Page 86 of The Cowboy Who Looked Again

So they’d gone to Dallas. To her apartment there. Link didn’t want to think of her there alone, readjusting to the life she’d had there once…without him.

He once again became a different man, because that was what love did to a cowboy. Once he knew who he wanted to spend his life with, that love drove him to do better, be better, make quicker decisions, speak up, love her with all he had.

Link paced in his kitchen, his hand curled around his phone. Love for Misty made him feel bolder, braver, and better. He raised his phone and tapped to dial her. It was evening, and surely she wasn’t working in Dallas tonight.

Her line rang once, twice, three times, and then she said, “Link, hi.”

Relief rang through him. “Misty,” he said. “Hey, baby, how are you?”

“Good,” she said softly, and he imagined her to be hiding in a closet or around a corner. “Listen, it’s not a great time to talk.”

“Are you safe?”

“What? Yes, of course.”

“I miss you,” he said. “I expected you back here by tonight.” He spoke gently, hoping she wouldn’t think he was accusing her.

“Danny doesn’t want to come,” she said. “I changed my flight to Sunday, in the hopes I can convince him.”

Link didn’t want to tell her to leave him behind. He didn’t understand all of the family dynamics with Misty and her brother, but he knew Misty felt a great obligation to Danny. She still carried guilt for what his life had become, and Link couldn’t imagine what it would take for her to move past that.

He only knew he didn’t want her doing it alone.

“I’ll be there in the morning,” he said. When Misty said nothing, he continued with, “Give me your address, sweetheart, and I’ll bring breakfast for you and your brother.”

“Lincoln,” she said, using his full name.

“I—” He cut himself off before he could tell her he loved her over the phone. “Don’t tell me no,” he whispered. “Just give me your address and tell me if Danny likes quiche as much as you do.”

He ignored the nervous tremble in his stomach that told him he’d never been on an airplane before. He’d never booked a flight. He had no idea if he could actually get from Amarillo to Dallas in the next fourteen hours or not.

“Danny’s a garbage disposal,” Misty whispered. “He’ll eat anything.”

“Great,” Link said, keeping his voice low too. “I’ll see you both tomorrow.”

“You don’t need to do this.”

“Yes,” he said. “I do. And you wanted me to meet Danny, right?”

“Right,” she said.

“Well, then, I’ll see you both tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Link,” Misty whispered, and he did his best not to coo good-bye to her. Then he turned in a full circle, trying to get his mind wrapped around what he’d just said he’d do.

Then he grabbed his jacket—the evenings could get a little chilly if there was a breeze at all. He’d made it out the door before he realized he needed to take some clothes with him. So he backtracked to his bedroom and tossed a few things into a backpack—another pair of jeans, two T-shirts, extra socks and underwear, a stick of deodorant, and his toothbrush—before leaving again.

Down at the firepit, he expected to find Uncle Ward there, getting the fire ready for roasting marshmallows and Starburst later. Link wasn’t expecting to be the first man there, but he also hadn’t anticipated being the last.

He probably wasn’t, but it felt like it as he pulled up and jogged down the gravel path. He found his aunts setting up food, and his uncles putting out more chairs. They’d invited everyone on the ranch to tonight’s dinner, because so many of them had been working for five straight days.

“Uncle Preacher,” he said, breathless as he reached his uncle. Uncle Ward stood dozens of yards away, but Link would have to check with him too. He didn’t have time to deal with any of this, as a sense of urgency to get a ticket and get to the airport came over him.

“Hey, Link.” Preacher grinned for a moment, then quickly took in the look on Link’s face. Whatever he was showing caused his uncle to sober instantly. “What’s wrong?”

“I—I need the weekend off.”

To Preacher’s credit, he didn’t refuse, and he didn’t even question. “Okay,” he said. “We’re already operating on a vacation schedule after the round-up. You go do what you need to do.”

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