Page 33 of Spur of the Moment
The next episode had just started when the door opened. Rouge ran over to the bed after Bailey unhooked his leash, immediately welcoming me with a lick to my cheek before circling twice to lay at my side. I draped my arm over him, scratching his shoulder as he rested his snout on my stomach.
Bailey rummaged through a plastic bag before walking over to my nightstand, setting a water and bottle of pills down. Without a word, he went back to the desk, working to untie the knot on another bag.
I sat up, leaning my back against the headboard. Rouge moved his head to my thigh, letting out a sigh as he got settled again. I reached for the bottle, shaking out two iron pills before uncapping the water and swallowing them. I held the water in between my thighs, watching Bailey pull two containers out of the bag.
The TV was the only sound in the room as he set the containers in the middle of my bed and sat next to me, kicking off his boots before crossing his legs.
He reached over to open my to-go box, a steak, mashed potatoes, and a side of green beans on display.
All of those were rich in iron.
He opened his to reveal the same meal, then laid a knife and fork next to my box before cutting into his steak.
“It’s rare, just how you like it.” He gestured to my steak with his knife before taking a bite of his own.
I looked at him as he chewed. Once he swallowed his bite, he met my gaze.
“Thank you,” I said.
He nodded before turning back to his dinner, acting interested in the show as he ate.
We didn’t talk as we ate, the TV blasting commercials every few minutes. Once we were both finished, he grabbed the boxes, discarding them in the trash before pulling off his jeans and shirt, leaving him in boxers as he crawled into his own bed. I’d seen him in boxers before when we’d go swimming on a whim in the creeks and lakes. It was nothing new, but I averted my eyes anyway. Something about being in this hotel room felt more intimate than all those times in nature.
Taking that as his sign that he wanted to sleep, I clicked off the bedside lamp before turning the TV down to the point it was barely audible. I liked sleeping with the TV on. Brandy always hated that when we had sleepovers growing up. More times than not, I’d wake up to her sleeping in a different room.
Rouge moved to the end of my bed as I got myself situated, laying on my side facing toward Bailey, bringing the comforter up to my neck. Through the dim light of the TV, I could see his eyes on me from where he was laying on his side.
“You didn’t have to do that,” I said quietly.
“I did.”
I paused,then asked, “Why?”
“Because I care about you,” he said matter-of-fact, and while I already knew he did, it felt like it was the first time that it held any weight, and that weight didn’t scare me. Not this time. Not when it came from Bailey.
Sometime later, sleep claimed me and I dreamt of what the last five years would have looked like if I had stayed in Bell Buckle instead of running from the man that my heart never stopped beating for.
18
Bailey
After loading the truck with our bags, I headed back inside the hotel to check out. Lettie was in the shower when I’d started bringing our things down. She already looked better today, even having just woken up. I’d brought Rouge out to pee after feeding him, then picked up two coffees and breakfast burritos from the buffet downstairs, and when I came back with them, she was still in the bathroom.
Not wanting to impose on her privacy, I went downstairs to let the desk attendant know we’d be leaving soon, then took my time heading back to our room. Swiping the key to let myself in, I found Lettie’s back facing me from where she sat at the small desk, eating her burrito and sipping on her coffee.
“Good shower?” I asked.
She jumped, swiveling in the chair with her cheeks full of food. She nodded as she managed to swallow.
“Truck’s all loaded whenever you’re ready. We just have to pick up the horses and then we can get on the road.”
“Hopefully, there’s no storm to slow us down this time,” she said before taking another bite.
“Mm, I don’t know. It was looking a little cloudy out there.”
She stopped midchew, her eyes big saucers.
I chuckled. “I’m kidding, Huckleberry. How’d you grow up in the West being this damn scared of a little rain?”
