantial than a Bachelor of Science.
I didn’t know the outcome of those years, only that they led him to Colorado where he’d found work at a resort. He’d met a rancher in a ski town and that had led him to horses. And that eventually led him to Wyoming. I wasn’t sure how he moved from horses to cattle, only that the ranch he worked on in Oklahoma was one of the biggest in the state.
Now he was back in Nebraska. Where he’d add corn and beans to his work history with livestock. There was part of me that wondered if he would miss working exclusively with animals. If he preferred the wildness of riding and roping to the toil of working the ground.
Not that I cared about his preference. Or thought about how hard it would be to give up something he loved—if he did love it—for the family business just because he was the only living heir.
“But now you’ve had enough space?” I challenged him. “You’re happy to be back?”
He turned his gaze back to Max. “I’m… looking forward to some things about this town.”
His smile wobbled. “Let’s just say, I’m not going to need to come back and do it again tomorrow. Today was a pretty good workout.”
“You’re ridiculous.” I laughed. “Also, you’re a legit stalker.”
He shrugged for the fifteen millionth time. “You’re a hard woman to find.”
“I’m usually at home. You know, doing home things.”
He looked at Max. “Good to know.”
“That wasn’t an invitation,” I rushed to say.
His gaze moved back to mine. “You would always pretend you forgot something. I would watch you rush through the gym to the locker room, pretending like you couldn’t see us. It was my favorite part of practice.”
His conversational jumps were giving me whiplash, but my stomach started pooling with heat before my mind could fully comprehend what he was saying.
“I don’t remember it like that at all,” I argued weakly.
“Little Ruby Dawson, I don’t remember you as a liar.”
I glared at the smug smile on his lips. “Did you really run this area of town to get my attention?” I asked him, desperate to change the subject.
“And out front of your house. Like I said, I wanted to apologize.”
“Go ahead then.”
His smile disappeared, and he took three steps closer to me. I could smell his aftershave and the musky scent of his sweat. How had I gotten to this point in my life? How did I have a son I was trying to keep secret from super sleuth over here, also known as Clark City’s most eligible stalker.
His sharp gaze flicked to Max again and it took all my willpower not to jump between them and wave my hands around like a crazy person. For the first time since he’d walked back into town I wanted his attention on me and me alone.
“I don’t believe you don’t know who his father is,” Levi stated boldly but quietly so my son couldn’t hear.
Frustration pulsed in my blood, but I played it cool. “That doesn’t sound like an apology to me.”
A smug smile tugged at the corners of his lips. His green eyes met mine and I tried not to compare the color to the windswept country grass that was unbelievably lush from the amount of rain we’d had last week. “But…” He took another step closer to me, dropping his voice. “I understand that you might have reasons for keeping it quiet. The people in this town can be… difficult.”
“Judgmental is the word I usually use.” I scratched behind my ear, putting a sound barrier between Max and me. “Also, assholes.”
His rumble of laughter chased a tingle down my spine. “I’m not trying to uncover all your secrets, Ruby. I was just surprised that you had a son. More surprised that you didn’t make that man marry you and take care of you.”
Lightning flashed in my blood. “I don’t need a man to take care of me, Levi. And I certainly wouldn’t use a child to tie one to me.”
Not that I could have if I wanted to. Max’s dad was long out of reach. Now if only the rest of his family would follow suit.
Er, not die. I meant, move away. And not bother me.
His hands shot up, pumping the air in an inane effort to placate me. “That’s not what I meant. Of course, you don’t need a man to take care of you. You’re independent. You’re empowered. I get it.” His tone suggested that he did not, in fact, get it. He continued, throwing the past back in my face and not doing anything at all to endear me to him. “I just… I know living with your mom wasn’t in your long-term life plan.”
I pressed the back of my hand to my forehead and tried not flinch. “What I want to know is why you think after all these years and a lifetime of hating each other you know me so well? Why on earth do you think you know all about my life plans and what I want? We were not friends in high school, Levi. And I haven’t seen you in almost a decade. Where is this coming from?”
“We weren’t friends,” he agreed. “But that doesn’t mean I didn’t know you. Or that I don’t know you now.” I gaped at him like he was an idiot. His voice dropped and his eyes heated with something that looked like pleading. “You know me, too.”
“I don’t. I have no idea who you are or what you want or where you’ve been for the last seven years.”
“Oklahoma,” he answered quickly. “Working a cattle ranch. And before that Wyoming. And before that Colorado. And before that Texas. And before that, well, before that I was at UNL.”
Squinting at him, I asked, “See? I had no idea you wanted to be a cowboy.”
His open expression turned into a scowl. “I needed some… space from this place.”
Now that I could understand. I turned my head and surveyed the miles and miles of cornfields rolling in every direction. The cicadas buzzed in a rhythmic symphony, giving the outdoors a primal soundtrack, beating in time to my frantic heart. The horizon was a long, endless line in the distance, dipping and rising, but never ending. The sun hovered just above it, puffy pink and purple clouds gathered close, the prelude to a spectacular Nebraska sunset no doubt.
And yet it was sometimes hard to see the beauty of this place from this far in the dirt.
It wasn’t that Levi’s exodus from Clark City was a total secret. Plenty of people had whispered news about him over the years. Whether it was friendly commentary in the diner or Coco or Em handing out gossip, I’d kept up with him from a distance. Not on purpose of course. Or at least that’s what I told myself.
The University of Nebraska at Lincoln, or UNL, was where he’d gone to college. Also, where he’d graduated magna cum laude in business administration. Everyone had thought that meant he would come straight home and let his father groom him for the family business. It was the career path Logan was supposed to take after he was finished sowing seeds in the Marines. Levi was supposed to step up to the plate once his brother was gone. Take a more responsible path. Make his family proud.
Instead, Levi had disappeared. Nobody seemed to know where he was, except for maybe Rich and Darcy, but if they knew, they’d stayed quiet.
Eventually Mercer got in touch with him and the update had trickled through the gossip circles of Clark City. Levi had gone to Texas for grad school. He’d wanted something more substantial than a Bachelor of Science.
I didn’t know the outcome of those years, only that they led him to Colorado where he’d found work at a resort. He’d met a rancher in a ski town and that had led him to horses. And that eventually led him to Wyoming. I wasn’t sure how he moved from horses to cattle, only that the ranch he worked on in Oklahoma was one of the biggest in the state.
Now he was back in Nebraska. Where he’d add corn and beans to his work history with livestock. There was part of me that wondered if he would miss working exclusively with animals. If he preferred the wildness of riding and roping to the toil of working the ground.
Not that I cared about his preference. Or thought about how hard it would be to give up something he loved—if he did love it—for the family business just because he was the only living heir.
“But now you’ve had enough space?” I challenged him. “You’re happy to be back?”
He turned his gaze back to Max. “I’m… looking forward to some things about this town.”
