The Stars at Night Read online

  “So you move seven hours away? Lexie, what do you know about running a motel?”

  “It’s a lodge. A rustic lodge.”

  Trish waved her hand dismissively. “Whatever. My point remains.”

  “I don’t know anything about it,” she agreed. “I’m sure I’ll learn.”

  “That lodge thing was your parents’ dream, not yours. They’re out in the middle of nowhere. My God, Lexie, you’ve never even visited them out there! Now you want to move there?”

  “I haven’t visited them because—”

  Because why? Well, yes, it was in the middle of nowhere. And yes, a seven-hour drive from Austin, at least. That was an excuse, really. She’d simply had no desire to go out there. Because there was nothing to do there. Trish was right. It was in the middle of nowhere and it was her parents’ dream, not hers. She’d followed in her parents’ footsteps when it came to her career—the tech industry was huge in Austin and she’d found a job easily after college. Her one and only job. She’d moved up the ranks quickly. She’d had a very nice salary. She’d been a project manager, the last two years with three teams under her. It was fast-paced, sometimes stressful—okay, most of the time stressful—and she’d loved it.

  But then her parents were offered early retirement—voluntary separation is what their company called it. The severance package was too substantial to pass up, so they jumped at the offer. They took the money and bought an old rustic lodge and restaurant in the Davis Mountains, adjacent to the state park there. Lexie had seen pictures—it was lovely. Lexie had heard stories—they loved it there.

  Lexie had never visited, however. She hadn’t followed her parents there when they’d asked her to come aboard. She hadn’t even considered it because at that time, seven years ago, she’d still loved her job. Her brother had gone to run the restaurant and he seemed genuinely happy, but Lexie had no intention of leaving Austin to join the family business. As Trish had said, Austin was home. But things change, don’t they?

  “I haven’t visited because I haven’t had time,” she said lamely. “It’s not like I don’t see them. Mark comes to visit every summer in August when things are hot and slow there. And, you know, my parents come here every year after Christmas, during their dead month, as Mom calls it.”

  Trish shook her head. “No, that’s not it. You haven’t visited because you’re a city girl and you like city things. From what you’ve told me, they’re hundreds of miles from any city.”

  “It’s two hundred and ten miles to El Paso, yes.”

  Trish stared at her blankly. “You’re crazy to even consider this. You have a full life here, Lexie. We have group dinners, parties. You’ve got your fitness freaks from the gym you hang out with. We go dancing at the clubs on Saturday nights. Sunday morning brunches. You’re always doing something. You can’t just up and leave like this.” She narrowed her eyes. “You never do anything on the spur of the moment. You always analyze and overthink everything to death. Why are you so quick to jump on this?”

  “It’s not quick. It’s simply that I’ve not told you I’ve been considering it. My mother mentioned it to me at least a month ago, if not longer. And yes, I’ve been debating the pros and cons for weeks now.” She waved her hand in the air. “You’re right. I overthink things. I know that.” She shrugged. “But it’s what I do. And after careful consideration of all the facts—both pros and cons—I’m willing to give this a chance.”

  “But not now, Lexie! It’s the holidays!”

  “I know. That was both a pro and a con. I’ll get to be with my family, but I won’t be here like I’m used to. And all of it, yes, will be culture shock, I’m sure. I’ll probably be bored out of my mind.”

  “Then why do it at all?”

  “I told you—I don’t have a job and unless I take a major cut in salary, I won’t get one. This is an opportunity that I need to at least consider.”

  “It’s just not you, Lexie. Can’t you see that?”

  “Oh, Trish. I know,” she finally admitted. She met her gaze. “I’m…I’m depressed. I’m all out of sorts and nothing is going right for me. I need a change.”

  “Depressed? You don’t seem depressed. Why, just last night—”

  “I put on a happy face. I can’t fake it anymore, Trish.”

  “So you want to do this? If you’re depressed here, what will that be like?”

  She went to the fridge and took out a water bottle, absently twisting off its cap as her mind reeled. Was Trish right? Would moving away make things worse, not better? Could she really be going to do this? Could she really be going to pack her car and head to far West Texas?

  “I’m going there right after Thanksgiving. Leaving early Friday morning. I’m going to stay through the holidays. That will give me plenty of time to see if I can make it work. My lease is up here at the end of January. It’s perfect timing.”

  Trish arched an eyebrow. “Are you doing this because of Crazy Cathy?”

  Lexie rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. I threatened her with a restraining order. I haven’t heard from her in months.”

  “And that’s another thing! You’ll be single forever! You’re moving to the middle of nowhere! Who are you going to date?”

  “I haven’t recovered from Crazy Cathy yet. As I’ve told you—and everyone else these last six months—I have no desire to start dating again. None. I mean, I’m talking years yet.”

  Trish smiled at that. “I can’t believe she stole your car.”

  “Stole my car? She drove it into the lake!”

  They both laughed. Yeah, they could laugh about it now. It had been six months. To say that Cathy hadn’t taken the breakup well was an understatement. However, the whole car incident was ruled a domestic dispute and Cathy was never charged. The only positive to come out of it was that she’d gotten a new car. A previously owned, new-to-her car, that is. Not having a job wasn’t conducive to splurging on a new car.

  Trish walked closer and hugged her. “You know I’m being totally selfish when I say I don’t want you to go. We’ve been friends since we were freshmen in college.”

  Lexie hugged her tightly. “I know. But it’s only a trial run, remember?” She felt a twinge of guilt for lying to her, but Trish would never understand her need to get away. “I may hate it there. In fact, I’m prepared to hate it there. As you said, it’s in the middle of nowhere. Ft. Davis has a population of about twelve hundred people. I would imagine by the time Christmas rolls around—if I haven’t lost my mind by then—I’ll be racing to get back here.”

  “At least you’re not going to miss Thanksgiving. The group dinner wouldn’t be the same without you.”

  “I wouldn’t miss it. It’ll give me a chance to say goodbye to everyone.”

  “Last year we had over thirty people, I think. I can’t believe how big it’s gotten.”

  It started with a group of five college friends and had grown from there. “I know. It’s the only time I get to see some of them.” Yes, she’d miss her friends. Of course she would. She’d miss the groups she belonged to, the activities she’d gotten accustomed to. She would probably miss all of that.

  She wouldn’t miss the job hunting. She wouldn’t miss the constant stress of her shrinking bank account. She wouldn’t miss the badgering she took from friends who were determined to set her up on blind dates, despite her assertion that she was taking a long break from dating. She didn’t have to remind herself that she met Cathy on a blind date.

  Truth was, though, she was tired. Tired of going out every night, every weekend with one of her groups. Tired of her daily gym sessions. Tired of dinner dates with friends who always seemed to bring along a single woman who Lexie found herself sitting next to, attempting small talk with a stranger. Tired of strolling Sixth Street every Saturday night. Tired of the hustle and bustle. Tired of spending money as if she wasn’t unemployed. She wanted to slow down, take a breath, and reevaluate her life.

  She was thirty and in a rut. A deep rut.
What did she want to do with the rest of her life? Get another job in the tech industry? So far that wasn’t working out for her. Get a new career? She was too old for entry-level. Go back to college? She mentally rolled her eyes at that. No way. She wasn’t that crazy! But was she? Was she crazy to consider this move? More than consider, really. After debating it for the last month, she’d talked herself into it. Trish obviously thought it was a bad idea. But her parents had made the offer. They hadn’t pushed, but they’d offered. Mark hadn’t pushed either—he knew her—but he thought it was worth a try on her part. Change of scenery, as he’d said. It would definitely be that.

  She shook away her musings and smiled at Trish, hugging her again. “Gonna miss you the most. You’ve kept me sane these last six, eight months.”

  Trish met her gaze. “You say that as if you’re not coming back. I mean, you are coming back, right?”

  “Of course I am. I’ll be back sometime in January, one way or another.”

  Chapter Three

  Kyler paused at the door, taking in the familiar scene of the Cottonwood Creek Bar and Grill. The patrons weren’t always the same but after more than four years, she knew most of them by name. Tonight, Joe Bob Edwards and his wife, Shelly, were sitting in the first booth, both nursing longneck beers. Stuart Gilmer was sharing a table with the Mertz brothers, the three of them laughing at a joke Stuart had told. Tammy, who ran the office at the park, was having dinner with her husband, Phil. Mark was behind the bar, wiping a spot where Bill’s Jack and Coke glass had sweated a ring. A few of the tables were occupied with strangers, either campers from the park or those staying at the lodge. Country music played in the background and Mark was bobbing his head to the beat.

  Irene was delivering dinner to one of the tables. She looked up and smiled warmly at her. “Kyler,” she said with a nod. “Brought you some cookies today.”

  She grinned at the older woman. “You spoil me.” She then walked over to Tammy and Phil, holding her hand out to him in greeting. “Hey, Phil, how you doing?”

  “Good, good. I was just telling Tammy that you haven’t been out to the ranch in the last few weeks.”

  “That’s because Tammy keeps me too busy out here.”

  “Well, that filly you’ve been riding misses you, I think. It’s time to take her for a run.”

  She nodded. “How about I come out next week on one of my off days?”

  “Sure. Make it afternoon and you can stay for dinner. Give me an excuse to fire up the old grill.”

  She laughed and clapped his shoulder affectionately. “Sounds good.” She nodded at Tammy. “See you tomorrow.”

  Mark had a beer drawn for her by the time she made it to the bar.

  “You’re late.”

  “Oh, hell. One of the bathroom toilets overflowed this afternoon.”

  “Again? Didn’t you do that the other morning?”

  “I did.”

  “Damn shitty job you got there, Ky.”

  She laughed at that. Oh, yeah, it had been a shitty job. “It was my week to work the maintenance schedule. Stood to reason something like that would happen. You know how my luck runs.”

  “Men’s bathroom again?”

  “Yeah. And you guys are nasty.” She took a large swallow of her beer. “My turn to bring food for Sunday’s football party. What are you in the mood for?”

  “Let’s do steaks.” He nodded in the direction of the Mertz brothers and pulled three beers from the cooler. “Be right back.”

  She wasn’t a fan of steaks, but it was Mark’s favorite and she usually went along with it. They had a standing date every Sunday, whether it was football season or not. He was a couple of years older than her and they’d become fast friends, a pleasant surprise considering she’d been essentially forced out here to the Davis Mountains.

  She grimaced, remembering that episode. She could have let her boss fire her, she supposed, but then she’d have been blacklisted and her career as a park ranger would be over. She figured she could last up here a year—two tops—then request a transfer somewhere else, somewhere less remote. Somewhere closer to home. But two years, then three had breezed by, and now four were behind her. As she cruised into her fifth year, she felt no urge to move on. She’d fallen in love with this high mountain desert in the Trans Pecos region. It was far from her home along the coast, that was for sure, but she was happy here. She had no intention of leaving anytime soon.

  “When are your off days next week?” he asked when he returned.

  “Tuesday and Wednesday. Why?”

  “You up for a shopping trip?”

  “El Paso?”

  “Oh, no. Not going that far. Over to Ft. Stockton. My mom’s got a list for me. Thanksgiving stuff. Ride with me.”

  She nodded as she took a swallow from her beer. “Thanksgiving is right around the corner, isn’t it?”

  “Yeah, it is. And Lexie is coming up on that Friday.”

  She nodded. “That’s right. You said your sister was coming for the holidays.” She knew he went to visit her each summer in Austin, but other than that, he rarely talked about her or Austin, for that matter.

  “She’s never been up here before, right?”

  “No. Lexie is…well, let’s just say, a city girl.” He picked up her beer and wiped under it. “She’s staying until the New Year. Trial run, I call it.”

  “Your folks finally going to get that RV they’ve been talking about?”

  “That’s the plan. If they can talk Lexie into moving up here permanently and running the lodge for them, that is.”

  “How do you feel about that?”

  He shook his head. “No, it’s not that. I’d love for her to be up here with us. Hell, I’ve got my hands full here—I couldn’t handle the lodge too. But Lexie works in the tech industry. Computers and stuff. Her company got bought out and she got laid off several months ago. That’s why she’s entertaining the idea of moving here.” He shook his head again. “Out here—this is so not her. She’ll never last. I mean, I hope she does, but…”

  “It wasn’t me either,” she reminded him. “I grew up in Houston. Lived in Corpus. Worked down at the coast. I didn’t know a piñon pine from an oak tree. Now? I love it here.”

  “You work for the Parks and Wildlife Department. Big difference. Her idea of parks and wildlife is going to Zilker Park and feeding the squirrels.”

  Without asking, he got another frosty mug from the freezer and filled it with beer, sliding it over to her. She nodded her thanks and picked it up.

  “She married? Got a family?”

  He laughed. “Lexie? No, no. She’s single. Well, ever since Crazy Cathy took her car for a swim. I thought I told you.” He leaned closer, his voice quiet. “My sister is gay.”

  Kyler’s eyebrows shot up and she looked around conspiratorially. “Should I be alarmed?”

  “Just sayin’.”

  She stared at him for a second, then quickly shook her head. “No. No, no, no. Don’t even think about it.”

  “What?” he asked innocently.

  She pointed her finger at him. “Do not try to set me up with your sister. That ain’t happening. It would be creepy.”

  “That thought never even crossed my mind.” He smiled then. “But she’s cute. Really cute.”

  “All brothers think their sisters are cute. And have great personalities. And are super nice.” She shook her head. “Nope. Not interested. At all. I don’t care how cute she is.”

  “You haven’t even met her yet.”

  “Still not interested. There’s way too much drama involved in dating.”

  He laughed at that. “Screwing your boss’s wife should not be considered dating! But what about that last one up here? What was her name? That gal from Marfa?”

  She shuddered. “Heather. Don’t remind me. And that wasn’t dating. That was only a one-time hookup, nothing more.”

  “Had a pet pig in the house! That’s so cool.”

  “Two pigs!” she cor
rected with a laugh.

  He leaned forward, a smile on his face. “Remember that double date we went on with those twins?”

  She laughed. “Oh, god. How could I forget? I should have known right away they wanted to do group sex!”

  “Yeah, they were kinda odd.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “We should have gone through with it.”

  “Yeah, every guy’s dream—in bed with three women.”

  “Well, you’re gay and my best friend. I wouldn’t really count you.”

  She shook her head, but her smile remained. “I love you, buddy, but I don’t want to see you naked. I certainly don’t want to watch you have sex.”

  “Our prospects for meeting someone are slim up here anyway.”

  “Yeah, they are, but I love it here.”

  He eyed her affectionately. “You ever been in love, Ky?”

  “Once. But I got my heart broken when I was Twenty-five and I don’t want to ever do that again. Ever. So I’m not worried about dating.”

  “You can’t stop dating because of something like that.”

  “Why not? You don’t date.” She saw the cloud cross over his face.

  “My reason is different than yours.”

  “I know. I’m sorry. My broken heart has healed.”

  “And mine never will.” He slid a menu toward her, even though she knew the damn thing forward and backward by now. “I like hanging out with you. No complications that way.”

  A bell dinged behind him, signaling an order was ready and he spun around, hurrying over to the kitchen window. Yeah, that’s what he usually said: he didn’t want to complicate things by dating. She pushed him sometimes, though. Like the double date with the twins. She knew they weren’t interested in dating any more than she was. She thought maybe it would be a good outlet for Mark—anonymous sex. As far as she knew, that was the one and only time he’d gone out with someone since he’d been there. He told her about his wife, but other than that, he didn’t talk much about his life in Austin. In fact, like he rarely talked about his sister, he rarely mentioned anything from his past. Too many memories, she supposed.