Chapter 12 Mary
MARY
Igot good sleep—shocker, right? Apparently, staying awake all night in a random town after kissing your client will wear you out.
I really need to stop thinking about that.
Kissing Everett was a mistake, a big one.
I could lose my job over this, or at the very least this project.
Just because it’s the single hottest thing that has ever happened to me doesn’t mean I can afford to linger on it.
I won’t deny my attraction to Everett—and it wouldn’t do me any good if I tried to now.
What I will do is put this whole fiasco behind me. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, right? I can apply that to whatever sleepy little town we got stranded in, too.
I can’t let myself get distracted by Everett Riggs and his breath-stealing kisses.
Nodding to myself in the mirror, I tuck the hem of my shirt into my jeans. Wearing nice clothes on the ranch hasn’t been going all that well for me, so something plain will do. I hardly think Everett is going to scold me for not dressing professionally.
If anything, he’ll probably be happy I found the sneakers buried in the bottom of my bag. Now he won’t have to listen to me bitch about getting my nice shoes dirty, or having to wear those god-awful rubber boots.
Just the thought of them makes me shudder.
My plan is to grab something quick for breakfast and get some pictures of the pastures, but I freeze halfway down the hallway.
Everett’s voice carries from the kitchen, and he sounds more annoyed than usual.
“Yes, she came early,” he says. “Yes, it’s a she. Her name’s Mary.”
I don’t hear anyone responding to him, and the thump of his boots back and forth on the floor sounds like he’s pacing in agitation. On the phone, then.
“Wha—No! I’m not messing things up,” he huffs in frustration. “You’re my daughter, aren’t I supposed to say these things to you?”
Quiet falls for a moment, and I squeeze my nails against my palm, unsure of what to do.
“Did you hang up on me?” he asks.
He answers himself with a scoff a moment later. That sounded a lot like the rare phone calls between me and my sister.
It was pretty obvious from the lack of family photos around the house that there may have been issues.
But this firsthand look at the rockiness of his relationship with his daughter is rough.
I’ve still yet to meet her, and I suspect we may have a lot in common.
After all, I make Everett sound just as annoyed when I try to talk to him about my plans for the ranch.
I realize I’m still just lingering in the middle of the hall, and force myself to start moving.
Skipping breakfast won’t kill me, and I don’t want to bother Everett when he’s worked up like this.
The sneakers don’t make anywhere near as much noise on the floors as my heels usually do, and I make it about halfway to the front door before Everett’s voice stops me.
“Ms. Bryce.”
I wince slightly before turning to face him, hoping my smile doesn’t look too strained. Everett is leaning against the counter, and he looks exhausted. Well, he kind of always looks exhausted, but it’s worse than usual.
“Good morning,” I say.
I’m unsure of where we stand, and I haven’t really figured out how to put my whirling thoughts to words.
“I’m riding out to check on the herd and make sure all the fences are intact,” he says as he straightens and slips his phone into his pocket. “Want to join me?”
Surprise rockets through me. I don’t manage to respond as quickly as I’d like to.
He’s tried to stay as far away from me as he can manage since I showed up.
Part of me wants to be suspicious of his motives, but maybe he’s feeling as awkward as I am about the kiss.
This is probably just an olive branch, and it fits in with what I was planning for the day anyway.
“Sure,” I agree with an easygoing shrug. “That sounds nice.”
He nods, a flicker of a smile on his lips.
Together, we head toward the barn. I’ve never been on a tractor before, or whatever he plans to take out there.
I don’t think the trails that lead farther back into the property are big enough for his truck, but I also haven’t had a chance to get all that far away from the main buildings.
It’s not until we pass where all of the ride-along equipment is parked that I start to question my initial idea of how we’re going to get out there.
My feet follow in Everett’s footsteps towards only to find two horses tied to hitching posts. One is already saddled and ready to go, and the other is freshly brushed and bridled. My mouth drops open as the realization of what he plans for us to do sinks in.
When he said ride, he meant…
My nerves spike as he steps forward and rubs his palm up one of their faces, settling the little lock of hair that laid between her ears. He glances over at me, his brow raising when he sees how wide my eyes are.
“Never ridden a horse before?” he asks.
And it’s stupid, but I lie. I know the teasing in his voice is playful, not derisive, but my hackles raise nonetheless.
“Of course I have,” I scoff. “It’s just, y’know, been a few years.”
It’s just a horse, I reassure myself. I mean, kids ride horses. It can’t be that hard. I’ll be fine.
At least I’m dressed for the occasion.
I don't allow myself to hesitate any longer, not wanting Everett to catch my lie. It’ll probably be a little awkward for the first few minutes, but I'm sure I'll get the hang of it. He won't notice a thing.
“I'll go bareback if you want the saddle,” he says, nodding his head towards the horse to his left.
She's mostly white, dappled with spots of brown and gray. I skirt around the front of the posts to reach out for her face, copying Everett’s movements. She snorts a bit and pushes her face into my hand, and I laugh, charmed.
I like animals perfectly fine, but I never imagined I’d think something as big as a horse was cute.
“What's her name?” I ask as I run my fingers up the outside of her ear
“Milky Way,” Everett says, smiling when she immediately looks over to him. “We call her Milky. My son, Wayne… he named her when he was a kid… said her spots looked like a galaxy.”
I pull my attention away from the soft look in Everett's eyes to focus on the horse in front of me. It’s the first time he’s mentioned the fact he has a son, and I can tell by the strain in his voice that it’s a touchy subject.
“Nice to meet you, Milky. I'm Mary. Go easy on me, would you?”
She tosses her head in what I hope is agreement, and Everett chuckles. He rounds his own horse to stand at Milky’s side.
“Want a leg up?” he asks.
No more stalling. I was hoping for another few minutes to prepare myself for this, but it doesn't look like I'll be getting that. I force my smile wider and nod, marching my way right over to him.
He pulls the stool that had been sitting by the hitch posts over until it's at Milky’s side. I'd almost expected him to actually lift me up onto the saddle, but this will probably be easier. It'll definitely be better for my sanity.
I climb up the steps until I can clamber into the saddle.
It's about as awkward as I anticipated it would be, and I grip the horn like it's the only thing keeping me from falling straight to the ground.
When Milky shifts her weight slightly, I let out what's probably an incredibly unattractive squeak and clutch tight to the saddle.
Everett stifles a chuckle with a cough, and I very kindly don't glare at him for it.
“Stirrups comfortable?” he asks.
He’s already guiding my foot into the stirrup, and I copy the placement on the other side. I don't know what they're supposed to feel like, and I'm absolutely terrified, so I just nod.
How the hell do kids do this? This is insane. I feel like I'm 20 feet tall, and I can feel Milky’s sides move with every breath she takes.
Everett checks a few straps on the saddle as I take deep breaths and try to convince myself that I'm not going to die.
It's just a horse ride. The second he leaves Milky’s side to unhitch her and throw the twins over her neck, though, I second-guess that.
I'll look like an idiot if I admit that I've never been on a horse, but it would be preferable to falling off and breaking my neck.
I don't manage to work up the courage before he unhitches his own horse and hops up on her back like it's nothing. Showoff.
“Ready to go?” he asks.
He's grinning at me like he knows exactly how not ready to go I am, and I resist the urge to call him an asshole.
“When you are,” I say.
My voice is shaky and entirely unconvincing, but he doesn't call me out on it.
No, he just clicks his tongue, and both his horse and Milky start moving.
I have a split-second to be grateful that Milky seems willing to follow his instructions, since I have no clue how to direct her.
That gratitude evaporates the second she starts walking, though, because I can feel the slight adjustment of muscle in her body with every step she takes.
My center of gravity shifts just slightly, back and forth in a gentle roll, and it's blindingly scary for the first few steps.
When I don't fall off, though, I start to relax a bit. It's kind of soothing once I manage to stop gripping onto Milky for dear life and really settle into the saddle.
“Oh,” I breathe out.
A smile steals over my face and I reach forward to rub my hand across the base of Milky’s neck. I didn't realize I would feel so… connected.
“She's got an easy gait.” He laughs when he sees the confusion on my face and clarifies, “How she walks. She’s smooth.”
He pulls back a bit so our horses are walking side--by--side on the path. The grass on either side of the road is tall enough to brush against my ankles in some spots, and there are clumps of wildflowers dotted through the fields.
It still smells like animals, but something about it feels so fresh.