Chapter 6
Amelia
One minute, I was sitting next to Candice, petting her and whispering sweet nothings into her ear, and the next thing I knew, the lights came on in the barn, and Candice scrambled and stood in front of me.
Then an angry, deep voice echoed through the barn, calling out to us.
I didn't even have time to yell back because suddenly someone was standing at the stall door.
It was the guy who had been shirtless in the hallway when I hit my head.
That day, he was kind and understanding, but now he was infuriated.
He accused me of drugging his horse, of all things.
I was so taken aback by his reaction that I felt speechless and nervous and probably came across as being guilty of it.
He wasn't just mad at me for sneaking into the barn, he was also stuck on the idea that I had done something to his horse. He was about to wake up his parents and cause a whole scene with them, but that was a dreadful option for me. So, the minute he mentioned an alternative, I took it.
I left the ranch with him, headed for Butte.
I found myself sitting in the passenger side of a big Ford truck.
We were on some sort of errand.
We rode in silence for the first few minutes.
"I have a dog at home that I really miss," I said once my heart slowed down a bit and I could think of a coherent sentence. "PJ's his name. He's a gigantic part of my life, and I was missing him. Plus, I know animals. She was fine with me being in there."
"Dogs are different than horses, and you could've been killed."
"Yeah, but I wasn't."
"What did you do to Candice?"
"Nothing."
"She doesn't let people in her stall. She's reluctant to do it with Josh, and he's with her all the time."
"I know. Josh told me that. But I met her yesterday, and she took to me. She was fine with me petting her and touching her. She wanted me to. We made friends, that's all."
He glanced at me like I was lying, and I shrugged innocently at him before he focused on the road again. "Even if that's true, which I find it hard to believe, you can't take it upon yourself to sneak into the barn when no one else is there."
"Sorry," I said, knowing I had no excuse. "I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have done that. But I promise, I didn't do anything to your horse. I just like her, and it made me feel good that she let me pet her. Josh told me that it was a big deal."
"Yeah, she doesn't take to people easily."
I could tell that he was still a little flustered and so I didn't say anything else. He seemed content with my apology, and I wanted to leave it at that.
We rode in silence for what must've been five or six minutes.
I wasn't used to this type of guy. I didn't know many men like this back home.
Henry Sutter was manly and rugged with calloused hands and bulging muscles.
I tried not to let the fact that he was physically gorgeous to look at factor into the equation, but it was difficult.
The whole situation was embarrassing, and it made it even worse to be attracted to him physically.
Between the goose egg on day one and the reprimand I had just been given, I wanted to turn into an ostrich and put my head in the sand until we left this place.
I thought it might be better if I didn't look at Henry Sutter at all, so I stared straight out of the front window.
It was silent in the truck. No radio. All I could hear was the low hum of the tires rolling across the pavement.
Another minute or two passed.
"How long does it take to get to Butte?" I asked, finally.
"It's another twenty minutes or so to my house," he said. "My errands will take about fifteen or twenty minutes, and then I'll drive you back."
"Okay, well, when you do, could you please just think about dropping me off at the apartment and not bringing your mom into this? I promise, I won't go into your barn again."
"I know you won't because you'll be with my mom the rest of the day, and Josh will be in the barn. I'll tell him to lock up when he leaves."
"You don't have to do all that. I'm telling you, I won't go in there again."
He didn't respond. He didn't tell me what he was going to do. He just stared at the road, and we drove in silence again.
Five or so more minutes passed, and the silence was so deafening that I finally spoke again.
"That knight is about to fork your rook and queen if you don't block it with the bishop."
"What knight?" he said.
"Oh, I thought the chessboard in the barn was yours."
"It is mine. You're talking about the chess game that's happening in my barn?"
"Yes."
He glanced at me with an unreadable look.
"I saw your game. I couldn't help but notice. I thought I would warn you about that knight."
"Yeah, well, I'm playing black, so you should warn Mick Mitchell to move his bishop."
"Who's Mick Mitchell?"
"Josh's dad. But don't really warn him. He doesn't need advice. He'll see it."
"I don't even know him," I said, feeling defensive.
"Yeah, he's off on the weekend."
Again, with the silence.
I thought for sure he was going to compliment my chess prowess or at least ask some sort of follow-up question like how long I've been playing.
But he said nothing. Stoic was too loose a word for what this guy was.
He was rigid, stone-like. Was he still mad at me for petting the horse?
I waited a couple more minutes and then I said, "You want to play me sometime? "
"Play you at chess?" he asked, sounding surprised at the question.
"Yes."
"I, uh, tomorrow's your last day on the ranch, and I've got that game going with Mick."
"Yeah, but we don't have to do it now. I'll be back in a few months to film. We're going to be out here for a long time. We can play then. Or we could play on chess-dot-com, if you have an account."
"Oh, yeah, well, I guess then."
"I'm pretty good," I said, knowing it would be silent again if I didn't keep the conversation going.
"Oh, yeah?" he said.
"Yeah," I answered, even though his question was rhetorical.
I had already made a fool of myself in front of this guy.
Twice. Being attracted to him was not even a factor since there was no chance of anything ever happening between us.
I didn't even know him. He could be married for all I knew.
It didn't matter. All I wanted was to smooth things over and not ruffle any feathers with the people at this ranch for the sake of the series.
I wanted to do a good job for Alex, and I couldn't have these people mad at me.
I wasn't just going to sit in the truck in silence, so I continued speaking, saying the first thing on my mind.
"Percy Jackson is his name, but we call him PJ.
That's my dog. He's an Aussie mix. He looks like an Aussie with the colorations and everything, but he has shorter hair—maybe mixed with Cattle Dog.
Anyway, he's amazing. We train with a frisbee.
It's a popular thing with people, it's called Disc Dog. "
"I've seen it," he said.
I waited for him to say something else, but when he didn't, I continued. "My goal is to open a dog training facility—like a glorified dog park with paid memberships. I want to have kennels for overnight stays, and a big indoor space for agility training."
"You must live in a big city to support something like that."
"I hadn't really considered that. San Francisco is big, obviously, but I'm not sure if I'll stay there when I graduate. Monterey is pretty big, too. I guess I just assumed any size city could use a gigantic dog training facility." I was joking a little, but he took me seriously.
"I'm sure it's a good idea," he said. "Especially if that's what you love."
"Really, it's just animals that I love. The business is just a way to have a job and also be around animals all day. I'm just trying to think of something I can do with animals that's fun for them—something that's not a vet."
"Why don't you want to be a vet?"
"Because I'm too sensitive to only see them when they’re hurting."
"But you started vet school?"
"I was taking my pre-vet stuff. I'm not going through with it, though. Much to the chagrin of my parents."
"They're mad?" he asked.
"Disappointed," I said. "Which might be worse."
"Did you tell them you wanted to start a business?"
"Yes, I did, but they have all sorts of real-life concerns, such as where I'm going to get the money."
"Where are you going to get the money?" he asked.
I laughed. "I thought from them."
"Do they have that kind of money?"
"Yes, they do. But they're dead set on Ty and me making our own way.
They were so proud of me becoming a vet.
They used to always talk about how I was setting myself up for a good life.
Now my sister has taken the spot of the golden child…
we've switched places. She was always the misfit, the wild one, and now she's got all sorts of goals, and the roles are reversed. "
"You can have your goals change."
"I know but she's setting herself up to make money.
Ty's amazing. She had no real plans, and I was the one who liked math and science had it all figured out, and now she's got a YouTube channel, and I've…
" I hesitated, not wanting to seem weak.
"We've switched places, that's all. At least in our parents' eyes. "
"Now you're the wild one?" he asked.
I laughed. "Yeah," I said, obviously joking. "What about you?"
"Are you asking if I’m wild?"
"I guess. I don’t know what I'm asking. Are you wild?"
"No. My little sister is, though. She's in high school."
"I met her yesterday."
"She's excited about the series," he said. "She wants to try to get in it."
"Oh, yeah, just ask Alex," I said, nodding. "I know he'll be looking for extras. You can be in it, too, if you want."
"Me? Oh, I have no desire."
"You have a face for it," I said, being real.
"For what?" he asked.
"For the camera."
"Are you trying to say I'm handsome so I won't tell my mom you broke into our barn?
" He glanced at me quickly, but there was the slightest hint of a smile.
This made me feel a gigantic sense of relief.
I was a rule follower from way back, and I hated getting in trouble.
This smile was the first I had seen from him.
It felt like my first step to redemption, and I was so happy.
"Well, no, I'm glad if you'll forgive me about the barn, but I was just saying that as a fact. You just objectively look like you could star in a movie."
"Says the girl who's actually staring in one."
"Well, that's because I know Alex."
"Are you learning anything out here on the ranch?"
"I don't really know what I'm looking to learn, honestly.
I don't know what I expected when I came here.
I do know I'll feel more comfortable in a few months when we come back.
I feel ahead of the game for just knowing what's out here, so that's good.
Where are we going, by the way? You said you have errands. "
"Oh, my neighbor. I take her to church every Sunday. We stop and get donuts and then go to church together. But I'll just drop her off at the church and take you back to the ranch. She can get a ride home from someone else. That won't be a problem."
"So, we're not going to church?" I asked.
"No."
I breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay, good."