Page 72 of Midnight Ride

“I’m a fast learner.”

“We’ll give it a try when we get out in the open on the Trans-Canada.”

I leaned over and kissed him. “Thanks for letting me try.”

Eldon pulled me closer to his body and snuggled me. “Ever hear of a dream coming true, Tammy?”

“I heard of it, but none of my dreams ever did yet,” I said, “but I’m getting closer.”

Eldon grinned, and when he did, he had a dimple in his cheek that was so cute, I wanted to do him in the sleeper all over again. I whispered it to him and made him laugh.

“That’s gonna come true sooner than you think, Tammy. You’re my dream girl. Never thought it could happen, but here you are.”

Wild Stallion Ranch. Montana.

Me and Virgil did the chores and bedded the horses down for the night. Then we sat down on a couple of bales of straw to have a serious talk.

“What are we gonna do, Harlan? I don’t understand why Dad would come home from Canada without Tammy. Don’t he want her no more?”

“He’s going nuts wanting her back, Virge. It ain’t that. I guess he figures if she got away from the kidnappers and took off on her own, then she’ll come home on her own too.”

Virge shook his head. “I don’t see it, Harlan. Do you think Dad is right?”

“Don’t know. I wish she’d taken that black Ram and driven it home when she had the chance, but it was sitting right there in the driveway and for some reason she didn’t take it.”

“Why? I don’t get it.”

“Tammy is smart.”

“But it don’t seem smart not to take the truck.”

“Must have been a reason.”

“What do we do now? Just wait?”

“Let’s go in for dinner and think about it some more.” I glanced at my phone. “Keep checking your phone for messages.”

“Jesus, Harlan. I check it every other fuckin minute.”

We sat down in the kitchen for dinner, and nobody was talking. Travis hardly ate a bite and neither did Billy.

Moose Jaw. Saskatchewan.

“I love being so high up, Eldon.” I peered through the windshield at the white line and the scenery on both sides of the highway. “I can see everything. Saskatchewan is kind of wide and flat, ain’t it?”

“Prairies,” said Eldon. “Boring drive when you’ve done it more than once. When I was hauling on the south side of theborder, I used to get so fuckin mad at the stupid drivers slowing me down, sometimes I would lose it.”

“But you stopped doing that when you had to start over in Canada,” I said.

Eldon’s eyes widened and he looked at me kind of funny. “How did you know that?”

“You had to start over, so you decided to be a better person. That’s what I’m doing right now, so we’re the same. I understand you, Eldon.”

He reached over for my hand. “Nobody ever understood me before you, Tammy. I’m so lucky to have you.”

“I think I’m the lucky one.” I climbed up on the console and kissed him.

“I’m getting tired, so at the next truck stop, I’m going to pull in and park for the night and we’ll get some food.”

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