Page 23 of Coming Home to Maverick

“How can I know that?”

“Well, if you were in the same situation again now. If you were about to marry Maverick and somebody called with your next big break, what would you do?”

She shook her head. “I’d never go. I wouldn’t.” She smiled. “You’re right.” That felt amazing.

“Now see. Just like I told you. You’ve learned. And that’s the whole point. That’s why God lets us do some of the things we do. And then when we come back to Him, he helps us make it right. His Grace is everything. He already bore all these burdens you’re carrying around inside. He’s felt them and he’s taken them on so you don’t have to.” He put his arm around her. “Besides that, I don’t see why you have to give up your singing, darling.”

“No.” She shook her head. “Don’t say that. It’s a powerful dream, and I don’t want anything to do with it anymore. It stole everything from me: my happiness, the only man I’ll ever love, my parents. That curse of a dream sucked me into its promises and lies. Daniel…” She looked away. She’d never spoken her ex-boyfriend’s name to her parents. “He led me along like a crazed puppet believing his lies.”

“And you were trapped.”

“In a way, yes.”

They sat for a while, both lost in thought. Her thoughts were full of regret. For her weak choices, for her five years away. And almost as powerfully, this time for not turning around to go get drinks with Maverick.

“You could still go out with him tonight.”

She shook her head. “Nah. He’s probably long gone, out with friends.”

“Nope.” Her dad chuckled. “I happen to know that’s not true.”

“What?” She searched her dad’s face and then looked around their front yard. “Is he here?”

Maverick stepped out from the shadow of the trees to the left of the house.

She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. “You been listening to me?”

He shook his head. “Nope.”

“Why you here?”

“Be nice to him, Bailey,” her dad murmured.

“I’m trying. He just makes me crazy.”

“That ain’t so bad.”

She considered her dad, his eyes twinkling, and her smile lifted in a grin. “No, it ain’t.” She stood, took a half-step toward Maverick, and then paused.

* * *

Maverick had only stayedmad for about five minutes, then he’d followed her home to make sure she got there okay. Was he a sorry sap of a man? When it came to Bailey, yes, he guessed he was.

She turned to say something to her dad. So he called out before she could change her mind. “Come with me.”

Her shoulders dropped, and then she turned back to him. “You still wanna go out?” Her insecurity, the despairing expression on her face, tore at him. This was not the Bailey he knew. She looked like the colt who had been trained by an overly harsh breaker: submissive, yes, but out of fire.

“Oh, hey, come here, you.” He held out his arms and stepped closer. She jumped down the stairs, and when he was close enough, she melted into his arms. “Of course, I still want to spend time with you. And tomorrow, too, if you think my big head can fit through the door.”

She laughed and looked up into his face. “You’re an idiot. I don’t think you’d get a truly big head no matter what happened to you. You’re already the best in the world, and tonight probably beat your old record. If that hasn’t ruined you, nothing can.”

“Not likely to, anyway. It felt good, though, all those people calling my name. Maverick! Maverick!” He whispered a crowd-like noise and then bumped her shoulder. “I wanna see you out there again. It felt great, Bailey! Even just one time.”

For a moment, her eyes lit with interest, but then she went solemn again. “Maybe I’ll get to do barrel racing again. But, Maverick, we’ve gotta talk. I have some things I need to tell you, and I just realized I can’t be putting it off any longer.”

Maverick’s hope flared. Would he finally get some answers? “Do you just want to go back to my truck? We can talk inside.”

She shrugged.

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