Page 9 of Just Say When

“Hey, Essie,” James said. “You never told us what Brax did that made you so mad.”

Janie’s head jerked up. She looked interested but, like last night, she didn’t ask questions.

“Oh.” I frowned at the thread that had somehow tangled itself in a knot. “He bought a horse I rightfully stole, that’s what.”

Silence.

I looked up and saw everyone staring at me, mouths agape.

James recovered first. “Say that again?”

I pushed my project aside, frustrated. Hannah silently picked it up and got to work on the knot. “You know how Alan Gaffney is always bragging how he won Gee Whizz’s colt in a poker game? Well, Brax bought him.”

James sucked in a sharp breath. “Pirate?” she gasped. “Brax really bought Pirate?”

I nodded. “He really fucking did. Must have cost him a small fortune, too, because I made Gaffney an offer several times and he always said no.”

“Oh my god!” James let out an excited squeal, shimmying a little in her seat. “What’s the plan? Is hegoing to keep him at Lodestar? Pirate will need training?—”

“James,” Chloe cut in with an incredulous look. She shook her head. “Horse girls, I swear. Essie, go back to the important part. You know, where you committed a felony.”

I waved her aside. “Probably better that you don’t know the details. My point was that I had everything under control, and then Brax swept in and took over.” I growled at the memory of his smug face informing me that he was Pirate’s new owner. “But I don’t want to talk about it. I want to stab something.”

“Almost done,” Hannah said. “This thread is really tangled.”

Chloe tilted her head, then pushed her project across the table to me. “You can do my French knots. I always mess them up.” She watched as I twisted the thread around the needle. “It must have been frustrating for you to deal with that.”

With my attention focused on making a rosebud-shaped knot, I nodded. “Sofrustrating. Maybe my way wasn’t perfect, but it would have worked. I had a plan. He acts like I’m a kid he needs to rescue or something.”

Chloe propped her chin on her palm. “What do you think he wants to save you from?”

“Anything he doesn’t approve of, probably.” I heaved a sigh. “We used to be friends, you know. In high school. He wasn’t like this back then. He wasn’t overbearing andso damn bossy. Now that we’re not friends, this isallhe is.”

Honestly, it wasn’t even only him. People sure did love to save me from my nonexistent problems. My mom. Jack. Fucking Brax, most of all. Like everyone thought I was too damn incompetent to be left to my own devices. Or worse, too fragile to face even the smallest inconvenience without having a breakdown.

It was infuriating when it came from my mother or Jack.

It was downright unbearable when it came from Brax.

“Tell me more about that,” Chloe said.

“Uh-uh.” I pointed the needle in her direction. “Don’t you go psychoanalyzing me. I’m onto you, Dr. Adams.”

Chloe laughed. “I have a ways to go before I’m doctor anything. Anyway, I’m not psychoanalyzing you, I promise. We’re just talking.”

Yeah. I didn’t believe that for a second. Chloe didn’t like to slap labels on things, and especially not people, so I knew she wasn’t sitting there, silently thinkingdaddy issues, even though we both knew damn well that’s exactly what I had. But she loved tounderstand. To figure someone out.

But right now, I didn’t want her to figure me out. Because if she did, she might discover that Brax was right. Maybe I was incompetent, wild, and fragile. Ididn’t feel that way about myself, but when three of the smartest people I knew said otherwise, well…It gave me pause. Maybe Ihadfucked up. Maybe I had gone too far this time and needed someone to swoop in and save me from myself.

But I would be damned if I allowed Brax to be the one to do it.

5

Brax

Jack:

Anything I should know?

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