Summer Nights (Fool's Gold #8)

She stood. “Lewis, I appreciate you letting me know about the paperwork on the divorce. It’s final now and we can both move on. It’s for the best.”


He rose. “You’re simply going to walk away? Just like that? Without trying at all?”

It wasn’t in her nature to be cruel. She would go out of her way not to hurt his feelings, but he was starting to bug her. She drew in a breath.

“This entire conversation is an example of why I left,” she said quietly, knowing that getting angry wouldn’t accomplish anything. “I’ve told you what I want, what is important to me, and you aren’t interested. You’re pushing back without consideration for anyone but yourself. When you don’t like what I say, you tell me I’m wrong and then you try to make me feel guilty. I’m not wrong and I won’t take responsibility for how you feel now. We’re divorced. I’m not proud of that, but I accept it. I’ve moved on and you need to do the same.”

She braced herself for the explosion. Lewis didn’t like being told he was at fault and he rarely reacted well when that happened. But instead of getting angry, Lewis seemed to shrink a little.

“I see,” he murmured. “It’s truly over.”

“Yes.”

He stared at her, then turned toward the door. “Goodbye, Annabelle.”

“Goodbye.”

“You’ll regret this, you know. Regret losing me.”

She pressed her lips together and waited until he left.

She walked to the window and watched him drive away. With a little luck, he would leave town and she wouldn’t see him again.

When they’d first met, she had been so sure he would be the one to rescue her. Since then, she’d learned the only person who could take on that job was herself. She had learned the painful lesson in the weeks after she’d left him, when she’d been alone and scared and emotionally broken.

Time and hard work had healed her. Now she was ready for a real relationship between equals. Someone who loved her as much as… She smiled. Someone who adored her with the same devotion as Khatar. Without being a horse.

She wanted that to be Shane. He was smart, funny, sensible and calm. His biggest flaw was comparing her to his ex-wife. She knew she wasn’t anything like her, but she wasn’t the one who needed convincing. Until he saw the difference, she would have to be careful about protecting her heart. Because she was determined not to make a mistake again. This time, when she gave her heart, it was going to be forever.

* * *

“YOU GOTTA STOP,” Shane said, not looking up from the bottle he shook. “I mean it. Get back to where you belong.”

The riding horses he’d reluctantly taken possession of had come with their own tack. All the leather was in decent shape, but old and dirty. He’d decided to take the afternoon and clean everything. Not only to keep it in good working order, but because, well, his students were girls. Not that he would admit that to anyone, even under threat of torture.

So he’d lined up the equipment by the barn, set up a comfortable work station in the shade of one of the big trees and prepared to spend a few hours listening to the Dodgers-Giants game on the radio.

Sometime into his second hour, he’d become aware he wasn’t alone anymore. A small brown nose had poked its way under his arm, much like a dog wanting to be patted. Only it wasn’t a dog. It was the damn pony, Reno.

Khatar’s ability to escape from nearly any enclosure had been passed on to Reno. Or maybe the pony had shown up with the ability. Shane wasn’t sure, but he didn’t like it. Worse, when Reno got out, he was careful to make sure his girl tagged along. Which meant not only was the small pony loose, but an elephant was now strolling around the property.

“Explain to me why the only one who stays where she’s supposed to is the cat,” Shane muttered, putting down the leather cleaner and staring at the pony.

Reno curled back his lips in what Shane could only assume was silent equine laughter.

“I get it,” Shane said. “You think you’re tough stuff, don’t you. A new girlfriend and an instant cat family. You’re practically the quarterback of the football team.”

Reno butted Shane in response.

“Annoying twit horse,” he muttered, scratching the animal behind the ears.

He got up and walked toward the barn. There was a new shed on the other side. One with a metal door, secured by an industrial strength padlock. It wasn’t kept locked with a key…yet. So far the twisting metal mechanism had proven to be animal secure, but Shane was fully prepared to use a key if necessary.

He went inside and shoved a couple of apples in his pockets, then picked up two watermelons and walked out. Reno trotted right behind him, already sniffing at his jeans.

“Get away,” he grumbled.

Priscilla stopped exploring the flower garden and strolled along, back toward the enclosure. Reno glanced over his shoulder, as if making sure his lady love kept up. They walked back into their home and faced Shane.