The Old Barn Holds a New Secret

Part 2

He agreed to meet Katy downstairs. While he joked about Katy’s continued pounding on his door, he would not put it past her if she lurked in the hallway waiting for him. He pulled himself up gingerly, deciding to get dressed and prepare himself for whatever Reggie planned for Katy.

Once dressed, he cautiously opened his door and peered out into the hallway. Unbelievably, Katy wasn’t ready to pounce on him. He kept himself from exhaling in relief, but he still felt as if he was on borrowed time concerning her. By the time he made it down the stairs without any sign of her, he decided to avoid her altogether. Instead of turning toward the dining room, he kept going straight out the front door.

Skipping down the stairs of the front porch, he made it to the Mule without being caught. Turning the key to start it, he floored the gas pedal and raced away toward the stables. If there were any place he would be safe from Katy, it was definitely among the horses. She had not set foot near the old barn since Princess had made her feel unwelcome.

He would have to give Princess an extra treat for her foresight. The closer he came to his goal, the more lighthearted he became. Instead of parking outside in his usual manner, he kept driving right into the breezeway of the immense stable, making sure to stay out of sight of the house before coming to a stop.

Walking over to the tack room, he grabbed a couple of the sugar cubes kept on hand. With a jaunt returning to his step, he went to Princess’s stall and quietly let himself inside. The horse snorted in recognition and took a couple of steps closer to him. He held out his offering and smiled as her lips brushed delicately across his palm.

The horse’s presence comforted him as he leaned against her shoulder with his arm wrapped around her chest. He felt her warmth as he brushed her soft coat and breathed in her fresh scent. She could calm him easier than anything he knew.

A nudge in his side brought him back to reality. Looking down, he saw the little colt looking up at him questioningly. Grinning, he held out his fist for the little fellow to sniff him in greeting. Princess dropped her muzzle to touch her son’s face as he sniffed, almost as if she were telling him that Randy was a good friend.

Time held little meaning while he rested in their company. He wished life could be as simple as it seemed when they were with him. For something to do, he retrieved the brush from the tack room, and he soothed himself as well as Princess with this even, relaxed strokes.

The sound of a woman’s throat-clearing caught him by surprise, causing him to twitch the brush into Princess’s side. The horse seemed to take exception to the lapse in his ministrations, and she snorted her displeasure. With a sense of dread, Randy slowly turned around to face Katy.

To his surprise, Becky stood at the opening of the stall. She stroked the little colt as she smiled over at him, where he stood with the colt’s mother. “I thought I’d let you know Katy got called away for some emergency. You can come out of hiding now.”

“How’d you know where to find me?” Randy let his hands drop to his sides, keeping his eyes downcast as if embarrassed at getting caught.

“It wasn’t hard to put two and two together. What better place to go than where Katy would never step foot? C’mon, I’m sure you’re hungry.” She beckoned for him to come toward her.

Randy nodded, his stomach taking the opportunity of the silence to let out a loud growl. He sheepishly grinned at Becky’s chuckle.

“See, your stomach’s agreeing with me. You can drop off the brush in the tack room on the way out. I’ll ride back with you on the Mule if you don’t mind.”

“Sure, I’d never make you walk all that way,” he replied automatically. Only after it came out of his mouth did he realize she walked out there to go and get him. He felt selfish for having taken the Mule in the first place, yet it seemed his only option at the time.

“It seemed rather suspicious that she would get called away so suddenly. You wouldn’t perhaps know something about it, would you?” Becky crossed her arms as the expression on her face said she already knew what he did.

“Me?” he asked innocently. Then giving in, he added, “I might have made a call to Reggie before coming out here. How long ago did she leave?”

“The limo picked her up about five minutes ago, but she got the call almost an hour ago to get ready to leave. What made you want to have her leave?” Becky seated herself in the Mule, keeping her gaze forward to allow Randy some privacy.

“She pulled quite the stunt last night. I don’t want to talk about it, but you were right.”

“Oh? About what?”

“About Katy only wanting my money. She said something last night when she thought I was too drunk to remember. In fact, I only remembered it when I was in the shower this morning. I can’t be with someone like that. I need a partner who thinks that this ranch is heaven the same as I do. Someone more like you.”

“Randy, are you hitting on me?”

“What?” His eyes widened as he realized the words actually came out of his mouth rather than staying safely inside his head. “I’m sorry, Becky. That wasn’t fair for me to spring that on you like that. I really do like you, Becky. You’ve been an amazing friend to me since—”

“I know, Randy. I’m glad you think of me as a friend. Do you want to eat in the kitchen as usual?”

Feeling relieved that Becky let him off the hook so easily, he nodded as he replied, “I’d really like that. Thanks, Becky.” Once again, she proved her friendship to him. The tension left his shoulders as he backed the Mule out of the old barn and turned toward his nightmare-free house.

Author's Note:

Read more of this series on Vocal:

Part 1: The Old Barn is His Sanctuary and Her Nightmare

Part 2: The Old Barn Holds a New Secret

Part 3: Can they survive a gold digger’s scheming to discover their perfect match?

Part 4: Can they see past their differences to lasso happily ever after?

Part 5: Flirtations with Cake, Coffee, and Good Company

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This is an excerpt from the first book in the Billionaire's Venture Romances series. If you want more of Randy and Becky, you can read their story in A Cowboy's Recipe for Romance.

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