Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Penny
Straying from the gravel paths, I took the quickest route to my cabin. I should have known better than to think Rawhide Ranch could handle my weirdness.
How pathetic was I that my mom had to send people to protect me?
I slammed open the cabin door, stood with my back against it, and did my best not to hyperventilate.
A 5-4-3-2-1 cycle failed to ground me. I sat on the bed and tried to fold pages, but my hands were too shaky and my tears made it hard to read the directions, plus they got the pages wet.
Was I really that unlovable? And so naive, I couldn’t see that the guys weren’t being honest.
Was Damon the only honest experience I’d had at Rawhide Ranch? He was so kind, but I hadn’t felt a connection to him.
“China’s so pretty, I’m going to be the first to ride her,” a girl’s voice said excitedly while passing my cabin. An argument ensued over who’s going to be first.
The only thing I was going to be first at was leaving Rawhide Ranch before being their first failure. I wanted to be at home in my own bed, surrounded by my own… everything.
I curled up on the bed—comfortable but not my bed—and opened the group chat on my phone.
Me: I’m coming home early.
Bellamie: Is everything okay?
Jolene: You better be bringing a Daddy home with you.
Her comment was like a knife to my heart, killing the idea that I could have a normal experience even in this completely magical place.
I could always join the Christmas Cherry Auction next year, but I didn’t want to ruin their statistics too.
Me: I’m coming home alone. Don’t want to talk about it right now. I’m fine.
I silenced my notifications and rested.
Next thing I knew, I was waking up, my eyes heavy from crying. Carefully returning my bookgami project to my bag, I started the packing process.
When I finished and my bags were neatly staged by the door, I went back through my cabin, double checking in and under everything. The best thing I could do for Rawhide Ranch was to leave no trace of my existence.
Peeking out the window, I was satisfied that no one was nearby to question why I wasn’t going to the unicorn party.
Rushing to my car, I put my bags in the backseat then took my place in the driver’s seat. My hands trembled as sadness washed over me for thinking I could—
Crud. I fumbled my keys, dropping them instead of putting them in the ignition. I had to calm down before driving.
Fishing the keys out from under my feet, I held them in my lap and did another calming cycle because I didn’t want the gate guard to question me.
With freedom in my grasp, I was able to calm down. Last step… prepare a smile to flash at the guard.
As I drove toward the exit, the bright shiny decorations of the unicorn party and the mass of people enjoying it came into view. Definitely not my thing. Focusing on the road in front of me, I loosened one hand on the steering wheel so I could add a convincing wave as I passed the guard shack.
Wait. Why was the guard running out of the guard shack? Did I have to check out? He might be able to tell that my eyes were bloodshot if he got close.
For a split second, I considered hitting the gas, but the only thing that could make this situation worse would be running him over.