16. Caro

SIXTEEN

Caro

“Where’s Christopher?” I ask when I open my eyes, the bright light hitting me square in the face.

Ricky whirls and grins at me. “There you are, sleepyhead! I thought you were never going to wake up!”

I sit up, pushing my hair out of my face, staring at the heat in Ricky’s dark gaze. “And?”

“Oh. He’s out in the barn talking to Harold. He’s pretty damn excited about that horse.”

Snorting, I reach out my hand to the coffee he’s holding out for me. I take a sip and groan. “God, that’s good!”

Ricky grins and my gut clenches. The coffee isn’t the only thing that’s good. This man looks damn good first thing in the morning. I run my hands over my hair and grimace.

I probably look like I’ve been dragged backwards through a hurricane.

“I need to get up and get moving. I’m sure Doc is wondering where the hell I am.”

Ricky shakes his dark head. “No. I already called him and told him you wouldn’t be back to work until we get this guy sorted out.”

I freeze and glare at him. “I didn’t agree to anything like that, Ricky. I need my job.”

“He understands, baby girl. He wanted me to tell you that it’s all okay. Your job is waiting for you when this is all over and you’re feeling better. He didn’t realize that you’d been shot either.”

I jerk upright. “I didn’t tell him because it’s private and I didn’t want him to know about it! I also didn’t want him to think I was a crazy woman with some asshole chasing after me. I intended to go back to work! Today!”

“No way! Dammit, this guy is on the way here and he’s tailing your flaky-ass sister straight to you! You need to lie low.”

I shove to my feet, putting the coffee cup down with a click and wrapping the sheet around me. His dark gaze follows me and there’s that little clench in my core. But for once, I ignore the hunger I always feel around this man.

“I’ll decided what’s right for me and Christopher. I’ve been taking care of both of us for a long time with no help at all.”

“And you’re doing so well,” he snarls. “He shot you.”

I know what else he’s thinking and I shove that pain right the hell down.

“I’ve got to get out of here.” My breath huffs out of me and I surge to the door, my bare feet slapping against the wood like a hammer on a nail. “Christopher needs to go to school today. He’s got a massive test and he needs normalcy. Structure.”

He grabs my arm and glares at me. “Stop being so damn stubborn. Admit that you need help! You’re gonna get hurt!”

I shake his hand off. “Really? I think I know that. But I’ve never been a big one for handouts, Ricky! You seem to think that you’re gonna take over and make all my decisions for me and that’s not happening.”

“Dammit, Caro! What are we fighting about? I love you, you love me! I want to take care of you and keep you safe! You and Christopher! Why is that a bad thing?”

“It’s not a bad thing. But I’m a mother. And I’m an adult. I can make my own decisions. I don’t need someone thinking that they can just charge in and take over my life!”

“That’s not what I’m trying to do! I don’t want you to get hurt again!” He runs his fingers through his hair and I hate that I’m doing this to him.

But I can’t let him take over completely. I’ve spent my life being pushed around by everyone in my family and all my friends. My sister dragging me from one stupid thing to another. I’m tired of going along with all of their expectations.

“I love you too, Ricky. But you had no business calling my boss and talking about me. Our contract is between doc and me. It has nothing to do with you.”

“You’re with me,” he huffs.

“Doesn’t matter. How would you like it if I called your boss and started talking about the feed rotation for the cows or something.”

I stomp over and grab my clothes off the floor, heading for the bathroom. “Now I’m gonna get dressed, go find my son and get him ready for school, then I’m going home. If you’re bound and determined to watch me, then you better plan on doing it from the road because I’m out of here.”

I ignore the hurt look in his eyes and stomp into the bathroom, shutting the door behind me.

I lean on the door and close my eyes, tipping my head back and feeling the anger drain right out of me.

I can’t let him take over my life. That happened before and look what it got me.

Lost and alone and raising a boy on my own. Cheated on. Broken.

I need to pull up my big girl panties and get my ass out there, figure this out and finally get my act together.

Maybe Ricky and I can make it work and maybe we can’t. If we break up, I guarantee I will never get involved with another man. He’s got my heart and he always will.

But it’s not his responsibility to make this right. It’s mine.

“Hey, Caro? Are you alone?”

I squeak and jump straight up in the air. “Dammit, Angel! What the hell is wrong with you? You’re supposed to be in Vegas waiting to testify against that asshole! Not standing in a barn and whispering to me.”

“Yeah. It was hard to slip away from all of them but I’m sick of sitting around and waiting for Kirby Rohr to show up and attempt to kill all of us.”

“So you brought him straight to my doorstep? Thanks so much, sis! It’s nice to know where I rank with you. I’m trying to protect my son and you’re just trying to get us all killed!”

“That’s not fair,” she pouts. “I missed you,” she huffs.

“Bullshit! You were bored!”

She doesn’t say a thing and I know I was right. “You need to get the hell out of here.”

“I just got here!” She protests.

“Congratulations, lovely to see you! Now get the hell out of here!”

“Where’s Christopher? I want to say hi!”

“Not gonna happen. Leave. You’re trespassing.”

“Jesus, Caro! You’re being a bitch!”

“And you’re being the same old selfish child you’ve always been! Go away! I don’t need the kind of shit that you always drag to my doorstep! You cost me a relationship that I want more than anything in this world once! I don’t need you fucking my life up again!”

Her pretty face crumples and I want to go to her, want to hug her against me and tell her that it’s all gonna be alright. But I can’t tell her that.

Because she’s not gonna get Christopher hurt. She’s not gonna break my little family apart like she did with that senator. The married one who screws around way too much.

“Listen to your sister, Angel. You fuck up everything you touch!” My heart jumps into my throat and I almost grab at it. But I keep my hands down and turn slowly, one eye looking for Christopher before I remember that he’s at school.

Relief shoots through my body, especially when I see the gun barrel pointed at me.

“I told you,” I hiss at her. Her pale face stares at the gun like it’s a snake about to strike.

Kirby grins. “You’re so damn predictable, baby girl. You need to think before you act. But that’s not your strong suit, is it? You just look pretty and barrel through everyone’s lives, tearing them apart.”

“She didn’t force you, Kirby. You fucked her just like you did all those other women. She wasn’t the first, probably won’t be the last.”

He growls and the gun points at me, his hand shaking it around like a madman. “But she’s the one that made my wife look closer at what I was doing! She’s the one that broke up my marriage.”

I snort. “Yeah. Cause it’s all her fault. She shouldn’t have gotten involved with you, that’s true. But you did what you wanted for years and were just a bit too open this time. Your wife got sick of being humiliated left and right. That’s on you!”

“No!” His grip tightens on the trigger and I groan silently. I’m gonna get shot again.

And this time he might just kill me for real. I close my eyes and wish that I wasn’t in this situation.

That Christopher and I were safe and Ricky wasn’t pissed at me.

That I had the life that I really needed.