Page 33 of Love Me Again

She had to get out of here.

Her phone trilled. She looked down at it. She only had a few percentages of battery left since she hadn’t charged it overnight because she had been sleeping in her soon-to-be ex-husband’s family home without any of her things.

Because she needed her head examined.

The text was from an unknown number. Come over to the stables.

Josie stared at the words. Clearly it was from someone here, but she didn’t have anyone’s number.

Another chime. This time the message read: this is Molly btw.

Josie squinted across the fields to the stables. There was a pathway cleared today, so she could walk it without getting wet up to her waist. Maybe more of a walk would do her some good. Fresh air. Exercise. She just needed to get her head on straight.

Being away from Boone was a good start.

Heading toward his family was maybe not, but what choice did she have right now? In the light of day, she knew even considering leaving yesterday had been silly. She needed clear roads to get that damn truck anywhere away from the Tyler Ranch or she was risking her neck.

She wasn’t going to risk her neck over Boone Tyler. Not anymore.

So she strode toward the stables. Maybe Molly needed help with another horse.

Josie loved animals. She missed being around animals. And she was pretty sure Boone was still in the house. Maybe Molly was biased toward her brother, but she’d also continually affirmed Josie’s feelings and her right to be furious with him.

The other thing was, Josie was not an introvert by nature. She loved being around people. She didn’t need to be the chattiest or loudest person in the room, but a lifetime of mostly just her and her father had made being in a group a novelty.

She hadn’t loved the nomadic nature of following the rodeo around, but she had loved the extended family nature of it. She might have even stayed on if…

If everything there didn’t remind her of Boone and Dad.

When she made it to the stables, she found Molly there with two horses led out to an exercise ring where a lot of the snow had been cleared.

“You like to ride?” Molly asked cheerfully.

Josie eyed the woman speculatively. “Why?”

“I’ve got to give my horses some exercise. The boys are dealing with cattle, and with Cora and Lou all knocked up and stuff, and Lindsay snowed in, it’d just help me out to have another body.”

Josie didn’t buy it. There was no way the Tylers didn’t have this huge ranch without enough help here to do everything they needed.

But Josie didn’t enjoy being cooped up in the cabin, driving herself crazy trying to convince herself she had not been affected by the way Boone had looked at her and then his bed. Trying to convince herself that heated look in his eyes was a lie.

“All right,” she said, and even knowing this was a huge mistake, she smiled back when Molly beamed at her.

Boone’s leg ached, something that usually put him in a bad mood. Particularly when he hadn’t done his share of the work, and everyone started moving around him like he was something fragile they were afraid to break.

But that dark mood leaked right out of him as he and his brothers headed for the house for lunch. Because out there in the horse’s exercise ring was his wife.

She was up on a horse, while Molly stood off to the side. They were talking to each other, but Boone was too far away to hear what they were discussing. He could tell by Josie’s expression and posture that she was relaxed.

Happy.

She loved animals. Particularly horses. She was great with them too. Seeing her out there was like realizing this was where he should have brought her all along. Which didn’t help with all the guilt roiling around in his gut.

“So, what’s the plan?” Shane asked. He had stopped next to Boone, and Gavin was on his other side. They were all looking at an unaware Molly and Josie.

“Plan?”

Shane nodded toward Josie. “Yeah. Your plan.”