Hotel Ladd (24 page)

He was going to make it a meaningful
one.

They left her car at Fran’s
and drove to a field near his house. The hills were soaked in
moonlight, the sky so clear, Troy could have driven out here
without his headlights. Beside him, sitting on the center seat and
tucked within his arm, Casey’s body was warm. Troy wanted to lay
under the stars with her. He wanted to tell her how he was going to
make it up to her. They were a couple again and he wasn’t going to
mess it up. He never wanted to see the pain in her eyes again.
Casey was more than his girlfriend, she was his
friend
, the kind who listened and
supported a guy even when he messed up. She told him not to worry
about the Fosters. There’d be other jobs and she’d help him find
them.

Pulling off the road, he cut his
headlights and drove down a gravelly road overgrown with weeds.
Seldom used, it led to an open field not visible from the
road.

“
Where are we going?” she
asked.

Troy hugged her to him. “There’s a
meadow on the other side of these trees. I thought we could watch
for shooting stars.”

Casey smiled. He couldn’t care less
about looking at a bunch of white dots in the sky, trying to catch
a few that streaked across, but she seemed to really enjoy it,
pointing out stuff like constellations and telling him all about
them. Troy was impressed by her knowledge, but truthfully couldn’t
make out half of what she was pointing at—though he never said so.
He nodded and pretended to think they were really cool. If she
could support him and his desires, he could support
hers.

After driving around a bend of trees,
Troy parked. He pulled a blanket from behind his backseat, and
picking a spot between his truck and the trees, spread the blanket
out across the grass and sat, pulling her down with him. Taking her
in his arms, Troy laid her down and rolled over on top of her,
keeping her warm as best he could. Nuzzling in the crux of her
neck, the soft strands of her hair, he inhaled the scent of her,
sweet and feminine. He didn’t mind the scent of fried food that
lingered in her clothing. He wasn’t smelling her clothes, he was
smelling her skin. Her soft skin. Casey was soft and sweet and made
him feel strong. Pulling back, Troy sought her eyes to capture her
feelings. “I love you, Casey.”

She gazed up at him with a delicate
smile. “I love you, too, Troy.”

“
I’m never gonna let you
down again.”

She nodded, but the uncertainty in her
gaze tugged at his heart. Casey wasn’t sure about him. She was
going to give him a chance but she wasn’t convinced. Not yet. “I
won’t,” he said, then dipped down to kiss her. Her soft gasp roused
a need. Deep and stabbing, it startled him with its intensity. Troy
kissed her harder, faster, his heart moving through the kiss from
deep inside his chest to deep inside hers. Casey looped her arms
around his back and kissed him like he was the most important thing
in the world, like she’d die without him.

Casey made Troy feel powerful. She made
him feel worthy. It was a feeling he wanted to live forever.
Burying himself in her he kissed her lips, her cheeks, moved down
her neck, back up again. Her slick mouth welcomed him without
question. She wasn’t tense, she wasn’t hesitant, she was with him.
Desire surged. Love gushed. He’d never felt this way about a girl
before. He’d had a crush on Felicity, but they never talked like he
and Casey, never shared their private feelings. How could
they?

Travis was always in tow and three was
a crowd. In a weird way, he was thankful Travis and Felicity got
together. It gave him the chance to be with Casey and what he felt
for her, Troy doubted he’d ever feel again. His gaze met hers,
searching for confirmation. Did Casey feel it? Did she feel the
same things he did?

“
Casey,” he said huskily,
his body and mind warring for control. He was supposed to be
looking at stars with her. He was supposed to be oohing and aahing
as she pointed, but he couldn’t think of anything but her. “Do you
love me?” She nodded. “Do you love me as much as I love
you?”

A slow smile wound from her
lips to her deep blue eyes. The air was thick with the quiet. Too
cold for no-see-ums, the temperature silenced the katydids. In the
wash of moonlight, Casey’s pale skin was lit with a vulnerability
that pulled at him. Clear of blemishes, her face was like
porcelain, fragile against the jet black of her hair. She peered up
at him with more love than he deserved.
Casey loved him
. She loved him no
matter what and he loved her. Tracing her brow, he kissed it,
kissed her forehead, kissed her nose. She moaned softly, hardening
his lust with a quick and urgent need. “I’m going to make it up to
you, Casey. I’m going to make you proud of me.”

She brushed the hair from his eyes,
outlined the small scar on his cheekbone with her fingertip. “I’m
already proud of you.”

He shook his head, his heart wincing.
He was nothing to be proud of—not yet. “No, I have to earn it. I’m
going to show you that I can be who you think I am. Just give me
time and I’ll prove it.”

She smiled, a gesture so tender it
stole his breath away. Casey couldn’t see anything but the good in
him. She saw him for the man he could be, the man he was destined
to be. “I’m gonna make you so proud...”

Troy couldn’t finish the sentence.
Casey placed a finger to his lips, because she didn’t need to hear
anymore. She didn’t care. Troy’s heart swelled. Recalling the foal
he helped deliver and how he’d wanted to share it with her, he bet
she’d be great with horses. Maybe one day, they could have a horse
of their own. Deliver it together, raise it, train it to be the
finest stallion that ever walked Tennessee. Vegas’ slick black
muzzle and distinctive white star came to mind. The foal was a
beauty—a big one. He was going to make Miss Delaney a fine stallion
one day and while Troy wouldn’t be taking part in his life, maybe
he and Casey could start their own ranch. A tenderness moved deep
inside him. Someday, maybe even a family.

Troy’s heart was pumping so hard, he
swore she could feel the pounding. Cupping her neck, he kissed her
gently on the lips. “I want to make love to you,” he whispered into
her mouth. Casey stilled beneath him. “I want to love you and show
you that can trust me.”

Casey stared at him, but something in
her gaze softened. Opened. In that moment, everything changed
between them. Casey didn’t resist. Her body relaxed. Nothing stood
between them but love. “Will you?” Her consent was barely a
movement. Troy felt it more than he saw it, but it was there. “I
love you, Casey. I’ll always love you.”

Casey closed her eyes and gave herself
to him. He’d been forgiven.

Chapter Twenty

Casey burst into the apartment,
catapulting Annie’s pulse. She ran to her bedroom and slammed the
door, the force nearly jolting Annie from the couch. She raced down
the hall. “Casey?” She knocked briskly, a punch of adrenaline
stampeding through her chest. “Casey, what is it?”

“
Troy’s
gone!
”

Alarmed by the panic in her daughter’s
voice, she demanded, “What do you mean, gone?” When Casey didn’t
respond, Annie tried the door knob. Finding it unlocked, she pushed
it open. Casey was splayed across her bed, her face buried in her
pillow. Instinct propelled Annie to her side. “What
happened?”

“
I saw Felicity at the
diner,” came the muffled reply. “She told me. Travis told
her.”

Annie placed a hand over her
forehead. Gone, as in
missing
? Or packed up and left? “Did
you call him? Is he okay?”

“
Yes.”

“
And?” Annie pressed,
growing more impatient by the second.

Casey rolled over to her side. Eyes
teary, she murmured, “He left.”

“
Left?” The word felt
inadequate, incomplete, though Annie feared she knew the reason.
“Did you talk to him?”

“
He wants to prove
himself.”

“
Prove himself? To who?
Why?” Annie asked, hating the despair in her daughter’s gaze, the
utter desolation.

“
He wants to show everybody
he’s not a loser.” Casey’s blue eyes sharpened with lethal
precision. “People like you.”

Annie swallowed hard.
“Casey.”

“
It’s true, isn’t it? You
never cared for Troy. You don’t like the fact that I’m seeing him,
admit it.”

“
I didn’t like the fact you
were wrapping your life around his, but that doesn’t mean I have
anything against Troy. I only care about what happens to
you
.”

Annie sank to the edge of
Casey’s bed. Cal’s words reverberated in her skull.
Casey loves Troy. This will hurt, but you’ve got
to help her through it
. “I know you care
about him.”

“
I
love
him!”

Annie nodded mindlessly. If she could
erase the pain in her daughter’s eyes with words, she would. If she
had a magic wand, she would brush the hurt away like a snow flurry
against a warm windshield, a heartache that didn’t stick. If she
could, she’d wipe all evidence of the boy from Casey’s heart. But
she couldn’t. Life didn’t work that way. Love didn’t work that way.
Sometimes love hurt. Sometimes it set wings to your soul and other
times it sucked you down whole. Love was unpredictable.
Unfortunately, Troy wasn’t. “Does this have anything to do with
what happened yesterday?”

Casey looked away, clearly surprised by
her mother’s knowledge of events. “I don’t know,” she said,
predictably dodging the reality of her boyfriend’s poor choices.
“He told me he needed to make some changes, needed to get his head
straight. He said it was going to take time and I should be
patient, give him time to show people he could do it.” Raw anguish
rolled through her gaze. “But I didn’t expect him to leave. I
didn’t know he meant move out of town!”

“
Oh, sweetheart, I’m
sorry.”

Casey rolled off the bed and stomped to
her dresser, turning her back on Annie.

Giving her child the space she needed,
Annie held her tongue. She didn’t go to her and hold her, fold her
in the embrace she knew the girl needed. She didn’t offer any
soothing words to ease her pain. Annie did nothing. She sat and she
waited. Casey would have to open the door and invite her
in.

Moments passed and Casey’s shoulders
began to shake. Annie heard the sniffles and knew the hurt was
flowing freely. “I don’t get it,” Casey mumbled.

“
Get what?” Annie ventured
softly.

“
He was doing a great job.
Why did they fire him for something he did off the job?”

“
Because Mr. Foster has
specific rules against it.”

Casey spun around to face her. Black
liner created ugly streams down her cheeks. Anger scratched through
innocence. “But it’s not fair. His sons drink. Why should he fire
Troy and not them?”

Annie couldn’t dispute the point. It
didn’t make sense to her, either, but she wasn’t about to question
the man on his business practices. Troy knew the deal going in. He
should have controlled himself. He had no one to blame but himself.
“They’re his sons. He’s not going to fire them.”

“
So he takes it out on
everyone else?”

Annie shrugged. It was a teenager’s
logic. “Maybe. Or maybe he’s trying to do better.”

“
By firing the best ranch
hand he had?”

Staring at the incredulous look on her
daughter’s face, only one question remained. Annie didn’t want to
hear the answer, but she had to know. “Were you with Troy when he
was drinking?”

“
No.”

“
You weren’t with him? Not
at all?”

Resentment strummed the air
between them. Casey zeroed in on her mother, a mix of hate and
understanding scoring her weary eyes. “I wasn’t drinking. I don’t
drink. He went out and got drunk
because
of me, not with
me.”

“
Because of you?”

She nodded, bombarded by a fresh
onslaught of tears. “I accused him of being with that woman. I told
him that I hated him and I never wanted to see him again.” Casey’s
voice trembled as she explained, “He was upset. He got drunk. But
he said he didn’t do anything with her,” Casey added quickly. “She
came on to him. He had nothing to do with it.”

“
And you believe
him?”

“
Yes. Aunt Lacy was with
Fran today and told me she watched the whole thing. Troy didn’t do
anything.” Casey hugged her body as if supporting it from toppling.
“That woman came on to him, not the other way around.”

Annie breathed in deeply. One less mark
against his record didn’t make for a clean slate. One way or
another, Troy was on a downward spiral. First it was his job in
Murfreesboro, now his position with the Fosters. While he might not
be on the prowl, he most certainly was not in line for a promotion.
Exhaling in a heavy stream, she peered at her daughter. “So what’s
next?”