12. Chapter 12
Chapter 12
Why did I think it was a good idea to ask her out on a date? Is it even a date? When’s the last time I took a woman I actually wanted to get to know on a date? Well not an official date anyway. We’re just going horseback riding. Casual. Just two friends going for a ride. Nothing special. Who cares if she has the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen? Or the most gorgeous ass I’ve ever seen? An ass I’ll have to look at all day long as she rides a horse. And her smile. Every time I catch a glimpse of it, it does something to me. Every time, I get this flutter in my stomach. What did I get myself into?
Hagrid interrupts my thoughts of Hannah’s ass with a long meow as she perches herself on the corner of my kitchen counter giving a judgy look.
“What do you want?” I ask her as I make my way over to scratch her between the ears just like she likes. Stretching her neck, she closes her eyes as she starts to purr.
“You just want all the attention don’t you?” Petting her, I ask, “Do you think I’m overthinking this? I mean, I doubt she sees me as a potential anything, other than crossing a task off her Bucket List.” I pick her up and make my way to the couch, where my phone is currently charging.
“Maybe I should just call Mom and ask her what she thinks. I need to call her to let her know I’ll be taking a couple of the horses out tomorrow anyways,” I tell Hagrid.
Unlocking my phone with Hagrid on my lap, I go to my recent calls and select my mom’s contact.
After a few rings she finally picks up, and before she can say anything other than Hi , I start on the word vomit that only my mom can decipher:
“Mom. What do I do for a non-date? The most amazing girl, Levi’s new roommate, remember I told you about her? Well, she’s never been horseback riding. She has this Bucket List, and I told her I would bring her. But now I don’t know if it’s a date or not. I mean it’s probably not a date. She’s a little older and probably thinks I’m too young, but still, she’s so pretty. She’s writing a book! Did you know that? She’s really into romance books, so I told her she could visit your library. That’s okay, right?” Before I can continue, I hear her laugh on the other end of the phone.
“Mom! This isn’t funny,” I say with a huff.
“Oh my God, Ian! What the hell is your problem? Have you, like, never been on a date before?” my sister asks, with another laugh.
“Sadie! Where’s mom? Why do you have her phone?” I ask.
“She was reading in her library and fell asleep. Why? Need her to plan a date for you?” she asks, sarcasm dripping from her voice.
“No, it’s fine. Just ask her to call me when she wakes up,” I say.
“So, you do need her to help you plan a date!”
“All right, I’m gonna hang up now,” I say, but before I can hang up, Sadie screams, “Wait! I’m a girl. I’ve been on a few dates, I can . . .”
“Since when do you date?” I ask, cutting her off. “Do I need to move back home? How is dad letting you date?”
“Ian, I’m sixteen, of course I’ve been on a few dates. I’ve even had my first . . .”
“Okay! I get it! I don’t need the details! Now, are you gonna help me or not, because if not, I’d rather be doing anything other than talking about you going on dates!” I say as I physically cringe at the thought of my baby sister going out on dates. I’m gonna have to have a chat with my dad about this.
“Yes, I’ll help you. First things first, did you actually ask her out on a date or just offer to help her with her list or whatever you said?” she asks.
“Well, I guess I just offered to take her horseback riding—”
Before I can continue, she cuts me off and asks, “Did you say the words: Will you go on a date with me?”
“No, but nobody says that anymore,” I answer.
“Everyone knows it’s just a hangout and not a date unless the words ‘will you’ and ‘date’ are said,” she says matter-of-factly. I’m starting to question asking Sadie for her advice, but before I can respond she continues, “But that doesn’t mean you can’t treat it like a date. What’s your plan so far?”
“Pick her up at Levi’s, bring her to the ranch, go horseback riding, and then show her Mom’s library.”
“Oh, Ian, you poor soul. Do you want to friend-zone the woman or get her to go on an official date with you?”
“Second option, clearly.”
“Alright, what time are you picking her up? Morning or afternoon?”
“Morning, we agreed on nine-thirty.”
“Perfect, have her favorite coffee ready before picking her up, and pack a cute little picnic—every girl wants a boy to plan a picnic, it’s probably on her Bucket List. I know it’s on my list of what a boy needs to do for me before I’ll actually be his girlfriend. And that’s it. Easy-Peasy.”
“That’s it? Coffee and a picnic? No flowers or anything?”
“Did you ask her out on a date?” she asks, sass dripping from her voice.
“No. I told you—”
I’m cut off by her saying, “No date, no flowers. Flowers are just for official dates. Trust me, you don’t want to scare her off before you can actually ask her on a date. Anything else you need help with?”
“No. Well, how am I supposed to know what her favorite coffee is?” I ask.
“Ian. She’s roommates with your best friend, figure it out!” she says, with an eye roll I’m sure, as she hangs up on me.
Before I can digest what she said, my phone starts ringing in my hands.
“What’s up?” I say as I answer.
“What’s this I’m hearing? You’re taking Hannah out on a date?” Levi asks.
“The words ‘ will you’ and ‘ date’ were not said,” I say, repeating Sadie’s words, happy I spoke to her first. “This time anyway,” I add on.
“Ian,” he says in a warning tone.
“I’m just helping her cross things off her List. Aren’t you the one who said she was here to grow and rediscover herself? I’m just here helping her out,” I say innocently.
“I know what you’re doing here, and I don’t like it,” he says solemnly.
“Levi, we’re going horseback riding, not getting married,” I say defensively, not liking the judging tone he’s taking. I know he assumes I’m some jerk to women because I never have the same woman around for more than a few weeks at a time, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. I don’t sleep with all of them. Plus, they all know I’m not looking for anything more than a fling.
“Anyhow, what’s her favorite coffee? And is she allergic to anything?” I ask, giving myself a mental shake before I get mad at him. “Please, Levi. Give me something here.”
A few moments later, he finally says, “Dirty, iced chai latte with oat milk. And no, no allergies,” he says with a huff. Hopefully he understands that I’m not looking to hurt her, just get to know her. For now at least.
“Perfect, thanks, man.”
“I don’t like this,” Levi says.
“You don’t have to, it has nothing to do with you. But trust me, I don’t plan on hurting her.”
“We’ll see about that,” he answers before hanging up.
Knocking on Levi’s door Tuesday morning has me almost shitting my pants— why am I so nervous? And why am I knocking? I ask myself as I grab the door handle. I never knock on Levi’s door, I just walk in; it used to be my house too. I hope she’s still okay with going. I stupidly didn’t get her phone number over the weekend. What a rookie move. She has me in knots and I don’t even think she realizes it.
Before I can open the door, it’s opened for me by a frowning Levi.
“Is that Ian?” I hear being asked from deeper inside the house.
“Yeah,” Levi shouts back, looking at me as he lowers his voice and says, “Just don’t hurt her.”
Before I can answer back, Hannah joins us wearing a skintight pair of faded jeans, that I know hug her ass just right. Have I mentioned I’m an ass guy? Well, I am, and this girl has an ass made for grabbing.
Interrupting my train of thought, making my eyes travel back to her face, she says, “The only boots I have are Blundstones, is that okay?”
As my eyes finally reach her face, I see a slight blush high on her cheeks. Clearly I’ve been caught checking her out. Thankfully, she doesn’t seem to mind.
“Yeah, those are perfect. Or if you don’t want to get them dirty, you can borrow a pair of boots from either my sister or my mom, whichever fits.”
We stand there awkwardly for a few seconds as Levi gives me a pointed look.
Sensing the discomfort, Hannah quickly grabs her bag and phone, moves towards the door and says, “Alrighty then. Ready to go? I’d rather go now before I change my mind.”
“Yes, sure. Let’s go,” I answer as I follow her out the door, giving Levi my own look.
Beating her to the truck, I open the passenger door for her, making her blush once again as she softly says, “Thanks.”
Making my way to the driver’s side I get in and start my truck. “All buckled in?” I ask as I back out of Levi’s driveway.
“Yeah, all ready to go. Is it a long drive to your parents’ ranch?”
“About forty minutes depending on the traffic getting out of the city,” I answer, then send a chin lift to the cups in the cup holder. “I got you a coffee for the ride over.”
Looking at me a little shocked, she asks, “You got me a coffee?”
“Yeah, dirty, iced chai latte made with oat milk,” I answer, throwing her a wink. “I’ll even let you pick the playlist,” I say as I pass her the USB cord.
Ignoring the USB cord, she goes straight for the coffee and takes a big gulp, making me laugh.
“Good?”
“Perfect,” she answers with a sigh and relaxes into the passenger seat. “How did you know this was my coffee of choice?” she asks with an eyebrow raised over her Ray-Bans.
“Aw. That’s for me to know and you to wonder,” I tease.
“My guess is on either Lacey or Ellie.” She gives me a look that says she expects me to answer her.
“I’m not giving away my secrets; guess all you want, but you won't break me,” I say with a laugh.
“Fine—just for that, we’re listening to girl hits from the 90’s the entire drive,” she says with her own giggle.
“Be my guest,” I say, passing her the USB cord again. Little does she know, I grew up with a teen mom and have a sixteen-year-old sister. I grew up on, and still listen to, that kind of music on a regular basis.
Next thing you know, the Spice Girls are blasting through the speakers just as we hit the highway. Knocking her hand away as she goes to turn down the volume, I look her way and start loudly singing along to “Wannabe,” making her giggle and join in.
Once the song is over, I turn down the volume to look at her and say, “I grew up with a teen mom and I have a sixteen-year-old sister. I grew up on the Spice Girls, Britney Spears, TLC; you name them, I can probably sing along to them.”
“So you’re enjoying this? No way this will get you to tell me who told you my favorite coffee order?”
“Not a chance,” I say, giving her a smile. “Now, do you have any TLC on this playlist of yours?”
Thirty-five minutes later, after blasting the top twenty 90’s girl anthems, we pull into the ranch. Making my way to the barn, I park the truck a few feet away from the main door. As I turn off the truck, I look over at Hannah, and damn does she look good in my truck. I should have taken a moment to appreciate the view she creates by comfortably sitting in my passenger seat. Like she belongs there.
“Ready to go?” I ask.
“I guess so,” she answers timidly.
Once I’m out of the truck and have rounded the front to open her door, which she beats me to, I ask, “I probably should have asked this before, but have you ever been around horses?”
“Ummm . . . Ish? A long time ago though. Summer and I convinced our parents to let us take lessons the summer we turned seven.” A wishful look appears on her face. “It didn’t last long though. We didn’t even get on a horse, per se. Turns out Summer is very, very allergic to horses. Or so she said she was. I caught her petting horses at fairs before she finally admitted to just being terrified of them. At seven, she hadn’t realized they were so big, so she chickened out, pretended to be allergic, and would say that her eyes were itchy,” she continues with a laugh. “Anyway, since we did everything together, I pretended to be allergic too,” she says with a big smile.
“All right—so you’ve been around horses but have never actually gotten on a horse?” I ask, confirming what she just said.
“Is that a problem?” she asks shyly. “I mean if I can’t go today, that’s fine. I’m sorry I wasted your time, making you drive out here. Maybe Levi will come pick me up so you can stay and I won't waste any more of your time . . .” she starts rambling and ringing her hands.
“Hey, hey, hey,” I say, facing her and putting my hands on her shoulders, stopping her rambling. “It’s not a big deal. I didn’t say it was a problem,” I gently say. “My mom does lessons, so we have plenty of horses that are perfect for beginners. I was planning on putting you on top of Lily anyways. She’s the most gentle soul on this planet,” I continue bending at the knee to look her in the eyes. “You’re not wasting my time.”
Breaking eye contact and looking down, she asks, “Are you sure?”
“Of course,” I say as I turn her around to the barn and guide her forward. “The only problem will be how sore you’ll be tomorrow,” I add with a small laugh.
“That I can handle,” she says, her confidence coming back. I know Levi said her ex-husband was a piece of work, but just how much of an asshole was he to make this gorgeous girl, with a quick wit, believe she could ever waste someone’s time? Before I can stop myself I say, “You could never waste my time, by the way.”
Blushing, she turns around to walk into the barn with more confidence in her step.
A few minutes later, I show her how to saddle both horses—Stella for myself and Lily for Hannah.
“One more thing before we walk these ladies out.” Turning around, I jog toward the office located at the end of the hall. Getting back to Hannah, I plop one of my old cowboy hats on top of her head. I never understood why men in movies lost it over a woman wearing their cowboy hat. But damn, I get it now. My breath actually catches as she settles it properly on her head and pulls her blonde braid over one of her shoulders. It makes her look like she’s mine.
“Can’t ride a horse without the proper headwear. Now you’re ready to ride,” I finish as I unclip Lily from the wall and pass her reins along to Hannah.
“All right. Ready?” I ask one last time before we start leading the horses out.
“Yeah, she seems like a very calm horse.”
“Very. She’s the horse my mom always introduced to new students first. Now, just start walking and she’ll follow along,” I add as I start moving forward with Stella obediently following along.
Once we’ve led the horses outside to the practice ring, I help Hannah hop onto Lily, trying not to let myself get distracted by the feel of her hips in my hands or the smell of vanilla that flows off of her.
“How does that feel?” She looks like a natural sitting up there.
“Good. Really good, actually!” she answers, a big smile gracing her face.
“Good.” Returning her smile I propose, “How about I lead her around the ring a few times, before letting you do it on your own. Then, when or if you’re comfortable we take them out?”
Unable to wipe the smile off her face, she gives me an enthusiastic nod, making my own smile stretch.
Grabbing the reins, I slowly start walking Lily around the ring. Turning back every few steps, I see that Hannah is lost in her own joy, like a kid actually getting a pony for Christmas; it’s infectious really. I now understand why Mom quit her job to give riding lessons her full attention.
“Ready to try a round on your own?” I ask Hannah once I’ve led Lily around a couple of times. Not missing a beat, she says “yes” and I explain how to get Lily to respond to her and what cues to give.
To my surprise, she takes to it like a natural. I tell her just that as she comes to a standstill in front of me having led Lily around the ring a few times on her own, making her blush.
“I’m ready,” she says, with a bright smile that reaches her eyes and a confidence I have yet to see her wear.
With a smile to rival Hannah’s, I get on Stella and start guiding her towards the creek. “I thought we’d ride to the creek that runs along the east side of the property, it’s about a forty-five to sixty minute ride.”
“That sounds perfect!” she says radiating with happiness. With the way she’s barely containing her excitement and constantly looking around, taking in all her surroundings, I don’t think I’m going to get much conversation out of her. As we keep traveling towards the creek, it’s impossible not to steal glances at her, the smile hasn’t left her face. It’s the most relaxed I’ve seen her.
Every once in a while I hear her let out a soft sigh or giggle as if she can’t believe she’s actually riding a horse. I’ve heard her call Lily a good girl and murmur sweet nothings to her more than once as she runs her fingers through her mane, which brings a smile to my face everytime. She’s a natural. I didn’t realize how important it was to find a girl who loves this and who takes to this part of my life so easily. She makes everything seem so effortless, taking everything as it comes. Hell, she even makes me feel more comfortable than I’ve ever felt with another person. She has a way about her that makes me want to spill all my deepest secrets.
Letting Lily take the lead from Stella, I grab my phone to take a quick photo of Hannah. She paints the perfect view; with her long blonde braid flowing down her back from under one of my old cowboy hats, the Canadian Rockies in the background. My entire being just settles. I can feel how easily this could become a regular outing—Hannah and I spending a day at the ranch.
Giving myself a small shake, I take the picture and set it as my home screen before I can question my sanity.
As Lily leads the way, I stay a few paces back, deciding to enjoy the view of my dream girl living her best life. Taking her in again, my gaze snags on her ass in her painted-on, light wash jeans. Mesmerized, I don’t realize we’ve made it to the creek until Stella comes to a stop right behind Lily. Swinging my leg over, I get off Stella and make my way to Hannah's side to help her get off, but before I can offer she looks down at me and says, “I think I can do it on my own.”
Not wanting to cramp her style and somewhat turned on by her independence—yet disappointed that I won’t get to feel her body against mine—I take a few steps back to let her get off on her own.
Levi described her as a little wall flower with no confidence, but all I’ve gotten from this girl so far is sass and confidence. Sure she’s a little shy and sometimes needs a little push to not feel as though she’s burdening me with her interests, but I think that’s more of a survival behavior due to her ex more than anything. I don’t think she’s changed much from the teenager Levi knew, I think she just adapted to her reality. I don’t think Levi gives her enough credit; I can already see the change in her confidence from when she first moved here just a short few weeks ago.
Stealing me from my thoughts, Hannah says, “This place is gorgeous!” As she opens her arms wide, tilting her face to the sky, spinning around slowly with a giggle, she pulls a laugh out of me as well.
Pulling the small cooler bag and blanket from Stella’s saddle bag, I bring the lunch I packed closer to the creek and set out the blanket, sandwiches, veggies, and fruits before taking a seat. Finally noticing where I’m sitting, she joins me on the blanket, taking a seat beside me as she keeps admiring the view of the Rockies and the rolling fields.
“You packed a picnic?” she asks with a little awe in her voice.
“I couldn’t let you starve, now could I?” I answer, feeling my cheeks redden as I hand her a sandwich. “Plus, it’s not much. I just stopped at a deli on my way to pick you up. I hope you like turkey on sourdough,” I continue, before she takes a big bite of her sandwich.
I couldn’t let you starve? This girl has the weirdest stuff coming out of my mouth. I’m usually smooth with women. We all know I have no issue getting women to come home with me, but this one . . . This one has me saying the most ridiculous things. Shaking my head, I grab my own sandwich and take the silent opportunity to watch Hannah. The sun is reflecting the golden hues of her braid as she quietly stares off at the mountains. She looks completely mesmerised by the view.
“I can’t believe you got to grow up here. It’s so peaceful,” she finally says, breaking the comfortable silence.
“I know. I can’t say I didn’t take it for granted though. Now that I don’t live here, I try to get out here as much as I can,” I answer honestly, getting up and offering her a hand to lead her down the creek.