Free Wild Horses by Claire McEwen Page B

the pockets of her shorts so she didn’t do something dumb, like empty his drink on his dense head.
    â€œWhat do you mean?”
    â€œYou’re going to just wait and see what happens, right? Well, what if Lee gets fired before then? You have to take more responsibility than that.”
    Todd stared at her, as if seeing her in some new way. “You’re right. I do. I really do. Look, I’ll call a friend of mine tonight. He’s a journalist, and he’ll be happy to write a story that tells the truth about the broker the department planned to sell those horses to. A little embarrassment goes a long way with our public agencies. Once this story is out there, all the DRM will want is for the entire situation to disappear as fast as it possibly can.”
    â€œI just hope you’re right.” She thought of Lee, so weary and worried. “I need you to be right.”
    â€œTrust me?”
    â€œAnd why, exactly, should I? Remember, I’m stuck in the scientific side of my head—I need evidence.” She couldn’t resist tossing the words he’d used in the bar the other night back at him.
    He flushed. “I’ll leave a copy of the article on your porch when it comes out.”
    â€œLike you left the phone. How nice to have my own personal apology fairy.”
    His flush got a little deeper. Did it make her a bad person that she was enjoying the upper hand?
    â€œNora, I screwed up with the horses. And I’m trying to make it better.”
    â€œYou need to do more than try. Lee’s a good man. He doesn’t deserve this.”
    He stood up. “I’ll make sure he’s okay.”
    They left the bar together and stopped outside the doorway. Todd looked down at her thoughtfully. His green eyes, studying her face, brought back an unwelcome memory. Their first kiss. After a movie, in front of her dorm, her sophomore year. He’d stared at her just like this. Serious, and wondering.
    She looked away, out at the empty street. At the mountains beyond. Before the drought, a stream had tumbled down the slopes and through the town. It was bone-dry now. She wished she could dry up her memories the same way. They seemed to reside in some underground pool deep inside her, perfectly preserved, welling up at all the wrong moments.
    She looked back at Todd and met his eyes, facing down the memory. It wasn’t real. It was just a ghost. Here was the real Todd, who had to be reminded that he couldn’t just ruin someone else’s life for a bunch of wild horses. Who thought she was a total sellout for working for the DRM.
    Unfortunately real Todd’s smile gave her the same feeling in her gut that old Todd had.
    â€œThank you for lying for me,” he said. “I know you hate it and that makes me appreciate it even more. You’re kinder to me than I deserve. You always were.”
    â€œIt might be kindness or it might be stupidity. I don’t know.” But she did. She was stupid for this guy. Even now, with so many reasons to be upset with him.
    â€œWhatever the case, I will find a way to make it up to you. All of it.”
    That felt too much like pity. “No, you don’t owe me anything. Just fix this and we’re even.”
    â€œI wish I could fix more. About what happened before. With us.”
    He had no right to keep opening wounds. Especially when his had never bled. “Okay, if you really want to do something, try to help my brother get on his feet. He’s taken on such a huge project with this ranch. He won’t accept help if you offer, so you have to be subtle about it.”
    â€œWhen I dropped off your phone, I asked if I could help with grading the road. He said he’d let me know.”
    â€œAnd that’s code for he’ll do it himself. Even if it makes him crazy.” Nora sighed. “But thanks for offering.”
    Todd’s voice was gentle. “He mentioned that you’d taken care of