{Chapter 19}

“Wade! It’s gorgeous!” Aubrey squealed as she tried on the brown Stetson that fit her head perfectly. “How did you remember?”

“Well, I sorta didn’t” Wade rubbed the back of his neck. “I remembered late yesterday evening, and ran off to town. That’s why I came in so late.”

“You needn’t have bothered” Aubrey told him, then touched the brim of the hat, “But I’m glad you did. Thank you.”

Wade stood. “Don’t thank me yet. Come on outside. I’ve got something to show you.”

Aubrey narrowed her eyes at him. “What else have you done?”

“You’ll see” Wade helped her with a coat then led her outside, making sure Jay was still asleep.

He led her around to the back of the nearly completed barn to where a brown gelding stood.

“Is he for me?” Aubrey stared at the horse.

“No, he’s for J.T.” Wade said. Aubrey gave him a strange look. “Of course he’s for you.”

She smiled at him and approached the horse. “You bought him? For me?”

“Well, I didn’t steal him” Wade smiled at her. “Toni and Erik paid half, though. They wanted to do something for you and didn’t have the time to think of anything. They’re caught up in getting ready for Katie’s birthday next month. They’re gonna redo her little cabin for her.”

Aubrey rubbed the gelding’s neck. “He’s a sturdy fella.”

“Yep. Bet he’ll give Abe a run for the money” Wade said. “Wanna test him out?”

Aubrey twisted her lips. “I don’t know, Wade. Last time one of us took out a horse to ’test him out’, it didn’t end so well.”

Wade smiled and kissed her temple, something he found himself doing involuntarily these days. “I’d say it turned out mighty fine.”

Aubrey sent him a shy look and turned back to her new horse. “He’s gotta have a name.”

“While you think of the name, I’ll saddle him” Wade led her gelding around to the front of the barn.

She followed and he began saddling and harnessing the animal.

“I like Cookie” Aubrey smiled.

Wade shrugged. “He’s your horse.”

No person would catch him owning a horse with a name like “Cookie.”

Yet wasn’t “Snowflake” an equally girlish name for a horse? Poor Abe was the only sensibly named horse around now.

“Cookie it is, then” Aubrey giggled. “I have my own horse now!”

Wade smiled at her from his place on the other side of Cookie.

“I’m glad you like him.”

“You’re an excellent horse-picker” Aubrey smiled.

Wade bowed and motioned to her saddled horse. “Ready?”

Aubrey looked down at her nightgown. “I’ve got to go change.”

Wade smiled as she ran for the house, her loose brown curls glistening in the morning sun. She turned around and smiled at him. He smiled back.

God, what more can I do? I need that woman to love me. I couldn’t live with myself if I forced her to spend her life in a loveless marriage with me.

Wade decided then and there that if she never loved him, it wouldn’t be due to a lack of trying on his part.

**********

Aubrey smiled at Cookie found a smooth gait and the wind blew through her hair. If felt like she was riding on air. Cookie’s speed ate up the ground and became faster and faster until Aubrey had to slow him down. She was a beginner on horseback, but Cookie made it seem easy.

Just as she thought that, she nearly fell off the horse. She regained her seating and fit her boots more firmly in the stirrup.

“Come on, Cookie. We’ve gotta get back to the ranch, don’t you think?” Aubrey leaned down and rubbed Cookie’s neck.

They arrived back at the barn to Wade waiting for them.

“Alive, I see” Wade winked at her.

Aubrey laughed. “Just barely.”

Wade helped her off the horse and she landed in the circle of his arms. She just stood there, staring into his eyes. She couldn’t move, she couldn’t speak, she couldn’t even think. Wade’s face was only a breath away from hers. That look in his intense eyes gave away everything she felt he was trying to hide. Everything she wasn’t sure she wanted to know. Wade’s hands cupped her face and she felt her heart skip a beat in anticipation. He leaned closer to her until their lips nearly touched. They stayed this way for what seemed like hours, but was actually only a few seconds, just short of their first kiss. Just when she felt that Wade was about to finish what he started…

“Is that a new horse?” Jay’s excited voice carried from the porch.

Aubrey untangled herself from his arms and took a few steps back.

“Yeah, this is Bree’s new horse” Wade smiled at Jay.

Aubrey decided she liked that nickname.

“He’s so perty!” Jay exclaimed. “What’s his name?”

“Cookie” Aubrey answered, her cheeks still red hot from her first almost-kiss and where Wade’s hands had been.

“Cookie? That’s a nice name” Jay nodded.

She heard Wade snort, and cut her eyes at him playfully. He smiled at her and turned to her horse.

“I’ve gotta get to work before they hire another foreman. I’m late already” He began to lead Cookie toward the barn.

“I’ll go do something with my hair,” Aubrey said as she started walking toward the shack.

“You’re not working on your birthday, are you?” Wade stopped and called after her.

“The world still spins on my birthday, Wade” Aubrey threw over her shoulder.

Even if mine is just now starting to spin again.

**********

“Listen here, cow. This is the last straw. You’ve got caught in the same blame thicket here since we moved you!” Wade knelt by the wild-eyed, frightened cow.

The cow mooed her understanding.

Wade freed her and she ran off, kicking her feet and what not.

Wade rolled his eyes and mounted Abe again. He wasn’t in a good mood this morning, and he knew exactly why.

He almost kissed her.

Of all the stupid, heartless, selfish, insensitive, crazy, hair-brained…

“Dylan!” A voice yelled, interrupting Wade’s self-pummeling.

“What?” Wade said a little more aggressively that he should have.

“Why are you just standing there? Get to work!” Mark yelled.

“Look, Mark. I am in no mood to deal with you today. If you’d been here a second ago, you’d see that I am working! Now turn around and stick your nose in someone else’s business,” Wade didn’t sound like himself.

Mark stared at him strangely for a moment, and Wade was prepared to face the consequences of what he had said.

Mark turned his horse and galloped away without another word, and Wade let out a deep breath.

“What’s wrong with you?” J.T. asked from beside him.

“Nothing” Wade pushed Abe forward.

“There’s gotta be somethin’ wrong. You’d never yell at Mark like that normally,” J.T. said.

“I didn’t yell… did I?” Wade looked over at the man.

“I’m not saying that it’s a bad thing, but you kinda did.”

Wade huffed at himself.

“Well?”

“Well, what? I’ll apologize later, go get to work” Wade waved J.T. on.

J.T. gave him a knowing look and rode off.

Wade groaned. The last thing he wanted was to yell at innocent people. Mark was just doing what he always did. He shouldn’t have let the war going on inside him act that way.

It was sure going to kill him to apologize, though.

**********

“Would you get your thumbs out of your gun belt? That looks ridiculous,” Katie complained to Adam.

“Oh, come one, Kate. It’s a habit” Adam whined.

“Then break it. And stop calling me Kate. Your days of calling me Kate are long gone” Katie stared at Adam thoughtfully.

“Another habit” Adam mumbled.

“Another one to break.”

“Psh.”

Toni watched in silence as the two bickered back and forth over senseless things. Finally, she grew tired of listening to it.

“Katie, I’m going home. Are you coming?” She walked toward the door.

“Of course” Katie mumbled.

They were both about to leave when the door opened on its own and Sheriff Anthony Duncan entered.

Toni threw her nose up in the air and walked past him. Katie dipped a bow and walked on past him.

“We’ll see you in a few days, Adam” she turned to face the deputy with one finger raised. “You had better be clean shaved when we get back, or we’ll cut that ponytail off while you’re sleeping.”

Toni smiled at the image of Katie snipping off the little ponytail in the dead of night and shook her head.
She could see it happening.

**********

Just a reminder that if you all have read this far... you are an awesome person! You have no idea how much your reads/votes/comments mean to me. Well, yes you do, because you know how big the sky is! You guys are awesome!