“I’m sorry about Annamae.”
“No need to be sorry,” I reply.
“We dated for a year until she met Rufus. Things didn’t end well.”
“Breakups never do,” I mutter. I wouldn’t know. While I’ve kissed plenty, I never made it to that “stage” where I could call someone my boyfriend. “Just Friends” is the title that has been used in the past. That was until now. I have no doubt I could introduce Tyler as my boyfriend and he’d agree.
Tyler rests his head on top of mine. “She’s harmless, but you’ll see her a lot. She likes to think that what we had was something great. Truth is, I probably would’ve married her had we stayed together and honestly I’m thankful that we didn’t. She’s really stuck up and way into her social status.”
“Sounds like girls from my school, all for show and very pretentious. But this is nice. It’s my first time at a bonfire and everything seems so free here… nothing seems fake,” I mumble the last part. The more time I spend here, the more I realize just how fake I was in New York. I was trying to be someone I wasn’t.
“The country will do that for you,” he whispers against my neck. I turn my neck slightly to give him better access. As soon as his lips touch me, I shiver.
“Are you cold?” he asks as his hands start rubbing up and down my arms. I’m anything but cold.
“Not at all,” I say loud enough for him to hear as I snuggle into his neck. Right now I wish we were someplace else where we could be alone. With so many prying eyes I don’t want people staring at us. I turn back around and watch the others. Jeremiah waves and I hold my cup up, acknowledging him. I probably shouldn’t have hit him, but I was angry. I suppose I need to learn to take everything with a grain of salt. In hindsight, he probably only deserved the punch if he had told my Uncle Bobby that Tyler and I were humping in the hay.
Tyler and I sit by the fire, listening to all the surrounding conversations. I’m content, being in his arms like this and don’t want to leave. He holds me as if it’s our last night together and not our first. I don’t even want to think of what our last night will be, assuming of course we’re still friends. With my track record I’m likely to screw this up before the weekend’s over and I’ll be back to square one, tiptoeing around him and being on the receiving end of his “I’m the boss” attitude.
We get up and walk around some of the property that Jeremiah lives on. His parents own it, but only use it for horses, not farming or anything like my Uncle Bobby. Tyler tells me Jeremiah works for him because his parents aren’t running a ranch and that’s what he went to school for. It’s hard to believe my Uncle Bobby makes enough off his ranch to have employees. Tyler says the ranch thrives and does well.
It’s not something I’d want to do, live on a ranch and work. I have goals, dreams. I plan to major in fashion while in Paris. I want to live in a flat above the busiest street so I can hear the traffic at night and be able to listen to the street performers. I want to live close to the park and watch the tourists stare at their surroundings in awe. I’m going to have this in a few short months and I can’t wait.
Everyone comes over to talk to Tyler and he introduces me to all of his friends. At one point during the night I overhear him say that I’m his girl. I try to hide the cheesy grin in my face, but I’m pretty sure he sees it. Thing is, he doesn’t turn away or try to hide that he said it. He keeps glancing at me while talking to his friends.
He makes me feel like I matter.
After the party dies down, I carry the blankets back to the truck and climb in as Tyler holds the door for me. He wants to take me stargazing tonight. My hand rests on his thigh, his arm around my shoulder as he drives down a dirt road. It’s a good thing he knows his way around because I’d never be able to find my way home with all these roads that stretch on for miles and seem to lead to nowhere.
He pulls over in a field and kisses me on the cheek. “Wait here.” He turns the truck off and everything is pitch black. If he thinks that I’m going to get out now, he has another think coming. I startle when the back of the truck starts to move. My heart is pounding so hard it feels like it’s about to burst out of my chest.
The truck door swings open and I scream. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”
“Nothing, you just scared me.”
Tyler reaches for my hand and helps me out of the truck. I clutch onto the sides of his flannel shirt and follow, bumping into him a few times before we reach the back of the truck. He lifts me onto the tailgate and jumps up next to me.
“Wanna lie down?”
“Yeah,” I reply as I scoot back. Tyler’s made us a bed back here, complete with pillows. I lie next to him and watch the sky. “Oh my, what was that?”
“Lightning bug. Don’t you remember when we were little, and I caught one and put it in my mouth. My cheeks lit up. It looked like I had a light switch in my mouth. My mom was yellin’ about me being taken over by aliens.”
I laugh and remember the night he’s talking about. We were so young, and he was teasing me about being a baby because he was older. I cried to my mom, and she told me I’d get my revenge when he became my husband. At that time, I thought Tyler had cooties and didn’t want him touching me – especially if he was putting bugs in his mouth.
“I should catch one now.”
“Oh, hell no,” I say quickly. “If you do that, I’m not kissing you.”
In the darkness I feel him adjust. His arm comes around me as he moves closer. “I’d much rather kiss you than stick a bug in my mouth.”
“That’s good to know because bugs are gross, but so are boys.”
“Good thing I’m a man,” he says before his lips crash down on mine. This kiss is different from the others we’ve shared. While it starts out slow, I can feel the urgency in the way he’s holding me. His tongue caresses mine in a slow, languid motion. His lips mold to mine, making us one. Hands roam- his, mine, ours together.
My hand slips under his shirt and the need to feel him against my skin is prevalent. I wiggle until we’re touching, only for him to sit up and remove his shirt. It’s too dark for me to see him so I have to rely on my hands to tell my mind what I’m feeling.
His muscles are toned but not bulging. They’re perfect. He hisses when my fingers graze his nipples. I smile, knowing I’ve elicited that response from him. I hook my finger into his belt loop and pull him on top of me. He doesn’t hesitate as he settles between my legs.
Tyler moves against me, denim on denim creating enough friction to cause me to squirm. My fingers dig into his back, urging him to keep going. His lips are needy and move from my mouth to my neck and back.
“Savannah, we have to stop.” Not the words I want to hear, but he’s right. We’re out in the middle of nowhere and as much as my body thinks I want this, I’m not sure if I do. Tyler shifts off of me but just barely. He kisses my neck lightly, small yet intimate gestures. “I don’t want you to think that I don’t want to go there with you. I do, but not out here and not until we’ve had a proper date. I’m havin’ a hard time keepin’ my hands to myself, I’m sure you’ve noticed, but I want to do right by you. I want to take you out and show you that I can be the gentleman you deserve.”
“I’ve never had anyone say something like that to me before.”
Tyler moves up to rest on his elbow. “You’re so freakin’ beautiful and I’m one lucky bastard to have you in my arms. All the guys tonight, they wanted your number and all I could do was laugh at them because you were goin’ home with me. I’m gonna take you out tomorrow, just you and me.”
“As long as I’m with you, Tyler, no one else exists. You can take me to the carnival for all I care. I just want you by my side.”
As soon as the words leave my mouth I know I’ve just bought myself a whole lot of heartache.
Tyler
With one last look in the mirror, I run my hands down the front of my white button down and make sure it’s tucked into my Wranglers. My sleeves are rolled up and my
black Stetson is on. I’m ready for my first of what will hopefully be many dates with Savannah. I need to make the most of her days here on the ranch. I don’t want her to forget me when she’s off “decorating” Paris. The thought of asking her to stay a little longer has crossed my mind, but it’s not fair of me to ask. She needs to see that she belongs here, that this is her home. I can’t force her to see what I’m seeing if she’s not ready.
Last night, I almost took it too far. She was there, urging me, but taking her like that – our first time – is not how I pictured us finally connecting. I’m not trying to be some poor romantic, but dammit if the girl doesn’t deserve something better than a pick-up truck fuck.
I take one last look around my bedroom. I tidied up last night after I dropped her off, dusted and vacuumed – two chores that I never think about doing. I made my bed this morning, thinking that my mom would be proud of me if she were here right now. I’m hoping to take Savannah to see my mom. I know she’d like to see Savannah, but I’m sure the feeling that she lost her best friend will surface again. It took my mom a long time to get over the total break in communication that took place when they left for New York. We were all hurt.
The flowers that I bought earlier this morning are sitting by the door, waiting for me to take them to Savannah. I never brought Annamae flowers; maybe that was where I went wrong. Either way, I don’t want to mess up with Savannah. I close my eyes and lean my head against the door. I need my mind to stop thinking that she and I have a future after this summer. She’s leaving. I’m staying. Paris is no place for a guy like me. I’d be lost unless we’re out in the country with a few horses and a cow or two. But that’s not what Savannah wants. I heard her talking to some of the girls last night – she wants Paris for its culture, fashion and cobblestone streets. She’s excited to sit in the little cafés and sip fancy coffee with her pinky finger in the air. None of that appeals to me. If anything, I need to reeducate Savannah McGuire on why her place is here.
I know I need to show her everything that she can have here. There’s the pond, the horses and the long nights under the cover of stars. And there’s me. She can’t have this in Paris. Tonight after dinner, I’m going to take her out to the pond on horseback to remind her that she once loved it here and never wanted to leave. If that doesn’t work, I’ll need to convince myself that I can let her go when the time comes. After only a few weeks of her being here, I’m in deep and don’t know if I can survive her leaving me again.
The drive over is short and doesn’t really afford me the opportunity to settle my nerves. I need to shut off my mind and stop thinking about what will happen at the end of the summer. Even though the situation feels out of my control, I need to do everything I can to try and change her mind.
As soon as I slam the door to my truck, the front porch door is shutting as well. With each step I take, she’s taking one. When I reach the bottom step she stands before me, six stairs away, staring down at me. I swallow hard as I appraise the sheer beauty before me. Her long blonde hair is curled with half of it pulled up, accentuating her neck. Thin straps are all that cover her shoulders, making my mouth water with thoughts of how much freedom my lips will have. Savannah’s dress is white, stopping at her knees and perfect against her tan skin. But what does me in are the brown boots that she’s wearing. She’s the most gorgeous cowgirl I’ve ever seen, even if I can’t get her to wear a hat. With her standing before me like this, it solidifies my belief that she belongs here.
Savannah’s gaze falls to the flowers hanging by my side. I look down and smirk. I can’t believe I forgot about them. “Um…” I clear my throat, ridding myself of the imaginary frog playing around with my voice. I don’t know what this means, but standing here in front of her makes me nervous. “These are for you.” I hold out the bouquet of sunflowers. The florist in town said I should go for roses, but Savannah doesn’t look like the “roses” type. She’s more sunshine and happy.
“They’re beautiful.” Her steps are painstakingly slow as she walks down each stair to me. With her standing one step above, she’s almost my height and my instinct is to wrap my arms around her and carry her to my truck. It dawns on me right there that a night in town at a restaurant where people can see us just won’t work for me. I want to be alone with her, surrounded by what’s brought us together.
“Can you wait right here for a minute?” I thrust the flowers at her, causing her to startle slightly. “Shit, sorry,” I mumble as I climb the stairs two at a time. As soon as I get to the door, I turn to see Savannah admiring her flowers and I can’t help smiling.
Rushing into the house and right into the kitchen I find Aunt Sue taking an apple pie out of the oven. It’s hotter than blazes outside and she’s in here baking, God bless her.
“It smells delicious, Aunt Sue,” I say, inhaling the smell of apples and cinnamon. I’m surprised Uncle Bobby doesn’t weigh three hundred pounds with all the baking she does. I know I would if I ate here every day.
“It’s on the table,” she tells me without looking in my direction. My brows furrow in confusion as I look at the table and find exactly what I’m looking for.
“How’d you know I wanted the picnic basket?”
She stops and turns. “I saw her gettin’ dressed and you aren’t a boy who likes fancy restaurants. It’s all in there.” I walk over to the basket and lift the lid to find fried chicken, green beans and cornbread. Surprisingly, there’s a bottle of wine even though we’re still underage. The fact that she’s okay with it shows me that she’s okay with me pursuing her niece.
My head shakes slightly. “I’m going to take her over to the pond. I think she’ll like it better than going to some stuffy restaurant.” Picking up the basket, I head to the back door. “Thank you.” Aunt Sue nods and moves on to her next pie, leaving me with too many thoughts running through my mind.
I hustle to the barn and saddle Sundance. She has a fondness for Savannah and won’t mind if we ride tandem. I have to transfer the basket that Aunt Sue put together into some saddlebags. Not ideal, but there’s no way I can strap a picnic basket down to the saddle. I pull a blanket out of the tack room and make sure it’s secure before leaving the barn. I’m sure I’ve forgotten something, but I’ll improvise.
Leading the horse around the front, I find Savannah sitting on the steps, twirling her flowers around. Honestly, I’m surprised to find her still sitting there, but she’s waiting for me just like I asked.
“Hey, sweetheart.” She looks up and her mouth drops open. “So I had this big fancy dinner planned in town, but that’s not me.” I shrug, hoping that she’s okay with this. “Truth is, I don’t know what type of date guy I am, but horseback riding out into the sunset seems like a pretty good time to me.” I look over my shoulder before looking back at her. “I have supper here and thought we could ride out to the pond.”
I pull my hat off and run my hand over my hair. “I think I have everything for a –” Savannah is in front of me before I can finish my sentence and places her fingers over my lips.
“It sounds perfect,” she tells me with a smile. When she removes her fingers, I take advantage of the moment and kiss her.
“I’m really nervous,” I add for good measure so she doesn’t think I’m a fumbling idiot.
“Why? I’m just me and you’re you. This date sounds amazing.”
I shake my head. “It’s not that. To me, you’re this beautiful woman who has captured my heart with the force of a thousand thundering bulls. I’m trying so hard to impress you. I know the usual wine and dine ain’t gonna work with you. You need special but I don’t always know what special is… at least I didn’t until I met you. When I look at you, Savannah, all reasoning doesn’t exist. You’re not the typical girl, you’re so much more and I want to do everything I can to make you happy and see you smile.”
“Well, you’re doing a damn good job with that, Cowboy.”
I try to hide the devilish smirk, but to no avail. She lightly pun
ches me in the arm and starts laughing. “I only know Sundance; am I riding her?”
“Do you remember how to ride?” I ask, moving Sundance’s reins in my hand.
“I do. I rode her the other day.”
“You did? Where was I?”
“I’m not sure,” she says as her hand trails down the horse’s neck. Savannah steps closer and rests her head against the gentle mare. Sundance moves her head slightly, acknowledging Savannah.
I clear my throat. “I was hoping we could ride together.”
She nods. “Yeah, I’d like that,” she says seductively.
It doesn’t register what she just said until I see her mount Sundance. I quickly move and heave myself up behind her. Still holding the reins, we trot off toward the river that we have to cross to get to the pond. I’ve known this land for most of my life and I still haven’t been to every part.
Savannah leans back against me, allowing me to guide our way. Having her in front of me like this is indescribable. I can’t get enough of her and I know it’s dangerous, but right now I’m willing to accept the consequences.
When we get to the river, I feel her freeze. I stifle a laugh, as Sundance knows just what to do and starts walking across.
“It’s so beautiful out here.”
“Nothing’s as beautiful as you.”
She giggles and tells me to stop it. I won’t ever.
“Sometimes I think I want to build a property out there but then I’d have to build a bridge and put a driveway through the land. It’d ruin it. I could always just ride out there, but you can only do so much on a horse, ya know?”
“You could build a cabin and pretend you’re on vacation.”
“I could,” I say just as we climb the hill leading to the pond. The sun is casting the perfect glow and I have a feeling the water is going to be the right temperature at this time of night. As soon as Sundance brings us to the crest I know what I want to do next and once again the ideal date in my mind could be shot to hell.
The Reeducation of Savannah McGuire Page 8
