Spring's Destiny

by Deausha Kristal

  “No, wait, aren’t they going to be here tomorrow?” I ask, so totally confused now.

  “The letter sent to me explained; they had to wait until Sunday, but they are staying a few days until their flight leaves. They wanted me to make sure that was OK with you.”

  “Well, yeah that’s fine. I guess I can get the rooms ready for them. So, where to now?” I ask.

  “You hungry?” he asks. Looking at my watch, I see it’s noon already.

  “Yeah, I am, where are we eating?”

  “I know just the place,” he says and backs the truck up. It seems like we wait twenty minutes to get out of the parking lot.

  “Wow, people are terrified of the storm that’s coming, huh?”

  “Yeah, they haven’t had this bad of a storm in twenty years.”

  “That’s crazy,” I say, petting the puppy.

  “So, got a name for him yet?” Mick asks.

  “Nope, but I will before we get back to the house,” I say, smiling.

  He drives into the center of town and pulls over to the curb and parks. Looking out the window, I see a little restaurant with a bookstore to the left of it.

  “My sister owns the joint, but it has great food.” Shaking my head, I get out and grab my purse.

  “Mick,” a woman screams when we walk inside making me jump. She’s running to Mick throwing her arms around his neck. They talk for a few minutes before I notice her looking me up and down.

  “Oh, sorry, Mae, this is Spring; she bought the house up the mountain. Spring, this is my sister Mae,” he says. Smiling at her, I can see that they look like each other.

  “It’s so nice to meet you, Mae,” I say, sticking my hand out for her to shake. Smiling, she pulls me in for a hug.

  “It’s nice to meet you too,” she says with a big grin on her face. Looking at Mick from the corner of my eye, I see him make a sign and shake his head. Mae’s eyes get huge, and she hugs me again almost knocking me down. I feel Mick’s hand on my back. Thank God or I would have fallen on my ass.

  “Here, let me get you a booth,” she says, walking and expecting us to follow her. We don’t go far. She puts us in a booth right in front of the window. Sitting down, I can see the truck and the puppy. Mick’s watching me with a funny expression on his face.

  “What can I get y’all to drink?” Mae asks.

  “I’ll have a sweet tea, please,” I tell her. Mick orders the same thing, and she goes off to get them. Looking over the menu, I see many foods from which you can choose. Mae brings us our drinks and sets them down in front of us.

  “What can I get you, Spring?” she asks, smiling.

  “Oh, a wedge salad with ranch, please.” Hearing Mick laugh, I look over at him, raising my eyebrow.

  “What’s so funny?” I ask. Mae smacks him on his arm and goes to put our order in.

  “You ordering just a salad? Thought you were hungry?” he asks laughing.

  “I am, and that will fill me up. So, anyways, how long has it been since you have seen your sister?” I hope it’s not a touchy subject. I’m not trying to pry.

  Running his hands through his hair, he lets out a big breath. “About a year, I guess. I was away a lot of the time.”

  “Oh. I have an idea, why don’t you invite your sister over and I’ll make dinner?”

  “Oh, you don’t need to go to all the trouble, Spring.”

  “It’s no trouble at all. Please.”

  Chapter 7

  Mae comes back with our lunch and Mick asks her to come up for dinner. Looking down at my salad, I pour the dressing all over it.

  “Hey, mind if I spend the night, Spring? It could be a girls’ night, you know paint nails, drink wine.”

  “OK, sounds like a plan. I’m sure you know how to get there?” Squealing, she jumps up and down.

  “Yes, I sure do.” Hugging me, she goes and kisses Mick on the cheek and then heads off to the back of the diner. Shaking my head, I start to eat my salad.

  “Thank you, Spring,” Mick says.

  “I didn’t do anything, I’m sure we’re going to have fun,” I tell him between bites.

  We eat everything on our plates when this little waitress brings over peach cobbler. Looking over at Mick, he shakes his head grinning.

  “Thank you,” I say to the girl.

  “You’re welcome,” she says shyly, darting glances at Mick. Smiling at her, she walks away. Well, well, she has a crush on Mick.

  “Mick, she has a crush on you. That’s so cute,” I say laughing. Looking over at Mick, he’s blushing, and it makes me giggle even more.

  “She has for a while,” is all he says. I take my last bite of cobbler and push my plate away from me.

  “You ready to head out?” I ask him.

  “Yep, just let me take care of the bill. If you want, you can go to the little stores that are right next to us.”

  “You know, I think I will.”

  I grab my purse, get up, and walk out the door. Going to the right, I head into a little bookstore. It’s not brightly-lit like some of the stores are. Taking a deep breath, it smells of old books. Walking around the stacks, I see that they are old books. The further I walk into the store the newer the books. Finding a few I like, I head to the counter. Getting that weird feeling that I’m being watched again, I look over my shoulder. Maddox is standing right behind me. Turning around, I smile.

  “Hello, Maddox, what are you doing in here?”

  “Well, it is a bookstore, Spring.” Looking behind him, I see his friends are with him. Turning around, I swipe my card and sign my name. The clerk puts my books into a bag and hands them to me. Thanking her, I slowly walk to the door.

  “Here, let me walk you out,” he whispers in my ear.

  “Oh, thank you for the wine that was very sweet of you.”

  “How about dinner tonight?” he asks me as we stop at the truck. My hand starts hurting as soon as his friends come near us. Fisting my hand, I pull it behind me. The little pup is going nuts in the truck growling and barking. Suddenly, Mick comes crashing through the door of the diner, and he looks pissed.

  He comes over to me and whispers in my ear, “Don’t.” How did he know I was going to reach out to the pup to see what’s wrong? Trying to ignore the little guy, I look over at Maddox.

  “I have plans tonight. How about another time?” I watch his expression change from shock to anger then a small grin settles onto his face.

  “That will be fine.” He bows slightly, as do his friends, and walks away. After I see them go around the corner, I look beside me to Mick. He looks just as shocked as Maddox did.

  “Let’s go get into the truck.”

  Getting in, I put my seatbelt on, and the puppy jumps into my lap and kisses me. Closing my eyes, I reach out to the little one. What’s wrong, little guy? Why were you acting that way? Looking at him, I wait for him to answer. Evil man friends too, they want to hurt you.

  Maddox or his friends? I ask him.

  Friends, I’ll protect you.

  “What’s going on, Mick?” I ask when I see him watching my exchange with my puppy.

  “I know you have tons of questions, and things are happening to you, but I can’t tell you everything I know. It’s not for me to say.” He looks away like he doesn’t want to look at me.

  “Look at me, Mick.” He slowly looks over at me. “You know I can talk to animals, don’t you?”

  “Yes, I know.”

  OK, I might as well go for broke here too. “You also know what else I can do, right?” He slows the truck down.

  “I don’t know what you mean, tell me what you can do.”

  Looking at him, I guess the cat is out of the bag. “I can feel when people are watching me. Like I did back there with Maddox’s friends. I also can, I don’t know what you call it, but when I’m in danger or pissed, I can do something with my hand. I made one of Maddox’s friends fly across the street the other day,” I say, really looking at him to watch his expressions.

>   He runs his hands through his hair. “You shouldn’t be able to do that yet, but you can,” he says almost talking to himself. “Spring, I want to tell you, I do. But I can’t, will you trust me when I say you will know everything as soon as the brothers get here?” Looking at him, I can see that he’s telling me the truth, I don’t know how I know it, but I do. I know I feel safe with him and so does the pup.

  “OK, I better know everything that’s going on by then,” I say, looking out the window as we cross the bridge. All I know is someone better start talking and soon. I know I’m different but how different is what I want to know.

  “His name will be Tanner,” I say, looking over at Mick. He looks over at me like he doesn’t understand what I’m saying.

  “Oh, the pup. It’s a good name for him,” he murmurs. Scratching his head, he looks at me from the corner of his eye. “How long could you talk to animals?”

  “All my life, well, I think, anyway. I’ve always been able to,” I say to him. “Now I have a question for you. Are you human?” Looking over, I watch how he reacts to my question. From what I can see, it doesn’t even faze him.

  “No, I’m not, but I can’t tell you what I am. I’m sorry. But I will tell you this; you aren’t either. I’m not trying to scare you, and I promise I’m a good guy. You will know everything in two days, promise.”

  Well, I didn’t think I was normal, but not being human? That’s scary.

  When we get to the house, I set the puppy on the ground.

  “Tanner, stay where I can see you,” I tell him. He turns his head and gives a little yip. Laughing, I shake my head and get out of the truck.

  It takes me a half hour to get everything in the house, and that’s with Mick’s help. Going to the cab of the truck, I grab my purse, my mom’s package, and the few little things I bought at the bookstore. Shutting the door, I make my way into the house closing the one door all the way and leaving the other open a little, so Tanner can come in. Setting my purse and packages down on the couch in the great room, I run upstairs to my bedroom. Taking off my good clothes, I put my old ones back on and head back down.

  Mommy, Mommy, where are you?

  “I’m here, boy, it’s OK,” I tell him as he greets me.

  Heading back into the kitchen, I start unpacking bags and putting stuff away. Thank God, I have a walk-in pantry. I would never have a place for all this stuff otherwise. Walking in, I notice the shelves stocked already. And it looks new. I will have to ask Mick about this when I see him.

  Tanner comes running out and asks to go outside then runs past me. Watching him out the kitchen doors, I see him use the bathroom then chase Mick.

  Once I get everything put away I head out the door. Looking around, I see Tanner running to me. Bending down, I give him a quick pet and head toward the barn. I notice that Mick pulled the truck up. Walking past it, I see my saddle, and things are already inside. I put my riding boots on back at the house, so I walk to the tack room and grab the bridle. Walking through the barn, I watch Mick cleaning out the stalls. I don’t say anything; I have too much thinking to do.

  Tanner walks beside me. “Tanner, you need to stay back, he could hurt you, don’t go by his legs,” I tell him. He backs up, so I know he understands me. Shaking my head, I whistle for Storm. It doesn’t take long, and he comes running. I’m getting excited—I have missed riding. Looking at Tanner, I see he has found some straw and lay down on it out of the way. Walking up to Storm, I open my mind to him; he nickers softly. “I want to ride you, will you let me?” Slowly I slid the bridle on. It’s a perfect fit.

  Chapter 8

  Out of the corner of my eye, I see Mick holding Tanner and watching me. Whispering to Storm, I walk to the side of him. Grabbing ahold of his mane I hold tight and swing up on him, moving around a bit to get comfortable. He prances around a little bit, and I let him.

  Only you.

  Nodding, I rub his neck, leaning down to hug him. Clucking to him, I add pressure with my legs. He moves forward. His graceful movements leave me in awe.

  “Let’s run if you want, “I tell him. I feel his muscles bunch under me and I lean forward and hold onto his mane. He lunges forward, and we are gone. Letting out a laugh, I love the feel of all that power underneath me. My hair comes undone and flies behind me. Bending low, I feel him pick up speed. This can’t be possible; he can’t go this fast! Reining him into a trot, we turn around and head back to the front of the pasture. I can feel his feelings. Excitement, happiness, and the start of love. I can’t even imagine why someone couldn’t love him.

  It takes us thirty minutes to get back. I see Tanner waiting by the fence, Mick is in the barn and comes out with a smile on his face.

  “I can’t believe you can ride him, I know you have a connection, but Michelle is the only one that could.”

  “Who’s Michelle? And I thought he was going to be my horse?” I don’t like how this makes me feel.

  “Oh, he’s yours now, don’t worry about that, once he’s decided to let you ride him, ownership transferred over to you,” he says. “And Michelle I’m sure you will meet soon enough.”

  Sliding off Storm, I gently take off the bridle. Patting him on his neck, he takes off to the other horse. I hop the fence, and we walk into the barn. Tanner is running ahead of us.

  “I can’t believe he’s still awake,” I say, laughing. Mick nudges me with his shoulder. Pushing him back, I see him smile and walk a little bit closer to me. We make it to the house, and Tanner sits by the door waiting for me.

  “Well, I’ll see you in a few hours when my sister gets here,” Mick says.

  “OK, I’m going to go get cleaned up before all the fun; come up and help with dinner.”

  Walking into the house, I shut the door behind me. I’m not going to turn around and watch him walk away. Walking to the steps, I head up them, stopping halfway to watch Tanner hobble up them. Once I’m on the landing I watch him make the last few steps. He zips past me and runs down the hall. Making it to my room, I walk in and go straight to the closet. Grabbing a pair of black leggings and an oversized sweatshirt, socks, and my slippers.

  Getting into the shower, I think back, and I’m still amazed at it. It’s like you’re under a waterfall. I will have to ask one of the brothers where he got the idea. Washing my hair, I get the shaving done, so I wash off. Turning off the water, I grab two towels and wrap one around my head. Stepping out, I dry off and get dressed. Then I blow dry my hair, swipe on some new makeup, and head downstairs.

  I make my way into the kitchen putting Tanner down on his little puppy bed. Walking over to the wine, I grab a bottle and open it. Pouring a glass, I take a sip. It’s sweet like honey. Putting it down, I pick up the salmon and asparagus sitting it on the counter. Grabbing some peaches, I make some peach cobbler for after dinner. Getting that done, I put it in the oven. Next, I place the salmon on a plate and season it. With that done, all I have to do is the salad. Going back to the fridge, I open the doors. I turn to see Mick walking into the kitchen. He sees me juggling with the veggies and comes over to help.

  “Thank you, that really would have been a mess, that’s for sure,” I say, smiling at him.

  “No problem. You told me to come help, remember?” Walking over, I grab another glass and pour him some wine. Smiling, he takes it from me bringing the glass to his lips. Nodding his head, he walks over to the side and rinses off the veggies. Grabbing a cutting board, I start to cut everything up.

  “Oh, my sister can’t make it. A waitress didn’t show up, and she’s got to cover. She asked for a rain check.”

  “Aww, that’s too bad, we will, definitely, have to make it up. I hope you are still staying?” I ask, looking over at him. He takes a drink of his wine smiling over the brim.

  “You bet I’m staying, good food, good wine, good company; what else can a man ask for?” Blushing, I turn to grab a bowl to put the salad. Emptying the contents of the salad container, I clean up everything. Mick walks up behind me, an
d I freeze. He puts his hand on my arm.

  “Want me to start the grill?” Turning around, we are so close, that if I leaned in a little bit forward, we’d be touching noses.

  “Yes, that would be great,” I tell him. My heart beats faster when he comes close. He grins and walks out to start the grill. Going back to the counter, I grab the asparagus and wrap it in tin foil, so it can go on the grill. I almost forget to add the butter, salt, and pepper.

  “OK, it’s ready, what all has to go out?” he asks. Looking over my shoulder at him, I nod to the island.

  “Just that there,” I say, pulling out the peach cobbler and setting it on the stove to cool. “I hope you like peach cobbler,” I say over my shoulder. Knowing that he does since we had it for lunch.

  Turning around, I feel him up behind me smelling the cobbler over my shoulder. “Yep I do, smells good,” he murmurs close to my ear. He backs up and takes the stuff out to cook. Going for my wine, I drink it halfway down. What’s up with him?

  As he looks out the window, his back is to me. He’s got a broad back that slims down to his waist. Those jeans hug his hiney like no tomorrow. Licking my lips, I grab the bottle and pour more into my glass. Grabbing the plates, I walk to the dining room and place them down at one corner. The table is huge it could seat twenty people. Grabbing the lighter from the table, I light the candles. It makes a cozy and inviting glow fill the room. Going back to the kitchen, I grab an ice bucket, fill it, and take it back to the dining room along with the salad and dressings. I think I’ve got it all. Mick comes in with the salmon and asparagus setting it down on the table. He pulls out my chair, and I slowly sit down. He does the same on the other side of me.

  We each get what we want and dig in. The food is so mouthwatering—I can’t believe how good it is.

  “You did a great job on the grill, Mick.”

  He’s got that sexy grin on his face. “Thank you, Spring.” Looking through my lashes, I see him still staring at me. Standing up, I clear the dishes off the table taking them to the kitchen. Walking back to the dining room, Mick passes with the salad stuff. Grabbing the salmon and asparagus, I bring it into the kitchen and wrap it up, putting it in the fridge.