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Chapter Eleven
Nate Truett leaned a shoulder against the knotty pine column, drew in a long breath and braced himself for the sight of Ronnie Hartman. He didn’t wait long before she emerged from behind a tall paint gelding.
At that moment, two full days of mental preparation promptly deserted him. Nate’s heart began to hammer inside his chest. Sweat broke out across his skin, defying the chilly temperature and the heavy canvas jacket he wore. A roaring in his ears drowned out all sound.
He dragged the back of his hand across his damp forehead, wondering what the heck was wrong with him. Ask any of his friends, and they’d say Nate possessed nerves of steel. No one made their living riding eighteen hundred pounds of angry bull into rodeo arenas without them.
Yet where were those nerves of steel now? Weakened, apparently, by the mere sight of an old girlfriend.
The realization that Ronnie still affected him to such a degree was annoying, to say the least. He’d been trying for six years to put his feelings for her where they belonged—in the past.
He’d obviously failed, and miserably at that, as his hammering heart and cold sweat proved.
Pushing back his cowboy hat, he watched Ronnie’s every move. She hadn’t changed one bit since they’d last seen each other. Still girl-next-door pretty, still wearing her long blond hair in a thick ponytail down her back and still wearing faded red Cardinals hoodies. Next to professional rodeoing, football was her favorite sport.
He swallowed and then groaned softly. Maybe coming to Mustang Valley and agreeing to help his mom’s best friend had been a mistake. He considered reversing direction and slinking unnoticed back to where he’d parked his truck in front of the horse stables, but dismissed the idea. He’d made a promise to his mom’s friend to check on her daughter, and he would keep that promise no matter how difficult it might be for him.
In another minute. Or two. When he was ready.
Ronnie and her half sister, Samantha, stood beside the paint gelding, which was tethered to an old hitching post. From their gesturing and raised voices, he gathered they were discussing the horse’s condition. No surprise. Big John, as Samantha called him, was part of the reason Nate had been asked to make a detour on his trip across Arizona. His mom’s friend was worried sick about her oldest, all alone for the first time in her eighteen years.
Learning that Samantha was related to Ronnie had come as a shock to Nate. He’d known Samantha since she was a kid and also that she was adopted. There was never a mention of her seeking out her biological family, which she’d done after graduating high school. It must have come as a bigger shock to Ronnie, who until recently had no idea Samantha existed. Or that her father had a child with his then girlfriend and didn’t tell anyone.
Nate wondered how Ronnie was coping in the wake of the bombshell news but doubted she’d tell him. He’d be lucky if she discussed even the weather with him. Ronnie was an expert at erecting emotional barricades and didn’t easily take them down. Nate had learned that firsthand the hard way.
All at once, Samantha unleashed her teenage fury on Ronnie, shouting, “You don’t care about me! You’ve never cared! You just want me to win using your horse so you can sell him for a lot of money!” She ended her outburst with a sob. When Ronnie attempted to put an arm around Samantha, she jerked away. “Leave me alone.”
Nate straightened but didn’t otherwise move. Samantha could be a bit of a drama queen—even before learning the man who’d raised her wasn’t her real father. But when the loud wails continued, he hurried down the ranch office steps and toward the pair. No way was he letting anxiety over his past relationship with Ronnie, or the fact she was Samantha’s half sister, interfere with the purpose of his visit—namely, seeing how Samantha was doing and lending assistance if needed.
He’d almost reached the pair when Ronnie abruptly pivoted and caught sight of him. Surprise sparked in her vivid green eyes, followed by alarm. Both emotions dimmed as she visibly gained control.
“Nate! What are you doing here?”
Really? No “Hello” or “Hi” or “How are you?” He couldn’t let that slide. Flashing the same wide grin that had at one time been plastered on billboards and the cover of Pro Rodeo Sports News, he said, “Nice to see you, too, Ronnie.”
Whatever she intended to say was cut short by Samantha, who whirled and exclaimed, “Nate, you came!” before rushing forward to give him a hug. “I’m so glad. Mom said you might, but she wasn’t sure.”
Nate grabbed the teenager before she knocked him over. “Hey there, Sammy-cakes.” Giving her a brotherly squeeze, he set her aside.
Ronnie stared at him, her expression unyielding and her arms crossed. Not that he’d expected a warm welcome, considering she’d walked out on him without so much as a “See ya later.”
Still, they’d been close once. Close enough to live together, suffer through an unbearable loss and for Nate to propose.
He’d planned the entire Valentine’s Day dinner, right down to the ring and the moment he’d pop the question over dessert. Her rejection had stunned him. Not as much, however, as coming home two days later to discover her gone, along with all her clothes and possessions.
Happy freakin’ Valentine’s Day to him.
“Wait, wait.” Ronnie drew back, her narrowed gaze traveling from Nate to Samantha. “What is happening here?”
Nate sighed. “You didn’t tell her I was coming?”
“Well... I...got busy...” Samantha faltered. “And forgot.”
“You two are friends?” Ronnie asked, clearly mystified.
“My mom and Nate’s are best friends from when we lived in Abilene.” Samantha lifted one shoulder in an unconcerned shrug.
“But you’re from Flagstaff.” Ronnie spoke slowly.
“We just moved there last year.”
“Small world, huh?” Nate hadn’t often enjoyed the upper hand with Ronnie and, to be honest, he kind of liked it.
“Very small.”
“Well, you were only in Abilene a year. And we were traveling almost every weekend. You never got a chance to meet Mom’s friends.”
Samantha
