Ladd Haven (29 page)

“
Hey, Miss
Delaney.”

Delaney turned, and smiled. “Hi, Troy.”
Tentative, but it was a smile all the same, a welcome home.
Grateful for the friendly face, Troy headed for her. “How are you?”
she asked casually, absently stroking the horse at her
side.

“
Fine.” Troy glanced at the
Palomino, the golden-haired animal beautiful, alert as she assessed
his presence. “Sorry about all the trouble I’ve caused.”

“
Trouble you’ve
caused?”

“
Yes, ma’am. I don’t mean to
be causing trouble for the hotel.”

She straightened, pushed her shoulders
back and said, “Let’s get one thing settled right here and now. You
did me a favor, Troy. You stepped in before God knows what could
have happened, and I can’t thank you enough. I’m only glad I didn’t
shoot you in the process.”

Affection welled into a grin. “Your aim
is better than that.”

“
Except that I didn’t see
you until it was too late.”

“
As you can see...” Troy
tugged at his T-shirt. “I’m plenty fine. Not a scratch on
me.”

A smile slipped onto her lips. “Jack
didn’t have a chance against you. You’re an amazing guy, Troy
Parker. One of the good ones.”

Startled by the compliment, he
stammered, “If only my parents held your opinion.”

Sadness changed her smile. “They do,
Troy. They’re simply struggling with your choices, that’s
all.”

“
Are you?”

She hesitated for the briefest of
seconds. “No.” Confidence worked slowly into her gaze. “I’m not. I
trust you know what’s best for your future, but to be honest, I’d
have been upset if Felicity decided against college. It’s a detour
every parent has trouble with. Give them time. They’ll come
around.”

Troy kicked at the ground. “I know you
mean well, Miss Delaney, but not everyone comes around. Some
bridges are burned crisp.”

“
That might be, but in all
my life I’ve never seen a bridge that can’t be rebuilt, including
the one between you and your folks.”

Emotion pulled at him. Delaney Wilkins
was one of a kind. Strong and sure, she didn’t waver in her
support. If she was on your side, you could count on her staying
put. “How come you couldn’t have been my mother?”

Delaney erupted into a laugh. “And
erase one of Felicity’s dearest childhood friends? I don’t think
so!”

Troy grinned. Growing up, Felicity,
Travis and he sure had been cinched together tighter than a freight
train on high speed. They played together, rode together, swam
together—even studied together, though he didn’t take part in a
whole lot of studying. Nobody dared tried to separate the trio.
Except for Travis. An odd sensation uncoiled in his gut. In high
school it had become clear that Travis wanted Felicity all to
himself. It was also when most of their troubles began. “Yeah, that
would have been weird.”

“
Definitely weird.” Delaney
gave a pat to a restless Sadie and the horse returned a low rumble
of a nicker. “Go on, Sadie.” Delaney gently pushed her toward her
stall. “I’ll be back for you this evening.” The animal obliged,
plodding in without protest. Troy waited as Delaney closed and
latched the stall gate. Pausing, Delaney focused on Troy. Brown
eyes turned velvet soft, matching the silken sheen of her long
sleek ponytail. “I’m glad you’re back, Troy.”

“
Er—I’m not actually back.”
Angst split his calm. “Didn’t Mr. Harris tell you?”

“
He did. But you’re back
enough for me.”

Affection swelled. She didn’t care
about any fake criminal charges. She was glad to have him home and
out of jail. Unlike his parents. It was a show of support that
meant the world to him. “Thank you.”

“
We’ll get through this,
Troy. You wait and see.”

He nodded. It was the “wait and see”
part that was going to be the hardest. Without a job, with criminal
charges hanging over his head and no place to live, he wasn’t sure
how he was going to make ends meet, let alone tie them together in
the middle.

When Delaney walked over and enfolded
him in a hug Troy was overcome by uncertainty but duly wrapped his
arms around her slender body and returned the gesture. It felt good
to be appreciated. Respected. Miss Delaney was like a mother to
him. She’d always looked out for him and Travis and probably always
would. Delaney Wilkins cared about his wellbeing, she cared about
his future. He wasn’t going to let her down. Not today, not ever.
Which brought him to someone else he wasn’t going to let down.
Releasing, he asked, “Do you mind if I use a phone? My cell battery
is dead.”

“
Of course. Use the one in
the office.” With a knowing smile she added, “Take your time, Troy.
There’s no hurry.”

Leaning forward, Felicity gently
squeezed her inner thighs into the muscular midsection of her black
mare, Blue, as the horse navigated the narrow trail along the
mountainside. Riding since she was ten, Felicity had a sense of
peace and calm. Blue felt like a best friend, a family member. The
animal was like an extension of her. Travis had suggested a ride
would get her mind off her troubles. Felicity had resisted all day,
but once her mom called to tell her Nick had Troy in his truck and
they were pulling away from the jail, Felicity tossed a bridle and
reins onto her horse and decided Travis was right. A bareback ride
on her mare might do her good.

The constant hoof-step, the rhythmic
bob of Blue’s head as she followed behind Travis’ beefy brown horse
was soothing. A canopy of green overhead, the earthy scent of clay
and bark, the cool misty rise of the river water combined to remind
her of better days before her father made life in Ladd Springs
miserable. Not only had he attacked her mother but he was accusing
Troy of a crime he didn’t commit. He’d had Troy thrown in
jail—jail!—where his parents let him sit until Nick bailed him out.
She couldn’t believe the Parkers would do such a thing, not when
Troy was innocent. Travis hadn’t been surprised though. He’d
actually had the nerve to agree with them.

Felicity could only pray that Nick
would get the charges against Troy dropped. She prayed he would put
an end to the madness her father created. But stone-cold reality
could prove very different.

Travis glanced back over his shoulder.
He wore no hat at the moment, his dark brown hair falling freely
across his brow. “Wanna take them swimming?”

Peering at her boyfriend, the one and
only boy she ever thought she could love, the best looking boy in
school with his tanned smooth-skinned complexion, gorgeous
chocolate brown eyes, overgrown layers of hair skimming past his
strong brow, Felicity shook her head. Swimming like they had in the
past held no appeal. At the moment she wasn’t sure she liked
Travis, let alone loved him.

He turned forward and continued to ride
in silence. Felicity dropped her gaze to his back, the gentle sway
of his body as it moved in sync with his horse. Like her, he rode
bareback. Like her, he loved these woods, these rides. Unlike her,
he wasn’t a fan of Troy’s. Something she didn’t
understand.

How could he be so callous toward his
brother? Knowing what he knew about Troy’s innocence, Travis had
sided with his parents agreeing the best thing for Troy was to sit
in jail for something he didn’t do. He had it coming, Travis said.
Maybe it would be the wakeup call he needed. Felicity vehemently
disagreed. Troy might have his problems but this wasn’t one of
them. This was Travis’ problem—a fact that was becoming more
apparent to her each day.

As they rode, Felicity dropped her gaze
to the massive brown flanks ahead of her, dwelling on the cause.
Ever since the two of them made their feelings for one another
public, Travis had grown angry with his brother. Where she would
have thought it would be the other way around, it wasn’t. Felicity
knew both boys had been vying for her attention over the years. She
wasn’t blind. While they were young, it hadn’t been an issue, the
three satisfied to hang out together. But as they entered high
school, the divide became obvious. Troy was hurt to learn she’d
chosen Travis. For a while he didn’t speak to her. They shared
words, but not with the same ease and intimacy. Travis told her not
to worry about Troy. He was jealous, angry.

Felicity didn’t like that
she’d hurt him but it was unavoidable. She couldn’t date both of
them, though they’d kidded about it numerous times. Eventually she
had to choose. Moving her gaze from the shiny rear muscles of the
Quarter Horse to Travis’ navy blue jeans and T-shirt, Felicity
settled on the thought.
She had chosen
him
.

As though sensing her gaze was
plastered to his back, he twisted his body around. Setting a hand
on the back of his horse to keep steady, he asked, “Are you still
mad at me?”

Staring into his dark eyes,
pools of affection held only for her, she thought,
no
. Disappointed was more
like it. Unfortunately, it was a concept Travis didn’t seem able to
comprehend. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“
So you’re going to punish
me instead?”

“
I’m not punishing
you.”

“
Yes, you are. You’re not
talking to me because you think I’m wrong about Troy.” His horse
missed a step as the animal began its descent down a slope, causing
Travis to turn, regain his balance until hitting level ground
whereby he twisted back. “I’m not, Felicity. You don’t know my
brother as well as I do. Troy needs a wakeup call. He needs to
learn that he can’t keep running off half-cocked just because he’s
mad.”

Felicity leaned back as Blue gingerly
made her way down, stepping over a rock to reach flatter ground.
Resting hand and reins against her thigh, Felicity returned,
“Justifiably so in this case, don’t you think?”

“
Maybe in this instance, but
what about all the others? He gets drunk because he’s mad. He quits
his job because he’s mad. The boy needs to learn about impulse
control. I’d think you’d agree, considering how you feel about
Casey these days.”

Bringing Casey up felt like a slap in
the face. Travis wasn’t a big fan of Casey either. He lumped her
together with Troy in the “immature and unstable” category. They
weren’t going to college. They were making a mess of their lives.
Felicity believed differently. In her mind they were two young
people trying to find their way. She also believed they loved each
other and love could see them through anything.

As the trail curved sharply
to the right, Travis turned forward, angling clear of a jutting
tree branch. Felicity could hear the river before she saw it.
Knowing their special place was located just ahead, special
feelings began to take on a new coloring. She was beginning to
doubt when it came to her and Travis. All he seemed to care about
was being right. Raising her voice as they neared the rushing
river, she said, “I think Troy is learning about stability
because
of Casey. I think
he’s made some mistakes but he’s owning up to them. He’s back,
isn’t it?”

“’
Cause he quit another
job,” Travis said, riding his horse down to a clearing by the
water’s edge. Behind him, fast-moving water careened over massive
boulders scattered along its path.

Pulling her mare up beside him,
Felicity leaned forward and stroked the meaty neck of her mare,
finishing with a few solid pats. Blue raised her head and shook her
mane. “He quit to be with Casey. What part about that don’t you
understand? In one breath you act like he’s supposed to do what’s
right by Casey and in the next you won’t give him the
chance.”

“
Troy doesn’t know his head
from his butt.”

Felicity grimaced. It was as if Travis
refused to see any good in his brother, any bright spots,
potential... Something she wasn’t seeing a lot of it in him at the
moment either. Sitting back on Blue, heedless to the dampness of
her jeans, she replied dully, “Whatever.”

Why were they riding
again
? This conversation certainly wasn’t
getting her mind off anything.

“
Felicity.” Travis reached
out for her, but she pulled out of reach, nearly causing him to
topple from his horse. He scowled. “Why are you being like
this?”

Collecting leather reins firmly in
hand, she said, “I could ask the same question of you,
Travis.”

“
Listen, when I see Troy
making progress I’ll be the first one to give him credit. But I
don’t. All I see is a hot head.”

The glimmer in his gaze irked her.
Sitting astride his horse, both man and animal magnificent in their
beauty and brawn, Travis appeared arrogant. He made no allowance
for error, no adjustment for life’s pitfalls. “You act as though
you’ve never made a mistake Travis. You’re not perfect, you
know.”

“
Never said I was,” he
replied, though it was clear he thought he was pretty darn close.
“But take your father.”

“
What about my
father?”

“
You thought he was worth a
second chance and look what happened.”

He wasn’t—is that what Travis was
trying to say? Was he trying to rub her nose in it? Beside her, the
powerful river seemed to flow right through her, escalating a surge
of emotion. “Those are two totally different
situations.”