Donovan Read Free Page B

my hair back in a ponytail, so I
figured why not just cut it all off and save myself the trouble? I like
this." I meant it. I did like it. The light brown color wasn't too dark
and looked natural, and I was very pleased with the results.
    "This
will last about three months, depending on how often you wash your hair," Dori said. "Of course, come in any time you think you
need to touch up."
    I stared
at the new me, not really surprised that I felt a little different, but that
deep-seated heartache that I felt at Frank's passing and Donovan's loss still
tugged at my heart. Nevertheless, the change was a start, and just what I
needed to snap me out of my doldrums. I had a busy and challenging week ahead
of me, what with helping Lisa and family members with the funeral and burial
plans. Then, I would need to speak to one of the brothers or sisters about the
ranch finances.
    The hard
truth was that the ranch was going under. Frank hadn't wanted anyone to know,
least of all the boys. He had sheltered Lisa from the truth for several years.
I was the only one who knew about it, other than Frank of course, but he had
sworn me to secrecy. I had been tempted several times to try to contact Donovan
and let him know, but every time I asked Lisa for his contact information, she
had busied herself with other chores and told me she would get to it, but she
never did. I couldn't really blame her.
    The family
had been dealt a blow when Donovan abruptly left not only the ranch, but
Stinnett and Texas behind. For a while, his brothers and sisters had attempted
to maintain communication, but within a couple of years, their one-sided
efforts had grown fewer and further in between. Before long, no one spoke of Donovan,
least of all to Frank. I'd heard Julie and Tammy talking to Lisa several times
about him, and it appeared that they were kept appraised of his rare phone
calls letting his mom know that he was okay, but other than that, there had not
been much news. I had no idea what Donovan had been doing with himself in the intervening years. I didn't know whether he
was married, had kids, or where he was living. That hurt. His abrupt departure
out of my life had cut me so deeply that even now, eight years later, I felt
the pang of his loss.
    Nevertheless,
no matter how much I had, and still loved Donovan, deep in my heart I felt so
angry with him. How could he have left me, turned his back on me like that? I
could understand him not wanting to take over the ranch from his father. I
could even understand him not wanting to remain in Stinnett. I could understand
him wanting to make his own life. What I couldn't understand was how easy it
had seemed for him to turn his back on everything that he had known, including
me. Why hadn't he made an effort to maintain communication with me? Had I so
terribly misread and misjudged his feelings for me? Had our relationship been
more one-sided than I had imagined?
    "You
see something wrong?"
    Dori's voice jarred me once again from my
reflections. I smiled up at her image behind me. "It's perfect, Dori , thank you." She removed the cutting apron from
around my shoulders and then grabbed a blow dryer, which she turned on and blew
over my shoulders to make sure that any stray hairs were blasted to
smithereens. I slowly stood, then turned to give Dori a hug. "Thanks for the ear, Dori ."
    "Any
time, girlfriend," Dori replied, squeezing
tight. "Any time. You know that."
    I did. I
nodded, then turned and headed toward the cash register to pay for my overhaul.
Then I walked outside, pulling my truck keys from my pocket as I stepped into
the parking lot. I walked across the lot and climbed into my Ford Ranger pickup
truck, where I sat for several moments, idly staring out the windshield. Dori's shop was located at the east end of Main Street, and
I watched local traffic pass by. Everyone seemed focused on their errands and
chores. The local feed and grain store was the busiest at the moment, with cars
and trucks pulling