Page 42 of Rainwater
“Don’t worry, darlin’, I can take care of myself. Butler’s a mean-spirited bastard, but he better think twice before hurting you.”
The threat in his voice made Jennifer smile. “You’re such a big bad hombre, huh?”
He looked up at her, his face impassive until he realized that she was teasing him. Unexpectedly his face broke into a grin.
“How long have your parents been dead?” he asked as he picked up each of Monster’s hooves to examine and clean out the dirt and debris.
“A year. They died in a plane accident. My father liked to fly. They were on their way to Vegas.” She laughed. “My dad loved craps and Mom loved the slots. They always had a budget. When they lost what they had set aside, they came home as happy as clams.”
He saw the fond memories in her eyes and winced. He envied Jennifer her memories. “My parents are dead, too, and my little sister.” He picked up the brush again, unable to stop the flash of emotion that sliced into him.
“I’m sorry.”
His chest filled and he didn’t trust his voice. Two little words and they meant so much to him. Silence lengthened and thickened in the barn as once again Corey’s curiosity about Jennifer’s husband surfaced. Could that fall she had mentioned been her breakup with her husband? Had this man hurt her? The thought made him angry. Without examining the reason that he wanted to know, he asked the question that had been plaguing him since he’d met her. “So where’s your husband, Jennifer?
The unsuppressed anger in his voice had her eyes lifting from the buckle she was fiddling with on Monster’s bridle. “Gone. I found him in bed with a trick rider. Our bed, where Ellie was conceived. It did something to me, changed me.” She let out a quick breath. “I guess that would change anyone. I haven’t trusted a man since.”
Corey stopped brushing and walked over to the stall door. “He cheated on you?” His face showed his disbelief and confusion. “He had a woman like you and he wasn’t satisfied? Hewasn’t happy with the little life he’d created inside of you? He threw it all away? The stupid bastard.”
Corey couldn’t believe what he was hearing. The man must have been a moron. He had all that Corey had ever wanted. Hehadit in his hands. “He threw away this—” he caressed her cheek with his fingertip feeling the response in her as she shivered “—for one night of lust.”
Jennifer’s throat tightened. “Not one night, Corey. Many, many nights. Trick riders, barmaids, barrel racers, anyone who was willing.”
“The fool. The monumental fool.”
He forced himself to move away from her, thanking God that there was a stall door in the way. He felt that fierce yearning built in his chest, churning his gut, and Corey cursed the man who was stupid enough to throw away what was so infinitely precious to his own self. A family. A beautiful family. “And what about Ellie?”
“He’s never seen her. He even insinuated that she wasn’t his.”
Corey wanted desperately to hit something. The deepening pressure in his chest built. He wished the man was here right now so that he could take him apart. “He wasn’t worthy of you, Jennifer. You’ll find someone.” Why did that hurt? Why did those words stab into his gut like knives? He walked back to the big gray and continued grooming.
“Yeah,” she agreed.
“Yeah,” he echoed, his tone changing.
“Enough about me. What about your parents? You must have gotten that amazing talent with horses from your father,” she offered, not put off by his short, irritable tone.
“What makes you say that?” he asked scathingly, shame and the old fear bubbling up in his throat. He’d gotten a talent from his father, all right, but it wasn’t his way with horses.
“Your last name is Rainwater, not a traditional Anglo name. I assume that the Indian blood you have came from your father’s side of the family.”
“Naturally.” He gritted his teeth. Half the blood that flowed in his veins came from his father. He held the brush tighter, the seething anger making its way closer to the surface.
“So, I assumed that he was the one who taught you how to handle horses.”
He straightened slowly, the anger vibrating through his body exploding in ringing force. It wasn’t anger directed at her, but the power of it swept through him like a brushfire out of control. He threw the brush across the barn, a devastating fury crossing his face. His anger was even more fearful because it was so sudden. “The only thing I learned from my father was how to hate.” He stepped out of the stall, causing Jennifer to back up quickly. He cringed inside even though he hoped the violence he had inside of him would be contained. He didn’t like the frightened look on her face. He latched the gate angrily, his movements choppy.
“Ms. Horn?”
At the sound of Jimmy’s subdued voice, she turned around. “What is it?” she said sharply.
“I was checking the fences on the north pasture and, well, someone shot Sidewinder and Happy-Go-Lucky.” His young eyes were stricken at the brutality.
She covered her mouth and tears filled her eyes. “The vet?”
“I already called him, and the sheriff, too.”
“I’ll come right away. My horse?”
