Rules of the Ride: A Silver Star Ranch Novel (3 page)

Challis fills in for us and begins asking the doctor questions.

“Oh, before I leave you. He’d like to see Maverik. Begged for him the whole time. Does Maverik happen to be here?”

I stand, nodding to the doctor. “I’m Maverik.”

I follow him out of the small waiting room, close on his heels. It takes a lot of strength not to push down the man and race to Granddad’s side.

“He will most likely be out of it but said he had to talk to you.”

I nod and continue to follow him down a hall and then into a room filled with beeping sounds and a strong sterile scent. There’s only one patient lying in a bed while all the other ones are vacant. The doctor stops at the door as I quickly make my way to him. I’m relieved when I see a flush of color on his cheeks and his eyes a bright blue this time.

“What are you doing, old fart? You’re supposed to be resting.”

“Maverik, I’m sorry. I never should’ve said a thing,”

“Stop, Granddad. We don’t care. The only thing that matters is you.”

“The only reason I shared the information is so you always know to protect your brothers and never feel guilt for betraying my son.”

He pauses, catching his breath, and I reach for his hand and gently squeeze it.

“I know you boys have always respected him and shown him great loyalty because of me and the respect you hold for me. Now, that’s all gone. If he screws with the ranch after I’m gone, don’t think twice about taking care of him. You got me?”

I nod and accept the terms he’s just put before me without a damn single question.

“I’ll always protect Silver Star and my family, but old man, I still need you around for a while. You have always been the king to the empire and my foundation.”

He lightly chuckles and then immediately winces in pain. “I’ll see what I can do. I’m starting to think the man upstairs has different plans.”

“Rest for now, Granddad. We’ve got the feed covered, or I should say Challis found a way.”

“That a girl. Sure glad Merek found him a keeper, and now it’s your turn.”

I wink down at him. “You know I enjoy playing around too much.”

A huge smile brightens up his face. “Yeah, Challis refers to you as a man whore.”

I share a laugh with my granddad as I send up several silent prayers to the man upstairs, thanking him for not taking this man from us.

I begin to walk away but do something I’ve never done before—bend over and kiss him on the forehead. “You’re my blood and always will be. You’ve shaped me into a man and given me a priceless empire at Silver Star.”

A single tear streams down his face, and this time I have to turn away. Something you never want to see or experience is when the rock and strongest person you’ve ever met is at their weakest state of life and knocking on death’s door.

“Send in my feisty cowgirl.” I hear him from the bed and then hear the nurse scold him about visitors.

I turn to him, tip my hat, and reply, “You got it, old man.”

T
he stars have lost
their shine and the moon its power as I sit helplessly in my truck, trying to find some sense of relief. Marvel drove me home in Merek’s truck and then went back to the hospital with Merek, and Challis.

I needed a break, a chance to catch my breath and find a slice of peace in my life. But everywhere I look on the ranch, I see Granddad’s fingerprints all over it and then feel the sacrifice he made for his wife by giving her a child at any cost. He didn’t go into details, but I know beyond a doubt that all the pain on his face when he told me wasn’t from the heart attack alone.

Mindlessly, I begin to drive and pass up the bar. Booze would numb stuff right now, but it’s as if I don’t deserve to escape any of this pain and hurt. I pull into the local grocery store and decide to buy food to stock up Granddad’s place. Since Challis has been around, we eat all of our meals there, and between her and him they take turns cooking. These past few months have been the best with him. His damn smile and the sense of pride he has when we all surround his kitchen table is irreplaceable.

“Hey, Maverik.”

I look up to see a neighbor rushing over to me.

“Sorry to hear about your grandpa. Is he okay?”

The one thing that never changes about this town is word travels fast.

“He’s going to be okay. He’s one tough cookie.” I nod my hat to the elderly woman and try to be respectful.

“Well, let us know if you boys need anything.”

“Will do, Mrs. Camancho.”

I avoid eye contact with anyone else the rest of the time while filling the cart up. I have no fucking clue what the two need for cooking, and I just resort to throwing stuff in the cart. It’s a mindless job, and since it’s late at night, the store is deserted.

An old country tune floats through the air and I find myself singing along and tapping the edge of the cart, reassuring myself that life will be okay. I chuckle lightly to myself thinking about how many times Granddad should’ve passed between the rodeo and ranch accidents to his older age. Screw nine lives, he has to be on his twentieth.

I round the corner at a fast pace with my spirits finding the hope they need. A loud shriek fills the air, and then a shower of groceries goes flying. Once everything settles, I stare at a ghost from my past. One I’ve never wanted to run into again. Ella James stands before me with her hair all a mess and pulled up on the top of her head, eyes puffy and cheeks flushed.

This is different from the time I ran into her at the rodeo, because she was distracted and running from something. I’m not sure she even recognized me. But now she has no opportunity to duck away from me or feed me a line of bullshit.

“Mav.” My name rolls off her lips and it does something to me.

I only nod, refusing to speak to her.

“My mom died.”

I nod again, not wanting to talk to her or get trapped back in the vortex of Ella. She’s been my one love.

“I’m sorry,” she adds.

Those two words wreck me and cause me to fly off the handle, seeing nothing but red.

“Sorry for what?” I throw my hands up in the air and then bring them down, sweeping all the cereal from the shelf. “Sorry for leaving in the middle of the night? Sorry for being a bitch to me a couple of months ago, or wait, are you sorry for running into me tonight?”

She bows her head and tries to hide her swollen, watery eyes. “For all of it.”

“You should be.”

I push my cart around her and continue on. Blood pumps through my system at a rapid rate; I can feel my heart pound against my chest so hard it nearly hurts. I’m not sure if it’s from the adrenaline or the living heartbreak I just ran into.

“Maverik.” Her voice stops me in my tracks, instantly pissing me off. I’ve never understood the curse or the power this girl has held over me. “I’ve never stopped loving you.”

I turn to face her with a wicked chuckle escaping me. “You sure have a fucking funny way of showing it, Ella. Just leave me alone. Bury your mom and then leave town and never return.”

I watch as each one of my words slice her open, leaving her bleeding in pain in the middle of the local grocery store, and it may be the most satisfaction I’ve ever felt when it comes to the topic of Ella.

The clerk sends me several worried looks as I slam each item up on the belt and then curse when the cart becomes tangled in the magazine rack. Her eyes even dart to the phone next to her register. I want to reassure her but not sure my words right now would be all that soothing.

As soon as the total crosses the screen, I swipe my credit card, not waiting for her to tell me the total, and then swipe the bags from the counter and storm to my truck. As I toss the last bag in the bed of the truck, I think of my granddad lying in a bed fighting for his life and of all the sacrifices he’s made in his life for the loved ones that surrounded him.

He warned me she was returning home and made his message very clear about what I should do. This day can just go fuck itself. I’m not sure if I can handle anything else being dumped on me. Granddad’s words don’t leave my mind as I sit in the cab of my truck and stare down the entrance of the grocery store. He all but handed over everything to me tonight in that recovery room, and here I am in no less than a couple of hours acting like an immature dick.

I know have the right to be angry with Ella but being cruel is another thing. For the second time tonight, I’m talking quietly in my head to the man upstairs asking for a sliver of advice. As I wait in the truck and stare into the dark night sky, a shooting star grabs my attention. It’s brighter than anything I’ve seen.

Thoughts of Silver Star Ranch and my roots flow through my mind when I see Ella step out into the dark parking lot. I watch her stride across the lot with long, lean legs in tiny shorts. A half smirk crosses my face because some things never do change. Those damn shorty shorts are one of the things we always fought about back then.

Time has been kind to Ella with all of her beautiful features only magnetized and brought to the forefront. Her strong jawline that perfectly frames her gorgeous face right down to her long and lean torso.

Before I know what’s happening, I’m out of my truck and stomping toward her. “Ella, stop right there.”

My voice startles her as she tosses one of her bags into the night air, but it doesn’t stop me from taking her into my arms and pressing her up against me. This time I feel her heart racing out of control as it pounds into my chest. I use my hand and cup her cheek. My palms instantly feel at home on her skin. It’s not like when I touch other women.

Without a word, I drop my lips to hers and take a moment to savor the scent and feel of her sweet lips on mine. I capture her bottom lip with my teeth, lightly sinking into her flesh, feeling all of her. My tongue darts out, toying with her upper lip as memories of our first time flood back in.

I feel Ella nestle into me, allowing me to guide the pace of our heated kiss. Soon, both of our lips lock and explore each other’s mouths. Ella gently tilts back my cowboy hat, allowing her full access to me. I remove the hat from my head and plop it down on hers. Her giggles vibrate against my tongue as what I just did was an inside joke only shared between us.

Soon her hands roam in my hair and then she begins to lightly tug on my locks, and I know this is her sign of wanting more. The reality of what I just did sets in and I immediately back up from her, leaving her panting.

“Fuck.” I run my hands through my hair and then bend over to try to catch my breath. “I just meant to say sorry for acting like an ass in the store.”

“I’ll take it.” I look up to Ella as she brushes her fingers over her swollen lips.

“What are you even doing here, Ella?”

“My mom passed away, asshole, remember? I came home to bury her.”

“She also went through years of chemo and fought off cancer by herself. People from the town were there for her and raised money for her. Where were you, Ella?”

“You’d never understand,” she whispers into the night air.

“Try me.”

Ella drops her head and walks away from me.

“Yep, do what you do best, Ella. Walk away.”

This stops her in her tracks and I stare as she marches over to me and throws my hat in my direction.

“You’d never understand, you narrow-minded asshole. I refuse to be treated like trash by you. It’s your choice. You can either decide to forgive me or leave me the fuck alone.”

I know I’ve sent her into a rage when she drops the F-bomb. It’s her telltale sign of being pissed off beyond belief. I watch her gather her bags in the dimly lit parking lot and feel the overwhelming sensation of panic hit me.

“I never stopped loving you, Ella. You’ve always been the one. Never dated or fell in love again. There’s been plenty of other women, but you’ve always been mine.”

When she turns back to me with her grocery bags settled in her arms, using them as a shield against me, streams of tears roll down her face. “Like I said, Maverik, you’d never be able to understand my reason for running away.”

“Did…” The word gets stuck in my throat, and I can’t believe I’m even going to ask her. “Did you even love me, or did you just use me to pass time?”

“You know better, Maverik Slatter, you were and are the love of my life. Sometimes life just isn’t fair.”

I
was
dead wrong thinking I’d be okay running into Maverik again. I stayed at Momma’s house last night and I did nothing but toss and turn in my bed remembering and feeling the taste of his lips on mine and the way he held me. No one has ever had the power to make me feel so safe with a simple clutch to the back. There’d been no better time in my life than the years I was with him.

Maverik was my best friend growing up, and then one day we realized we were both madly in love with each other, and magic ignited the day our lips touched our freshmen year of high school. They say opposites attract, and we were living proof of it. Him, a rough and tough cowboy spurring horses in the rodeo, and then me, a small town girl with the bright city lights twinkling in her eye.

Everything in my childhood room screams Maverik—from the pictures that still plaster the walls to his champion buckle laying on the top of my dresser. It’s as if my momma literally shut the door to this room the day I left and never opened it again. My lungs burn as I panic to find air as all the memories flood back in and I have to escape again.

Fashion has always been my obsession, and growing up in a very small country town, boots and jeans were the only things accepted. The only person who truly appreciated my crazy dresses, tops, and very high heels was Maverik.

The cold metal of my very first sewing machine pricks my skin as I run my hand over it, remembering all the different outfits I’d whip up and wear. Boy, did it make my momma pissed off when I’d come prancing out of my room in a risqué outfit to go to a local rodeo or high school football game. Looking back, I guess I lived to piss her off.

The house is quiet and eerily punishing without my momma here. Pictures of her fighting cancer with her bald head and her friends surrounding her cover the walls along with all my childhood pictures. I stare at all of them from the dining room table in disbelief. It’s like she lived the rest of her life without missing a beat or trying to contact me.

The contents of my stomach take a spin as I stare at her face and wish like hell she’d beat cancer, and it’s not so she’d be alive. It’s so I wouldn’t have to be back here and looking at her, even if it was in pictures.

My phone goes off, causing me to lurch out of the chair and scream. It takes me several seconds to gather my thoughts before I can answer the phone.

“Hello.” My fingers tremble around the edges of the phone.

“Ella?”

“Yes, this is she.”

“Good morning, this is Darrell at the funeral home. I just wanted to touch base with you.”

“About?”

“Well, we need to meet sometime today to get things in line for your mother’s funeral.”

“Um, I’m not picky. Just handle it please.”

“I know this can be hard when you lose a loved one, but there’s some paperwork that needs to be signed off on, and you’re her next of kin.”

There’s a long pause on the phone between the two of us as my mind races to find an answer or any excuse to get out of this.

“How does two o’clock sound?”

“Are you sure you really need me there?”

“Yes, Ella. I’m sorry, but we do. I’ll have everything in order to make this as easy as possible for you.”

“Okay.”

“See you at two. Bye, Ella.”

I end the call without saying bye and feel my belly take one last flip, forcing all the contents to burn at the back of my throat. My phone rings again and it’s the same number; a heated mixture of bile rises so high I can’t handle it anymore as I race to the bathroom and let it all go.

Wiping my mouth with the back of my hand, I notice my reflection staring back at me in the mirror. Sprigs of blonde hair going in all sorts of directions, my doughy brown eyes that used to be full of hope staring back at me, my pale complexion, and just for a glimpse I see the young Ella staring back at me. The one who was madly in love with Maverik, had a hunger for life that couldn’t be curbed, had high ambitions, and an attitude that could conquer the most difficult of situations.

I only see her stare back at me for a split second, and then she vanishes just like she did so many years ago.

“That’s it,” I say out loud to an empty house. “I can’t handle this anymore.”

I fly into my room and zip up my one carry-on bag and head for the door. I have to race back in to find the keys to my rental car. Even though the only hotel in town is a dump, I’d rather be there than surrounded by ghosts of my past and be reminded of every single dumb decision I ever made. When my own momma couldn’t even understand why I left, I don’t know why I’d think Maverik or anyone else from this one horse town could.

My knuckles turn white as I grip the steering wheel, speeding down the main street of town. Old faces and places blur my vision, and I wonder why in the hell I even thought I could handle being back here.

“Oh yeah, right, Ella, your own mother died.”

I laugh at the words I spew and mostly at the comical tone in the words, and this is when I know I’ve officially flown off the deep end of life. When I can’t even dig up an ounce of sympathy for the woman who gave me life. Growing up, her mom, my wicked grandmother always would cackle and call me a spoiled-ass brat.

Little did she know, I’d filled those shoes quite well. Running away from home and from the ones I loved via the Greyhound to live the big city life and not even return to hold my own mother’s hand when she was dying.

My heart lightens a bit when I see the vacancy sign flashing next to the “Wagon Wheel Motel” and a sense of relief washes over me knowing I won’t have to stay in that house any longer. Now I just need to get past Chuck, who I also went to high school with. He now manages and runs the good ol’ Wagon Wheel since his dad passed. Yep, I’m a Facebook stalker, searching for any glimpse of Maverick I could find, yet never did.”

My stomach lets out a loud growl, and my fingers tremble as hunger hits me fast and hard. I need food and now. Across the street from the hotel is the local and very famous bar in town, but a block and half down is the best breakfast anyone could ever sink their teeth into. I check the time on my phone and know I only have fifteen minutes to catch the breakfast menu.

I snag my phone and debit card and take off down the street. As I hustle past storefront windows, I notice my out of control hair and let it down as I speed walk and try to finger comb the hell out of it. I grip the handle of the door, and I feel sick once again knowing I’ll see old familiar faces. I’ll probably even have people commenting about my mom. At this point, it’s either starve for the few weeks I’ll be here or suck up my pride.

I inhale a large gulp of air and suck it up the best I know how. The diner is bustling with business and loud chatter fills the space with the most delicious aroma of maple syrup and butter wafting around. The only problem is every single booth, table, and barstool is taken up by customers. I turn back for the door and decide to wait by the cashier stand for a place to open up. My stomach once again makes a very loud protest, declaring hunger pangs. I cover my abdomen and almost blush with embarrassment because I’m sure that was the growl that could be heard around the world.

“Hey.”

A hand catches my wrist as I turn my head back. I look down into the eyes of the man who will forever own me—Maverik.

“Need a seat?” He quirks an eyebrow at me.

I can only nod and smile back at him.

“This is open.” He points to the opposite side of the booth he’s sitting in.

“I-I…” I pause to gather my thoughts and try to talk like a big girl. “I’m sure you’d rather enjoy your breakfast without me. You didn’t seem too happy last night.”

“Sit and eat. I’m a big boy.”

There’s a joke in there, but I’m fairly certain we aren’t even close to that right now. He tugs me down into the booth opposite of him and when his touch is gone, I feel instantly empty and cold.

“Thank you.” I study Maverik’s face and pick up on the worried lines that now sprawl out from the corner of his eyes. His olive skin and dimples still ever so present and damaging to my lady parts. “Why are you smiling, Mav?”

“Life’s just a funny old bitch.”

“Uh.” I cock my head to the side.

He tilts his black velvet cowboy hat to the side and smiles back at me.

“This,” he gestures between us, “is what I dreamed of for years and now that it’s here…”

His pause is awkward and sinks my heart to the bottom of my belly, but it doesn’t stop me from soaking in his looks.

“It’s what?” I urge him on.

“It’s nice.”

“Nice.” I wrinkle my nose at him.

“Yeah, nice.”

“Nice.” My voice is louder than I expected it to be. “Nice is not a word that Maverik Slatter uses.”

“I know. You’ve always had a thing about doing things to me.”

I bite my lower lip, remembering the assaulting kiss from last night and so many from the past. All I’ve ever wanted to do is run back to him, begging for forgiveness for leaving, but I always knew no one would understand my greediness for leaving.

“Do you need anything, miss?”

I look up to the voice that just interrupted my thought process and come face to face with Lindsey McCormick.
Fuck me sideways.
Karma at its best—my high school rival and the one girl Maverik dated before me.

“Holy shit, I thought you were just another one of Maverik’s morning afters, not the one and only Ella James.”

Surprise, bitch, I’m back!
is the first thought that races through my mind before I look over to Maverik, who sits stone cold on his side of the booth. But before I have a chance to speak, the naggy bitch goes on.

“Oh, that’s right, your poor momma finally lost the battle.” She clutches her gold name badge on her chest. “We visited her several times before she passed on.”

The bitter taste of blood fills the inside of my mouth, and that’s when I realize my teeth are still sunk deep in my lower lip.

How in the hell do I respond to her? “Oh, yes, my mom and I never saw eye to eye. She’s dead. I’m home burying her and then off again. Thanks, asshole, now get me some fucking pancakes with extra syrup.”

Maverik’s hand covers my clutched fist on the table. “Thanks, Beans. Just add an extra order of maple nut pancakes and hash browns to my order. Oh, and two eggs sunny side up.”

And as if a bad accident just went down in front of me, I can’t peel my eyes from it. Lindsey’s jaw drops and her cheeks flush neon pink. Beans is the nickname a few jocks awarded her in high school. There was some talk about ol’ Lindsey and the walking farts after a night of experimenting with butt sex.

I know I shouldn’t be enjoying her reaction to the nickname, but I can’t help myself. It’s the first time in years I’ve actually felt any type of joy. Maverik kicks me under the table, sensing my pending outburst of laughter. I finally let go of my lower lip and crane my head in his direction and stare down his own smirk.

“I’ll have that right up with your order, Maverik.”

Lindsey, or Beans as I’ll refer to her for eternity, marches off without a second look back at me.

“Maverik.” I bust out in hysterics and finally wipe the tears from my eyes. “What in the hell?”

“She had no right to talk to you that way.”

“Thank you.” The two words slip so easily from my tongue, goose bumps cover my skin. I want to tell Maverik everything, explaining to him why, but then reality sets in. And the cold hard truth is, I ran and didn’t return for years.

Silence settles in over the table as we just stare at each other. I feel like it’s just another sleepless night of lying in bed, staring at a picture of him from high school. But now he’s much older, matured, and even sexier with age. Mav’s eyes always hypnotized me and made me feel at home.

“I wasn’t lying when I said I never quit loving you.” I clutch his hand as I finish off the words.

“Ella.”

The world is out to separate the two of us, and now I’m beyond certain this is the truth. This time when I look up I see Darrell, the man who has been running the local funeral home for years. He inherited it from his father. I’m sure he also inherited from his father making the Denson Funeral Home legendary in these parts.

“I tried calling you back and never heard from you. I just have one quick question.”

The man’s short stature and soothing voice make it nearly impossible for me to be irritated at him. His intentions are spot on. It’s just me and my I don’t give a fuck attitude.

“Yeah.” I manage to choke out, and this time I reach for Maverik.

I gasp when I realize his outstretched hand is already waiting for me. My hand overshoots his palm and clutches his forearm. His long sleeve western shirt is rolled up and tucked at the elbow. My fingers find the metal buttons on the cuff and make a swirling motion around it. Anything to take my mind off the current topic.

“Would you like to step outside? This really isn’t a question to be asked in public.” He tucks his palms in the pockets of his black dress slacks. “That’s why I tried to call you back several times.”

I barely nod and then feel my elbow being squeezed and look over to Maverik. “Um, it’s fine. Go ahead.”

“I typically don’t do business like this, but we need to know if your mother had any insurance we should get on file, and if you’re planning on a traditional burial or cremation.” Darrell pulls his hands from his pockets and fidgets with his collar out of clear uneasiness. “Again, sorry Ella, I know this isn’t easy.”

I look over to Maverik, who’s staring the poor man down as if he’d like to rip his jugular from his body and then back to Darrell, who looks like he’s about to piss his pants. This is a scene that was all too common back in the day. Let’s just say that no one fucked with Mav’s girl. It was a feeling I once adored and feel the same sensation coming back to me.

I do my best to clear the lump clogging my throat. “I do believe she had a plan. It should be in the folder she left behind, and my mother’s wish was a traditional burial. I also believe she had her own casket picked out. It’s all in the blue folder I dropped off.”

“Got it.” An uneasy smile covers his face. “I just needed to confirm that. I reassure you that I’ll have everything set up by your appointment time, making this easier on you.”