Page 39 of A Miracle for the Confident Cowboy

“But you two had something going on. Everyone could see that. And doesn’t she get credit for bringing Gus home?”

He stilled and just like that every ache, pain, and disparaging thought came rushing to the surface. His jaw ticked as he attempted to keep his cool. Adding Gus into the situation was the rotten cherry on top. “I don’t know what you’re trying to get at here, but maybe you could hurry it up so I can get back to work?”

She snorted. “I’m talking about the fact that you ghosted her.”

“Ighosted her?” He let out a sharp bark of laughter. “Ighostedher.” This time it was a derisive statement. “She got a job opportunity in Europe and I don’t even know if she was going to tell me about it. Did she tell you that little bit of information? Did she tell you she was scared to bring it up?”

“Did she say that?” Pippa shot back.

“Not in so many words, but there isn’t any other reason why someone wouldn’t do so.”

Pippa let out a frustrated huff and folded her arms, her evil glare still pointed directly at him. “Is that why you chose to break up with her? You were mad she got an amazing opportunity? Were you jealous or something?”

Her words stung. The slap of accusation made his whole body rattle. Was that what Sophie was telling her best friend? His face heated and he moved closer to Pippa with an angry growl of his own. “First of all, I would have never stopped her from going. I’m the one who told her to take it. Secondly, I broke up with her because she was going to be gone for six months, maybe more. And look! She’s been gonenine. Long distance relationships don’t ever work out, Pippa. They just don’t. There’s something about being able to see someone every single day that hits differently.”

She didn’t waver. “And that means you can’t just call? To keep the lines of communication open? I’ve heard Rob talking about you. He says you’ve been a real pain in the you-know-what ever since she left. Your mood is as pleasant as the horse manure you shovel from the stalls. So tell me something, Duke. Are you pleased with your decision to cut her out? Because she isn’t.”

He straightened, his walls crashing down around him. No, he hadn’t contacted her, but the lines of communication went both ways. She could have sent him something, too. “What are you saying?” he whispered, just needing to know if Sophie was still thinking about him.

“I’m saying that Sophie is going to be gone for two more months, then she’s coming back here and when I asked if you two were going to pick up where you left off… you wanna know what she said?” Pippa didn’t wait for his response. “She said, you two haven’t talked since Christmas.”

He flinched at the sharpness of her tongue. She might as well have been flinging daggers at him for how they penetrated deep into his soul.

Pippa’s voice softened but not by much. “Here I thought you weren’t dating because you and she were working though a long distance something or another, and I come to find out neither one of you is talking to the other!” She threw her hands into the air. “I don’t believe it! This is so ridiculous. Clearly you care about her, otherwise you wouldn’t be moping around and keeping to yourself. And she’s been?—”

He stiffened. “She’s been… what?”

Pippa’s eyes narrowed. “She’s having fun, Duke. She’s taking full advantage of the opportunity she has to travel, try new foods, and… meet new people.”

Once again, he flinched. “Oh.” Of course she was going to meet new people. Of course she was going to move on. He didn’t know why he’d been so hopeful she’d clung to the idea of seeing him again when she returned. Shifting his weight from one foot to the other, he rubbed the back of his neck. “What did you want, Pippa?”

“What did I want?” She let out a sad-sounding laugh. “I wanted to see my friends find love and end up together. That’s what I wanted.”

“Yeah, well, that’s not going to happen.”

“Why not?” Pippa snapped. “I told you, she’s coming home at Thanksgiving. She’ll be back and you guys can?—”

He scowled, though he didn’t direct it at Pippa. “If she’s seeing other people?—”

“She’s not.”

His head snapped up and he stared at her, half-expecting her to laugh, point a finger, and tell him she was kidding. “She’s not? But you said?—”

Pippa shook her head. “She’smeetingpeople. I didn’t say she’sseeinganyone. Will you just listen to me? We were talking about her coming back. I asked about you. She said you weren’t speaking.”

“Did you at least get mad at her for not calling me, too?” He braced himself for the onslaught of her fury but it didn’t come.

“Yeah, I did.” Those words were softer, kinder. This time she was looking at him like she could see the pain he’d been enduring.

The silence between them hung awkwardly until he looked away. “Well, good. Did you also tell her I’ve been helping you take care of Daisy?”

“I thought I’d let you handle that on your own.” Pippa gave him a quick nod. “And I told her she should call you. If both of you have been this miserable for the last nine months, then maybe it’s a sign the two of you should… I don’t know…chat.” She sighed again then flung her hands into the air. “Or don’t. Do whatever.” Pippa stalked off and he watched her go. The second she’d been removed from his sight, he pulled out his phone.

Duke: Hey.

She probably wouldn’t respond.But then again, Pippa had put the fear into him, maybe she’d see it for what it was. An olive branch.

Over the nexttwo weeks Duke and Sophie exchanged several text messages, GIFs and other forms of platonic communication. They didn’t bring up dating. They didn’t discuss what would happen when she returned home.

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