Where Forever Lies

by Tara Neideffer

  Chapter 25

  “Mommy, look at the doggie!” Kyra yelled, as she ran up to Diesel and put him in a choke hold.

  “I see him but you should probably loosen up on his neck a little,” Paige said, giving Tyler a worried look as thoughts of the dog snapping at her raced through her mind.

  “He’s okay,” Tyler said, as he draped his arm around Paige. “Maybe I could put her on one of the horses and lead her around for a minute? I’m sure she’d love that.”

  She cocked her head up to stare at him with wide eyes. The thought instantly terrified her.

  “What? You could hold onto her while I just lead her around. There’s nothing to worry about, Paige, my horses are really gentle,” Tyler soothed.

  “I don’t know, Tyler.” The thought of the horse freaking out and throwing her daughter off scared her but she also knew Tyler wouldn’t put her on one if he thought there was a chance of that happening.

  “Come on Paige. She’ll be okay. You know I wouldn’t let anything happen to her. We’ll just lead her around in the small lot behind the barn, where it’s fenced in and safe,” Tyler said as he pointed towards the barn. “Remember how scared you were over nothing?” he asked as he leaned down and kissed her cheek.

  “Yeah, I know, but it’s different when it’s your child you’re putting in danger.”

  Paige looked over at Kyra as she was running in circles, Diesel chasing after her, and smiled. She knew she would love riding a horse and having her and Tyler helping her would be the safest place for her first time. “Okay, I guess,” she sighed.

  Tyler gave her shoulder a squeeze, “She’ll love it.”

  They walked to the barn, the sun’s heat finally dissipating some, and Paige watched as Kyra ran a ways in front of them, her pony tail swishing back and forth.

  “Hey, Dad!” Brandon called as he ran up behind them. “Can I get the four-wheeler out?”

  “Yeah, but make sure your helmet and chest plate is on,” Tyler instructed.

  Tyler shook his head as Brandon went running towards the garage, knowing he’d be riding that four-wheeler for hours.

  Paige stood back as he swung the barn door open, watching as Tyler grabbed a halter and lead rope and went to round up one of the horses. She leaned against a post, watching Kyra play in some hay, feeling content as she stood in the dusty barn, letting Kyra get filthy. This scenario shocked her.

  In the distance she heard the roar of Brandon’s four-wheeler starting up and peeked around the door. She saw him fly past the side of the house, spinning his back tires a bit. Looking to her left, she saw Tyler leading a smaller white horse towards the barn and smiled.

  “Lemme get him saddled really quickly and I’ll lead her around,” he said as he walked through the door. She stepped to the side and went to grab Kyra so she wouldn’t run up to the horse and scare him.

  Kyra watched with utter fascination as Tyler saddled the horse and then walked around back to the small arena. Paige held Kyra’s hand, trying to keep her calmed down but she was jumping around in her excitement. As soon as Tyler brought the horse to a stop in the middle, Kyra started clapping her hands as she bounced up and down on her feet.

  “Kyra calm down so you don’t scare the horse, okay?” Paige chided.

  “Okay, Kyra,” Tyler began, “this is Marshmallow.”

  Paige raised an eyebrow at the name and covered her mouth with her hand to conceal her laughter. Kyra started saying “Marshmallow” over and over as giggles erupted from her, making Paige laugh even more.

  “I didn’t name him, if that’s why you’re laughing,” Tyler said. “Brandon named him when he was five years old.”

  “I was gonna say, that seemed like a soft, sweet name coming from you,” Paige mocked.

  “Anyway, Kyra,” Tyler began again, ignoring Paige, “Come here so you can pet him first before you get on.”

  He lifted her up into his arms and let her rub the horse on the neck. It made Paige happy to see Kyra’s eyes light up as she took the horse in. She knew she would talk about this day for a long time and was glad she’d put her fears aside and let her do this.

  “Okay, are you ready to get on?” Tyler asked her.

  Kyra eagerly shook her head and Paige went to stand beside him, her motherly instincts taking over.

  “All right, Paige, you just hold onto her waist while I lead the horse around,” Tyler said as he waited for Paige to get ready.

  “Okay, are you ready Kyra?” she asked as she looked up at her daughter in the saddle.

  “Yes,” Kyra yelled as she tightly held onto the saddle horn with both hands.

  Tyler began walking and Kyra let out a loud shriek. Paige looked up at her, at first worried that she was scared but then relaxed when she saw the huge smile plastered on her lightly sunburned face.

  “Faster,” she screamed, giggling.

  “Sorry, little girl, I can’t go any faster than this or your mom will give me a spanking,” Tyler said as he gave Paige a mischievous grin. “On second thought, maybe that wouldn’t be so bad.”

  “Tyler!” Paige yelled, smacking him on the arm. “Behave!” Still laughing, Tyler made a few more laps as Kyra sat happily in the saddle.

  The arena was dusty, and as the horse walked dust clouds would blow towards Paige. Normally, she would be throwing her hand up to block it as much as she could, but now she found that all the dirt wasn’t bothering her as much as it used to. He was breaking down her anxieties, one small step at a time and she couldn’t be more grateful for it. She was beginning to realize that worrying nonstop about things she couldn’t avoid or control was very taxing on her emotionally; and with each step she took away from that side of her that tried to bring her down with anxiety or worry, she felt lighter, more carefree. It was almost as if each piece of the chain that had tied her down emotionally was slowly breaking apart, one piece at a time. It was a slow process but she felt that she was heading in the direction she should be; and Tyler was a big part of her healing process.

  After a few more laps, Tyler stopped the horse even with the protests of Kyra. “Okay, it’s time to get down so the horse can rest. You can help me brush him once we get the saddle off, okay?”

  “Okay,” Kyra murmured as Paige lifted her off the horse.

  They followed a little ways behind Tyler as he led the horse back to the barn. Once the horse was unsaddled, Paige stood back and watched Tyler show her how to brush him down. The sight of Tyler teaching Kyra stuff about the horse and being so attentive was heartwarming and Paige couldn’t help but stare. The more time she was with him, the more good qualities were making themselves known. He was patient, gentle, kind, and a good dad. He wasn’t the arrogant guy she’d thought he was when she first met him. Of course, she knew he could be when he wanted to but that side was beginning to become few and far between now. She had a feeling he had even more to him that she had yet to see.

  After brushing the horse down, they waited in the barn for Tyler to turn him loose and then they headed towards the house. Paige took a seat on the front porch while Tyler grabbed them some tea and Kyra played in the yard with Diesel. She sat back in the big, white chair and watched as Brandon made laps on his four-wheeler, making Paige tense every time he let his tires slide around.

  She heard the door open and saw Tyler carrying two glasses of tea. He handed one to her and took a seat next to her, taking big gulps of his tea. He turned to her, looking her up and down as a smile formed.

  “What,” she asked as she stared back at him, wondering what he found so funny.

  “Oh, nothin’,” he replied as he took another sip, staring off at the fields as he watched Brandon ride his four-wheeler and Kyra play with Diesel.

  “You were smiling at something, so tell me,” she insisted as she leaned farther back in her chair, letting her eyes drift over to where Kyra was playing.

  “I just found something funny, that’s all,” he said, casually shrugging his shoulders.

  “And w
hat would that be?” Paige asked curiously.

  His eyes travelled up and down her body, finally falling on her face and his mouth turned up into a crooked grin. “The fact that prissy you are completely filthy, with hair that smells like lake water and clothes that are dusty and smell like horse, but somehow, even with all that, you are still incredibly beautiful and I haven’t been able to keep my eyes off you all day.”

  Still staring at him, she found herself not knowing what to say to that comment. She looked down at her clothes, seeing all the horse hair and splotches of dirt, and wondered what on earth he saw that made her beautiful.

  “I mean it, Paige. A woman showing off her natural beauty is far more attractive than a woman who has to make herself up to try to be beautiful.”

  She looked away for a moment and then looked back at him, trying to figure out if he meant what he’d said. Realizing he had, she thought she’d better respond in some way. “That’s really sweet, Tyler. I don’t think I’ve ever had such a nice compliment when I was this filthy, especially from a guy. This is what you do to me,” she said as she gestured at herself. She continued when she saw him laugh, “The old me would be freaking out and running to your bathroom to clean up and primp, but now you’ve gotten me to where being dirty is the norm.”

  “Well, I mean it, you’re beautiful anyway you are.” He leaned over and gripped her by the back of the neck, pulling her closer to him as he pressed his lips to hers.

  “Today was really nice,” she said as she stared out into the huge field in front of them. She saw Kyra to her right, playing in a small pile of dirt and cringed. A hot bath as soon as they got home was definitely on the agenda. As much as her anxieties were fading away, they weren’t completely gone yet. She yearned for the day when seeing her daughter covered in dirt wouldn’t make her tense.

  “Yeah, it was. Hopefully we can do this more often, from now on,” he stated as he reached over and grabbed her hand. He brought it to his lips and gave it a light kiss before letting it rest on his leg.

  “I think I would like that,” she said with a smile.

  “She looks like she’s having a lot of fun over there,” Tyler remarked as he watched Kyra play.

  “Yes, and she’ll have tons of fun when she’s sitting in a hot, soapy bath.” Paige eyed the mud clump hanging off her daughter’s pony tail and the smudges of dirt across her forehead and sighed. They were both filthy so it didn’t matter and, according to Tyler, she was beautiful like this. She didn’t understand his way of thinking but he was easy to please, which made her happy.

  Watching the sun begin to set from Tyler’s front porch was a beautiful sight and Paige wished they could stay longer, but knew she needed to get Kyra home and cleaned up and ready for bed.

  She looked down at a sleeping Kyra who was draped across her shoulder and said, “I’d better get her home and to bed. I’m pretty sure she’s beyond exhausted from all the fun today.” Paige stood, struggling for a moment with Kyra who was getting bigger every day, and began to walk towards the car. Tyler was right behind her and quickly opened the back door for her so she could get Kyra buckled in.

  Once she was settled, she shut the door and turned to meet his gaze. “I had a lot of fun today, Tyler, and I know Kyra did as well. It really meant a lot to me for you to spend some time with her. She’s not around very many men since my dad and her dad are both gone.”

  Tyler leaned his arm against the car as he studied her expression in the dim light. “Well, I had a lot of fun, too. I enjoy being around kids, believe it or not,” he said with a grin.

  “Good, because if we make days like today more frequent, then you’ll be around both of us a lot more,” Paige said with a wink.

  “I can’t see how that would be a bad thing,” he said as he leaned in and kissed her.

  Paige kissed him back, feeling a whole new world opening up to her.

  Chapter 26

  Paige took a sip of her diet coke as she listened to Brooke and Kyleigh talk about how good looking the new doctor at Anderson Hospital was. They were on their lunch break, sitting at a small café just down the street from the hospital, and Paige was ready for the day to end so the weekend could begin. Fridays were their day to get away from the hospital and eat somewhere else for a change, if they were all working together that day since their shifts sometimes varied slightly. She had heard this conversation every day for the past week, and it was getting tiresome. As they discussed how fit he was and how they’d like to find out more about him, Paige found herself thinking about Tyler instead.

  She had never been happier in her life and at times she wondered when it would all come crashing down around her. When everything she and Tyler had built so far would just tumble to the ground, leaving her standing in a pile of rubble. She tried not to think too hard about that because she didn’t want that to happen, but there were times she knew it was on its way. It had to be, because being this happy couldn’t last forever.

  “Paige, are you here with us?” Brooke questioned as she took a loud sip of her Coke.

  Paige brought her attention to her friends who were staring at her. “Yes, I’m here, sorry, I just don’t find Dr. Harris interesting,” she said as she rested her chin on her hand. She laughed when their expressions turned into shocked horror.

  “What do you mean you don’t think Dr. Harris is interesting? He’s like the hottest guy in the hospital and he’s a doctor on top of that,” Brooke stated.

  “Maybe to you two, but he just doesn’t cut it for me.” She took a nibble off her burger as they sat speechless. She didn’t know what was so shocking about that but they had been harassing her all week about her lack of interest in the new doctor.

  “Before Mr. Evans walked into your life, you would have been drooling all over Dr. Harris and you know it,” Kyleigh said, as she pointed a French fry at her.

  Shoving it away, Paige admitted, “Maybe, but I’ve realized how much more attractive a guy is who’s not afraid to get dirty.”

  “I do have to admit that Tyler is pretty damn hot,” Brooke said giving Paige a devious grin.

  “Hey! He’s mine, so stay back!” Paige said as she threw a fry at her. She laughed as Brooke dodged it, letting it fall to the floor beside her.

  Her phone buzzed and she looked down at the new message, her face lighting up as she saw who it was.

  Tyler: Date night with me tonight?????

  Paige: Maybe. What time?

  Tyler: Seven good for u?

  Paige: No Brandon this weekend?

  Tyler: I get him in the morning. He’s with a friend tonight.

  Paige: Oh, ok. I’m sure my mom can watch Kyra for a few hours.

  Tyler: Ok. Meet me at my house then.

  Paige: Can’t wait. 

  “Care to share why you’re cheesing like an idiot?” Kyleigh asked.

  “I bet it has something to do with Mr. Country Boy,” Brooke teased, her voice rising an octave at the end.

  Paige shook her head, laughing. “Well, it’s definitely not about Mr. Slick, the new Dr.” Paige couldn’t help with the nickname, considering his hair was always slicked back with some kind of gel. She thought it fit him perfectly.

  “Paige, that’s so mean! How dare you talk about my man like that,” Brooke said, her eyes wide.

  “Anyway, yes, Tyler wants to go on a date tonight,” she said smiling.

  “What are you guys going to do?” Kyleigh asked.

  “He didn’t say, so I’m not sure.”

  “On a serious note, how are things going with you guys?” Kyleigh questioned as she picked around at her salad.

  “Things are going really well, actually. So well that I’m waiting on that something bad to make its presence known, like always. But that’s just my negative, worrying side coming out. He’s actually really good with Kyra too. It all seems too perfect, you know, like in the movies.”

  “That’s really good. I’m so happy for you and I don’t think you have anything to worr
y about. It’s all going to work out and you’ll live happily ever after together in the boon docks,” Brooke said with a smile, reaching out and touching her hand. Brooke was rarely serious so when she was, Paige always knew she meant what she was saying from the bottom of her heart.

  “Thanks, Brooke, but I don’t see myself living out in the country. It’s beautiful and all; but you know my love for the city. Anyway, so I hear Mr. Slick is single. Are you thinking about making your move?” Paige inquired.

  Brooke started laughing and said, “I seriously doubt I’m the type a doctor would be going for. So, he’s my man in my dreams only.”

  “You never know,” Paige said. She knew Brooke was a little out there but she had a lot of good qualities about her, too, and shouldn’t have any trouble finding someone. As far as Paige knew, she had been single for a long time. Brooke never really elaborated on dating, that was one of the few things she kept private. With everything else, she was an open book.

  “Believe me, I know,” she said.

  After a lunch full of discussing all the guys in their lives, they headed back to work. The rest of the day seemed to crawl by for Paige and there were times she thought all the clocks in the hospital had stopped. Soon enough it was time for her to go home, and a few hours with Tyler never sounded better.

  She made a quick pit stop at her house to get ready and then made her way to Tyler’s. It was already getting close to eight by the time she got there, and as she pulled in, she saw him sitting on the front porch, one leg propped up on the rail as he leaned back in his chair, waiting. She smiled as soon as he looked her way. His navy blue shirt complimented his khaki colored skin that was tan from working outside so much and his dark Levis looked good with his brown cowboy boots. Paige stared, she couldn’t help it, he looked really nice, almost as if he had something already planned for them.

  She got out and he came to greet her, picking her up in his arms and lifting her to where her lips were at his level. He gave her one quick look and then pressed his mouth to hers, not saying a word, the only communication he gave her was coming from his body language.