He nodded. “A few years back, out at a rodeo over in Ada. One of your horses pulled a strain in their hind leg after a ride, and I happened to be the vet on site.”
Racking my brain, I tried to recall the encounter but came up blank. Honestly, most of the season blurred together, filled with late nights, long drives, and dingy motel rooms where you passed out before your head hit the questionably stained pillow.
Offering him a non-committal hum in response, I asked, “And what brings you to Rust Canyon?” I bit my tongue to keep from flat-out demanding to know why he’d dared to set foot onmyfamily’s property.
“Tripp, why don’t we take a walk,” Penny suggested softly.
“Honey, you’re not going to leave in the middle of our celebration, are you?”
Jake’s words had my head snapping in his direction, my eyes narrowing. “Our?”
He grasped Penny’s left hand and brought it into view. There, on the fourth finger, rested a diamond ring, and my heart stopped beating.
Throat closing up, I barely managed to croak out a weak, “Congratulations.”
Pink tinted Penny’s cheeks, and she dropped her gaze to the ground as she murmured, “Thank you.”
Looping an arm around her waist, Jake pulled her into his side. “We’re bursting with excitement, aren’t we, sweetie?”
“W-when’s the big day?” Even though it was going to drive a dagger straight through my chest, I needed to know.
“Three weeks.”
I stumbled back in disbelief, bumping into someone who steadied me with hands to my biceps. In my ear, I heard Mac’s voice, “Breathe, man.”
How was I expected to breathe when my world was crumbling around me?
Penny’s teeth descended on her lower lip as she watched my reaction. That was enough to snap me out of it.
Vision clearing, I forced a smile and bit out, “I’m happy for you.”
I only prayed she couldn’t see through the flat-out lie. The only way I could ever be happy about her getting married would be if the man waiting for her at the altar was me.
The back door slammed behind me as I charged into the kitchen of my parents’ house. I’d barely made it through the birthday-turned-engagement party without losing my shit, but the rage simmering beneath my skin was finally free to boil over.
My father raised his eyebrows at my dramatic entrance from where he stood, leaning against the kitchen counter. Whereas my mother simply sighed from her seat at the table, a steaming mug of what was likely tea resting in her hands.
“How long?” I demanded, pacing the room, my nostrils flaring with each ragged breath.
“Tripp.” My mama’s voice was soft, placating even, but I wasn’t in any mood to be “handled” after what had gone down this afternoon.
“How fucking long?” I screamed, slamming both hands onto the table. The sharp crack of my palms meeting the wood was deafening.
“Watch your mouth when you’re speaking to your mother.” There was a steel edge to Dad’s words of warning.
The red haze surrounding my vision cleared the tiniest fraction, and my voice weakened to practically a whimper when I begged for the answer to the same question. “How long?”
For God’s sake, I’d only been gone a month.
Unable to meet my eye, Mama hung her head. “Two weeks.”
“Two weeks,” I huffed out. “And three more until the wedding. What’s the rush?”
Because I wasn’t tortured enough, the only plausible explanation came to mind, and I hastened to the sink, gripped the edge, and willed myself not to get sick at the mere thought of Penny being pregnant with another man’s baby.
Then, an even more terrifying prospect rose to the surface.
Spinning around, I glared at my father. “Swear to God, if they’re moving onto this land, I’m moving off of it. I don’t care how far back you go with Wade. I won’t stick around and watch her play happy family with someone else.”
