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.”“The hell she hasn’t.Since I’ve been sleepin’ there, I know that girl has had at least five dinner offers.Every bachelor in town wants a chance to tap on her door.”“Like who?”“Who doesn’t matter.What matters to Bella is that those dinner invitations sure as hell haven’t been comin’ from you!”“I’ll break her heart.”“You’ve already done that.See if you can’t try to mend it and see if that doesn’t work out better for the both of ya.Otherwise, Bella is gonna move on, and when she does, I’ll be the first one tellin’ ya all about it.You’re stubborn as hell, but stubbornness won’t help you win the hand of the woman you love.”“I never said I loved Bella.”“You didn’t have to.We’ve gotta be in Tulsa in two days, and you haven’t been on a bull’s back since San Antonio.As far as a horse? Hell, you’ve probably forgotten how to tighten a girth.” Travis stormed out of the office and then returned once more.“There are two things you need to do, and you need to do them today.One, get off your ass and get out there and ride.“Then, go see Bella.Tell her how you feel.If you don’t, it’s a long way to Oklahoma and back.I have a feeling as soon as you get out there you’ll turn around and head straight home.You ain’t gonna do yourself any good until you get your head in the right place—and I ain’t talkin’ about the one toppin’ your shoulders.”* * * *Corbin removed his hat.“Mrs.McDermott, I’m here to see Bella.”“Come in, Corbin.She’s in her room.You can go on up.”“Thank you,” he said, starting for the stairs and preparing to take the longest walk of his life.“Corbin?”“Yes, ma’am?”“You can call me Jane, by the way.”“Yes, ma’am,” he said, trying to hide a smile and continuing up the steps.“Corbin?”“Yes, Jane?” he asked, stopping again.This time, he took a deep breath, too, hoping Bella’s mother showed some mercy and didn’t make him dally long.“You break her heart again, and so help me, I’m asking Travis to beat your ass.”He smiled.“I’d say he’d like that.”“I would,” Travis said, appearing in the foyer all spiffed up, wearing a pressed white shirt and black jeans.“In fact, I’ve been waitin’ for a reason, so if Jane gives me one, I may jump at the chance.”Corbin laughed, thinking Travis sure looked like one henpecked cowboy.“Where are you two headed?”“Travis is taking me out on the town tonight,” Jane said enthusiastically, a twinkle in her midnight-blue eyes.“He told me about this new steak house on the river.We’re going for dinner, and then he’s taking me dancing.He’s such a romantic.”Corbin shook his head.“Yeah buddy.He’s one of kind.”“How about that, Corbin?” Travis said, smirking.“A night out on the town, a long night straight ahead.”Corbin cleared his throat.“Uh, what time do you expect to be home?”Jane cut her gaze toward Travis.“Didn’t you say we were staying out at the ranch tonight?”“Yep.I sure did.”Jane clutched her purse at her side.“Well, what do you know, Corbin? Looks like you and Bella are home alone.”Chapter ThirteenCorbin shoved his hands in deep pockets, checking to be sure he had everything he needed.He’d screwed around long enough, and now that he was about to take a big leap of faith, he didn’t want to fuck this up.He’d come to Bella’s place well-prepared.Corbin’s grandfather had been a rancher.He’d died at a young age.A wild bull got him, which was why his own father eventually joined the rodeo.Corbin’s mother used to tell him stories about his father, trying in her own way to make him understand why he’d been taken away from them at such a young age.Corbin had been a kid when his father died in front of a stadium full of spectators.If his father’s death taught him anything at all, it was that everyone lived on borrowed time.Gathering up his courage, he knocked on the door.“Bella?”“It’s open,” she snapped.Nothing like a warm greeting.She was seated at her easel, painting.The ripe smell of acrylics filled her room.She tilted her head and studied her masterpiece, holding the brush between her teeth and acting like the painting was far more appealing than the man in her room.“Corbin,” she finally said, acknowledging him.“What brings you out here tonight? I figured you’d be over at the club since I ruined your first visit there.From what I understand, most men your age can’t get enough of that place.”He stalked across the room but stopped when he saw the fury behind an artist’s work.“What the hell is that?” he asked, looking at the distorted images scattered across the canvass.Some of them looked like him, others resembled Bella.“Mass confusion,” she told him, brushing a few strokes of red across the center, splattering paint all over the place.“It’s a collage of memories overlapping one another [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]