This is the third time hes set up a meeting. You havent liked anyone hes found so far.
Cant dump my mare on the first person that strolls in.
Or the second...or third apparently. Every time we breed her, the same thing happens. Its been three years and not one of her foals has lived.
Which is exactly the reason I dont want to sell her. What will end up happening to her when they realize she cant produce? Besides, shes useful around here.
How so? The men use four-wheelers so it wont do any good to assign her to one of them. I have my horse and you have yours.
Ill find more for her to do. Dawns getting older. Ill use both. Not all lost causes are lost causes.
Matts eyebrow rose as he turned toward the barn. Well see.
* * *
CALEBHADBEENburied in paperwork for a couple hours when Katherine appeared in his office doorway, leaning on the crutch.
Mind some company?
She wore an oversize sleep shirt and loose-fitting shorts cinched above the hips. Even clothes two sizes too big couldnt cloak her sexy figure. Her soft curves would certainly get a man fantasizing about what was beneath those thin threads.
Sure. Whered you get the clothes?
Margaret put these on the bed with a note saying they belonged to her daughter. Even said I could borrow them as long as I needed to. I managed to clean
up without getting my leg wet. I took a nap. Im feeling much better.
Katherine sat in the oversize leather chair Caleb loved. It was big enough for two. Claws hopped up a second later, curling in her lap.
Any word from the sheriff yet?
No. I put in a call to him. Should hear back any minute. If your leg is feeling better in the morning, I thought we could head to Austin.
I want to stay here and search for my phone.
Well look first. Then well head out. Any chance you have a copy of your sisters keys?
Afraid not.
Well get in anyway.
She cocked her head and pursed her lips. Tell me not to ask why you know how to break in someones house.
Caleb cracked a smile as he rubbed his temples. Misspent youth. Besides, some secrets a man takes to his grave. He chuckled. Ive been thinking. You have any idea if Noahs father knew about him?
Katherine heaved a sigh, twirling her fingers through Clawss fur. I should but dont. My sisters relationships were complicated. Especially ours.
Families can be tricky, Caleb agreed.
When our parents got in the car crash my freshman year of college, I resented having to come home to take care of her. Katherine dropped her gaze. I probably made everything worse. Did everything wrong.
Not an easy situation to be thrown into.
Katherines lips trembled but no tears came.
Leann had always been something of a free spirit. Her life was lived without a care in the world. I was the one who stressed over grades and stayed home on Friday nights to study or to help out around the house. My parents owned a small business and worked long hours. I was used to being alone. Leann, on the other hand, was always out with friends. The two of us couldnt have been more opposite. Sometimes I wished I could have been more like her. Instead, I came down on her hard. Tried to force her to be more like me.
You had no choice but to be serious. Sounds like you were the one who had to grow up. She was a survivor who coped the best way she could.
What about your parents? She turned the tables.
My mom was a saint. The man who donated sperm? A jerk. Dad, if you can call him that, didnt treat my mother very well before he decided to run out. Calebs story was the same one being played out in every honky-tonk from there to the border. I rebelled. I was angry at her for allowing him to hurt her when he was here. Angry with myself for not jumping in to save her. Mom worked herself too hard to pay the bills. Didnt have insurance. Didnt take care of her diabetes. Died when I was fifteen. The familiar stab of anger and regret punctured him.
Did you blame yourself?
I know a thing or two about feeling like you let someone down. Only hurt yourself with that kind of thinking, though. I found the past is better left there. Best to focus on the here and now. Do that well and the future will take care of itself.
Is that your way of saying I should let go?
I did plenty of things wrong when I was a child. You could say I was a handful. Dwelling on it doesnt change what was.
She studied the room. Looks like youre making up for it now.
Pride filled his chest. Never felt like I belonged anywhere before here. Hed been restless lately though. Matt had said Caleb missed having little feet running around. The wounds were still raw from Cissy leaving. Another reason he should keep a safe distance from the woman curled up on his favorite chair. She looked as though she belonged there. TorJake is a great home.
I love the name. Howd you come up with it?
My first big sale was a beautiful paint horse. The man whod sold him to me when he was a pony said he tore up the ground like no other. Hed been calling him Speedy Jake. I joked that I should enter him over at Lone Star Park as ToreUpTheEarthJake. Somehow, his nickname got shortened to TorJake, and it stuck. Had to geld him early on to keep his temperament under control. He had the most interesting, well-defined markings Ive ever seen. Sold him to a bigwig movie producer in Hollywood to use filming a Western. The sale allowed me to buy neighboring farms and eventually expand to what I have now.