Page 40 of Colt

Chelsea sat up and looked at him. “Never?”

“Never.” He shrugged. “I guess I’ve always been content being single.”

“A confirmed bachelor, huh?” she teased.

“Yeah, I suppose you could say that. Tell me about your ex-husband.”

Chelsea sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “I met Ron at Dewey’s one night. He stuck out like a sore thumb in that bar. But we danced and had fun, and he called me the next day to go on our first date.”

“How long ago was this?”

“Thirteen years ago. I was twenty-three at the time. We were married for ten years and divorced for three now,” she explained.

“No kids?” Colt asked.

“No, he kept putting it off. Now I know why,” Chelsea said with bitterness in her voice. “Having a child would have interfered with his whoring around. The first time he cheated on me was five years into our marriage. Well, that’s the first time I found out about it anyway. Who knows how many times it happened before that? When I told him I wanted a divorce, he suggested counseling. We went, and I thought things were getting better. But then on our tenth anniversary, we were at the Hartland for dinner, when a woman I didn’t know came over to our table and he introduced her as a coworker. But I could tell by the way they looked at each other and their awkward conversation that something was going on. When we got home, I confronted him, and he finally admitted that he had been seeing her for two years.”

“Two years? Fuck,” Colt cursed under his breath.

“Yeah,” Chelsea agreed sadly. “It broke my heart, but I promised myself I would get over him, and with the support of my friends and family, I did. For three years after the divorce, I didn’t date anyone. I was too scared.” She looked into his eyes. “You’re the first man I’ve wanted to be with since then.”

“I’m sorry he did that to you. But karma will catch up to him eventually,” Colt said reassuringly.

Chelsea laughed bitterly. “It already has. She cheated on him and left him for another man. Ron divorced her.”

“I bet that felt good when you found out,” Colt remarked.

“It felt amazing,” she admitted, resting her head back on his chest.

“Do you ever see him?”

“No, not for almost two years now. He actually wanted to screw around with me on his wife.”

“Damn, what a piece of work.”

“It seems like we’ve both been let down by people. Me with Ron and you with your mother.”

“Yeah, but at least I ended up with the Cottons. Some foster kids never find a stable home.”

“I’m glad you found your way here.”

“I believe it was meant to be. A friend from one of my previous homes ran away when we were fifteen. He wanted me to go with him, but I was too scared. Two years later, I couldn’t take it anymore and left on my own.”

“And now you’re here. Do you know where your friend is nowadays?”

“Yes, he’s living in Wyoming now.”

“That’s great. Is he happy?”

“He seems to be.”

“I’m glad to hear that. I’m curious, how did you recognize me when Mr. Cotton brought me into the barn when I was going to buy this place? I mean, the last time you saw me was twenty-two years ago.”

“Your eyes,” he said.

“Really?”

“Yeah. Even when you first started working here at age fourteen, I thought you had pretty eyes, and I thought, what a cute kid.” He laughed when she elbowed him. “Well, you were a kid and that’s all I saw you as, but now, all I see is this stunning woman I want to know better.”

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