Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 97369 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 487(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97369 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 487(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
Her gaze crawls along my body from my hat to the toes of my boots, like she’s unsure if I’m real. A somber, heartbreaking expression accompanies it. She clears her throat and finds another sad smile. “I would never. Keep talking. I think I caught something about you being tired. I think that was the gist of it. Right?”
I roll my eyes at myself, mirroring her by sliding my hands into my front pockets, so I don’t grab ahold of her. God, I want to touch her more than anything. “Yeah. That’s the gist of it. So … you’re in Dallas? I never dreamed you’d be uh … so close.”
She shrugs. “It’s hard to get very far without much money.”
I nod several times. She left everything behind, including the money in her bank account.
“I had five hundred dollars cash. I couldn’t waste it on a plane ticket. So I grabbed an Uber to Dallas.”
I can’t fucking believe it. All this time, she’s been this close.
“It’s been four years. Surely you’ve made enough money doing something to buy a plane ticket.”
Again, her gaze slides down my body and back to my face. She can’t hide the shock on her face. I don’t know what she sees on my face, but it’s pain and regret.
“True.” She clears her throat. “But I met someone. So I stayed here.”
Three words my heart wasn’t ready to hear. I’m not stupid. Of course, she met someone. Indie’s a beautiful, kind woman.
“That’s good. You look good. You must be doing …”
She chuckles. “Good? Yeah. I’m good. How about you?”
Me? Oh, I’m a blubbering idiot because I’m as much in love with this girl as I was the day she left with nothing more than a note in her wake.
“I’m surviving.”
Her smile fades a little. “I suppose surviving with the Ellingtons is as good as it gets.”
“Says Indiana Ellington.”
She shakes her head. “Indiana Hill. I legally changed my name. Grandma Hill and Faye love it.”
“You see them?”
“Of course. They’re my family.”
This angers me, but I don’t let Indie see it. Fletcher said he’s always in touch with them, always looking for Indie. I think I’ve always known it was a lie, but I couldn’t deal with the truth: He could find her, he just didn’t want to find her; he wanted to keep her away from me.
“Are you visiting someone?” I ask.
“No. Well, sort of. I work at a flower shop.” She lifts her arm, looking at her watch. “In fact, I have two more deliveries. I need to keep going.”
“Yeah, of course.”
There’s an awkward pause in our conversation. We look at each other, smile, then look away.
“Well, uh …” She forces her gaze to mine again.
I slide my hands out of my pockets. “Can I give you a hug?”
“Oh,” she laughs. “Probably not a good idea.”
My hands go right back into my pockets. “You’re seeing someone, that’s right. I don’t wanna—”
“No. I mean …” She closes her eyes and shakes her head. “I don’t think it’s a good idea because …” Her nose wrinkles, and she bites her lip. “We’re not that good at just hugging.”
I blink a few times. Is she really saying what I think she’s saying? I don’t blush easily, but Indie’s managed to bring heat to my face. I wet my lips and glance over her shoulder, scrounging every last bit of confidence I can find. “I get it.” I shrug. “You don’t trust yourself. I mean, it’s been four years, but I’m pretty unforgettable.”
“Pretty full of yourself is what you are, Milo Odell.”
I smirk, and it feels good even if she can still see me blushing like a pathetic teenager witnessing a pair of titties for the first time.
“But really…” again she looks at her watch “…I have to go.”
“You should give me your number or something.”
Her eyes narrow. “Did you get a divorce?”
“No.”
“Did your wife die?”
“No.”
She bites her lips together and stares at her feet for a second before pivoting and waltzing toward the door. “It was truly nice seeing you, Milo.”
That’s it? She appears out of nowhere after four years, and I don’t get a hug. An invite for coffee? Or her phone number?
26
COWBOY CONFIDENCE
INDIE
“Can you make one more delivery?” Lincoln asks as soon as I push through the shop's front door.
I hear him—sort of.
I saw MILO!
And I tried to play it cool.
My heart nearly crashed and died … bleeding at his feet.
I didn’t think I had a zero chance of running into him. However, with a population of over one-point-three million, and my working in a floral shop and delivering to private homes and hospitals, the chances felt close to zero.
He was nervous. And he blushed. I have never seen Milo Odell blush. He fumbled words and couldn’t stop grinning. It didn’t feel like four years; it felt like four seconds.