Isabella (The Mitchell/Healy Family #2)(10)
Author: Jennifer Foor

The Mitchell family had been so kind to hire me without doing a background check. I don’t know if they saw something desperate in me eyes, or maybe they just needed help that bad. Either way it was a job that offered me a roof over my head. After all, I wasn’t just running from my old life, I was running from everyone that had ever known the man I used to be.

Having secrets came with consequences. It forced me to start over, with nothing to show for. To the Mitchell family I was a drifter. They couldn’t know what I’d been through, and I was determined to make sure the truth never came out. This was my fresh start; my second chance.

After Isabella walked into the bathroom on me, I felt overwhelmingly conscious. It was hard to be sensible on an average day when I saw her walking by, but standing naked in her bathroom was unimaginable. The shock on her face said it all, and then our encounter in the kitchen let me know that she wanted to get as far away from me as possible.

I couldn’t blame her. It wasn’t as if I had anything to offer someone like her. She came from such a great family, and even if she didn’t succeed on her own, they’d be there to support her financially and emotionally anyway.

I knew all of this because a long time ago I’d had the same kind of life. It saddened me to think about it now, but there was no way to go back and change things. I’d tried doing that for years, with no result except for constant misery.

That night while lying in the next room over from Isabella, I listened to her crying. She was clearly in a bad way, seemingly distraught about something she neglected to tell her cousin. I wondered if it was their little argument, or something else all together. The idea of her being so close to me, but not being able to offer her support was disappointing.

For hours on end she sobbed, until finally everything became silent. All that could be heard was the insects that were outdoors. I stayed awake a little while longer, not that it was anything new. I hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in as long as I could remember.

Nightmares were a constant for me, so avoiding rest was necessary. On most nights I’d take walks, or drink coffee to avoid being tired. By the time I rested, I was so beat that I didn’t dream. I’d gotten used to it, and in some ways it was just habit.

The next morning Noah neglected to wake me. Since there was no alarm in my room I only opened my eyes when I heard someone moving around. I headed for the bathroom to relieve myself and was met with Isabella in a towel. Her hair was wet, and I think the shock of seeing me again displayed on her face. “Mornin’,” I said in my best voice.

She never even flinched a smile. “I forgot you were here.”

“It’s all good. I just need to use the bathroom. Do you mind?” I pointed toward the bathroom door and watched as she went into her room. When I was done brushing my teeth, I headed out to go to work, hoping to catch another glimpse of her. Unfortunately, she’d gone into her room and had the door shut. I could hear the hairdryer running, knowing for sure that she wouldn’t be out for a long time.

After grabbing some coffee, I headed out to work. My daily chores were hard and strenuous, but I enjoyed the way they kept me busy. I’d taken a liking to working with some of the horses that Shalan, Noah’s fiancée, had purchased. The newest one, named Titan, was acquired as a wild colt and hadn’t been broken yet. It was going to take me a while, but I was determined to make it happen. In fact, I spent most of my evenings with that horse in the stables, resting against a bed of hay, reading. Aside from the training, I felt that it was best to make the horse feel comfortable around me. To be honest, I enjoyed the solitary of it all. The less people I was around, the less I had to pretend who I was.

When the plumbers arrived at my trailer I knew my time staying in the same house as Isabella was about to end. Determined to make a good impression, I decided to cook them both dinner for their hospitality. Grilling had always been something that I was good at, so I picked up some corn, zucchini, and chicken and got to work.

She pulled up just as I was finishing up, giving me a questionable look as she exited her vehicle. I could already tell that my being around annoyed her.

For the most part she never talked to me. I knew it was for the best, still I yearned for her to notice me, just so I could look into those beautiful eyes with little effort. Her dress was tight around her ass, forcing me to fight with myself to not stare. By the time I found her br**sts in the low cut shirt, I knew I was doomed.

I focused on the chicken before she could notice and call me out. Her presence alarmed me, causing me to stiffen my stance. “What’s all this?” she asked.

“Just a little supper to say thanks for putting up with me. I hope you like chicken and vegetables.”

“I love them. That’s real kind of you, Rusty. Considerin’ that I worked through lunch, it’s perfect.”

I threw her a smile, and couldn’t take my eyes off of her beautiful face. Right away I knew it was a mistake. She looked down for a second and then back to me. “Why do you look at me like that?”

I let my eyes fall to the grilling food. “Like what?”

“I don’t know. It’s weird, but you’re always doin’ it.”

I knew I was going to come across as creepy. “Sorry. It’s just the way I look at people, I guess. I don’t mean to offend you in any way.”

“What’s your deal anyway?” She sat down on a chair near the grill and crossed her legs. I tried so hard not to notice the way her thighs lifted at the bottom, almost displaying the skin of her ass.

“I don’t have a deal. I work the ranch, and train the horses.”

“No,” she was determined to keep digging. “You’ve got to have a back story. My cousin told me you’re in your thirties. Obviously you’ve been doin’ something for all these years, so spill. Who is Rusty?”

I finally looked in her direction, clenching my jaw as I contemplated making something up. “There’s no back story. I’ve traveled different places and decided to settle down here in Kentucky. It’s beautiful, and the hunting is good.”

She raised her brow, seemingly trying to read me. “I hardly think that you’re tellin’ me everything. You’re sayin’ that you’ve been traveling for your whole adult life?”

“There’s nothing to tell, I can assure you.”

“You were in jail weren’t you?” Her question offended me, even though she had every right to assume that.