But he hadn’t mentioned it.
And she hadn’t brought it up.
The proverbial elephant in the room, which they danced around, the distance between them growing.
“Pay attention!” August ordered, sounding frustrated. “Elbows back. She’s leading you. When a horse figures out they’re in charge, you’re in trouble.”
Bailey had taken August up on his promise to get her back in the saddle and comfortably riding by Logan’s birthday. After her initial terror, she had begun to relax and trust, then actually enjoy being on a horse again.
Now, she made the adjustment, working to concentrate. Elbows slightly bent. Hold the reins lightly but with control. Sit bones firmly planted. Eyes fixed straight ahead. The horse followed her, not the other way around.
August made a sound of disgust. “This isn’t like riding a bike, Bailey. If you forget to pedal, the bike doesn’t take over. It’s how people get hurt.”
How people get hurt.
A broken heart. A clandestine grave.
“Death follows him.”
She shook her head, trying to focus. Failing miserably.
“Bailey, for God’s sake! Pay attention!”
She drew back on the reins and Tea Biscuit stopped.
August strode over. “You look like a rag doll up there.”
“I’m sorry,” she said automatically, forcing a wan smile. “At least I’m not afraid anymore.”
“Maybe you should be.”
He held her gaze. She suddenly felt as if she couldn’t breathe.
“Do you really want to peek under that rock? See what’s lurking there?”
“I need to get off.”
“Don’t overreact. Just put your mind—”
“Now. I need to get off now!”
Without waiting for his reply, she swung out of the saddle. As her feet landed on the ground, she realized her legs were shaking. She tried to hide it from August.
But August Perez missed nothing. “What’s wrong with you?”
“Nothing.” She led Tea Biscuit back to the barn. He fell in step beside her.
“Are you and Logan fighting?”
“No.”
“I could always tell when he and True had fought. She radiated it, poor darling.”
“I don’t want to talk about True. And I’m not in the mood for your nonsense.”
“Now my heart is broken.”
Bailey ignored the subtle stress he put on the sentence. The only way to win a verbal sparring with August was to not play.
They reached the barn. She tied up Tea Biscuit, then removed the bit. The horse responded by stretching her jaw. “Poor baby,” she said, and stroked her. “I wouldn’t like that thing in my mouth, either.”
She offered her a treat—her favorite, a Starlight mint. Watching the horse suck on it always made her smile. She removed the saddle, but left the blanket on for now, not wanting the horse to get chilled.
Once she cooled down, she would brush her out. Until then, Bailey busied herself with the hoof pick, cleaning out dirt and debris. August stood by, watching her.
She usually loved grooming the animal, usually responded in an elemental way to it. Tea Biscuit did as well, evident in the way she nickered or neighed when she saw her, the way she picked up on Bailey’s mood.
“I know you went to see Raine.”
Bailey paused, looked up at August. “She called you.”
It wasn’t a question; he answered anyway. “Yes. Practically gleeful. Don’t let her get to you, darling. She’s evil, you know that.”
“She’s not evil,” Bailey said softly. “She’s sad. Terribly sad.”
“Is that what’s wrong with you today?” August asked. “Raine’s malicious agenda?”
“No. And yes.” She paused. “I know about Roane. That he hung himself.”
“I’m impressed. I was here a year before I learned there’d been another Abbott sibling. Of course, now I know where all the bodies are buried.”
“What did you say?”
“A figure of speech, darling.”
He was playing with her. A cat with a vulnerable mouse. The way they all did here.
No, she thought. Not Logan. Instead, he said nothing at all.
Bailey ran his hands over the horse, checking for bumps or wounds. Finding none, she looked back up at August. “Will you help me?”
He cocked an eyebrow. “I thought that’s what I was doing?”
She shook her head. “What was True like? Really?”
“Beautiful and kindhearted. Completely devoted to Logan. Madly in love.”
Bailey snorted. “Right.”
“She was.”
“Madly in love but having an affair? Completely devoted, yet she runs off when his back is turned?”
He met her gaze. “Maybe she didn’t run off?”
She stiffened. “Not you, too?”
“Keeping it real, beautiful. That’s all.”
“What about the money she withdrew? What about those nights at a hotel, while Logan was out of town?”
“Maybe there’s an explanation for those other than infidelity.”
Bailey narrowed her eyes on him. “If you know something, you should tell me. Or better yet, Logan.”
He laughed, the sound hard. “I don’t know anything.” He leaned toward her. “I only know what I believe.”
Her mouth went dry. “And what is that?”
“I think True’s dead. I think they’re all dead.”
The words, what they meant, affected her like a gut punch. For a moment she couldn’t breathe. When she could, she managed to ask, “Why?”
“It’s just my opinion, darling.”
She realized she was shaking with anger. She must have transmitted the emotion to Tea Biscuit, because the animal whinnied and pranced sideways.
“It’s okay,” Bailey murmured, drawing her back, stroking her neck. “Shh, everything’s all right.”
Even as she crooned to the horse, Bailey wondered if it wasn’t herself she was hoping to reassure. She saw by the gleam in August’s eyes that he was wondering the same thing. She disliked him for it.
“I’m not trying to hurt you, Bailey.”
“Just scare me?”
“I care about you. I don’t want to see you hurt.”
“What a crock, August. You only care about yourself.”
“What if Logan thought he was going to lose her?”
“Stop it.”