Ask Me to Stay (Honky Tonk Angels #4) Read Free Page B

Lily. Already Lily had claimed KC as “my gurl.”
    The icing on the cake was Jayce Weathers. He’d dropped in a few times during the day when Callie was working, and a couple of evenings. She was definitely enjoying being flirted with by such a drop-dead gorgeous man. For the first time in three years, Callie was remembering that she was more than just a mother—she was still a woman. Jayce awoke feelings she had buried and it was exciting to feel that part of her come to life again.
    Yes, it was as if life had decided to smile on her and Callie felt like pinching herself to make sure it was real.
    Today was Thursday, so she was off and could have slept in, but Lily had become accustomed to an early schedule. Callie thought she’d take Lily into town, visit the bakery and then do a little shopping. Lily was quickly outgrowing her shoes and could use a couple more outfits. Hannah had told her about the thrift shop and a small store in town that carried affordable clothing. Maybe they’d make a morning of it, then visit the town park.
    God, even just planning a day like that felt like paradise. Was this really her life now? It was almost perfect.
    She was still looking for a place of her own, but until she’d squirreled away more money, she wasn’t going to be able to move. She’d convinced Cody to allow her to do all the cooking and cleaning as a way of payment for her generosity, and had asked Cody yesterday if there was anything she could do to help with the ranch work.
    Callie didn’t know much about ranching, but her grandparents had owned a farm and she’d spent a lot of her time there, so she did know how to milk a cow, feed animals and shovel manure. And she loved horses, having been around them at her grandparents’ farm. She still remembered how to muck out a stall. Cody said it wasn’t necessary but Callie wasn’t going to let up. She had to pay her own way and since she didn’t have a lot of money, this was a way to do it.
    Lily bounded up and took off running the moment she heard footsteps on the stairs. “Tody, Tody!” So far, the C s in Lily’s vocabulary were not constant, and her pronunciation of Cody’s name always elicited a grin from Cody.
    “Hey, bug-a-boo!” Cody swept Lily up in her arms. “Hmmm, I smell coffee.”
    “Taulkee.” Lily nodded.
    “Yes ma’am. Taulkee.” Cody walked into the kitchen, carrying Lily. “Girl, you don’t have to get up and fix coffee on your day off.”
    “Oh, yes I do. Miss Sweet pea was chomping at the bit at first light.”
    “You little early bird.” Cody nuzzled Lily’s neck, eliciting a fit of giggles.
    “Belly hurt.” Lily rubbed her stomach.
    “Okay, let’s get you some breakfast.” Callie poured Cody’s coffee and turned. “Do you want oatmeal, Lily?”
    “No, no want it meal.”
    “Okay, how about eggs?”
    “Hmmmm, eggs,” Cody said as she set Lily down. “I like eggs.”
    “My yike yeggs.” Lily jumped up and down. “Yeggs, Mommy, yeggs.”
    “Eggs it is.” Callie smiled. “Cody, want some breakfast?”
    “You won’t hear me turn it down.” Cody plucked her cup from the counter and took a seat at the table.
    “So, how did it go with KC last night? She still working out?” Cody asked.
    Lily looked right up at the sound of KC’s name. “My gurl gone.” A sad expression came on her face and she shook her head. “My sad. My gurl gone.”
    “You’ll get to see her again soon, butter bean,” Callie assured her, then answered Cody, “As you can tell, Lily is in love with her. She just wailed when it was time to leave. I can’t tell you how grateful I am.”
    “Are you kidding? KC is thrilled to be able to earn some extra money. Mama and Daddy have always been good to us, but they don’t cotton to laziness, so they taught us young that if you want something you have to be willing to work for it.”
    “My mother was the same.”
    “Was?”
    Callie nodded and turned away. She didn’t want Cody to see her face.