Page 64 of Blame It On Midnight

She nodded and sat back, eyes on the honeysuckle that climbed the trellis beside the deck. “We were supposed to get together tonight. Talked about going to the music festival in Bozeman, but he said something came up and that he’d call me tomorrow. I just…” She shrugged, feeling stupid. “I don’t know. It feels like he blew me off.”

“I hate those things.” Bunny pointed to her cell, and Collins realized something.

“You don’t have a cell phone.”

“Nope. Not anymore. I tossed it in the garbage one night about two years ago. I was out to dinner with friends. Six women that I get together with twice a year. We’ve all known each other since our college days, and generally speaking, our dinners are loud and boisterous and full of gossip and naughty talk and advice and all the good things. But the last few times we got together, I noticed we weren’t 100% present. We didn’t talk as much. Didn’t laugh as much. We were on our phones more. And that last dinner, at one point, I looked around the table and every one of my friends was on their phone. Including me. Then I glanced around the restaurant and noticed the same thing happening at every single table. Families. Couples. Young or old, it didn’t matter. I looked at my phone, at the half-written text I was sending my editor, and thought, what the hell am I doing? What is happening as a society? I decided to call her in the morning during business hours. I haven’t had a cell phone since.”

“I don’t know if I could survive a world with no phone.”

“You don’t need to be as drastic as I. They’re a convenience for sure. But my point is that they’re not human, and they steal away the very thing that makes us people. So when you read a text that you don’t fully understand, a text that makes you upset or confused, that feeling stays with you until you resolve it. I would do it personally, is all.” She looked over her glasses. “Talk to your cowboy, that is.”

She stared down at the phone. Chewed on her bottom lip for a couple of moments and then sent one more text.

“Everything okay?”

Those three little dots appeared. They stayed in limbo for nearly a full minute before disappearing with no answer.

“Would you think I’m a crazy lady if I drove out to the ranch because he’s not telling me what came up? Like, what’s more important than seeing me?” She made a face. “And I know how whiny and insecure that sounds.”

“I think if you want to see the man you’re in love with, you should go see him. From what you’ve told me, he’s used to dealing with stuff on his own. He might like having someone to lean on.”

“You think so? I don’t even know if he’s at the ranch.”

“Only one way to find out, my dear.” Bunny winked and tucked into her sweet tea.

Decision made, Collins ran upstairs and changed. She pulled on a pair of jean shorts and a T-shirt, shoved her feet into sneakers, then grabbed her purse and headed for her rental.

She was about ten minutes out from the ranch when a call came through—her agent. She’d been ignoring her for days now, and feeling guilty, she finally answered.

“Hey, don’t be mad. I’m not ignoring you.”

“That’s exactly what you’re doing.” Leanne Baker’s response was dry. “It’s too late for Bali, but you’ve been offered the campaign with Gerard DuPree. A campaign I worked months on in case you forgot. I need an answer, and it needs to be yes, and I need you in New York next week. I was able to get them to bump up the shoot so that it would coincide with your family’s charity gala.”

“Oh, Leanne, I don’t know.”

“Actually, you do. You owe me, Collins. I worked my tail off to get you this campaign. He never works with nepo babies, and on top of that, he’s not a fan of your father’s politics. I had to stroke his ego like I was petting my goddamn cat.”

Collins winced, then turned onto the road that led to the ranch. She passed under the large Triple B sign. She felt like a shit and wanted to say no, but her agent was right. She’d been in Montana for well over a month now. Maybe it was time to get a taste of her old life. Check in with her parents. See her brother.

Maybe it was time to see if she could function without Benton, because here she was driving up to his house like a pathetic woman because she didn’t like the tone of a text message. Seriously? Was she really doing this?

“Okay,” she said. “Thank you. Email me the details and I’ll see you in New York next week.”

“Good. And Collins?”

“Yes?”

“This cowboy better be worth it.”

She couldn’t muster a smile. “He’s something else,” she murmured.

She ended the call and pulled up alongside Benton’s truck. There was an older pickup off to the side, one she didn’t recognize, and she spied Rosie’s car as well. She slid from her truck and headed up the steps. Took exactly two steps inside the house when the biggest dog she’d ever seen gave a low growl that made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end.

“Hey there,” she managed to say without losing her shit, because the longer she stared at the animal she realized it wasn’t a dog. The creature moved toward her, all long legs and thick silvery fur. Big teeth and strange yellow eyes. She froze when it sniffed at her, then after a few moments, she offered her hand. Felt the wet nose, and then slowly sank her fingers into the fur behind the animal’s ears. The thing was huge.

“Her name is Penny.”

Dammit. She nearly jumped out of her skin, then glanced up. An older man stood halfway down the stairs. He was tall, wide, shoulders and well built, with a thick head of silver hair and a handsome face that told her exactly who he was. It was like looking at Benton’s future. She didn’t remember meeting him the previous Christmas.

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