Page 141 of My Cowboy Freedom
He’d made sure I had a phone. It was not weird to worry, right?
Foz pulled his phone from his pocket, thumbed his code in, and then called Elena. Her voice came over the speaker as he set it down between us.
“Hello, Foz. You’re up late. Is everything okay?” She sounded as if we woke her. I felt worse than stupid.
“Hey, Elena.” Foz asked, “You hear anything from Rock today?”
A pause. “Should I have heard something?”
“Sky’s here with me. We were just wondering if Rock has called you since he left.”
“I talked to his mom last night. She said he’s exhausted from everything that’s happened, and he’s taking his time, settling in.”
Foz frowned. “Sky’s here with me.”
“Hello, Sky.” Elena’s sigh was audible. “I won’t lie to you. Elliot and Cheryl will probably keep Rock on a pretty short leash for a while.”
“I haven’t heard from him since the night he left,” I said. “No phone calls, no texts.”
“For four days?” Elena asked.
“I thought it was weird, but you know him better than me. I’m not trying to get him jammed up over this, but the last I heard from him, he was still on the road. I guess I figured he’d keep in touch, if only to ask about the animals, you know? Those chickens.”
Outside, the dogs barked. Both me and Foz got spooked and laughed about it.
“It’s probably nothing.”
Now that I thought about it, Rock not calling probablywasnothing. Like those dogs outside, maybe I was getting all worked up over shadows and wind.
“I planned on coming back in the morning anyway,” Elena said. “I’ve got nurses and physical therapists coming for interviews and a service will be out to install some safety equipment for the boss in the guest room and the downstairs bath.”
Foz bit his lip. “Things are going to change around here, aren’t they?”
“They already have.” Elena’s soft sobs could be heard over the phone and I felt awkwardly, painfully, unnecessary.
I drifted toward the sink, if only to leave Foz and Elena alone. He picked up the phone and her voice disappeared from the air between us.
“Elena, I hope you know—”
While I stared outside, a tiny dazed-looking owl hit the window. No bigger than a baseball, it looked as if somebody had taken a half tab of acid and gotten crazy with a glue gun, some feathers, and a lot of repressed anxiety.
Like something from Harry Potter, it hovered there for a second, and then flapped dizzily away into the night.
I looked back to see if Foz had seen the little guy, but his expression didn’t invite conversation.
“Um... sure. We can talk more when you get back.” Foz’s fingers tightened on his phone. “No, I understand. Nobody knows what’s going to happen now.”
Outside, everything was country dark. I had the urge to go out and follow that baby owl. What if it had gotten hurt? What if one of the cats found it and—
“No, of course I understand.” Foz said softly. “You’re what’s important to me. You know that. I’ll talk to you about all the rest of it tomorrow, ’Lena. Safe travels.”
He disconnected the call and turned to me.
“Elena’s going to call over to the McLean’s place and see what’s what, but it’s too late tonight. Pastor McLean’s a pretty big deal. There’s always some event going on at Christian Pathways. It’s like being in show business. Everyone in the family works full time.”
Rock preferred the quiet of a country life, but family was family. Who knew what compromise Rock might be willing to make for family?
“Thanks.” I shook Foz’s hand. “I appreciate what you’re doing. Rock kinda got under my skin, I guess.”
