Page 22 of Hard Rain Coming

Her eyes were wide and shiny, and he noticed the small nervous tick at the base of her throat.

“The unicorn. You kept it.”

“You were in my office.”

She nodded. “You kept it.”

Dallas watched her carefully, his mind going places he didn’t want to go, his body tense, his anger bubbling. “You went into my home uninvited and snooped.”

“Technically, I was invited.” She blew out a breath. “Benton invited me.”

“He invited you to open up drawers in my desk?”

“I didn’t mean to,” she said, “I just…” She licked her lips and shrugged. “You kept it. The unicorn.”

Dallas was quiet as he looked up at Vivian. This woman was responsible for some of the lowest points in his life, and yet, she was the one woman he couldn’t shake no matter how hard he tried. He stared up at her, unsure and weirdly alive in a way he hadn’t felt in a long time. As if he were on the edge of something. Something big. Maybe something good.

He stepped back, his feet on solid ground, and waited a heartbeat.

“I kept the unicorn.”

Dallas turned and walked toward the outbuilding, where his truck was stored. He needed space because he had no idea what had just happened, and he was too tired to think about it.

So, he did what he generally did in a circumstance like this. He put it aside, hopped into his truck, and headed home. He figured a good night’s sleep would straighten him out. And if it didn’t? Hell, he’d worry about that tomorrow.

Chapter Seven

Vivian woke up with the birds, and truthfully, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d rolled out of bed before nine a.m. It felt good. Better than good. It felt as if she was adulting or something. Crazy considering she was in her early thirties, but she rolled with it. She might or might not have sung a silly song in the shower. By 6:30, she was dressed and had already eaten when her brother came downstairs with Nora.

Benton looked confused when he spotted her in the kitchen, not that she blamed him. The two of them were usually out the door while she was still asleep, deep in la-la land.

“You’re up.”

“I’ve got things to do,” she said with a shrug.

Benton swiped at the sleep still in his eyes as he reached for the coffee pot. “You made a pot.” He glanced her way.

“I did.”

“It’s like a whole new Vivian.”

“Pretty much.” She chuckled.

“Auntie Viv, you look pretty.” Nora sat down at the table, her hair tangled from sleep, her pink-and-purple nightgown a wrinkled mess.

Vivian was used to compliments on her looks, but this one, coming from her young niece, was the best she’d received in years. “Thank you.”

“I like your dress, even though it’s blue.”

“You don’t like blue?”

“Yep. I do. But not as much as pink or purple or silver or gold or?—”

“We get the picture, squirt.” Benton laughed and set down a bowl, a carton of milk, and a box of cereal so Nora could get busy with eating while he moved toward the counter and sipped his coffee.

“You’re not dressed for the ranch,” he said slowly.

“No,” she admitted. “I’m not.”