When the Heart Falls (18 page)

“
Brad, I have a head injury. People say stupid things when they’ve got a knot on their head the size of Texas,” she said trying to cover up for her misspoken words.

Brad shook his head. “Head injury or not, you love me still and I know you do. Give me another chance, Misty. I promise I’ll be the husband to you that I was supposed to be all these years,” he pleaded.

“
No, Brad, people don’t change overnight. You aren’t what makes me happy anymore.”

Brad eyed her suspiciously. “Is that cowboy who was here earlier what makes you happy now?”

Misty diverted her eyes from him and looked out the large window to the outside world.

“
I see,” Brad said. “We have two weeks till our divorce is final. Don’t throw me out of the picture just yet, Mis. Think about the life we had and could still have. Think about what I can offer you. You’d be comfortable with me, Misty. You’d never have to want for anything. Whatever you want you can have it. Just say the word and it’s yours. Think about it and if in two weeks you still want your divorce you can have it. But if you decide you want me instead, I’ll be ready and willing,” he said and reached for her hand.

She pulled it back and crossed her arms. “I think you should leave,” she said, still staring out the window.

Brad leaned over and kissed the top of her hair. “Think about it,” he whispered in her ear and walked out of the room.

She would think about it. She would think about all the times he lied to her about working late and lying to her about false business meetings. Taking Brad Prescott back was about as smart of an idea as playing tetherball with a bee hive. She was duped once and she be damned if she’d be duped again. She knew exactly where she belonged now. Having a near death experience made her realize that life is too short for waiting. From this day on she decided she would let her heart lead her way through life. And she knew exactly where it would take her; straight into Dylan’s arms.

CHAPTER 15

Misty stood in her bedroom, tapping her boot on the wood floor as she waited for the beep to begin her message.

“
Dylan, it’s Misty…again. I really need to talk to you. Can you 
please
 call me back as soon as you get this?”

She pulled the cell phone away from her ear, pressed the end button and stuck it in her back pocket. She walked over to her window and pulled the curtain back to look outside. It was going to be another hot and muggy day, the kind that made you thankful for air conditioning. When she had dressed for this morning’s chores she had put on her usual jeans and white tank top. But as soon as she stepped out the door she quickly changed her mind and ran back upstairs and threw on a pair of cut off jean shorts.

At eight o’clock in the morning it had to be every bit of ninety degrees already, and now that it was almost noon she could only imagine how hot and miserable it was outside. At least they were finally going to be getting some rain. The weatherman on the TV this morning had said that a patch of storms were heading this way and should be arriving late this afternoon and through this evening. The much needed precipitation would bring some relief to the hot dry air.

Misty sighed, walked across the room and out the door to go downstairs. When she walked into the kitchen, Maggie was standing at the sink staring out the window oblivious to the fact that Misty was in the room.

“
Mom?” Misty asked.

Maggie jumped a little at the sound of Misty’s voice and turned to look at her daughter. “Oh my, you startled me,” Maggie said as she placed her hand over her heart and took a deep breath to calm herself.

“
Sorry, I wasn’t trying to. Are you ok?” Misty said eyeing her mother suspiciously.

“
I’m fine, sweetie,” Maggie said and wiped her hands on a dish towel.

“
Are you sure? Because it seems like you were thinking real hard about something.”

“
I was just daydreaming,” Maggie said with a forced smile.

Misty could tell that something was bothering her mother, but decided not to pry any further. If Maggie wanted to talk, she would do so on her own terms.

“
What are you up to?” Maggie asked.

“
Nothing much, just trying to think of every excuse I can to not go back outside.” Misty chuckled.

“
I don’t blame you. Your father said that it was hotter than a bonfire in hell out there.”

“
My father the poet.” Misty chuckled again.

Maggie joined in her amusement and replied, “He does have a way with words doesn’t he?”

Misty walked over to the cabinet and pulled out a tall glass. She went to the fridge and grabbed the pitcher of iced tea and filled her glass almost to the brim. She took a seat at the table, took a sip from the glass and placed it in front of her. Maggie watched her with a puzzled look.

“
What’s wrong?” Maggie asked.

Misty looked at Maggie and shrugged. “Men, Mom, that’s what’s wrong.”

“
Haven’t heard from Dylan?”

Misty nodded and added, “I just don’t understand why he can’t pick up a phone and call me back. I’ve been trying to reach him for a week now. I’m starting to wonder if he’s avoiding me or something.”

“
You know you could always just drive over to his ranch and talk to him in person,” Maggie suggested.

“
I thought about that,” Misty said, taking another sip of tea.

“
So if you thought about it, then why haven’t you done it?”

“
I don’t know. I guess I’m scared to find out that he’s mad at me or something. I mean there has to be a reason for him to just ignore me like this.”

“
Well, you’re not going to find out just sitting around here now are you. Here,” Maggie said and tossed her truck keys at Misty. “Take my truck and drive over to the McCoy ranch and just talk to him. Put your mind at ease.”

Misty sighed and pushed herself away from the table. “Alright, I’ll be back in a little bit,” she said as she walked passed Maggie and out the back door.

Jack was walking up the porch steps as Misty was just about to hop in the truck.

“
Where you off to, kiddo?” he asked.

“
Gonna go see Dylan. I’ll be back later,” she replied and waved as she hopped in the driver’s seat.

The truck rumbled to life as Jack walked into the kitchen and hung his cowboy hat on the peg on the wall. He removed a blue bandana from his back pocket and wiped his forehead with it.

“
Tea?” Maggie asked.

“
That’d be great,” Jack said as he walked over to the sink and washed his hands. She handed him the glass as soon as he was done wiping his hands dry. He downed the contents of it in four large gulps.

“
More?” Maggie asked.

“
Please,” Jacked replied and took a seat at the table. She handed him the refilled glass and he gestured for her to take the seat next to him.

“
What’s wrong?” she asked.

“
I didn’t even say anything yet,” Jack said.

“
You don’t have to say anything. I know well enough just by looking at you that something is bothering you and has been bothering you all day. Now spill,” she told him.

Jack let out a long sigh. “Fifteen more head of cattle have gone missing,” he told her in a hushed tone.

“
Oh, Jack. Fifteen?” Maggie said surprised. “Can’t you figure out how they are going missing?”

“
It’s got to be wranglers, and damn good ones. None of the boys have seen anyone or anything suspicious,” he told her as he took another gulp of tea.

“
That’s not the whole story,” Maggie said.

“
You’re good,” Jack replied with a slight smile. “I’m afraid that we might not have enough money to cover the expenses of the ranch without the full herd of cattle.”

“
I was afraid you were going to say that. What are we going to do?”

“
Well, there’s more. I had a visit from a Trent Montgomery last week. He’s one of the wealthiest ranchers in the area, and he’s interested in our land,” Jack told her and waited for her reaction.

Maggie looked at him like she didn’t understand what he had just told her. “He wants to buy our ranch?” she asked.

“
Yup, offered me a cash down payment and everything till we could get the papers drawn up.”

“
You’re not really thinking about doing it are you Jack?”

“
Hell no,” he replied. “I’ve worked too hard to just give up our land that easy.”

Maggie sighed with relief. “Shoo. For a moment there I was sure you were going to tell me you were actually thinking about telling him yes.”

“
You really thought I was going to tell him yes? Woman, that’s the craziest thing you’ve said in a long time.” He chuckled. “We’ve got another few weeks until the cattle sale. We’ll see what that pulls in and then we’ll take things from there. He looked into her eyes and smiled. “Everything will work out, Maggs, one way or another. I promise.”

*** 

Misty parked the truck next to Dylan’s and shut off the ignition. 

Good he’s home
, she thought.

She got out of the truck and walked over to the porch. Katherine walked out of the back door just as Misty approached.

“
Hi, Misty. What brings you here?” Katherine asked.

“
Hi, Mrs. McCoy. I was coming by to see Dylan. Is he around by any chance?”

“
He took one of the four-wheelers out to the north side to mend some fence. He just left a few minutes ago,” Katherine informed her.

Misty’s shoulders slumped a little and she let out a small sigh. Katherine, seeing Misty’s reaction, added, “I would call him and tell him you’re here but he left his phone in the kitchen before he left. If you want, I can have one of the men take you out to him.”

“
I don’t want to be a bother. I’m sure they are busy,” Misty said.

“
Nonsense, child, I know he’s been avoiding your phone calls and I’ve told him he’s being ridiculous. You need to talk to him and set him straight. I’ll get Carl to take you out there.”

“
Thank you, ma’am,” Misty said with a smile. So Dylan
was
avoiding her. What was his problem? Was he mad at her because of the car accident? It wasn’t her fault that her brakes didn’t work. And it wasn’t her fault that the stupid car behind them ran them off the road. So why would he blame her? She turned her head at the sound of a four wheeler approaching. She didn’t recognize the tall, lanky man that was on it but assumed him to be Carl.

“
Miss Misty?” he asked stopping in front of her.

She nodded and he continued. “I’m Carl. Mrs. McCoy asked me to take you out to the north forty where Dylan is. Hop on the back and we’ll get going.”

She complied with his request and held onto the rack on the back of the four wheeler instead of wrapping her arms around his waist. She glanced over him as he drove the four-wheeler out of the yard and into the pasture. He looked more like a boy than a man. She would guess that he was all of nineteen at the most.

“
Hang on tight, Miss Misty,” he instructed over the rumble of the engine as he pushed the gas and the four-wheeler increased in speed. The air rushing by them felt refreshing on her skin but was tainted with the smell of sweat. She attempted to breathe in fresh air and hoped that Dylan wasn’t too much further away. As they drove, she let her eyes wander over the landscape and looked out to the horizon. Dark clouds were gathering in the west and seemed to be approaching quickly.

“
There he is,” Carl said, pointing out in front of him.

“
Thank you, Carl. You can stop here. I’ll walk the rest of the way,” she said, tapping him on the shoulder to get his attention.

“
Yes, ma’am,” he said and pulled the four-wheeler to a stop.

She thanked him for the ride and he drove off as she walked over to where Dylan was mending some barbed wire. He looked up as she walked closer. Why did she have to make him feel like he was on fire every time he looked at her? She looked so damn hot in her white tank top, daisy duke shorts, red cowboy boots, and windswept hair. He quickly diverted his eyes before his thoughts went wild and went back to working on the fence.

“
What are you doing here?” he asked without looking at her.