Chapter 8 Sierra #2
The scent of freshly baked cookies hit my nostrils the second I opened the front door. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting his house to look like, but the homey atmosphere, warm lighting, and family photos lining the wall in the entryway felt right.
I slid off my shoes, placing them neatly by the front door, and padded forward into the open-concept kitchen and living room.
“You must be Sierra!” a woman, who I assumed was Hayden’s mother, exclaimed.
“That’s me.” I gave her a small smile.
Hayden sat at the kitchen island, so I joined him, sliding onto a stool next to his.
“Do you like peanut butter cookies? I just pulled a batch out of the oven.” His mom held a tray out toward me. White sugar dusted the tops of the fork-indented cookies.
“Peanut butter is my favorite.” I took one off the tray and took a bite, groaning as the flavor burst across my tongue. “Mmm, these are so good.”
My cheeks heated as Hayden and his mom both laughed, but after I realized they weren’t making fun of me, I joined in with them.
“I can’t remember the last time I had a cookie that good. Thank you, Mrs. Watkins.”
She offered me a wide grin, the corners of her eyes creasing. “Oh, please call me Mae.”
“Mom, I was telling Sierra that she should join the high school rodeo association with me and Keenan,” Hayden mumbled through a mouthful of his peanut butter cookie.
“Don’t talk with your mouth full, Hayden,” Mae scolded.
He swallowed. “Sorry. But what do you think? She should join the team, right?”
“Well, I don’t know. Does she—”
“She has riding experience, Mom. She doesn’t have a horse, but I told her we have plenty and—”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, son. Slow your roll there.” Mr. Watkins walked into the kitchen. “Hello, wife.” He planted a kiss on Mae’s lips.
“I think I’d be interested in rodeo…maybe,” I whispered.
Hayden’s head snapped toward me. “I told you guys!”
Mr. and Mrs. Watkins shook their heads, looking at their son with what seemed to be a mix of pride and amusement.
“We’re going to go see the horses,” Hayden declared, reaching for my hand as he hopped down from the stool.
The sudden movement startled me, and I pulled my hand away, smacking the underside of the counter in the process.
Hayden didn’t seem to notice, but embarrassment still flooded over me.
“S-sorry,” I apologized for no reason. “Um, can I have another cookie?”
“Of course, dear. Take as many as you’d like.”
I tried to ignore the concern in Mae’s voice as I grabbed two cookies with a muttered, “Thanks,” and took off after Hayden, who was already at the front door.
We walked side by side toward the stable and pasture, neither of us saying a word.
When we got to the fence, he started pointing out the horses and telling me their names.
“This one’s Bullseye.” He gestured to a big bay gelding and then a smaller mare. “And this one is Buttercup. The baby is in the stables right now, but we can go see her in a minute.” He must have caught me staring at Bullseye, because he asked, “Do you want to pet him?”
I nodded, approaching the horse slowly from the side, the back of my hand stretched out so he could sniff. Bullseye nuzzled his nose into my hand, and I rubbed it along his muzzle.
“He likes you.”
“I like him, too,” I murmured.
We spent some more time with the older horses while Hayden told me all about their histories and which one he was going to be riding for rodeos. Then he gestured for me to follow him into the barn.
“This one’s the mom. Her name’s Bagel.” He pointed to a beautiful roan. “The baby doesn’t have a nickname yet.”
The foal, who had a beautiful chestnut-colored coat, tried to stand, but her knees wobbled a little, pulling a giggle from my throat.
“She’s the color of peanut butter.” The thought slipped out, but Hayden just looked at me and nodded.
“Yeah, she is. I like that. Peanut Butter.”
“Hayden!” a voice called out from the main house a couple of hours later
“Oh, shoot, you need to get home, don’t you?” he asked.
We’d lost track of time playing with the horses, barn cats, and the Corgi, whose name I learned was Reggie.
I pulled out my phone, looking at the time. “Yeah. My mom told me I needed to be back by dinnertime.”
“My dad can give you a ride home. So your mom doesn’t have to come all the way out here.”
“Oh…okay.” No one had ever dropped me off at my house or even come near my place. I wasn’t necessarily ashamed of where I lived, but I also didn’t really want Hayden and his family to know—not after seeing the way they interacted with each other today. Like a normal, happy family.
Things had also been okay between my parents since we moved here, and I didn’t want to ruin that by having to introduce them to Hayden’s dad.
I wanted to continue being friends with Hayden, and I wasn’t sure if his parents would let him hang out with me if they knew about the stuff that sometimes happened at my house.
“Come on!” Hayden took off toward the house, making me jog to catch up with him. “Dad! Sierra needs to get home! Can we give her a ride?”
A few minutes later, Mr. Watkins emerged from the house. “Sure thing. Did you two have fun?”
Both Hayden and I nodded.
“We should name the foal Peanut Butter, Dad,” Hayden declared.
“Peanut Butter, eh?” Mr. Watkins glanced between the two of us, a knowing look on his face. “I like it.”
Twenty minutes later, we made it back into town. I gave Mr. Watkins the general directions of my neighborhood but didn’t give him the exact address.
“You can drop me off up here. Thanks!” I unbuckled my seatbelt, even though we were still a few blocks away from my house.
“This is where you live?” Hayden’s dad asked as he pulled over to the curb, a suspicious tone to his voice.
“Yep!” My lie came out a little bit too enthusiastically.
“We’ll wait out here until you get inside.”
My heart started racing. “No, no, that’s okay. I can manage. T-thank you for the ride. I’ll see you tomorrow, Hayden.”
I got out of the car and slowly started to walk up to the house that wasn’t mine, looking over my shoulder to see if they were still there. Sure enough, they were. I turned around to give as convincing a wave as possible, and the vehicle slowly pulled forward.
Once they were out of sight, I sprinted the three blocks back to my house.