Hunter smiled, shaking his head. And of course his parents still had the same number a decade and a half later.
“I’m sorry, Mama. I hate that I worried you.” He was, too. After Dad’s heart attack seven years ago and then everything with Janine… well, Mom had had too much to worry about for too long. He hated adding to her burdens.
A heavy sigh came across the line. He heard tears in her voice when she next spoke and it about killed him. “We can’t lose you. I feel like we’ve just got you back after…”
Hunter swallowed. “Don’t cry, Mama. You know I can’t handle that.”
She sniffed loudly. “Who’s crying? I’m not crying.”
There was a brief pause and Hunter imagined her wiping her eyes with one of the kitchen towels. Her voice was strong and no nonsense when she continued. “Now tell me about this new woman of yours. Everyone’s been seeing you around town together but you don’t bring her to meet your own mother? What kind of son did I raise?”
“Mom.” He felt the back of his neck heating up. “It’s just a work thing.” His gaze flipped over to Isobel, who wasn’t bothering to hide the fact that she was following his half of the conversation with rapt attention. He was not about to discuss his complicated relationship to his summer intern with her in earshot.
“I gotta go, Mama. But I’m fine and I’ll call you back later today when I get home. It might be late since I’ll be out taking care of all these calls.”
He was already looking Isobel’s direction and he saw her eyebrows pop up in surprise at his words.
“You do what you gotta do. Just be safe, baby. And if I call you again, you better answer! Or call back within an hour if you’re somewhere without any reception. You promise me.” Her voice was hard but he heard the thread of fear and desperation underneath. He felt horrible thinking about the sleepless night she’d just spent because of him.
“Promise.”
“All right. Love you.”
“Love you too, Mama.”
She hung up without lingering. That was his mom. She was a marshmallow underneath, but you’d never know it for her mama bear fierceness. All she’d ever wanted in life was a big family she could love on. Instead she got his quiet, taciturn father for a husband and, after several miscarriages, him. Just one son to lavish all the love she had to give.
And life as an isolated rancher’s wife wasn’t an easy one—not that he’d ever thought about it growing up. He’d taken her for granted. Taken all of it for granted. It was only when his dad had the heart attack that he’d realized how much his mom needed him around.
How could he, her only son, desert her by moving away to the big city like Janine kept pressuring him to do when his Mom had given up everything for him?
Suffice to say, she and Janine had never gotten along.
“What did you mean by ‘take care of these calls’?” Isobel asked as soon as he got off the phone.
“Just what it sounded like.” Hunter tapped the phone to access his voicemails and put them on speaker phone while he walked over to the nightstand.
A robotic voice read out the time the voicemail was left: 8:19 pm.
Hey Hunter, this is Ken Peterson. I’m having some trouble with one of my mares. She got riled up by the storm and smashed herself real good on the fencing—
Isobel had brought in his spare change of clothes from the truck. They were folded on the bedside table. He picked up the button up denim work shirt and shook it open.
Grimacing, he tried to shrug into it. The pain was a lot less sharp than it had been twenty minutes ago but damn, that still smarted.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Isobel asked over Ken’s voice talking about the cut on his horse’s flank. “You need to lay back down. Right now.” She stalked over toward him and grabbed his arm, trying to pull him toward the bed.
So anyway, if you could call me back and come on over. It’s a nasty gash, bleeding all over the place and I don’t want it to get infected. I’m
hoping to get her bred in a few— The recording cut off, running out of time on Ken.
There was a beep and then the next message started.
8:33 pm. Bill Sawyers here. Need help with Blue’s calving. She’s one of my best Angus. Expect your call back within the hour.
Beep.
Hunter grimaced and this time, it wasn’t from the pain in his back. Whatever had happened with Blue was over and done with now, more than twelve hours later.