Traveling back down the steps, he offers his hand to me. “I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise.” His earnest voice is what propels my hand into his. This time, when he holds my hand, it’s different. Our fingers intertwine and he holds them close to his body, letting me feel his warmth through his shirt.
I take a deep breath and follow behind him. My heart feels like it’s going to jump out of my body at any moment. Sweat begins to bead on my forehead as I continue to climb higher and higher. After ten steps, I ask with a quivering voice, “How much further?”
“Not much. We’re almost to the top. Actually, it’s only one more step.” He steps onto the top of the boulder, and pulls me up beside him.
Speechless, I look around me. The stars and full moon are the only things lighting up the night sky. I’ve never seen them look close enough to touch. So big. So bright. The glow from the stars casts down on the soft aquamarine color of the creek below. The beauty of this spot has me thoroughly enchanted. My nerves disappear and my heart rate begins to slow to normal.
“What do you think?” Wes asks from behind me.
“It’s absolutely stunning,” I reply, breathlessly.
“Come here.” He pulls me down beside him.
I smooth my dress beneath me, trying to be as graceful as possible when I sit. With my legs outstretched and my boot-covered ankles crossed, I lean back on my hands and look straight up at the bewitching, Texas, night sky. With the lantern perched in front of us, our silhouettes mirror our postures against the soft rock. “I’ve never seen the stars look so big or so close.” I peek at him out of the corners of my eyes. Wes sits next to me with his knees bent, his arms resting on top of them.
“I haven’t been here in a while.” He looks off in the distance.
“Well, thank you for letting me come with you.” I inhale deeply. The wind carries the sweet scents of Muscadine and honeysuckle. It permeates my senses and reminds me why I love summer and the country so much.
“So, you and Leslie, huh?” I ask nonchalantly.
“You saw that?”
“How could I not? She plastered herself all over you as soon as she saw you.”
“We dated in high school. She wasn’t happy when I left for Dallas.”
I’ve found out all that I need to know about Leslie. They dated, past tense, past being the only word I’m choosing to focus on. “How old are you? No offense or anything, but you must be at least thirty to be in the PBR.” My curiosity has gotten the best of me, and I can’t help but ask. “Sorry. I didn’t intend for that to come out so rude.”
“It’s all right. I don’t think I’ve ever been asked my age so straightforward like that, but if you must know, I’m twenty-five.” He looks at me as he answers. My wide eyes and jaw hitting the ground are just the expressions he’d been waiting to see. Wes reaches over, and with his finger, he lifts my bottom jaw, slowly, softly closing my mouth. “Don’t seem so shocked, Kenleigh. I’m really good at what I do.” He lets his finger linger under my chin before dropping his hand and placing his arm back on his knee.
Before I make a bigger ass of myself, I think before I speak this time. “How long have you been riding?”
“Since I was twelve. So, about thirteen years now. How about you?”
“How about me what?” I know he wants to ask my age, but I wonder if he’ll actually do it.
“I’m not gonna ask you. My momma didn’t raise a fool,” he replies with a burst of laughter.
“Wise man you are,” I reply, pointing at my temple. “I’m nineteen, but I’ll be twenty soon.”
“So, that would make you a sophomore in college?”
“I’m starting my sophomore year after summer break. I took a year off after high school. I decided to work and save up some money.”
“What did you do? Work in a clothing store?” He laughs at me and bumps his shoulder into mine.
“No, ass.” I bump his shoulder right back. Because my butt is going numb, I lay back on the rock and cross my arms over my stomach. “I worked on a farm, helping break in new horses, and mucking stalls. You know, all that fun stuff. On the weekends, I volunteered for the Red Cross, accepting donations and distributing them where ever they needed to go.”
“Don’t take offense, but did you even enjoy your year off? Because, by the sounds of it, it seems like all you did was work.”
I turn to meet his eyes. “I did. Yes, I worked a lot, but I chose to. Sometimes, I’d get a day off during the week to do whatever, but I like to work.”
“Well, you’re the first woman I’ve ever met that actually admits liking to work.”
I can’t tear my gaze away from his anymore than he can mine. “I’m not like most girls, Wesley. I’m just me.”
“I’m beginning to see that.” His eyes hold an intensity that I’ve never seen before in anyone.
“How did you find this spot?” I steer the conversation in a different direction.
“Before my cousin died, we would ride out together to this exact spot. Colt loved it out here, especially at night. He knew he wasn’t gonna live to really grow up. We would sit on this rock, and he would tell me how he felt he could reach Heaven from this place. We were close. More like brothers rather than cousins. I was older than him, by two years, so we practically grew up together.” I can tell by the somberness in his tone that this is extremely hard for him to talk about.
I sit up and reach out to rub his shoulder in sympathy. “You don’t have to tell me anything else if you don’t want to.”
He tilts his head toward me and his eyes find mine. “I want to, though. It helps me remember him.”
When I want to remember, I just look back into the past. I don’t talk about my parents; it’s too hard, but I nod for him to continue. A few unspoken minutes pass by as I wait for him to finish his story. “A week before he died, we came out here. We talked about football, and this girl named Carli that he had a crush on. And out of nowhere, he said, ‘Wes, when I die, don’t be upset. When you’re missing me, or you wanna talk, just come out to this spot and I’ll be here with you.’ He said it was the closest to Heaven I’d get ‘til I made it up there myself. It’s like he knew his time was limited. So every time I wanna talk to him, or feel close to him, this is where I come.”
“He’d be proud of you,” I whisper.
“I don’t know about that, but thanks.”
“I do. That’s what I’d like to believe my parents would think about me anyway.”
“Your parents?” he asks with an inquisitive look.
“They died when I was twelve.” I don’t look at him. Instead, I let my eyes wander over the landscape below me.
“How?” His voice is soft and for some reason I want to tell him, but not right now.
I shake my head before looking at him. “I don’t really like to talk about it, but thank you for sharing this piece of Heaven with me.”
He nods, letting the subject of my parents go. We sit for a while longer as the silence and the heaviness of our confessions swirl around us. It’s not stifling, like I have an itch to get away, but it’s content.
“You ready to head back?” Wes asks, pulling me out of my daze.
“Yeah.” I look up at him with a smile as he stands in front of me with his hand outstretched. As he takes my hand in his, a rumble of thunder cracks through the sky above us. The loud sound brings a wide smile to my face. I take a deep breath, my eyes flutter close, and I breathe in the smell of the rain that’s coming as it wraps all around me. Wes gently guides me down the stairs from the top of the boulder.
As soon my feet hit the grass, I yank my hand free from his grasp.
He turns to look at me with an incredulous look. “Come on, Kenleigh. It’s about to rain.” Wes interrupts my moment of quiet.
“I know.”
“Well, don’t just stand there. Let’s go. The thunder’s getting louder,” he yells over another loud crack.
“Is the big, bad bull rider afraid
of a little rain and thunder?”
His eyebrows lift and a look of challenge glitters in his eyes. Slowly, he lifts the lantern between our faces, opens the door that protects the wick, and says, “Last chance.”
“Don’t need it.” I cross my arms across my chest, and pop my hip out, with a look of defiance on my face. I lean in to look up at him through my eyelashes and take a deep breath before blowing out the fire. As soon as darkness cocoons us, thunder bursts loudly and lightning brightens the sky above like a strobe light. I turn to make a run for it, when, suddenly, I’m lifted off my feet and flung over Wes’ shoulder. Laughter erupts from me with each bounce of his step as he takes off running in the direction we came from.
“You think this is funny?” He shouts above the thunder. His question only makes me laugh harder when the bottom falls out. Raindrops the size of nickels instantly soak us to the bone. The lace of my cream-colored dress sticks to my back and thighs. Parts of my hair lay plastered to my face as I hang upside down. I push up with the heels of my hands, and dig into his lower back as I shout, “Let me down! I can run you know!”
“I know you can, but we’ll get there much faster if I carry you.” The muscles in his body cringe and tense under me with every bang of thunder.
“Come on, please, put me down?”
“Fine.” He sets me on my feet. I can see the house not too far away. When he notices that I’m not going to move, he asks, “What are you doing, Kenleigh? It’s not safe out here.”
“Haven’t you ever just played in the rain?” I ignore his beseeching tone. Instead, I look up at the sky, tip my head back, and let the coolness of the raindrops crash upon my face. My arms spread like an eagle’s wings as I spin around. My hair slaps me in the face, sticking to my lips, my cheeks, and my forehead. I’m sopping wet, but I don’t care because I feel free. I spin, laugh, and enjoy the moment. The sensation of holes being burned into me by Wes’ eyes is a feeling that I’m starting to become accustomed to.
As I come to a stop, my eyes connect with a pair of cerulean ones that belong to the sexy man on the wraparound porch. With an amused expression on his face, he nods his head toward the screen door, silently asking me if I’m done. I take off in a full sprint toward the house. When I jump up onto the porch, he whispers, “Did you have fun?”
“Heck yeah. You should try it next time,” I whisper back, chuckling.
The screen door creaks and groans as he opens it, waiting for me to pass through. A shiver slices through me when a blast of cold air slams against my soaked skin. “Would you mind getting me a towel?” I sweep my hand up and down my soaking wet body.
“Oh, yeah. Wait right here.” He disappears into the house.
While I wait, I take a seat on the swing at the far end of the porch. My thoughts wander to how alive I feel. I can’t believe how much fun I’ve had today. Even though the bonfire wasn’t that great, I still had fun hanging out with Wes. I like that he shared a story and a piece of something so dear to his heart with me—trusting me. I like how I felt when his strong arms hoisted me up and over his shoulder in the rain, ready to escape the storm—protecting me. I like that he saw a tear trickle down my face, and didn’t think twice before he wiped it away—consoling me. The feel of soft cotton slowly gliding down my cheek pulls me from my thoughts. My eyes find Wes with a towel in hand, drying my rain soaked face. I reach up and retrieve the towel from him and whisper, “Thank you.”
“You seemed lost in thought,” he says, sitting down next to me.
“A little.” I release a chuckle when I ask, “How is it that you’ve caught me lost in thought more in one day than anyone else ever has in my entire life?”
“I don’t know. Just lucky, I guess.” His eyes find mine and hold my gaze.
“Well, thanks,” I say as I lift the towel. “I guess I should head inside.” I open the screen door and look back at Wes, whose arms lay stretched out along the back of the porch swing. “Goodnight.” I duck into the house and head up to my room before he has a chance to reply.
My back arches off the bed, and I stretch my arms above my head. The morning light dances across my closed eyes as the first rays of the morning sun burst into my room to wake me from a restful slumber. Twisting in the soft, handmade quilt, I roll over, tuck it under my chin, and listen to the birds chirp through the open windows that overlook the barn. Slowly, my eyes open to see the different orange and pink hues as they skate across the hardwood floor of my room. I sit up and toss my legs over the bed. The scent of smoke from last night’s bonfire hits me hard. I smell a strand of my hair, realize it’s coming from me, and know a shower is the only cure. All of a sudden, I’m aware of the fact that I’m still in my too-short sleep shorts and cami, sans bra, I can’t risk anyone seeing me like this. My head falls in the palms of my hands as I try to recall if I brought my robe with me from school. Fuck my life! Another crossroad presents itself when I remember there is one sexy piece of country ass in a room across from me and the bathroom is down the hall.
Dragging myself out of bed, I dig through my things for my robe. Sucking up my fate, I collect my clothes and toiletries and gingerly open the door as quietly as possible. Cautiously, I peek my head out. I look left first, then right, to make sure the coast is clear. With no one in sight, I tiptoe out into the hall, bypassing more rooms as I rush into the bathroom and close the door behind me. Why didn’t I bring my robe? Mentally, I slap myself for forgetting that extremely important article of clothing. I turn on the shower and let the room fill with steam while I brush my teeth.
I step into the shower, and quietly sing Adele’s One and Only while I wash my hair. My fingers rake through my long locks to rinse out the suds. Just as I begin to apply conditioner, I hear a click and my mouth snaps shut.
“Please, don’t stop.” Wes.
With my eyes screwed tightly shut, I hope and pray that I’m still asleep and that this is not the most embarrassing moment of my life. But no, I’m not that lucky. I peel my eyes open to find that I’m still in the shower and warm water still sprays down on my naked body. Self-consciously, one arm flies across my breasts while my free hand covers my nether region.
“What are you doing in here?” I snap. I cannot believe he would come barging in here. He had to have known someone was in here taking a shower. How could he not?
“I thought you might need this.” My eyes drift to the top of the shower where a towel dangles above me.
“And how did you know I needed a towel?” I ask, my tone flat, refusing to grab the towel.
“Because I pulled the last one out last night. Remember, when I brought you one after you danced in the rain like a mad woman?” I know he has a smirk on his face. I can hear it in his voice.
With my eyes still staring at that damn towel, I retort, “You know, you can set the towel on the vanity. I’m not reaching up to get it from you. By the way, how do you know your mom didn’t replace the towels this morning after she got up?”
“Because I’ve been the only one downstairs. She didn’t come down until about ten minutes ago.” He removes the towel from above me.
I huff in frustration because I didn’t think of that and because I’m acting like a bitch when he was just trying to be thoughtful. No, screw that. Who just barges in on someone in the shower? My teeth clench while I bite back my annoyance and try to gain control of myself. “Thank you,” I reply, feeling like I just swallowed acid.
“You’re welcome.” Pressing my ear against the shower curtain, I focus to drown out the sounds of the water pelting against the bottom of the ceramic tiled tub floor. I listen for the sounds of a door opening and closing, but nothing comes.
I inhale deeply, realizing that if he could see me, he would know how ridiculous I look right now. “You can go now,” I say, with an exasperated sigh.
“You can continue singing. I really do like your voice.”
I hear the familiar click of the door closing, and my retort dies on my tongue. What would be the use
anyway?
When I finish my shower, I pull back the shower curtain a smidge, and look to make sure Wes is really gone before I step out and lock the door. And there it sits. That damn towel he just had to bring me. As much as I want to be upset, I can’t. It beats standing here drip-drying. Wes was trying to be nice, even though I’m pretty sure that he had some sort of ulterior motive.
I dry off and dress in record time. I flip my head over, pulling my hair into a tight messy bun on the top of my head, before gathering my dirty clothes and toiletries. As I flee the confines of the bathroom and steam, I head to my room to deposit my things in all their respective places. I make a mental note of the need to head into to town to pick up a robe. I can’t keep trying to dodge everyone, praying they won’t see me in my sleep clothes.
A light flashes on my phone from the nightstand and catches my eyes. I flip it open and stare at the missed call from my Aunt Brenda. I know it’s hard for her to be in Conroe with my not coming home. Just as I press the send button to call her back, a knock resonates on my door. When I pull it open, Wes stands there about to say something, but I point at my phone silently asking him to hold on.
“Hey, Aunt Brenda.”
“Hey, Sweetheart. How’s it goin’?”
It’s obvious to me that she just wants someone to talk to because she’s lonely. When my parents died, she dropped her whole life to move in and take care of me. I’ve told her that she needs to meet someone, because eventually I’ll grow up, and then what? She truly is a magnificent woman; she deserves to love and be loved back wholeheartedly.
“Not much. I’m just about to go eat breakfast and then see where the day takes me. How are you?”
“Oh you know. Livin’ life and all that good stuff,” she replies with a chuckle.
“All that good stuff, huh? You’ve been playing too much bingo, haven’t you?” My laughter rings through the phone. Now that I’m gone, she keeps herself occupied by playing bingo, gardening, and trying out new recipes for Sunday dinner at church.
Serenity Falls Page 5
