Kissin' Tell (Rough Riders #13)(100)

Not that Tell’s situation with his father had changed much. Casper only called to rail on Tell about something. And he hadn’t heard from his mother beyond a couple of short texts. She must not have needed a baby-sitter.


As far as Tell was concerned, out of sight, out of mind was the best way to deal with his folks. He couldn’t change them or their behavior, so why even try now? He was beyond pretending it would make a difference. The only control he had in the situation was not letting his past ruin his future.


A future he hoped to have with Georgia.


After he’d tried her phone for the twentieth time and the call was immediately kicked over to voice mail for the twentieth time, he drove into town. His panic increased when he pulled up in front of her house and saw her car parked in the drive. What if she was sick? She didn’t answer his knock.


Tempting to break in, but he found a space between the fence and a lilac bush that allowed him to enter the backyard. He hoped she’d just lost track of time and was sitting on the swing, enjoying the late afternoon sunshine on this mild summer day.


No sign of her.


Tell tried the handle on the back door and discovered it was unlocked. He stepped into the kitchen and called out, “Georgia?”



Silence.


The coffee pot was half full of cold coffee. One bowl, one spoon and one cup were in the sink. Just as he decided to check her bedroom upstairs, he noticed her cell phone on the table. Right next to a calendar.


He didn’t pay much attention to dates, and most days he’d be hard-pressed to answer if someone asked him the actual date. He saw that she’d written in events for all the days of this month except for one. This day, the third of August, was devoid of any marks.


A punch of sadness hit him as well as guilt.


Now he had a pretty good idea where she was.


It was so like Georgia not to mention it. He hoped she wouldn’t reject his comfort because he hadn’t remembered what today was.


Although it wasn’t far to the cemetery, Tell opted to drive. The gates were still open and he parked in the empty visitors’ lot. Gravel crunched beneath his boots as he started on the first path.


This was one of the few places in Sundance where deciduous trees grew. Weeping willows, which were appropriate, he supposed. Soft breezes stirred the branches. Dappled sunlight threw shadows on the manicured grounds and across the headstones.


Tell avoided the cemetery as a general rule. The McKays had their own section in the far corner, in the oldest part, since his great-great-grandfather Jonas McKay had been one of the first settlers in Wyoming Territory. The odd thing was he’d only been in this cemetery twice. For his grandfather Jed McKay’s burial and when they buried Luke. He remembered his surprise at seeing how few McKays were buried there, and feeling sadness at how much space was available for the existing McKays


He’d never understood why his mother came here bearing flowers and tears—because Luke wasn’t here. Were visits solely a reminder of the finality of death? Or some weird prompt for survivors not to forget the loved one they’d lost?


Trying to keep his morbid thoughts at bay, he scanned the neatly ordered sections of grave markers, some elaborate, some simple, some so weathered by the harsh Wyoming elements the names and dates were no longer visible.


Then he saw her, five rows over, sitting cross-legged, her back to him. Her glorious black hair shone in the sunlight.


Part of him wanted to leave, to let her have the private moment, just relieved he knew where she was.


But a bigger part of him wanted her to realize he was there, ready to give her whatever she needed, whenever she needed it.


And that’s when Tell knew that he was in love with her. Not the beautiful girl from his past he’d put on a pedestal. But the beautiful, complex woman she’d become, even when she swore she wasn’t sure who that woman was. The woman he’d cherish every damn day of his life, if she let him.


Confessing his love while she wept at her brother’s grave could possibly be the worst timing in the world.


He approached her cautiously.


Georgia glanced up when Tell’s shadow fell across her. She wiped her tears and managed a wan smile. “I don’t know why I’m surprised you found me.”


Tell crouched down, within touching distance if she was so inclined to reach out for him. “As far as hiding places go, this is a pretty good one. Or a pretty bad one, depending.”


“Bad, mostly. But no one looks at you funny if you’re sitting alone crying.” She sniffled. “Mostly they just leave you be.”


“Do you want me to go?”


She shook her head.


He watched her, not shocked by her grief, but by the fact that she wasn’t chasing him away. Maybe she did need him for more than sex and good times.


“I haven’t been here since a year after his accident.” Her fingers plucked pieces of grass, turning the blades into green confetti. “I don’t know what I expected to be different. Maybe if I started talking to him, like in the movies, his ghost would appear. But to be honest, I’d probably wet my pants and run away screaming if that did happen.”


He had no idea what to say to that, so he said nothing.