Chapter 11
CHAPTER
ELEVEN
Camden
“Faster!”
I’m sure my smile is ear to ear as I press on the accelerator just a touch. The excited cheers of the little boy behind me are all I hear, and it’s the best sound ever. We’re not traveling fast. I promised Maren I would go slow, and even then, Theo seems to be having the time of his life.
And do you know what?
So am I.
We ride around Wyatt’s pasture and timber until I know it’s time for them to get ready to head back home. Theo needs to eat lunch and take a nap, and despite the fact I would love to stay out here for a while longer, the fact remains our time is about up.
Slowly, I start to make our way back up to the barn, knowing he’ll have to see the animals once more when we get there.
It took us an extra twenty minutes to go sledding, because the moment we arrived, Theo wanted to see the horses, dogs, barn cats, and cattle.
I’m certain it’ll be the exact same way when we return.
When we reach the barn, I pull to a stop near the back sliding door. It’s wide open, one of the horses outside in the paddock.
“Again!”
I chuckle, shutting off the machine and hopping off. “Did you have fun?”
He nods, his mom helping him stand before he runs straight toward the paddock where Winnie is at.
“Wait a minute, little dude,” I say, sweeping to the left and scooping him up before he can get to the fence.
“We don’t go running up to Winnie, remember?
” I ask, repeating the instructions I gave him when we first arrived and he wanted to see the animals.
He nods and lets me carry him toward the fence. I click my tongue, calling the horse over to where we wait. Winnie is a pretty good girl and comes when called, but she does spook easily, so we make sure to remain in her line of sight the whole time. “C’mere, girl.”
The horse makes her way toward us and sticks her head forward for pets. “Nice and gentle, remember?”
“Yes,” Theo murmurs softly, giggling the moment his hand brushes across Winnie’s muzzle.
I reach forward and give her a forehead rub. “Good girl.”
“Wanna give her a carrot?” Wyatt asks, appearing to my left from inside the barn.
“Yep!” He takes the orange vegetable and holds it out for Winnie. She eagerly takes the treat and starts crunching away, making him laugh.
“If only I could get Theo to eat carrots like that,” Maren mumbles behind us. She turns her attention to Wyatt. “Nice to see you again, Wyatt.”
“You too, Maren,” he replies, sticking out his hand to shake. “And who is this?”
“This is my son, Theo.”
“Well, Theo, it’s nice to meet you,” Wyatt says, holding out his knuckles for a tap, which Theo obliges.
“All right, little dude, you about ready to head home for lunch?” I ask.
“Doggy,” he bellows, his attention drawn to the golden retriever standing at Wyatt’s side.
I put him down. “Be gentle,” I remind moments before Theo goes in for some snuggles. Good thing Goose loves hugs and attention.
“Thank you for letting us sled here, Wyatt,” Maren states politely.
“Any time, Maren. Just come on out. You don’t even need to bring this ugly guy,” my friend states, flashing me a smirk.
The truth is, Wyatt is a friend of the family.
He went to school with Cade and Collin, and because of that, is essentially a friend of mine too.
He lets me store my four-wheeler here, as well as camp and fish whenever I want.
In return, we help him around the farm whenever he needs extra hands, which usually means baling hay and mowing.
I snort and don’t comment on the fact we’re not together. I don’t know why I keep my mouth shut.
“Oh, well, thank you, Wyatt,” Maren replies, and I swear I see a faint blush stain her already pink cheeks.
Why does that piss me off?
“Ready to head home and get something to eat?” I ask again, suddenly feeling the need to get out of here.
“Bye, Doggy,” Theo says, hugging Goose around the neck and giving him a kiss. “You wike mac and cheese?” he asks the dog.
“Well, Goose here isn’t allowed to have mac and cheese, but I sure love it,” Wyatt replies with a big smile. My jaw ticks. This man is asking for a black eye.
The little guy turns his attention to me. “You wike mac and cheese?”
“I love mac and cheese, little dude,” I tell him.
“You eat wiff us?”
I fight the smile, my jaw ticking as triumph races through my veins. “We’ll see,” I offer, not wanting to accept an invitation from a three-year-old without any discussion from his mother.
But the fact remains, I want to go. I want to spend a little more time with him—both of them—before he has to take a nap. Should I? I’m pretty sure the answer is a resounding no, but still…I’d accept if the offer was extended from Maren.
And that’s the problem, isn’t it?
All of a sudden, like over a week after she moved next door to me, I’m ready to forget all about the painful past we once shared—pain she created—and dive straight into the murky waters of today.
I wasn’t kidding when I told her I didn’t wish her ill will or hate her, but I’m struggling with the idea of just completely forgiving and forgetting.
“Give me a minute to put the four-wheeler away, and then we can get you two home for lunch,” I state, quickly turning around and heading back to my machine before anyone can reply. We ended up bringing her SUV so we didn’t have to move the car seat around.
“I hewp!” Theo hollers.
Maren quickly follows his statement up, “No, you stay here so you’re not in the way. We can pet Goose while we wait.”
“’Kay,” he replies. I can just picture Goose sitting there like the good boy he is, lapping up all the attention and snuggles.
After I reach my quad, I remove the rope and toss it aside.
“This was unexpected,” Wyatt says quietly, grabbing the rope and starting to roll it up. Wyatt wasn’t home when we arrived and didn’t know who was with me until just now. When I texted him to let him know I was coming out to sled with a friend, I intentionally left out the friend’s name.
“Zip it,” I mutter, suddenly feeling overwhelmed with a mixture of annoyance and anger.
“Hey.”
I ignore him, climbing on my four-wheeler and starting it up. I take off, returning the machine to the section of the barn where we keep them. Parking it in line with the others, I wish I had more time to get my feelings under control, but unfortunately, I don’t.
Wyatt brings the sled to the barn and sets it on a shelf near the quads. “Keeping this here?” he asks, even after it’s put away.
“Yeah,” I reply, climbing off my quad. Might as well keep it here. Maren has a small sled for their yard, and this way, it’ll be here when we come back out again without having to transport it back and forth.
When.
No if…
“You okay?” he asks gently.
“Yeah,” I state a little too quickly. Taking a deep breath, I turn toward him, hands on my hips as my heart pounds heavily in my chest. “I don’t know what I’m doing.”
He shrugs his beefy shoulders and leans against the wall. “You don’t have to figure that out today, man.”
“I know, it’s just…I’m still…hurt.”
He nods in understanding. “I get it. There’s a lot of history there between you two.”
I look down at the concrete slab we’re standing on. “I wanted to stay angry. From the moment I saw her standing there, I wanted to hate her. I’ve lived with that fury for what feels like a lifetime, and now…I don’t know. It’s not just the anger I feel but something is still there.”
“Uneasy, maybe? There was trust and then it was broken.”
I nod, wondering if that’s what it is.
“I wasn’t hitting on her, man,” he states, a wolfish grin on his face. “I could tell by the look in your eyes you were ready to knock me out.”
“No, I wasn’t,” I mutter.
Wyatt barks out a laugh. “Right…” he replies, drawing out that single word. “So, if I were to go have mac and cheese with them, you’d be completely fine with it?” His eyes are bright with humor, at my expense.
“Of course,” I mumble, the words like sand in my throat.
That makes him laugh even harder. “Stay away from the hay, man, because your pants are on fire.”
I roll my eyes. “Very fourth grade of you.”
He shrugs. “Listen, I know I’m just a dumbass who probably spends more time with animals than people, but you’re like a little brother to me, so I feel it’s my place to say something.
Don’t let the past dictate your future. If you want to spend time with Maren and her kid, do it.
Just because you get to know her again doesn’t mean history is gonna repeat itself. ”
“So, you think I should just forgive and forget?”
“I didn’t say that. I think you need to have a conversation, if you haven’t already. You’ll never be able to move forward without it. And that doesn’t necessarily mean with her either. Maybe that conversation is the closure you need to finally be free from her ghost.”
His words hang heavy between us, mostly because I know he’s right.
“All right, I’ve done my good deed for the day. You need anything, holler. And you know you’re welcome to come out here anytime and sled.” He levels me with a gaze. “With or without your neighbors.”
I nod. “Thanks.”
We exit the barn, Wyatt pulling the door closed a bit to help block some of the colder wind. “Maren, it was good to see you again. You and Theo are welcome anytime.”
“Thank you,” she replies, her beautiful face flush from the cold.
“It’s mac and cheese time, Theo,” I state, scooping him up and tossing him over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
The sweetest giggles fill the air as we head toward her SUV.
“Bye, Theo!” Wyatt hollers, followed by a bark from Goose.
I get him situated in his car seat in Maren’s vehicle. We decided to bring that, since it was easier than playing musical chairs with Theo’s seat. While I get the little wiggle worm strapped in, Maren starts her vehicle and cranks up the heat.