“I don’t understand.”
“You and Molly could not be more different. Let’s just leave it at that,” he says. I am suddenly very ready to meet Molly. I can’t figure out if people love her or hate her. Either way, I think I am finally ready.
“Can I ride this one?” I ask, looking up at Ash, looking up at his eyes and especially his lips. A girl could definitely get lost in his whole face.
“Nope,” he says, shaking his head. “No one rides this one but me.” Is he serious right now? He just said she was very gentle and he’s not even going to let me ride her now.
“Are you kidding? I want to ride this one.”
“I’m sorry, but she doesn’t let anyone ride her but me. She loves me, I can’t really help that.” He is seriously not going to let me ride this horse. Wow.
“Your dog doesn’t like people either, but he loves me,” I say smiling. “Now, help me on this horse,” I say, putting my foot up in the foot thing. I don’t even know what these are called. It’s no wonder he doesn’t want me near his favorite horse. I grab the top of the saddle and try to hoist myself up not having any idea how I am supposed to get on this thing. I finally hear him huff behind me and I know I have won this one. I don’t know what it is about this man, but all I want to do is prove to him I can do what I want. He grabs me around the waist to help lift me up and tells me to throw my leg over the top. I do what he says, but I begin to realize I am holding my breath. I’m not holding my breath because I am scared, I trust this man one hundred percent. I am holding my breath because he is touching me and I don’t think I ever want him to stop touching me.
He has finally let go and I realize I am sitting on top of a horse. It’s a lot higher than I thought it would be. I think I am going to be okay until the horse starts to move and I start to scream which makes the horse move more. I am holding on tight, but I don’t think I can do this.
“I want down, I can’t do this,” I scream at Ash who has already grabbed the horse and made her stop moving.
“You can do this,” he says, putting his hand on my leg. I really need him to stop touching me. I can’t think straight when he does that and he is definitely not part of any plans I have. “Scoot up. I’m going to ride with you. I don’t want your first experience to be you screaming and jumping off.” He is seriously planning on riding behind me. I think that may require too much touching. What have I gotten myself into?
Ash jumps on the horse behind me and grabs my hands. “Hold on to these, don’t let go.”
“I think you should hold on to them. I think you were right, she doesn’t like anybody but you.” I hear him laugh behind me.
“I know I was right,” he says, before putting his lips right by my ear and whispering, “but I’m pretty sure you can make anybody like you.” I turn my head to look at him to find his face only inches from mine. I can’t seem to stop looking at anything but his lips. “You may want to look forward,” he says.
“Okay,” I reply, turning my head back around. He puts one arm around my waist and puts his other hand next to mine.
“Are you ready?” he whispers in my ear again. I just nod my head.
We ride in complete silence for a while. This land is beautiful. I can’t believe I never thought about moving out in the country. It’s gorgeous. City life is always so busy, but out here it feels like time stands still. We ride until we reach a little creek out in the middle of nowhere.
“Are you ready for a break?” he asks, pulling so the horse will stop.
“Sure,” I answer. He gets down first then reaches up to grab my waist to help me down. “This is beautiful.”
“I love it out here. I always come out here when I want to get away from everything and be by myself. It’s always been my calming place,” he says, tying the horse up to a nearby tree. I find a big rock sitting out in the middle and go over to sit one it. Ash comes over to me and sits beside me. I guess I’m not getting any space here either. This boy is definitely going to complicate my life.
“So, tell me about Ash. You have to have a story. Where did your name come from? It’s a little unusual,” I say, looking out over the creek.
“It’s actually Ashton, everybody has just always shortened it to Ash as long as I can remember.”
“Okay, does Ashton have a middle name?”
“He does, Ashton Wyatt Clayton,” he says. “What about you? I don’t even know your last name.
“Callie Grace Scott. My middle name was my moms also. Her name was Katherine Grace, not sure where the Callie came from. What is your horse’s name that only likes you?” I ask.
“Starlight,” he says. “My little sister had a stuffed horse when she was little. She named it Starlight and it went everywhere with her. When I found this horse, she reminded me of that stuffed animal for some reason, so I named her Starlight. Brody has yet to let me live that name down. Of course he has no idea why I named her that. I guess I just didn’t want him to know about that part.” Why would he name a horse after his sister’s stuffed animal? That seems a little odd to me.
“Does she still have the horse?” I ask. He just sits there looking over the water before turning his face back to mine.
“My mom and sister were killed when she was ten. I’m not even sure what happened to that horse. I haven’t really thought about that in years.” I just smile back at him. I don’t know what else to say. I have learned one thing in the past ten years, I can’t stand when someone hears my parents are dead and the first thing they say is oh you poor thing. I’m not the one dead, they are. I was the lucky one. Pity is one thing I can’t stand.
“Do you, Brody, Jaxon and Collin all work together?” I ask trying to change the subject.
“Brody and I work mostly undercover, which I’m probably not supposed to tell you. Jaxon and Collin are amazing detectives. They are really good at figuring stuff out.”
“I wish they had figured out Molly wasn’t their sister twenty six years ago.”
“That probably would have made both of your lives a lot easier. We used to tell Molly she was adopted all the time when she was little. I mean look at her, she looks nothing like them,” he says.
“She looks just like my mom did,” I say. “What is Molly really like?” I ask, turning around to face him. Our knees are touching now and I’m trying really hard not to think about that fact.
“I honestly haven’t seen her much in the last twelve years. I moved away when I turned eighteen. I came back a couple of years later, but she was already gone to college then. I usually see her at holidays, but that’s all. She’s kind of stand offish now. She used to be in your face annoying, but not anymore. I don’t know what happened to her,” he says, putting his hand on my knee. “Are you ready to head back?” Nodding at him, I stand up at the same time he does.
We are outside with hundreds of acres around us but we are standing in about two feet of space staring at each other. I am about to move around him to get some space when his hand comes up to my face. His fingers are below my ear and his thumb is rubbing my cheek. “I’m not going to kiss you,” he says, staring down at my lips.
“Okay,” I say. I don’t know what is happening right now, but it is taking everything I have not to grab his face right now until my phone rings breaking the spell. I grab it out of my back pocket and look down at the screen, Clay. I push ignore on the phone and slide it back into my pocket. He can definitely wait.
“We should go,” he says, letting his hand fall to his side and turning around to head back to the horse. I am going to have to find a hotel when we get back to the house. This will not work.
The ride back to the barn is very quiet. He is barely touching me this time and I have no idea what I have done to make him change like this. We get back to the barn and he is on the ground as soon as we stop. “You can go back to the house and shower or whatever. I’ll put them back up,” he says, barely glancing in my direction.
“Okay, thank you for today,” I say to him and he c
ompletely ignores me. What is going on with this man? “Ash,” I yell.
“What?” he yells back at me.
“I said thank you. I don’t know what I did to ruin your day, but I’m sorry.”
“You didn’t do anything. Everything is fine. I just need to get them put up. It looks like it’s going to storm.”
“I’m going to go get everything packed up and find a hotel for tonight. I’ll be out of your way soon,” I say, walking back to the house. I hear him call my name, but completely ignore him. I should have known this was a bad idea.
I go inside and pull my phone out to call Clay back. Of course he answers on the first ring. “Hey sweetheart is everything okay?” he asks.
“It’s fine. Molly woke up so they are all at the hospital today. I’m just hanging out.”
“How did everything go meeting everybody?”
“It was fine, they seem really nice, I just don’t know how long I want to stay here. I think it was a really bad idea. Everything just seems like a mess,” I say, feeling the tears starting to form in my eyes.
“Don’t leave before talking to them again. I’m on my way with your car, but it will be early in the morning before I can get it there. Where are you staying so I can drop it off? I’ll leave the keys under the seat. You will probably feel better when you can get around.”
“I’m staying with Brody,” I say to him still thinking about what just happened outside. What is Ash’s problem with me?
“I’m not sure where Brody lives. Do you have the address?”
“No, I have no idea. Middle of nowhere back road should do it,” I say, while he just laughs.
“What’s it close to?” he asks, still laughing.
“Trees and grass,” I say. “I have no idea. He lives with some guy named Ash. Do you know him?”
“You are staying with Ash?” he asks, sounding very concerned. What is the deal with all of these men? Is Ash really that bad?
“Yes, only until I get my car and can get to a hotel,” I say, going into the bathroom to shower.
“Okay, I’ll let you go. I’ll have your car there in the morning. Let me know if you need anything else. Get some rest, you sound tired,” he says, before hanging up.
I go into the bathroom and get these stinky horse smelling clothes off of me. I jump in the hot shower and finally try to relax. I really need to forget about Ash. Sure I loved talking to him today and really loved looking at him, but I came here to meet a family, not find him. Doesn’t matter anyway, he seems to hate me now.
I get out of the shower and put on pajama pants and a tank top before drying my hair. I open the door to try and sneak into Brody’s bedroom only to find Ash standing across from the door looking at me.
“I’m sorry about what happened out there. You didn’t do anything and I shouldn’t have acted like that,” he says.
“It’s no big deal, don’t worry about it. It was a bad idea for me to come here. I should have my car in the morning. I will just stay tonight and I promise to be out of your way in the morning,” I say, turning to walk down the hall. He grabs my arm and pulls me back to him.
“I don’t want you to go,” he says putting both of his hands on the sides of my face to make me look up at him. “I want…..I just want…..”
“What do you want Ash?” I ask him looking up into those beautiful eyes that still seem so familiar. Have I met him before?
“You,” he says, before his lips are on mine and he is kissing me…..hard. As soon as the moan escapes my throat he is pushing me away from him. “Brody is going to shoot me. Just so you know, that was definitely worth it,” he says, before heading in the other direction.
“Why would Brody shoot you?” I ask him. He turns around and smiles.
“He told me you were off limits and I better not touch you. I guess I’m not very good at following directions,” he says, smiling and winking before walking outside and closing the door.
I have no idea what is going on with Ash, but I know if I never kiss another man again, that will be fine. I don’t think any kiss in the world could live up to that one. I really should get out of here as soon as possible.
Chapter Eight
I don’t know where Ash went when he left me standing in the hallway after that kiss. I’m assuming he went outside to do whatever you do when you have a farm. It’s only eight o’clock on a June night, but it is already so dark outside. The weather must be getting really bad tonight.
I go into the kitchen to see if I can find something to cook for supper. I don’t know if Ash will want anything to eat when he gets in. For all I know he has already gone out and gotten something. I really can’t figure this one out at all. I decide on stir fry because it’s easy and will keep me busy for a few minutes. I’m almost finished when I hear the door open and turn around to see a soaking wet Ash standing in the doorway. I didn’t even realize it had started raining.
“That smells really good and I’m starving, so I hope you made enough for me,” he says, looking at the stove.
“I might have made enough for two. You may want to get dried off first,” I say, looking at him.
“I’m going to take a quick shower. You may want to turn the weather on and see what’s going on. It looks awful outside. I’ll hurry,” he says, heading to the bathroom to shower. I go over and turn the television on. I have been watching the weather a few minutes when my phone starts ringing. I grab my phone and look down to see Brody calling.
“Hello,” I answer.
“Hey Callie, how’s the weather there?”
“It’s really dark and raining. I had just turned the weather on when you called.”
“I think we are all going to stay here tonight since the storms are so bad here right now. If you are uncomfortable staying there with Ash, tell me and I will get back tonight somehow, or I can make him go somewhere else.”
“You are not coming home in this weather and you are not kicking him out of his own house. It will be fine. I’m not big on storms, so I would rather somebody be here with me anyway.”
“Is Ash there? I tried to call his phone, but he didn’t answer.”
“He is in the shower. He was outside doing something and just got in. Do you want him to call you when he gets out?”
“No, I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Is he treating you okay?” he asks. What an odd question. Why is everybody so worried about him?
“Of course he is, he even took me horseback riding and it was so much fun,” I say, hoping he gets off the Ash subject really quick. “How is Molly?” I ask him trying to change the subject.
“She’s good. They think she may get to go home tomorrow,” he answers.
“Have y’all told her about me yet?”
“We did. She took it pretty good. I think she was glad you weren’t here with us today. I think this is going to be a lot harder than we thought. She’s pretty upset her biological parents are dead and she will never get to meet them. I think mom has convinced her to come home with them for now so she will have someone to take care of her. She seemed a little surprised they still wanted her there. This is all just a really awkward situation. I’m sorry we all left you alone today.”
“It’s fine, don’t worry about me. My car should be here in the morning and I think it would be best if I stayed in a hotel the rest of the time. I really hate putting people out,” I say, hoping he will understand I need some space too.
“Absolutely not, we will figure something out, but I don’t want you staying by yourself. Are you sure Ash is being nice?”
“Of course he is. Why would you even think that?”
“Ash has been through a lot. He doesn’t let a lot of people in and sometimes he comes across as being really rude. He hates to talk about himself and his family. So I guess, just don’t ask him any questions and you should be fine,” he says.
“I will try to remember that,” I say, just as Ash comes back into the kitchen dressed in a t-shirt and sweat pants. I never k
new they could look that good on a man. I’m trying to process what Brody has just told me. It makes no sense to me. Ash told me a little about himself today and his little sister. Maybe that’s what upset him so much today. Maybe it wasn’t me after all.
“Try to stay safe tonight and I will be back tomorrow. Tell Ash to remember what I said,” he adds with a laugh. “Bye Callie.”
“Bye,” I say, before hanging up. I look up to see Ash looking out the window at the weather.
“This weather is getting rough,” he says. “Was that your boyfriend?” he adds, still looking out the window. My boyfriend, why would he think I have a boyfriend?
“I don’t have a boyfriend. If I did, the hallway wouldn’t have happened. Actually nothing today would have happened.” I go into the kitchen again and start looking for plates. How could he think I would have acted like that with him if I had a boyfriend? Does he really think that little of me? I am so mad right now. I get both of our plates ready and practically throw them on the table while he just stands there.
I go over to look through the drawers for flatware when he comes up behind me. He wraps an arm around my shoulder and leans his chin on my shoulder. “I’m sorry. I told you stuff today that I have never told anyone. I don’t know why, but you make me want to tell you stuff. I want you to know the real me. Then I saw the phone call and just thought the worst. I am sorry.” What phone call is he talking about? I look up at him and shake my head trying to figure out what he is talking about.
“Clay,” he whispers.
“Oh. Clay is like my second dad. He just calls to check up on me sometimes. Definitely nothing going on there,” I say, grabbing the forks and walking back to the table.
“It’s none of my business, like I said, I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” I say, sitting down at the table. Ash comes and sits beside me. “This looks really good. Thanks for fixing it.”
“You’re welcome. I have to warn you that I’m not a very good cook. I can only make about four different things.” We get half way through supper when I remember that Brody had called.
Finding You: The Switched Series book one Page 6
