The Country Duet(41)

Teale is at my side, dropping to her knees, dirtying herself in the ways of the ranch. After the shock has worn off, she’s all in. By the time we head back up to the house, I’m not sure who’s covered in more shit.

I watch her as she bends over kicking off her boots. That ass will never get old.

“See, baby.” I grab her, bringing her back to my chest. “The best part is cleaning up after a day of long work.”

“Hunter.” Her tone warning. “Told you I’m not going to disrespect your parents.”

“You can sleep in the guest room. I just need my back washed.”

She turns in my arms, removing my work cowboy hat from my head and tossing it on the washer. “Funny how you ended up in my bed last night.”

“Let’s go get clean.” I back her out into the dark hallway. “We have the house to ourselves before everyone gets back.”

Teale giggles the whole way to the bathroom and continues to do so once we are under the spray.





Chapter 17


Hunter


“May your belly never grumble, may your heart never ache, may your horse never stumble, may your cinch never break.” -Unknown



“I don’t want to go back.” Teale kicks her bare feet out of the window.

It’s an abnormally warm day for early spring. We have the windows down and Sam Hunt is blaring.

“I mean, I love my dad and all, but it was like paradise at the ranch the last couple of days. I could live there forever.”

I smirk over at her, enjoying the view of her long legs. She bought the shortest pair of jean shorts while out shopping with my mom. Jesus, and I thought I loved those skinny jeans on her. I was completely wrong in every which way.

Then thoughts of her living on the ranch with me and starting our own family consumes me. My mind races with all sorts of possibilities until I ground myself to reality. We’re nearing the campus and back to regular life. I was shocked when Teale split her time between the girls and work on the ranch with me. She made it entertaining, even getting a few chuckles out of Dad.

“Gotta check on Dave tonight.” I wipe the weariness from my eyes from the long drive. “He hasn’t answered my calls since we arrived at the ranch.”

“And no answers from the hospitals?” She worries her bottom lip.

“Nothing,” I admit.

“Okay, I need to get to the shop to catch up on bookkeeping and school work.”

“Meet at my place tonight?” I ask.

“You know it.” Teale creeps back to the center, tucking her legs underneath her. “I’ll never be able to thank you for what you gave me this weekend. It was like a glimpse into everything I could have.”

“Will have,” I correct her.

Teale kisses me for a long time before hopping out of the truck. She leaves her bags in the backseat, letting me know she’ll do our laundry later tonight. I’m still lost deep in thought while driving out to Dave’s house. Life is good. Funny, I keep finding myself repeating that sentiment during some of the toughest days of my life.

It’s like a nightmare on repeat when I pull into Dave’s driveway, but this time the ambulance is roaring out the lane and onto the paved road. I whip my truck around and tail it all the way back to town. They don’t stop in Moscow, but continue on to Lewiston.

I’m racing from my truck as soon as the ambulance pulls in. No one answers my questions. Finally, getting to a waiting area, I ask to see Dave.

“Are you family?”

“No.” I grab the back of my neck pissed off. “I’m the only person he has.”

“Sorry, can’t update you.” She kindly nods to a seat in the waiting area.

I could get pissed, angry, and demand answers, but I’ve learned none of that generates any good. So, I take a seat and wait, sending a quick text to Teale telling her I’d meet her at my place. The minutes creep by, morphing into a few hours until I hear from another single soul.

“Hunter Yates.”

I stand up, making myself dizzy from the quick reaction. “Yeah.”

“Dave is asking for his boy. He’d like to see you.”

I walk alongside the nurse, entering an elevator and watching her push the button to floor four.

“Is he okay? What happened?”

“His mail lady called the police. He was found with his arm caught in the back of a folding chair next to his bed.”

Goddamit, Dave. I’ve told him we needed to move that chair. I remove my hat before entering his room. His one arm is bandaged from the shoulder to the wrist. His color vacant is once again, mirroring the same image as the bed sheet.

“There’s my boy,” he croaks out. “Bring me any candy?”

The nurse turns and leaves, giving us some privacy.

“What the hell happened, Dave?” I take a seat next to his bed.

“Got to coughing real bad and fell out of bed. Couldn’t get up because I was stuck in a chair.” He grins slyly. “Guess the only thing keeping me alive is my sorry ass driving out to the mail box every day when I can.”

“This ain’t right, Dave. You need eyes on you all the time.”

“My life is over, Hunter. I’m tired.”

I know his spirits are crushed. He only gets this way when he’s tired and defeated.