by A. D. Ryan
I moved slowly through the aisles between the clean glass cases, peering in and admiring everything I saw. While I knew what I was doing went against what Madison said about birthday gifts, there was a part of me that wanted this to show her just how serious I was about us. It was the next logical step in our relationship.
Everything I looked at varied in size, color, and shape. I had a basic idea what I was looking for, but nothing was really popping out at me. When I was in town earlier that week, I really liked what I saw in the window display, but they had since changed it. I was suddenly regretful for not making my purchase then.
“Can I help you?” a woman asked from behind me.
Turning quickly, I smiled. “Yeah. I’m looking for something for my girlfriend.” It suddenly occurred to me that, while that’s exactly what Madison was now, it was the first time I’d ever said it out loud. I liked hearing it.
“Big step. Been together long?” the sales lady asked.
“Just a few weeks,” I replied, looking back into one of the glass showcases. “Actually, I walked by on Tuesday, and I really liked the ones you had in the window.”
Her eyes brightened. “Come with me, they’re closer to the back. I’m Rhonda, by the way.”
“Jensen,” I replied.
As she led me farther into the store, I couldn’t help my eyes from taking in all of my other options. I would have bought out the entire store if I could afford it … and if I knew with absolute certainty that Madison wouldn’t kick my ass into next week. Of course, as soon as my eyes fell upon what I initially came here for, all of the others were forgotten.
“Beautiful, aren’t they?” the woman asked.
“Very,” I said, kneeling down to get a closer look at them all. It was hard to decide; other than their varying sizes, they were pretty much identical, and I could see Madison with any one of them.
After a lot of contemplation and holding each one to inspect and get a feel for them, I made my decision. “So, would it be too much trouble to pay today and come back Thursday? It’s for her birthday, and it’s hard to keep anything from her.”
“Yeah, that shouldn’t be a problem. I’ll mark it ‘sold,’ and you can come by whenever. Just make sure you have your receipt in case I’m not in when you come back.” She handed me my credit card and receipt after marking down the details of our arrangement. “It was a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Davis.”
“Thanks, Rhonda. I’ll see you next week.” Feeling good about Madison’s birthday gift, I exited the quaint little shop, excited to present Madison with my little surprise.
It was a big step, but I was more than ready to take it.
Chapter 18. Mending Burned Bridges
After Jensen left Lilah and me alone, I turned back to her with an elated grin. “So, let’s go find you a horse.” Lilah beamed, falling into step with me as we went into the barn. “When’s the last time you rode?”
“Oh, it’s been years,” she replied, her eyes roaming around the expanse of the facility. “This place is huge! I mean, I knew it had to be from what Jensen said, but I just never imagined … It’s amazing.”
Before grabbing a couple of halters and leads, I showed Lilah around. I took her into the viewing gallery where we each grabbed a soda from the fridge and sat to watch a bit of Jillian’s lesson. Lilah was completely enraptured by the experienced class as they maneuvered around the small indoor hunter course.
“I’ll have to make sure you’re here next time we use the cross-country course. There are uphill banks, a drop fence, and a few corner rails. I even convinced my dad to have a coffin put in.” Lilah’s head snapped to me, a completely horrified look on her face, and I laughed. “Oh no! A ‘coffin’ is an obstacle found in a lot of cross-country courses. You go over the first hill, and at the bottom of it is this ditch—usually filled with water—and the horse has to jump it before climbing a second hill. It’s actually pretty fun.”
“Well, they should call that a ‘ditch’ then. ‘Coffin’ sounds dark and ominous,” Lilah joked, returning her eyes to the lesson and taking a sip from her soda can.
“Actually, there is a ditch obstacle, but it’s totally different. We have one of those, too. Seriously, I’ll have to show you one day.” I loved that Lilah seemed to be taking an active interest in my line of work. While I knew she had past experience with horses, as Jensen did, it was exciting to help her remember how much fun the sport could be.
When the lesson ended, Lilah and I made our way back to the barn. “I think I’ll put you on Starla. She’s young, but she’s incredibly well-tempered; I think you two will complement each other nicely.”
I led Lilah out to Halley and Starla’s shared paddock. After catching Starla, I handed her off to Lilah and caught Halley. We took them to the outdoor hitching post and Lilah came inside with me where we grabbed my brushes. As I brushed Halley for a second time that day, her coat gleaming in the sun from her bath earlier, I had to smile every time I’d catch a glimpse of Lilah with Starla. She was talking to her and would laugh freely whenever Starla would nudge her with her muzzle. This would cause Lilah to lose her balance and stumble a few steps back time and time again.
Once the mares were brushed, Lilah and I went back into the barn to drop off the grooming equipment and grab our tack. I showed Lilah where Starla’s saddle and bridle were before grabbing my own personal equipment, and we met back outside.
“Okay!” I exclaimed, making the last adjustment to Halley’s girth before going over to check Starla’s. “I’m just going to make sure it’s tight enough. Starla can be tricky; she hates a tight girth, so she puffs out her lungs making you think it’s tight. Then, as soon as you get on, she expels the air and the saddle slips. I’m sure she thinks it’s hilarious.”
I lifted the left saddle flap and gripped the girth strap closest to Starla’s shoulder before leaning into her lightly. I waited a beat, and when I saw her breathe out, I pulled the strap upward, smiling victoriously. Now that that strap was tightened, she wouldn’t be able to fight the second one. Tricky horse.
“There you go. Do you need a leg up?”
Lilah pulled her stirrups down the leathers, measuring them against the length of her arms to make sure they were right for her height and hummed. “Umm, no. I think I can manage.”
I was a firm believer that riding a horse was a lot like riding a bicycle; if you had done enough of it earlier in your life, it could be permanently engrained into you and should come almost as naturally as breathing. Seeing Lilah mount up in one graceful movement only proved my theory—that or she was just as perfect as her brother. Actually, that was probably exactly it.
Within minutes, Lilah and I were on the trails. The ride to the river was about forty-five minutes long, giving Lilah and me a lot of time to talk. She told me all about her honeymoon—well, maybe not all about. I didn’t need to hear about the sex parts … even though I was fairly certain Kyle would have found a way to talk all about it if he were here.
“We stayed in Athens,” Lilah said. “It’s absolutely stunning. On the first day, Kyle and I went to Acropolis … Jensen was right. It was breathtaking.”
“Jensen’s been to Greece?” Was that jealousy in my voice? Why, yes. I believed it was.
Lilah nodded beside me. “Yeah, he backpacked all through Europe fresh out of high school.”
“Did he go alone?” Yeah, that bitchy, green-eyed monster was starting to rear her ugly head; sometimes I just couldn’t contain her.
Lilah inhaled deeply and shook her head. “Mmmm. Nope. Not alone.” It didn’t take me long to decipher the tone in her voice as one of disgust. It was then that I realized that Jensen didn’t travel Europe with a woman, but he likely went with Robert.
Neither of us said anything else, letting the awkwardness fill the air between us for a moment before the steady rush of water could be heard as we neared the Tennessee River. Until Jensen introduced me to our little picnic paradise, this used to be my favorite
place. There was nothing more calming than the sound of the water or the way the breeze would pick up the clean, fresh scent and wash it over you.
“Oh wow,” Lilah said breathlessly. “This is beautiful.”
Taking a deep sigh of contentment, I nodded my agreement. “Do you want to walk along the bank of the river for a bit? Just, you know, enjoy the scenery.” After nodding, Lilah and I urged our horses along the riverbank, walking side-by-side and talking.
“So, Mom and Dad haven’t stopped talking about you since the wedding.”
I could feel my cheeks warming, and I tried to keep the silly smirk off my face. “I’m sure you’re exaggerating.”
“No, really,” Lilah told me with conviction. “And actually, I’d like to apologize.”
Stunned, I looked at her as my eyebrows pulled together. “Apologize? For what?”
“Uh, because I’m a raging bitch?” Lilah snorted, and I laughed in response.
“Not at all!” I declared. “Why would you even say that?”
Lilah rolled her eyes, suddenly serious. “Come on, after how I treated you when we first met? I was a bitch, and I shouldn’t have been.”
I shook my head, my eyes falling to my hands, which were tightly gripped around Halley’s reins. “No. I understood. You were friends with her. That’s where you felt your loyalties should have been. I was the new girlfriend and a threat to them getting back together.”
“See, but that’s just it. I knew they would never get back together,” Lilah said surely as we walked out from under a canopy of low-hanging branches and into the sun. “He was so angry with her when they broke up. I honestly thought it was about his time away. I thought she was going through hell while he was locked up, when in reality she brought everything on herself. God, he must hate me for taking her side all this time.”
“Not at all. He thought he was protecting you from more—” With a strangled squeak, I cut myself off from finishing that sentence. I wasn’t sure if Lilah knew just how deep my knowledge of her past stemmed, and I didn’t want her to be upset with Jensen for telling me.
Her curiosity had already been piqued, however. “More what?” I shook my head, trying to brush off her probing question and redirect her focus. But, like her brother, she was stubborn. She halted Starla and kept her eyes locked on me.
One look told me she wasn’t angry, just confused and curious. I sighed with defeat as I halted Halley and waited for Lilah to move Starla up next to me. “I know about Chicago.” She opened her mouth to say something, and her bottom lip quivered slightly. “Don’t … be upset with him. It was after my accident. He had said something about my injuries looking familiar.”
“Oh.” Her voice was quiet and raspy, and she shifted her eyes to her hands as they fidgeted with the reins.
“I asked. He told.” Bravely, I reached for her hand nearest to me, squeezing it gently until her eyes found mine again. “He didn’t tell you what Kaylie did because you’d already been through so much. He couldn’t bear the thought of hurting you more. Sure, it wasn’t the smartest plan—but his heart was in the right place.”
Lilah nodded, squeezing my hand and allowing her lips to turn up into a slight smile.
“He was actually afraid that you and your parents might be upset with him,” I confessed.
The smile fell from Lilah’s lips again before she spoke. “Of course he would think that,” she huffed. “Obviously we’re not mad at him. Sure, we were upset—but not at him. What upset us was that he kept something so huge to himself. He was forced to grieve the loss of his child alone. No, I’m definitely not mad at him. I’m mad for him.”
Jensen would be so relieved to hear that.
Lilah laughed just then, her stoic mood lifting at something unspoken. “It’s funny,” she started. “I never noticed them welcome Kaylie the way they did you.” I laughed softly at her words, drawing another quizzical look from her. “What?”
“Jensen said the same thing,” I explained, remembering the conversation we had the morning after we came home. “He also said he thought maybe your parents suspected what Kaylie had done …”
Lilah clucked her tongue, encouraging Starla forward; I followed suit, happy that we seemed to be able to have this conversation openly. True, it wasn’t how I had planned this afternoon to play out, but it was somewhat of a relief to finally move toward closure on the entire thing.
“After the two of you left, I was still pretty pissed—more at the entire situation than anything. It was then that Daddy told me that he already suspected what Kaylie had done.” I nodded, not wanting to interrupt her at all. “I had never been so upset with him in my entire life. I mean, he practically knew and didn’t say anything?”
“I’m sure he had his reasons,” I whispered, coming to Henry’s defense.
She nodded. “Oh, he did. And once I calmed down, his reasoning was quite sound. When Jensen told them that the wedding was off, Daddy was immediately suspicious. He and Mom never liked Kaylie much—as I mentioned—but Daddy said Jensen was more upset than they’d ever seen him… and he’d been sentenced to three years in prison, you know?”
“I do.”
Lilah nodded. “He was so sure to tell her before the trial that they’d make it work, so their breakup just came out of left field. That was when Daddy tried to use his pull at the hospital to get Kaylie’s medical records, but he was unsuccessful. It turned out Kaylie had thought everything through and had the procedure done under the radar—paying off anyone involved. He didn’t give up until his medical license was threatened if he didn’t stop digging. Kaylie’s doctors and lawyers were pulling the ‘doctor-patient confidentiality’ card since they knew she and Jensen were no longer together.”
“Wow.” There was nothing else to say. So, Jensen’s parents had known—for the most part, at least. They just lacked confirmation. “Well, I can’t say I’m unhappy that you all know for sure now. I wanted Jensen to tell you—maybe not when it came out—but you definitely deserved to know.”
Lilah smiled again, her eyes lighting up as they met mine again. “And I want to thank you for that. And for being sure to manipulate the photos at the wedding. You have no idea how much that means to me.”
“I’d do it again.” I turned to Lilah with a warm, sisterly smile. “What do you say we head back now? Jensen should be home soon. Did you want to stay for dinner?” I asked, turning Halley back in the direction of the ranch.
Following my lead, Lilah’s lips turned down into a pout. “I wish I could, but Kyle should be home for dinner. Rain check?”
“Definitely,” I assured her.
Our ride back to the ranch was good. We talked more about Lilah’s honeymoon. She told me I absolutely had to go to Greece, even going as far as to tell me she’d make Jensen take me. Through my laugher, I assured her that in no way was I going to accept such an extravagant gift. While I was beginning to enjoy being doted on, I didn’t want to be that girl who expected lavish gifts from her boyfriend. Now, if we planned it together and both saved up for it, that would be a different story.
As we walked leisurely along the trail next to the gravel road, I smiled when I saw a familiar motorcycle coming from the opposite direction. “Look, Jensen’s back.”
We knew he would reach the barn before us, so we continued at a leisurely pace, giving Lilah more riding time since she didn’t get to do it often. We reached the grounds, dismounted, and were entering the barn just in time to see Jensen leaving the arena.
“How was your ride, ladies?”
“Really good. How’s the bike?” I asked, loosening Halley’s girth.
For a brief moment it looked like my question confused Jensen—which, in turn, confused me. “Oh,” he responded before I could question his odd behavior. “It’s good. Running smooth. Lilah, you want to stay for dinner?”
I wondered briefly about the change in topic. What the hell was he up to?
“Madison already offered, but I can’t. Kyle will be hom
e for dinner. Another time, though?”
With a smile, Jensen nodded. “Definitely. Well, I’ll let you ladies finish up here. I need to go talk to Wayne before I start bringing the horses in with Jeff.”
Jensen kissed me softly before knocking softly on my dad’s office door.
“Come in,” I heard Dad say. “Jensen. Back so soon?”
“Yeah,” Jensen replied, his voice so low I almost didn’t hear it. “I wanted to have a word with you in private … if you have a minute that is?”
“Sure, sure! Come on in and close the door.”
That was the last I heard as Jensen glanced over at me once more before stepping into the office and closing the door.
Chapter 19. Suspicious BF is Suspicious
Things were … strange. What could he possibly want to talk to Dad about? And why would it have to be in private? If it had anything to do with the ranch, it was just as much my business as it was my dad’s.
Lilah and I had just finished grooming our horses when the door to Dad’s office opened and they stepped out laughing. This behavior only piqued my curiosity more. Wayne clapped his hand on Jensen’s shoulder. “Well, I wish you luck, son.”
With what, I found myself wondering. My question went unanswered when they ended the conversation and Jensen made his way over just as Lilah and I closed the two stall doors.
“You taking off now?” he asked his sister.
Lilah nodded, wrapping her arms around Jensen. “Yeah, but I’d like to come back more often. I’d forgotten how much fun this was.”
I pushed my curiosity aside for the moment to acknowledge Lilah. “Why don’t we plan for every Saturday? And if Kyle isn’t working, he can come out for dinner afterward.”