Page 83 of Killian

“I’ll have to wait, I guess.”

“Unless you go to Spokane.”

“I’m not sure about that. We need to talk but not there. I’m sure she’s staying with her parents.”

“Send her a text. Tell her you want to talk. Hell, it’s been a week and you’re miserable.”

Killian looked at his brother and shrugged. “I love her.”

“Then that’s all you need to talk about. You need to let her know you’re not happy about her lying, but she needs to explain why she did.”

“I know.”

The elevator doors whooshed open, and both men stepped out. They walked outside together to their trucks.

“Damn cool weather moved in quick,” Kian said.

“After the summer we had, I’m fine with that.”

“You just remember saying that when snow is up to your ass and you’re out trying to find some livestock.” Kian grinned, then waved when he climbed into his truck.

Killian shook his head, climbed into his truck,entered the address into the GPS, then drove to the ranch with the missing horse.

When he arrived, a man walked toward him and introduced himself as the manager, then told Killian they’d found the horse. Apparently, it had jumped the fence and decided to run all over the place.

Killian grinned, shook the man’s hand, and headed back toward town.

On his way back, he sent a text to Kian to see if he was back in Clifton yet, but he said he wasn’t and wouldn’t be for a while. That was fine. Killian didn’t have much of an appetite anyway. He hadn’t since he and Celine parted.

As he pulled back into the parking lot, he parked, and sat in his truck for a few minutes, staring out the windshield. Then he removed his phone and sent her a text.

We need to talk.He waited for a reply but after a few minutes, he sighed, put his phone in his pocket, then got out of the truck and entered the building.

****

Celine stared at the phone.We need to talk.In her opinion, no good conversation started with those words.

“Is that phone going to do something special?” her father asked as he sat in his recliner.

“You’re funny,” she said with a grin.

“Well, the way you’re staring at it, I thought you were waiting for it to do something.”

“Quit teasing her, Dale.” Her mother sat on the sofa beside her and touched her hand.

“Are you alright,” she whispered.

Celine sighed and showed the phone to her mother. “I’m afraid to hear what that means.”

“Honey, maybe he just means what it says. You do need to talk. You’re so miserable and though I don’t know him, I’m sure he is too.”

Celine looked at her mother and smiled. “I hope he is.”

Rosemary laughed. “I do too. I’ve never seen you so… in love before.”

“He’s everything to me. He treats me like gold. Like Daddy does with you. Killian is always touching me. I love him so much.”

“Then message him back. See what he says.”

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