Page 12 of Bookworm
“It’s a check with your name on it.”
“I see that. Why? How? I’ve been fighting off debtors for almost a year now. Where did you get this money?”
“When your mother was alive, God rest her soul, she was my angel. I did everything I could to drive her away, but she wouldn’t leave my side. She was the best person I’ve ever met and saw things in me even when I was lost. She believed in me no matter whatever piece of shit mess I got into, and I owe her.”
Holt looks back with a blank expression. “So, you’re buying her forgiveness?”
“Far from it, son. I can’t atone for what I’ve done. I know that. But when I was out making a mess of our lives, she squirreled away bonds with any excess money. It was her way of keeping anything extra from going into a bottle or worse.”
Holt sits in silence. He looks over at me periodically as to ask if he’s dreaming or not.
“So, imagine my surprise when she shows me them all on her deathbed. The day that the Lord took her home, she looked me dead in the eyes, and told me it was for you boys.” A tear starts to roll down his cheek. “Son, I held the bonds in my hands so many times over the years, eager to change… anything. I lost my angel, and I wanted to feel good, but I couldn’t let her down like that. I wouldn’t.”
Holt waves the check back toward me with wide eyes. “It’s eight hundred thousand dollars.” He looks back at his father. “Even with just my half, I could pay off our debts, fix everything, and maybe hire some people to help me out around here.”
“Or you could sell everything and start fresh,” Earl says.
Holt places his big hand on his father’s shoulder. “See, that’s the thing. The thought has never crossed my mind. No matter what happened, this is the place I belong. I’ve met plenty of folks who chase money at the expense of their happiness, and I’m not going to be one of ‘em. Ranching, and the work involved, makes me happy.”
Holt glances down at the check again. “She really was a saint. But I gotta ask, if you were sitting on this, why didn’t you help me out sooner? I’ve been struggling with—”
“Truthfully, I always saw too much of me in you. Every morning, you come around the corner of the kitchen, angry as a hornet, and I thought you were just like me. Nothing was ever good enough and you took for granted anything good in your life.” Earl’s eyes reach out to mine. “That is until I saw you with her. That’s when I realized you weren’t me. You showed the kindness and attention that I wish I had given your mother all those years. So, I got right on the phone and the lawyer brought a check while you all were out on them horses.”
Holt looks toward me and squeezes my hand. His shoulders relax as he looks toward his father, then down at the check in his hands. “I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say anything,” Earl says. “All I want to hear is that you’ll take that woman behind you out for a nice dinner.”
Holt turns back and swallows my hand in his. “I think I can make that happen.”
My heart warms, and for a second, I picture my life in this farmhouse. I imagine taking care of Earl, baking cupcakes and apple pies, helping Holt out in the barn, chasing children around, and dragging in fresh cut Christmas trees. I imagine casseroles on the stove cooling while I watch through a snowstorm for Holt’s giant frame to appear as he makes his way in after a long day’s work. And I imagine the two of us cuddled up in bed every night whispering sweet things and tickling each other slowly until he’s pressed me into the mattress with his heavy weight and soft kisses. It’s a fantasy, I know, but it’s one I can’t get out of my head. I can only hope Holt feels the same way.
Chapter Eight
Holt
By the time I get cleaned up, Ann is already curled up in my bed, her body hugging my pillow as though she’s searching for my scent.
Why is this the hottest sight I’ve ever seen? A sweet, innocent woman naked against my pillow, in my bed, wiggling her ass back toward me as I make my way under the sheet.
“You’re finally here,” she groans as though she’s sleepy. “I was starting to think you had another barn emergency.”
“No more emergencies tonight, baby. Just you and me.” My hand runs up and over her bare shoulder. She’s soft, pale, and perfect. My balls tighten and my cock strikes hard against my boxers at the sound of her voice. She’s so fucking precious.
“You and me, huh?” She rolls over, her nipples firm and erect against the cool air in the room. She brushes my chest and the hard tip of her breast hits me again and again, thumping my cock harder and harder.
I’m going to have to leave the room or ask her to marry me. I’m not sure which makes more sense right now. It’s been a long, crazy-ass day, so I’m thinking I could get away with the latter, but I don’t dare press my luck.
“You and me,” I repeat. “What do you think about that big old check the old man just threw in my lap? Concerning or kind?”
I already know her answer. “Kind. People change, Holt. He’s changed. He wants to make amends with you. He wants to do the right thing.”
I look toward Ann, so innocent with her words. So kind, so understanding. If she listened long enough, I’m sure she’d find a way to forgive a bank robber. That’s the good in her, though. It’s why I’m falling for her. She sees people in a way I can’t. She finds the pieces of grace and she lets that person shine.
“I’ll take the old man to breakfast in the morning and maybe I can get Jimmy on the line. I’m sure we could all use a good old-fashioned talk.”
“I like that for you.” She smiles and nuzzles into my chest, running her fingers through the hair on my stomach.
“And how do we fixyourchildhood? If anyone deserves a bag of money, it’s you.”