Test Drive (The Bachelor #1)

by Avonlea Cole

  I walked down to the barn where I saw Starlight tied to the post all saddled up. I gave her a quick rub and walked to down to the ring. Georgia was in the middle of the ring holding leads of several horses. People were standing all around the ring watching while others were brushing the horses and feeding them with her brothers’ help.

  There were a few children in wheelchairs and others were being led by hand. I had heard of programs where children with special needs could interact with horses and how the animals could be soothing to them. Seeing Georgia interacting with the kids was magical. She was kind and patient, but didn’t treat them like they were helpless. She guided them through the steps and encouraged them to take control, well as much control as they could handle.

  A little boy named Austin came up to me and tugged on my shirt. His handler said that he was autistic and that he had refused to speak until they had begun coming to the ranch for lessons. Austin pointed at the horse and said, "Acorn!" Sure enough, that was the horse’s name.

  "That’s right, Austin. Is he your favorite?"

  The boy nodded and then ran back to pet the horse as it came to a stop. Georgia patted him on the head and lifted him up on the Acorn’s back for his turn. The boy was noticeably excited. His handler continued to explain some of the challenges that the children faced and how equine therapy could improve motor skills, as well as, social and communication skills.

  "The hardest part is finding funding and people who are willing to sponsor the programs. Georgia and her family are the only ones in the area that offer their services for free. The children love coming." The counselor let out a long sigh.

  My heart ached for the kids and adults with special needs. "I never realized how hard life must be for them," I said.

  "Unless you see it every day, it seems like such a rarity, but our country is filled with diversity. One in five Americans has some type of disability."

  I wanted to help somehow, but I didn’t know where to start. I spent a little time interacting with the kids before they got on the bus to head home. Georgia went to change her clothes to leave for the fair, and I spent the next few minutes sitting on the porch reviewing the day’s events.

  When Georgia emerged, I was completely taken aback. She was wearing a burgundy-colored frilly dress with a large purple flower across it, and she paired it with a newer pair of cowgirl boots. This was the first time I had seen her without a cowboy hat. Her long brown hair hung down covering most of her back, and in the low sunlight, it sparkled with sun-streaked highlights.

  "You look beautiful, Ms. Georgia." She smiled and did a little curtsy. We headed out to the car and began the hour-long drive to the county fair.

  The weather was perfect for an evening outside, and we rode in a comfortable silence for most of the time. The fairgrounds were packed with cars as far as the eye could see. Georgia’s eyes sparkled with joy when we approached the large Ferris wheel and the dozens of other carnival rides. Most of them were for kids mainly, but there were a few fun/scary rides.

  She begged to ride the Ferris wheel, and at first, I objected. The thought of being that high up in the air was frightening, and I wasn’t overly confident that the old rickety wheel wouldn’t lead me to my doom, but Georgia insisted saying that she would hold my hand the whole way. She did just that. We climbed into one of the bucket seats, and I made sure to lock the bar in tight. We were forced to sit so close together that the only place I could put my arm was around her. She grasped onto my hand, and as we rode higher on the wheel, I kept my eyes on her. The lights in her eyes and the smile on her face making my gag-worthy fear all worthwhile.

  Her country girl charm was very endearing. When we made it to the top she said, "Wow, it feels like we are a mile high in the air."

  The words mile high created a flashback in my head of me and Beth rolling around in the luxury bed flying back from the convention. The pain and anguish I felt must have shown through on my face as Georgia seemed to catch on. She put her hands over mine and squeezed gently. I wanted so much to get past this misery, and Georgia was a great girl. She was honest and caring and very talented. She could teach me things I would never learn otherwise. Other than the Ferris wheel, she hadn’t pressured me to do anything or feel a certain way. We were free to just hang out and get to know each other.

  After the Ferris wheel ride, Georgia dragged me around the fairgrounds where we got a funnel cake and tried deep fried Oreos. Gross. We played every fair game there was and even won a goldfish for Georgia. Armed with a bag full of stuffed animals, we headed back to the car. We had almost pulled out when an explosion sounded in the air. The fair employees were shooting off fireworks to end the night. We sat there watching the fireworks, and I considered planting a kiss on that rosy peach cheek of hers, but I couldn’t look at her and see someone I wanted to be with. There was only one girl that I wanted, and until I figured out what the hell was going on with her, I couldn’t be with anyone else.

  I drove Georgia home and she said, "I had a great time tonight. The fair was more magical than I could have dreamed. Have a good night, stud."

  "Yeah, I had a great time." I smiled, handing her the bag of animals. I waited for her to get in the door to her house, and I started the long drive home. Tonight was great, but it also helped me realize who and what I really needed.

  I sat in my driveway for an hour staring at the picture of Beth and me. Against my better judgment, I had made the picture my phone screensaver. I pulled up her number and started to text her, but stopped. I wasn’t going to win her back with a text message.

  It was almost ten o’clock when I walked into the living room in the main part of the house. My father was reading a newspaper in his chair, and my mother was watching a cooking show on TV. I approached them and declared my love for Beth. I told them that I was going to find a way to win her back and that I hoped I had their support in the matter.

  I didn’t know quite why I needed it, being that I was an adult, but the leading protestor between us was my father. He had not liked the idea of us being together from the beginning, but he had to understand that this was not a conquest of mine. "She is the first girl that makes me feel this way. I love her." My mother was smiling from ear to ear, and my father’s face looked as if it would explode.

  "You are such an arrogant child. What makes you think she wants you? A good girl like that, who is always on time and who makes work a priority, deserves someone with the same goals and aspirations. You have been such a disappointment, rebelling in every sense of the word, and now you want to corrupt my best employee."

  "Wyatt, that is enough!" my mother yelled. "You will not speak to our son that way. He has proven himself in lots of ways, and I imagine that no one would want to work for a man who acted like such a tyrant all the time." She looked my father directly in the eyes and said, "Wyatt, they are adults, and they can choose to be with whoever makes them happy. You can’t choose who you fall in love with, and I certainly don’t expect them to ignore it."

  I was happy that my mother understood and that she was standing up for me. My father relaxed in his chair a bit, but maintained the heated look on his face. "Father, I know you don’t understand and I know that you don’t think I deserve her, but we have something that you can’t break."

  "Oh really, son? Is that why she agreed to stay away from you?" He covered his mouth pulling at the mustache covering his lips and looked away.

  "What are you talking about?" I couldn’t shake the feeling that he was hiding something. "Wait! Did you say something to her? You said she agreed. Did you ask her to stay away from me?"

  "Wyatt, please tell me you didn’t." My mother was visibly upset.

  "It’s because it’s me, isn’t it? You would rather me be miserable than risk losing your assistant? Well, the joke’s on you because this is going to make you lose us both."

  I stormed from the room and headed straight to my bedroom. I heard my mother’s footsteps coming behind me, but I didn’t stop. "Andrew, y
our father doesn’t mean it. He just doesn’t understand how you two feel about each other." She continued to speak as I packed my clothes. "Don’t leave, honey. Give it a few days and if you still want to leave I will help you look for a place."

  "How can the people that you care about care so little about your feelings? I mean she agreed, Mother. She could have stood up for us and what we were creating together, but instead she walked away. He wouldn’t have fired her if she chose me, so why would she so willingly give it away?" I wanted to scream, cry, and throw things. I couldn’t put all of this on my father because she agreed to it.

  "It wasn't my intention to hurt you, son." My father had snaked his way into my doorway before I had even realized it.

  "What did you say to her, Father? Did you tell her that she would lose her job if she dated me? Did you say that I was some sort of womanizer or that I was too lazy or too selfish to deserve her? Or did she really decide on her own that I wasn't good enough? I need to know."

  My father dropped his head and shuffled his feet a bit before saying, "If I would have known how much she meant to you . . . If I thought that you were serious, Drew, about any of this," he muttered, waving his hands. "Then maybe I wouldn't have said anything at all. But you have to understand that I have been trying to teach you and guide you to become a better man." My mother sank into the sofa and was rubbing her temples. "You haven't even tried to be the man you could be; the man that I know is in there."

  "Just because I don't see things the same as you do does not make me weak or lesser in value than you. What would the world be like if we all thought the same? You would rather crush your son's dreams and force him to live your own. I am not just talking about Beth, Father, you have been pushing me away for years and replacing me with your business. What kind of man does that make you? At the end of the day all you have is a thriving business and a wife that is begging you to be with her and a son who can’t stand to be around you." My voice had gone hoarse from all the yelling. The way he looked at me like he was shocked at what I said made me feel like he hadn't understood. My father walked away that night. My mother stood and hugged me before following after him.

  I sat on my bed unable to sleep and too tired to pack. I wondered if Beth felt this horrible. My father never said what he and Beth had talked about. I lay with my arms behind my head and waited for the sun to rise. I thought all night about what to do. I had considered getting her address and storming into her house to profess my love or maybe following her into the parking lot before work. I wanted her to know that I could make sure she lived a happy life. To hell with my father and his unrealistic expectations. I just wanted her.

  I ARRIVED TO WORK thirty minutes before any other employee. I waited at my office door for her to arrive, but as employee after employee arrived, there was no sign of Beth. I approached Catherine, with our collections staff, to ask if Beth was going to be in today.

  "I know that she has a meeting with your father this morning, but she should be in later." She winced when she said the word "later." I wondered if everyone knew what was going on and was just too scared to say anything.

  I thanked her and sent her on her way while silently cursing my father. There was no telling what he was saying to her now. I almost left to crash the meeting, but I had no idea where she would be. So I waited and waited, checking the clock every few minutes. Lunchtime rolled around, and I had almost fallen asleep when there was a light tap on the door.

  I sat straight up fully expecting to see Beth. Instead in walked Camille. Her dress was so short you could almost see her butt hanging out of the back. I was not in the mood for a visit from her, and I made it known.

  "Stop being so rude, Drew. I am only here to tell you thank you for what you did the other night. I was leaning back on my desk while she paced the room in front of me.

  "Did you find a place to stay?" I asked.

  "Actually I moved back in with my parents. They laid down the rules, and well, I have broken a few, but I have enrolled back into school. I was accepted into the nursing program. Isn't that wonderful?" She jumped into my arms, and I allowed myself a small hug before I pushed her back by the hips. She pushed against my hands, but I continued to hold her at arm’s reach.

  "Yes, that is wonderful, Camille. I am very happy for you, but today isn't a great day." I stood and walked over to the windows to put some distance between us, which she quickly closed.

  "So does that mean that you and I might have a chance?"

  I hated to break it to her and it was going to hurt us both, but like a Band-Aid, you had to rip it off quick. "Camille, I am in love with someone else. You and I are great friends, but that is it. I wish the best for you." I turned back to face the window, and she hugged me from behind. She kissed the back of my neck, and I heard a gasp. I spun around in time to see Beth fleeing from my office.

  I froze. "I take it that was her, huh?" Camille spit it out with such disgust. "Kind of plain, if you ask me. I think you . . .” I didn't wait for the rest of the words to be spoken. I hurried out of my office and sprinted down the hall. She wasn't in her office or in the break room. I ran down to the parking garage, taking the stairs a flight at a time. I saw her car pulling away, and I jumped in front of it. She slammed on her brakes and put her head on the steering wheel.

  I opened her car door and kneeled down next to her. "Drew, what are you thinking?"

  "Beth, I have been waiting all day to see you."

  "Well, it didn't look like you had to wait alone," she snarled.

  "Camille was just here to thank me for some advice I gave her, that's all." I reached for her hand, but she quickly jerked it away.

  "My father told me that he is the reason you have stayed away since we got back. Why would you give up on us?"

  Beth was sobbing, and I could barely understand her words. I pulled her into my shoulder and held her there for a few moments. "He said that you only dated girls that you could use and that you liked the challenge, but that you were never serious. He said that you would ruin my career and break my heart in the process. And here you are proving him right. Please tell your father that I quit." With that, she pushed me backwards and shut the door. She drove off, and I sat on the cold dirty ground wondering how it was possible to fail at everything that mattered to me.

  I heard footsteps crossing the garage. My father had undoubtedly heard everything we had said. He was wearing a three-piece suit that had been specially tailored for him, but when he reached my side, he sat down on the grimy oil stained concrete and for a moment, we sat in complete silence.

  "You know, son, when I began this business I had two goals in mind. The first was that I could create a legacy for you and your mom. I wanted everything in life that wasn't available to me to be at your disposal. The second was to create a business surrounding all the things that I love and cherish the most. Somewhere that has gotten lost along the way."

  I smeared a tear off my face and said, "Ya think."

  Sounding defeated, my father chuckled and said, "Yeah, son, I do. I have loved your mother since the day I set eyes on her. I remember thinking, Yes, sir, that is the woman I am going to marry. When I told my parents, they told me it would never work." He loosened his tie and tossed it on the ground. "You see, your mother was and is a beautiful lady who knows what she wants, while I had my head in the clouds and wanted to make my own way. We were a lot like you and Beth actually. The point is that as a parent you may think you know what's best, but at some point you have to sit back and let them make their owns choices. I am sincerely sorry that I butted in your relationship. It will not happen again."

  "It's over now, Dad. She hates me." I buried my face in my hands, and he patted me on the back.

  "It's not over until you win her heart, son," He stood up slowly and walked to the elevator. I looked up and saw her standing a few feet in front of me. She must have never left the garage.

  "Beth, please let me explain." I jumped to my feet and rushed to her.
r />   "Camille already did."

  "You spoke to her?" Shock, and fear for that matter, rippled through me like a tidal wave.

  "Yes. She told me what you said about being in love."

  Oh," I responded.

  "She said that she had never seen you this torn up over a woman, even her." She put her hand on my cheek and gently caressed it. I let my head droop into her soft hand and tried to pray for the right words.

  "I love you, Beth. I know this has been kind of a rocky start, but I am willing to work every day to show you that I am the man that you need me to be. Just let me show you."

  She nodded her head. "Yes." I was so relieved that I had finally gotten through to her. I leaned down to kiss her, and she met me halfway. I lifted her up into my arms and carried her over to the benches in the garage. I held her there in my arms, and we talked about how we felt and what our next step was. I didn't care what came next as long as we were together. Beth had come back to me, and I was on cloud nine.

  We spent that night at her place where we ordered Chinese food and watched movies. That night we made love—the passionate-mind-blowing-curl-your-toes kind. We lay in bed that night with her head on my shoulder and our bodies tangled up in each other.

  "I love you, Drew." She was half-asleep when she mumbled the words. I was still reeling from the day’s events drawing circles on her back with my fingers.

  "I love you too." I kissed the top of her head and hugged her a little tighter.

  Test Drive Complete- I found the one I want.

  THE SUN BEAT DOWN on the dark fabric I was wearing. I stood at the end of a rose petal aisle where beautiful women were making their way to the altar. When Beth started down the aisle, I sucked in a deep breath. She looked beautiful wearing a daisy yellow dress with a bouquet of daisies at her waist. Her hair was perfectly in place with a pearl comb pushing back one side.