Learning the Ropes (22 page)

I sure hope Mom didn’t tell him Chris spent the night.

“He’s got his head up his ass these days.” Apparently, David was just getting warmed up.

She leaned back in the chair. “David, it’s fine. I know how Chris is, so do my parents. He’s impulsive and doesn’t think a lot of the time. But my mother loves him, she always has.”

David hooked an arm over the back of his chair and arched a brow. “Is she the only one?”

Alicia paused mid-sip and looked at him over the rim of her paper cup. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

He let out a slow exhale and put his cup on the table before folding his hands. He studied her for a moment before speaking. “It means there’s no need for us to have any sort of a conversation about giving me another chance, is there?” His eyes grew sad and he shook his head. “You’re in love with Chris, aren’t you?”

She was surprised by his point-blank question and wasn’t prepared for it. She stared down at the cup in her hands as if she might find the answer in the latte foam.

“He’s going to break your heart. You realize that?”

She pinched her lips together, still unable to meet his gaze, and nodded slightly.

“Ali, look at me.” She lifted her eyes to his and was met with sympathy. He reached for her hand and squeezed it. “I care about you and I want to see you happy. I just hoped it would be with me.” He kissed the back of her hand. “For the record, I love him like a brother but he only knows how to make Chris happy. I don’t think Chris can make you happy.”

She slipped her hand from his. “Can we talk about something else?”

David sat back. “Sure.” The corner of his mouth curved up in a half-smile and his dark eyes glimmered mischievously. “Now that I’ve been friend-zoned, what’ve you been up to when you’re not being yelled at by crazy ex-rodeo stars or assaulted by drunken cowboys in the middle of the night?”

She couldn’t help but laugh at the humor in his voice. She really did like David and was grateful for his understanding. He was a good friend to have. “Well, there’s this one cowboy who seems intent on stalking me and forcing me to have coffee with him.”

“Huh, you don’t say?” He tipped his cup toward her and winked. “You’re a lucky woman.”

Chapter Fifteen

I
T WAS RIDICULOUS
for him to sit here, wondering what David and Ali were talking about. If he wanted to know, he should just go into town and join them for coffee. They were all adults, not to mention friends, and should be able to sit down and talk this through. The problem was, he wasn’t sure what
this
was. Were he and Ali dating? The way she’d acted this morning, it was nothing more than a casual romp but it hadn’t felt that way for him. Then again, all of this was entirely foreign territory for him.

He had never wanted to be with someone for any extended period before but when he was with Ali, he found himself getting tongue-tied and twisted like he was sixteen again. Not to mention that his body seemed intent on losing all self-control as soon as she walked into the room. He might not be a randy teenager anymore but, so far, since this morning, all he’d thought about was the sweet scent of her skin as he pressed his face between her breasts. The taste of her clung to his lips and his fingers itched to glide over her skin again.

He slammed the side of his fist against the wall of the barn in frustration. He’d come out here to fix the broken stall door but he wasn’t accomplishing anything but fantasizing about Ali. Ali, who was alone with David right now. After their conversation this morning, he could only imagine what David was telling her. He tried to convince himself that David didn’t play dirty, that he would never try to steal her from him. But wasn’t that what Chris had done? They’d never been in competition for a woman before.

Do you really think she’d choose you when she could have him?

It was the final straw. He wasn’t about to sit around when he could lose Ali, not after he’d finally realized how much he wanted her. Chris threw his tools back into the tack room and left the job half-finished. He walked into the kitchen, ignoring his mother’s worried frown and reached for his truck keys.

“Heading out for a while?”

He jingled his keys knowing his mother was trying to ask him why without voicing the question. “Just into town. Need anything while I’m there?”

She laid down her pen and crossed her hands over the bills on the counter. “You’ve been gone a lot lately. I know you’re a grown man and—”

“Mom, I’m just running into town for a few things for the barn.”

She arched a slim brow at him and cocked her head. “So, this has nothing to do with Ali?”

He could tell it was a rhetorical question. She had no doubt about being right. He leaned against the door frame, crossing his arms. “What did Sydney tell you?”

She laughed, her blue eyes glimmering with delight. “A blind man could see you’re attracted to her. I didn’t need your sister to tell me anything.” Chris clenched his jaw, refusing to say anything, waiting for his mother to get to the point. She held up her hands. “Fine, I’ll mind my own business.”

“Good.”

“But remember, son, Ali is like family. Your father and I love her. We don’t want to see anyone get hurt.”

“I’m not going to hurt her,” he muttered. “Why does everyone keep saying that?” Chris started for the front door.

“I never said she was the one who would get hurt.”

Chris shut the door before he heard any more. His stomach was twisted in as many knots as his thoughts. This was why he avoided relationships like the plague.

C
HRIS PULLED INTO
town and parked his truck in front of the hardware store and immediately spotted Ali’s truck in front of The Queen Bean. He could see her through the front window, seated with her back toward him. He couldn’t see anyone with her but it didn’t mean she was alone. David’s truck was parked beside hers so Chris knew he was in there with her.

“So what,” he muttered to himself. Ali didn’t have to clear her afternoon plans with him.

Her head tipped backward as she laughed at something her companion said. All thoughts of the hardware store vanished as his feet carried him across the street and toward the coffee shop. As he neared the entrance, he saw David clearly through the window, his hand over hers. Anger bubbled just below the surface as he watched him rise and put a hand on her shoulder before leaning down toward her.

Chris couldn’t see Ali with David’s body blocking her but it was clear that David was leaning forward for a kiss. His hands fisted at his sides, his jaw tightening to the point it was painful. David straightened, spotting him through the front windows and gave him a cocky grin. Ali turned in her seat and the color drained from her face. That look told him all he needed to know. He turned on a heel and headed back across the street, jerking his keys from his pocket.

“Chris, wait!”

He wasn’t going to wait and hear her confess how she’d rather be with someone like David than him, how this morning didn’t mean anything, how they could still be friends. He’d heard it all before but it was usually him giving the spiel. It sucked being on the receiving end of the speech.

He jerked open the door of the truck, surprised as she slammed it shut before he could get in. “Will you stop for a second?”

“Why, Ali? I think I get it.”

“I don’t think you do. We were just talking.”

“Talking?” He cocked his head, looking down at her. “That didn’t look like talking.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re jealous of David? Well, isn’t that rich coming from the guy who’s dated every woman within a twenty mile radius.”

He ignored the tightness in his chest, hating the feeling more than he’d ever thought possible, hating the vulnerability he knew she could clearly see. Hating that her words stung. This wasn’t who he was, this needy, jealous guy, crying over a broken heart. Screw this.

Cowboy up, asshole.
Chris pulled the truck door open and climbed inside. “I don’t have time for this crap. I have to get the barn fixed. Tell David I’ll see him this weekend.”

“H
EY, LADY, WHEN
are you coming back out this way?” Sydney’s voice and the commotion she could hear in the background of the phone was a welcome reprieve from the drama she’d caused herself lately.

“I wish I could. I could use someone to talk to,” she confided.

“Then why haven’t you called sooner? Spill it and don’t leave out any juicy details.” Ali smiled at her friend’s scolding.

“I don’t know if you have enough time for it all at once.”

“Kassie just went down for a nap and Scott is in the barn since Derek just came back from a rodeo in Idaho. So, I’ve got all the time you need,” she promised.

“I don’t even know where to start.” She sighed. “I’m really confused.”

“You could start with telling me how things are going with David. You two seemed pretty cozy at Mom’s house.”

“Yeah, well,” she hemmed, “that’s over.”

“Over? Chris didn’t tell me that. When did that happen? Are you okay? Do I need to have Scott, Clay, and Derek kick his ass the next time we see him?”

“Slow down,” Alicia laughed at her friend’s rapid-fire questions. “The other night, I’m fine and no ass-kicking is necessary. I broke up with him.”

“Why? You two looked so happy together.”

“His father didn’t seem to care.” She lay back on her bed, the phone tucked between her shoulder and ear. “And had plenty to say about it when I went out to dinner with David, his brother, and Colt.”

“I’ve met Colt Greenly once and he was an obnoxious jerk but I’ve never known you to let what anyone says bother you. If you can handle Delilah, he’s a piece of cake.”

“It tends to make a relationship hard when the family thinks you’re after his money.” She put the phone on speaker and tossed it onto the bed, rising to pace. “And Colt is much harder to take than Delilah. But I don’t think it was going to work out with David anyway. He’s really nice but, let’s be honest, he’s too good for me.”

“What are you talking about?” Sydney yelled. “Did you fall off Beast onto your head? I thought you were going to say because of Chris.
That
I could understand but to think you’re not good enough? That’s just—”

“Wait a minute, what do you mean ‘because of Chris?’” Alicia’s heart stopped.
He wouldn’t have told Sydney what happened, would he?

“Alicia, everyone knows you guys have always had a thing for each other.”

“Everyone who?” She reached for the phone on the bed. If other people could see she had this stupid girlish crush on Chris then he had to have known as well.

Sydney laughed. “Are the two of you blind?
Everyone
. Neither of you is any good at hiding anything. We’ve all just been waiting for you both to see it. Why do you think Delilah hates you?”

“Because of Chris?”

“Because Chris turned her down for the junior prom so he could go watch you barrel race with me.”

Alicia thought back to the night. It was her junior year of high school and she was bummed because no one had asked her. It didn’t help that they were graduating and Alicia was planning on leaving home far behind her, so she’d decided to forget about prom and get an early start barrel racing professionally. She’d promised to compete in the rodeo queen competition that year with Sydney but barrel racing was where her heart resided. She’d won her first go-round as a pro and Chris had been waiting to congratulate her at the trailer with a bear hug. She remembered practically melting into his arms as he swung her around before taking her out for ice cream to celebrate. It was the night she’d stopped looking at him as Sydney’s brother.

“Don’t you remember?” Sydney’s voice broke into her thoughts, jerking her back from the memory.

“Yeah,” Alicia whispered. “I do. I just . . .”

“You really didn’t know how he felt?” Alicia could hear male voices in the background of the phone. “Well, now that you know, what are you going to do about it?”

Alicia bit down on her lip, hard, trying to keep her angry tears at bay. All this time, Chris had feelings for her? Why hadn’t he ever said something? And if he cared, why gallivant all over the state sleeping with a different woman every night of the week? Unless Sydney was wrong. Wanting and loving were two entirely different sentiments.

“Nothing.”

Alicia stared out the window and it was suddenly clear what she needed to do. She couldn’t put herself through the torment of seeing Chris at the rodeos, constantly flirting with new women while her heart was being shredded. By taking the job with Bradley, she would be able to get the loan from the bank, purchase the property, and help her father achieve his dream of training his own horses. Maybe it wasn’t exactly the way she’d hoped to achieve her dream of teaching kids to ride barrels but there was more than one way to get there. This path would save the friendship between David and Chris and would be far kinder to her heart. This was better for everyone in the long run.

“You can’t do
nothing!
” Alicia heard Kassie’s voice demanding her mother’s attention. “Hold on a second, baby. Mama will come out and watch you rope with Daddy after I get off the phone with Auntie Ali, okay?”

Ali smiled sadly as she heard Kassie’s sleepy voice begging for the phone, to say hello. “Go have fun with Kassie and Scott. I’ll come see you guys soon.”

“What? I thought you had . . . Ali, you’re not even making any sense.”

“I’ll call you in a few days when I get all the details situated.” She didn’t wait for an argument from Sydney before disconnecting the call and heading toward the main house to meet with Bradley.

C
HRIS STOOD IN
the doorway of the barn feeling sick to his stomach. He’d been trying to figure out a way to apologize to Ali, to explain his overreaction to seeing David kiss her cheek, but every line he’d rehearsed on the drive over here vanished when he saw her brushing down Beast, the light coming from the other end of the open barn highlighting her enticing curves. How could any woman look that sexy in a tank top and jeans?