He raised his eyebrows.
“Later, cowboy…where’s the best place to eat in this town?”
“Depends on what you’re in the mood for, but Juicy Lucy’s Steakhouse is one of my favorites.”
“Sounds perfect.”
“M
ight be a wait on a Saturday night, but we can take a walk along the river if there is.”
She liked Jace, he was easy to be around, and as good in bed as he was a kisser. She hadn’t thought about Billy, before now, all afternoon. It was some kind of record.
“Whatcha’ thinkin’ about?”
“You.”
“Ah that makes me happy since you have such a sweet smile on your face.”
“You put it there.”
There was a wait, so they walked along the river and Jace asked her questions. They both loved to ski. In fact, Jace had thought about going pro a few years back. A torn ACL took him out of competition, but it had healed, and he was thinking about getting back into it.
He’d also been thinking about getting back on some bulls. It had been a while, longer than he intended for it to be, but, he felt like he was ready to try bull riding again.
Renie told him about her mom, and how she didn’t start barrel racing until she was forty. “If anyone has shown me it’s never too late to chase your dream, it’s my mom. And barrel racing isn’t for the faint of heart.” She told him about her accident too.
“You know, now that you’re telling me the story, I remember hearing about this. CB Rice was on tour, and there was an uproar about her being in a coma when she wasn’t.”
“Yep, that’s the story, but it’s way more complicated than that. She was in a coma, and then when she came out of it she was paralyzed. She made all of us who knew keep it a secret from Ben.”
Billy had been at her side through all of it. He’d been her rock. She closed her eyes trying to wipe Billy out of her brain, but it made it worse because there he was, plain as day, seared into her memory.
“It was a rough time, for everyone. Ben included.”
Jace put his arm around her shoulders and kissed her forehead. “Sorry I brought it up.”
“It’s okay. She’s fine now. In fact, she’s back at it, competing again.”
“You’re proud of her.”
“I am, but…”
“But?”
“I’m not sure she’s proud of me.”
Renie wasn’t sure what made her tell Jace about quitting school, although she stopped short of telling him why. She told him that her heart wasn’t in it any longer, and with as hard as it was, and how expensive it was, she thought it better not to waste the money or time.
“You’d be a natural. I’ve watched you around the horses. You’re good with them. Think you might go back to it someday?”
“At this point, no. But never, say never, right?”
The buzzer went off in his pocket letting them know their table was ready. “I’ve enjoyed having you all to myself, Irene. It’s gonna be hard to go back to the ranch tomorrow and act like I’m not crazy about you.”
She smiled, and he pulled her close again. “Damn, I like your smile, cowgirl.”
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