myââ
âGot it.â He wanted out of this conversation and the reminder of that night.
âYou do? You believe me?â
âDoesnât make a bit of difference if I believe you or not, but yeah, I do believe you. I may not have social skills but Iâve got good instincts.â
âIt makes a difference to me. Iâm glad you believe me. I mean, since weâll be seeing each other from now on. Your opinion matters.â
It shouldnât, he wanted to say, but kept his lips sealed.
His cell phone rang and he was glad for the interruption. Callie had a vulnerable expression on her face and Tagg was a sucker for a female in distress. He lifted up the phone. âGotta get this.â
She smiled weakly and nodded. âGoodbye, Tagg.â
He watched her walk to her car and get in. Once she started the engine and circled around to the gravel road, he answered Clayâs call. âWhat in hell were you thinking hiring on Sullivanâs daughter?â
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âIâm so glad you called, Sammie. I really needed to hear your voice today.â Callie leaned back on her bed, resting her head against the daisy pillow sham, speaking on the phone with her best friend and onetime college roommate.
Her bedroom on Big Hawk Ranch looked the same as it did when she was a child. The pale yellow and cornflower blue walls spoke of a brightness that Callie didnât feel these days. Sheâd come home from Boston because her job there had ended just about the same time her fatherâs health had taken a turn for the worse. She felt the timing was right. Sheâd missed living in Arizona. Sheâd missed the ranch. But once sheâd returned, sheâd found that while everyone else had moved on with their lives, Callieâs life had remained stagnant. The room her mother had decorated when Callie was just a girl was oneof many perfect examples. The Hawk never wanted the room changed and Callie had acquiesced.
âYeah, you sound down this morning. Thereâs something wrong. So whatâs going on?â her friend asked.
âIâ¦I just miss you.â
âI miss you, too,â Sammie said. âAnd you know thereâs nothing holding you there. You can come back to Boston anytime. Iâve got an extra room in my apartment that has your name on it. But, hon, I know that missing me isnât whatâs putting that tone in your voice. Whatâs up?â
âYou know. The usual. My father.â
âThe Hawk? Heâs at it again? What did he do this time?â
âItâs a little complicated right now.â
Callie wasnât ready to share everything with Sammie, especially the guilt she felt about her secret. But she could tell her the most basic truth, which was that sheâd reached her boiling point with her father last month. Sheâd thought that having a college degree, having lived off the ranch for several years and having reached her twenty-sixth birthday would have made a difference with her father. But sheâd come to the bitter realization that he would never change. Oh, she did love him. In many regards he was a good father, but his need to control the outcome of her life had gotten out of control lately.
âYou know I was dating a man named Troy, right?â she asked.
âRight. The tall, blond carpenter.â Heâd come to the ranch to build a new pool house and Callie had hit it off with him. âI thought you were still dating. I mean, the last time we talked you didnât say you werenât.â
âI didnât tell you what The Hawk did because I was so furious with him, I needed some time to let it sink in. My daddy just doesnât get that I can make decisions for myself.He canât see it as a control issue. He thinks heâs looking out for me the way a father should.â
âHeâs overcompensating for you not having a mother. Trying to be both parents at