A light tap sounded on the door and when it opened, Logan stuck his head in. He nodded at Felicity and then focused on me. “We have to go.”
I lifted my finger. “Just one more minute.” As soon as the door shut, my chest hurt. I hated goodbyes.
“What’s going on, Hadley?” Felicity demanded.
Reluctantly, I let Nick’s hand go and faced her. “I’m under police protection, until they can find whoever did this. In the meantime, I’ll have to cancel my shows. You don’t have to worry about any of the details. I’ll get it handled. Soon, Nick will be up and moving around and we can get back to work. This whole nightmare will be over.”
Lip quivering, she lowered her head and nodded. “As much as I hate you leaving, I understand. I just know Nick will be worried sick about you when he wakes up.”
My time was running out, so I hugged her quick. “I’ll call and check up on you both every day. Just make sure to answer your phone. The number will probably be untraceable.”
“I will.” She stepped aside so I could move closer to Nick.
I kissed his cheek and rested my forehead against his. “Come back to us. I miss you already.” One of my tears fell on his cheek, and I wiped it away.
“How long do you think you’ll be gone?” Felicity wondered.
“I don’t know,” I whispered, turning to face her. “I honestly don’t know.”
Blake
“How’s your hand?” Tyla asked, smirking at the gashes on my knuckles. “You really messed Trent’s shit up last night.”
I grabbed Snowflake’s brush and glided it down her body. My hands hurt like a bitch, but I’d do it all over again just to hear the crunch of Singleton’s nose as I pounded on his face. His first mistake was seeking me out.
Clenching my fist, I watched the blood ooze out of the gash on my right hand. “It’s fine. Can’t say the same for Singleton’s face though.”
She snorted. “That’s for damn sure. I don’t think he’ll be messing with you for a while. Did Rayna come over to nurse you back to health?”
I moved over to Snowflake’s other side, brushing her gently. “She tried, but I’m done with that thundercunt. I don’t need the drama.”
“It’s not like you can’t find someone else. Every female in town’s been salivating over you since you moved here.”
“Including you?” I joked.
“Please,” she scoffed with a roll of her eyes. “You were intriguing for like a second, then reality struck. You’re not my type.”
We both laughed and finished grooming the young mare. Tyla was a beautiful woman, but I knew better than to get involved with someone I worked with. I’d learned that hard lesson long ago.
“I think this little beauty is going to be one hell of a horse,” Tyla said proudly.
“That she is. She’s looking good. In fact, I’ll be taking over her training tomorrow.”
Her eyes went wide. “You sure you can handle that?” All morning she’d been working with Snowflake to tame her down. There was a lot of work still to be done, but I had no doubt we could do it. Before I could reply, her phone rang. She waltzed off to answer it while I stayed with Snowflake.
The wild little beast bumped my hand with her muzzle and snorted. Chuckling, I scratched behind her ear. “You gonna be a good girl for me tomorrow? Josie wants to ride you someday and I have to make sure you’re not going to throw her off.” Josie Wright was eight years old and an amazing young rider. Unfortunately, when her parents bought Snowflake, she turned out to be a little too much to handle.
“As much as she likes you, I’d say you’ll get her tamed in no time,” Tyla claimed. Her smile faded as she slipped her phone into her back pocket.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“I need to go out of town for a couple of weeks. I know it’s short notice, but it’s something I really need to do.”
“Is everything okay?”