Page 34 of The Cowboy's Unshakeable Love

“But not the way you’d like?”

Trip shrugged. “I don’t like women fighting in any way – you know that.”

“Yeah. Sorry.” Travis knew he should have phrased it differently. Trip’s ex-wife had caused all kinds of fights over the years. It was still a sore subject.

“No need. If we’re going to talk about women, I’d rather hear what’s going on with you. What’s happening with Retta?”

He grinned. “Nothing much – not yet, but I’m hopeful.”

“She’s convinced about staying then?”

“Yep. Kolby called me this morning. Apparently, she was thinking that she’d need to go back to Georgia to put her house on the market. They’ve managed to convince her that she can take care of that in slower time. But she still doesn’t want to stay with them – the baby’s going to be here soon.”

“So, what does she plan to do?”

“Get this – Kolby told me he’s convinced her that she should ask me if she can rent one of the cabins from me, since she’s going to be helping me with getting them ready.”

“And you’re going to rent one to her?”

He grinned. “Nope.”

Trip laughed. “What then?”

“I’m going to wait until she asks, and then I’m going to suggest that she should stay in the house with me instead.”

“You think she’ll go for that? And more importantly, are you sure that you’re ready for that kind of commitment?”

“It’s not the kind of commitment you think it is. She shouldn’t be on her own just yet – not with the cast on her leg still. She needs someone around, just in case – and who better than me? I figure this way we can share space with each other while we see if we want to make the kind of commitment you’re talking about.”

“I like it,” said Trip. “It makes sense from a practical point of view, and it’ll give you both the chance to scope things out before you lock yourselves in.”

“Yep. To be fair, if it were up to me, I think I’m ready to jump in with both feet and see how it pans out. But there’s no way she’d go for that yet.”

“I can see that.” Trip shook his head with a smile.

“What?”

“Just … you. You haven’t been home for five minutes and look at you. You’ve found yourself a home. You’ve set Ty and his girl, Shay, up with jobs. You’re giving Libb a chance to leave Mav’s place and still keep doing what she loves. You’re creating a kind of sanctuary place for vets to come and decompress and now, it looks like you’ve found yourself a woman as well.”

He set his fork down and met his friend’s gaze. “Yeah. I’ve been ready to come home for a long time. I guess I waited too long, and now that I’m here I want to do it all at once.”

Trip smiled at him. “I couldn’t be happier for you Trav – and I’ve got your back. If you need anything, you let me know, okay?”

“You’ve already done enough. I wouldn’t have been able to do any of it, if it weren’t for you.”

It was true. Travis had saved every penny he could while he was in the Navy. After he retired, he’d had a nice little nest egg, and Trip had helped him to grow it. He didn’t know the first thing about investing, but Trip did. Travis had trusted him with everything he had, and by investing it alongside his own money, Trip had made Travis a richer man than he’d ever hoped he might be.

“I wouldn’t be alive still if it weren’t for you. And I wasn’t just talking about money, anyway. Anything you need – whatever you need, I’ve got you.”

“Thanks, bud. Same goes.”

Chapter Eight

“Relax, Mama. You know he’s not going to tell you no.”

Retta made a face at her daughter while they waited for Travis to come pick her up on Monday morning. “Exactly. If I ask him to rent me one of the cabins, I’m sure he’ll do it. But is it fair to ask?”

“Of course it is. It’ll work out well for him, too.”

---