29. Chapter 29
Chapter 29
“August fourth, Ian,” Sadie says, dropping down on the patio chair beside me.
“What about August fourth?” I ask, confused about her statement.
“You ready to admit defeat?”
Damn, I guess she’s right. Like I wouldn't have bought her a trip to New Zealand simply because she asked; she really didn't have to bet me anything to get her way.
Pretending I have no idea what she’s talking about, I make a confused face and ask, “Defeat about what?”
Rolling her eyes, she says, “You know exactly what I’m talking about. You love her!” she says with a chin lift towards Hannah who’s laughing as my mom pours more wine into her glass across the patio from us, bringing a smile to my own face.
“And that look right there is why I know I won!”
“You know I would have paid for a trip to New Zealand without this little bet, right?” I say, keeping my eyes locked on Hannah, as she and my mom have their heads bent together. They’ve been inseparable since I introduced them two hours ago for my parents annual August Family BBQ. The minute I told Mom that Hannah had just finished writing a smutty book we had lost both of them.
“So you admit defeat?” she asks again.
“I don’t know if I’d call it defeat, but yes, I will pay for you and a friend to visit New Zealand after you graduate high school,” I tell her, with an eye roll of my own. I wish I could admit defeat. I felt a change in Hannah after the time we spent in Florida. I can’t explain it, but I know she’s on the same wavelength as me. I can feel that she no longer sees this as just two friends passing the time, I just don’t know if she knows it yet, and I don’t want to push her. I get the feeling that she needs to get to this conclusion on her own.
“I do like her though. She’s gorgeous. But not in an in-your-face-gorgeous way. More like a girl-next-door-I-don’t-really-know-I’m-gorgeous kind of way. Plus, Mom seems to love her.”
“She is gorgeous, that’s for sure,” I agree, my eyes tracking her every move, like she’ll disappear if I let her out of my sight. I just can’t help myself; where she goes, my eyes go, and if she goes too far, my body needs to follow. It’s to the point where I can’t sleep when she’s not in my bed. She’s been trying not to stay over too often, trying to spend time with Levi. There’s something going on with him. We thought that everything between him and Lacey was fixed after their date in Florida—they came back that night as if nothing had happened. As if they hadn’t been bickering over the weekend. But in the last week no one has really seen Lacey. Hannah even said she bailed on brunch and pedicures with her and Ellie. Only JJ knows what’s going on, but he’s being tight-lipped about it. Usually JJ, Ellie, and Lacey are here for the BBQ, but only Levi is here. JJ and Ellie decided to go to their parents’ cabin for the long weekend. Although, Levi keeps looking at his phone every sixty seconds. Just like he’s been doing for the past ten days.
Hannah is worried about him, but he won’t tell her what happened. Keeping to the point that whatever is going on is between him and Lacey and that he won’t air out their dirty laundry to everyone in the room. I commend him for his decision, but I want to throttle him at the same time. Because he won’t share what’s going on, Hannah won’t spend more than one night at a time in my bed. I know I’m being selfish, but I want the woman in my house, in my T-shirt, and in my bed 24/7, just like she’s in my mind, heart, and soul. With pre-season training starting soon, followed by the season, I want to spend as much time with her as I can.
I understand why she’s doing it. I’m even worried about him. I’ve never seen him like this. Usually he’s manning the BBQ with my dad all day; but he’s just looking out at the mountains, nursing a beer, checking his phone every two minutes, waiting for a text.
“I like her too. She’s nice. She even said she’d come to New Zealand with me when I told her I won a bet against you.” And that’s where I choke on the drink of beer I just took.
“You told her about the bet?” I ask, shaking my head. I hope she didn’t tell her the bet was that I was going to be in love by the end of the summer.
“Don’t worry, I told her the bet you won was in her favor, and that now I had a free trip for me and a friend to New Zealand, but I didn’t tell her what exactly the bet was. She asked who I would bring, and I told her I didn’t know—that I didn’t have that many friends. So she said that she and her friend Summer had always talked about going there but never had the chance, and that if I was stuck, she would come,” she says softly, matching Levi’s gaze, looking out at the mountains as if they hold all of life’s secrets.
Fuck. I’ve been slacking on my brotherly duties, focusing all my energy on Hannah. She looks so dejected.
“Why wouldn’t you bring Taylor?” I ask. Those two have been joined at the hip for the past four years, ever since Taylor started taking horseback riding lessons at the ranch.
“She quit riding. She’d rather have a social life, as she put it,” Sadie says on a deep exhale, looking up so the tears I see in her eyes don’t fall. Fuck. “She said there’s more to life than riding horses and the ranch.” Fuck, I think to myself tightening my hand around my beer bottle. I was really hoping this wouldn’t happen to her. This is what happens when you find a passion. When you find something that makes the stars brighter, that keeps you up at night and that gives you a high like nothing else. I knew there was a chance that was going to happen. She’s a weapon on a horse. Nobody can ride like my baby sister. I might be biased but the wall of ribbons and trophies in our living room doesn’t lie. She is what’s called a once-in-a-generation talent. The same thing happened to me. The only difference is I had nineteen other guys going through the same thing at the same time as me. She’s all alone.
“How do you feel about that?” I ask softly.
“I get it but I don’t,” she answers honestly. “I get that I should be more interested in shopping, getting my hair done and boys, but I don’t want to. I like who I am, I like getting up at five a.m. to make sure the horses are fed, and spending my weekends at horse shows. Honestly, I don’t want to change who I am. So it looks like it’s just me and my horses,” she says with a small smile, no more tears in her eyes. I made the same choice.
“I’m proud of you. You’ll find friends that have the same passion,” I say, throwing an arm around her and giving her a kiss on top of the head. “How about I take you out some time this week and get you a new pair of riding boots?”
“Too late,” she says, making me turn towards her, confused.
“What do you mean too late?”
“Well, when I told Hannah that I didn’t know who I would bring to New Zealand with me, she asked me why,” she starts with a small blush, clearly embarrassed. “I told her just because. She said she didn’t believe me, that she was once a sixteen-year-old girl. Then she said you promised her a deal with your credit card, and she said why not make it a two-for-one. We get to hang out and spend your money. She’s picking me up Tuesday.”
Well fuck me sideways. If I wasn’t already in love with her . . .
“I hope that’s okay?” Sadie asks with a frown marking her eyebrows.
“Of course it is!” I answer without missing a beat. Nothing makes me happier than the girl who owns my heart making sure the first girl who’s ever stolen my heart feels confident, spoiled, and loved. There’s nothing harder than being a teenager completely dedicated to their art, to their sport.
“Good! In return I told her I’d teach her how to barrel race!”
“You know you don’t owe anyone for being nice to you, right?” I ask a little concerned, which earns me an eye roll.
“I know that! I’m not stupid!” And the teenager sass is back out to play. “I actually like her. Plus, I think I should get to know my new sister-in-law. And I can’t let you marry a woman who doesn’t know how to do barrels.”
“And who said I was marrying said woman?” I ask.
“No one had too, your face says it all, Ian,” she says getting up to go join Hannah and our mom.
Apparently I don’t hide my love for her as much as I thought. I wonder if she knows.