Page 48 of Forever After All

Paul leaned over his shoulder and pointed to the opposite side of the pack shed. “Tarps go there.”

On any normal day, working with Paul meant Linc hit the jackpot. The older cowboy wasn’t much for talking, and neither of them were tempted to chitchat. That was one thing he liked about Paul. He only spoke when he had something meaningful to say.

“Leave them in packs of three,” Paul said before moving back to his own crate.

Work should take Linc’s mind off Jess and her date, but this evening, he wasn’t having any luck pushing those unwelcome thoughts away.

He should just tell her. On the bright side, she might have feelings for him. It wasn’t likely, but a guy could dream. On the downside, things would get awkward, and he’d lose her.

For every way they were alike, there were three ways they were different. They’d both grown up in poverty and abusive homes, but Jess reacted differently. She’d lifted her chin in the air and decided to be better than the lousy hand she’d been dealt. Linc had rebelled and tried everything in his power to burn the world to the ground.

Literally, he’d set fire to anything that would burn. He had multiple arson charges on his record to prove it.

Jess spoke her mind, but Linc had to keep his mouth shut. He’d learned that lesson too many times. No one wanted to hear what he had to say, and he dug a nice hole for himself every time he thought it was okay to talk.

Jess tried everything in her power to put on a strong front, but her actions spoke louder than words. She was nurturing and caring with the horses, she was honest with her friends, and she had a deep-rooted responsibility to do right by everyone.

Linc had lied, cheated, and stolen whenever he got the chance. He’d used everyone who crossed his path. Foster parents, old friends, women–they were all fair game.

He rested his hands on the side of the wooden crate and hung his head. He hated the things he’d done. It was hard to look anyone he respected in the eye. Mr. Chambers, Paul, everyone at church–they’d be disappointed and ashamed of him if they knew half of those things.

“Where’s Jess?” Paul asked.

So much for not thinking about her tonight. Linc grabbed the top bags of tarps out of the crate and stacked them on the shelves. “She had a date.”

Jess wouldn’t care if Paul knew. There was zero chance he’d tell anyone about her date.

“Hm.” Paul didn’t look up from his work. He kept stacking rope in the corner like he hadn’t just thrown a wrench into Linc’s wayward thoughts.

“What?”

“Nothin’. I just thought you two had something going on.”

Linc stopped and propped a hand on the shelf. If Paul had noticed that Linc liked to hang around Jess a little too much, who else had noticed. “Really?”

“I just assumed.”

Piling the tarps in his hands, Linc got back to work. “No, there’s nothing going on. She just started dating, and she doesn’t want anyone to know right now.”

“I won’t say anything.”

If things worked out between Jess and one of her dates, she’d be telling people at the ranch soon. Then everyone would see Linc’s pouting because he was pretty sure he wouldn’t be able to hide that lost puppy frown.

What if he never moved on? What if this was it, and he’d missed his shot? What if his happiness was walking toward someone else?

Telling her how he felt would only make things worse. She deserved better. She’d probably avoid him like the plague if she knew about his past.

“Knock, knock,” Hadley said as she rapped on the wooden doorframe. “I have goodies. Vera sent old bones for Thane, apples for the horses, and dinner for the two of you. Don’t get the bags mixed up.”

Paul reached for the bags. “Thanks, and please tell Vera we appreciate it.”

“I will.” Hadley took her time looking around the room. “What do y’all do in here?”

“We pack bags for the longer trips. Some of the supplies will stay at the camp sites, but some things we need to bring with the group,” Paul explained.

“Cool. I hadn’t ever been around horses until I came here, and I’ve definitely never been on a long ride. It sounds fun though.”

Fun wasn’t the way Linc would describe it. The long pack rides were his favorite, but they were more relaxing and calming than fun to him.

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