“You son of a bitch!”
Colt’s eyes snapped open, the room still dark though it was early morning.
“You lying sack of—”
He sat up in bed, shocked to see Amber standing over him, a look in her eyes unlike any he’d ever seen on a woman’s face before.
“Get out,” she snarled.
“What?” he asked, blinking the sleep from his eyes. “Amber, what’s going on?”
“I can’t believe you,” she said. “You traded us off for a rope horse.”
“Rope horse? What are you—” His spine snapped upright. Holy…
She knew.
“Amber, calm down.”
“Calm down? You want me to calm down?”
Her usually pale skin was flushed red. “Get out,” she repeated, pointing toward the door. But then she seemed to crumple. She lifted her hands to her mouth, tears pouring from her eyes. “Get out, you son of a bitch,” she sobbed. “Now.”
He pulled the covers off and went to her. “No. I’m not leaving. Not until I explain.”
“Explain what?” She stepped away from him before he could touch her. “That you were spying on me. That two weeks you were at Camp Cowboy to report back to Logan. Logan!” she said, her mouth trembling. “The one man on earth I loathe.” She hissed in a breath.
Colt tried to calm himself down, but there was no escaping the bitter truth. He’d done exactly as she accused.
“I didn’t mean to hurt you,” he said. “I…” God, he didn’t know what to say. “When I started working at Camp Cowboy, I expected to meet a selfish, arrogant woman. That’s how Logan made you sound. Instead I met you.”
“And that’s supposed to make me feel better?” she asked. “Well, it doesn’t.”
She had no reason to forgive him. “Yes, I got the job at Camp Cowboy as a way of getting close to you.”
She wiped her eyes, and it broke his heart.
“As a way to find Dee.” He swallowed. “In exchange for a rope horse.”
She quietly sobbed.
“And I’m so sorry, Amber. I never meant for things to turn out like this. I never expected to fall in love with you.”
She huffed out a laugh. “Love,” she said. “Hah.”
“I do love you.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me the truth?”
“I tried to,” he said. “Just before Dee got sick, when we were in the hallway, I tried.”
“Save it,” she said, holding up a hand. He wanted to wipe away the tear tracks on her face.
“No,” he said. “I’m not going to save it.” He tried to touch her. “I love you, Amber. I don’t know how it happened. Don’t know how it’s possible when we practically just met, but I do love you.”
“I’m leaving,” she said.
He realized then that she was dressed, and that her hair was brushed and her shoes were on.
“No,” he said, darting in front of her. “Don’t go.”
“Get out of my way, Colt.”
“Amber, please. Yes, I got hired at Camp Cowboy because of you, but then I started working with the kids. Watched what happened when you worked with them and it…touched me.” And goddamn it all to hell, he felt tears come to his own eyes. “The past two weeks have meant more to me than the past many years,” he said, reaching out a hand.
She flinched away from his touch.
“Yes, I was in contact with Logan, but it was to ask him not to take Dee away from you. And I didn’t tell him where Dee was. I swear to you.”
She’d stopped crying. From somewhere deep inside her she’d found strength. God, he wished he could, too. “I don’t believe you.” She stepped around him.
“Amber—”
But she was gone.
“Damn it!” Colt slammed his fist against the wall, only to collapse to the floor a moment later and cry…cry as he hadn’t done since the day his family died.
SHE WENT BACK to the hospital, but not before alerting security that she had a stalker who had tracked her to the facility. It was the truth, or close enough to the truth that it must have shown in her eyes. She didn’t want to see Colt, either, so she told them nobody was allowed inside. The black-clothed security guard didn’t hesitate. “I’ll get right on it.”
Whatever the officer did, it must have worked. She didn’t see Colt. She went back to Dee’s room and pasted a bright smile on her face.
“Everything looks good,” Dr. Salazar reported an hour later. “He was dehydrated. Probably the new environment. You know how kids like this are. They’ll spit stuff out when you’re not looking. You might want to monitor his fluids for the next week or two. I’ll send instructions along to the home he’s in.”
“Thanks,” she said softly.
Dr. Salazar cocked his head. “You okay? You look worried.”
“No, no,” she said. “I’m fine. Just tired.” She forced another smile. “Long night.”
“I’m sure it was. But things will get better from here on out. You can take him back to this residence—” he glanced down at his paperwork “—Camp Cowboy.”
“Thanks,” she said.
“Good luck, Ms. Brooks. It’s not easy dealing with a child like Dee. Get some rest. You look like you need it.”
“Yeah,” she huffed, holding back tears. “I think you’re right.”
He patted her on the arm and left the room. Amber sat in the chair to wait for the discharge papers. Dee sat in his bed, staring at the TV above it as if it held answers to all the questions in the universe…and maybe it did.
“Here we go,” a nurse said eventually, startling her. “All ready.” She was pushing a wheelchair, their discharge papers on the seat. “Will your nephew listen to instructions?”
“Not really,” Amber said, getting up. “But it’s always worth a try.”
She sat on the edge of Dee’s bed. “Dee, we’re leaving.”
No reaction.
She dipped her head in front of him, blocked his vision. “You ready to go, kiddo?”
He leaned away from her, eyes so much like her sister’s staring upward.
I want to see my son.
And he’d sounded so sincere. Almost desperate. She’d never heard Logan talk like that.
“Come on,” she said, slowly reaching for Dee’s hand. He jerked when she touched him.
It was one thing too many.
“Please, Dee,” she said. “Don’t make this hard on me. I don’t think I can take it today.”
He didn’t move.
“I love you, kiddo,” she said, trying to keep from crying…again. Damn it. She couldn’t lose him. Couldn’t bear not being a part of his life. “Auntie loves you so much.” She needed to hold on to that thought. That was all that mattered.
She stood, held out her hand.
“Come on.”
Dee actually listened.
Gil had sent a car earlier that afternoon. It was a short ride back to Camp Cowboy, but it took every ounce of her resolve to get out when they arrived. What if she saw Colt? What would she do? What should she do? Should she tell Gil what he’d done?
But, as it turned out, she needn’t have worried.
“Did you hear what happened?” Melissa asked. “Colt quit. Just up and packed his bags and left. Buck and Gil are beside themselves.”
“I’m not surprised,” Amber heard herself answer, though she wasn’t certain if she was responding to Melissa’s comments about Buck and Gil or the fact that Colt had quit. “I’m going to settle Dee into his room.”
“You need any help?” Melissa called.
But they were halfway up the stairs. “No,” she said. “I’ll be fine.”
But she wasn’t fine. From the moment she’d first caught sight of the lodge, she thought she might be sick. Didn’t think she would have the strength to climb the steps. Dee had darted ahead of her, obviously remembering the way to his room. By the time she caught up to him in the doorway, he was standing in his corner again, only this time facing out.
“Dog?” he asked, his head turning this way and that.
Amber caught her breath.
He turned around. “Dog?”
She lifted a hand to her mouth, tried to fight back even more damn tears. “No, Dee,” she said softly. “No dog.”
Her nephew continued to search his room. “Maaac,” he called. “Mac!”
A sob broke free. “Oh, Dee.”
“Mac!”
“He’s gone, Dee. They’re both gone.”
And then she was on the floor, without knowing how she’d got there. She couldn’t stop herself from crying. She didn’t want to lose Dee. Didn’t want to lose Colt.
“He’s gone,” she repeated.
“I love you, kiddo.”
Amber looked up. Her mouth dropped open. Dee stood above her, his hand outstretched.
“Dee love you,” he said, his brown eyes full of compassion.