The Reluctant Bachelorette (19 page)

“W
e’re taking Luke’s horses?”
Taycee
said to Sterling as he pulled his car to a stop. She didn’t know why the
thought bothered her so much, but it did. That, and the fact they’d be riding
in close proximity to Luke’s house. It was like she couldn’t get away from him.
Why offer his horses anyway? Was he rooting for Sterling to win or something?

At least Taycee would be out of Sterling’s spitting range
during the ride. That fact alone made her grudgingly grateful to Luke.

They walked around the house and found three horses already
saddled and tethered to a fence. One for Sterling, one for Taycee, and one for
Burt. There was a note affixed to the post:

Just fed and watered them, so they’re good to go. The dark
brown mare is Chaos, the light brown gelding is Pants on Fire, and the brown
and white one is Flirtatious (yeah, there’s a reason he’s now a gelding). Have
them back whenever.

Taycee bit back a laugh as Sterling studied the animals with a
worried expression. “Are you sure these horses are tame? Luke promised they’d
be easygoing, but with names like those . . .”

“They’ll be fine,” Taycee said as they waited for Burt to get
the camera set up several yards away. When he signaled he was ready, she
unhooked Chaos from the rope, led it away from the others, and mounted easily.
“Us females will stick together,” she said, patting Chaos’s neck.

Sterling didn’t respond. He was too busy fiddling with the
rope. When he finally managed to free Flirtatious and try to mount, the horse
side-stepped away and headed toward a well-worn trail at the back of Luke’s
house. Taycee had to muffle her giggles as Sterling tried and failed again.
Finally, he managed to throw his stomach over the saddle, grab onto the horn,
and swing his body around in an awkward move, but at least it worked.

Taycee looked over to see Burt shoulder the camera and swing
up onto Pants on Fire. He trotted to catch up. “I’ll wait until we get out a
ways, and then dismount to get some steady shots of you guys. That okay? We
won’t need too much footage.”

“Fine by me,” Taycee said. A few minutes of camera-free time
sounded great to her. She spurred on Chaos—or, at least tried to. Apparently
the mare preferred to walk, so Taycee settled back and let the horse meander
down the path behind Flirtatious. Not the most thrilling of horseback rides,
but at least Sterling was too preoccupied trying to find a comfortable position
on the saddle to attempt conversation.

Taycee looked around at the beautiful surroundings, feeling an
unwelcome memory tug at her heart. She, Luke, and Caleb used to spend hours and
hours riding through these mountains when they were younger. They went camping
one weekend, and at some point during the night, Taycee’s horse broke free and
wandered off. Luke offered to give her a ride, so Taycee hopped up behind him
and held on tight. It had been the best ride of her life.

She frowned and tried to spur on Chaos, as if she could outrun
the memory and somehow put it behind her. But once again, Chaos refused.
“Stubborn horse,” Taycee muttered.

Sterling looked over his shoulder. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to take
the lead. Normally, I’m a ladies go first kind of a guy.”

Taycee laughed. “Looks like your horse doesn’t agree with
you.”

“I have no idea where I’m going,” Sterling called back to her.
“Flirtatious won’t stop.”

“Don’t worry. There’s a happy little meadow a few miles down
this trail. They’re probably trained to head there so just sit back and enjoy
the ride.”

“If you say so.”

As they neared the meadow, Burt wanted to take the lead and
get some footage, but Flirtatious still refused to stop, which made Taycee
smile. Maybe the horse didn’t like being on camera either. When they finally
arrived at the clearing, the horse finally stopped abruptly, nearly forcing
Sterling to topple over his head. Pants on Fire and Chaos followed suit,
reaching down to nibble at the grass.

Burt slid from his horse and started setting up the tripod.
“I’d like to get some footage of the two of you riding for a bit, if that’s
okay.”

“Sure.” Taycee tugged on the reins, but Chaos shook her head
and continued to eat. She tried again, with no better luck, so she slid to the
ground. “Um, I don’t think that’s going to happen. These horses obviously have
minds of their own.”

“Well, how about you both hold the reins while you talk?” Burt
made it sound so easy, as if she and Sterling should be bubbling over with
topics they couldn’t wait to discuss.

“Okay,” Taycee hedged. “What do you want to talk about,
Sterling?”

“How about how to get these horses to move.” He still sat on
top of Flirtatious, tugging unsuccessfully at the reigns. When that didn’t
work, he kicked the horses’ flank. “C’mon, move you stubborn animal.”

“He wants to eat,” Taycee said, trying not to laugh. From the
corner of her eye, she caught the light of the camera and searched her mind for
something to say. Anything. “So what do you think of the meadow?”

“It’s nice.”

“There’s a waterfall on the other side of that rise over
there. Want to see it?”

Sterling looked around. “We need to tie up the horses first. I
don’t want them running off.”

This time Taycee giggled. “I really don’t think they’re going
anywhere.”

“Says the girl who won’t be held accountable.”

“No,” Taycee said. “Says the girl who knows trail horses. Now,
c’mon. We won’t be gone long.”

With an uncertain look, Sterling wrapped the reins around the
saddle horn and slid awkwardly from the horse. Burt followed behind as Taycee
led Sterling up and over a small rise to the river. Only about six feet tall, a
small waterfall gushed with the spring runoff, spurring on the narrow river as
it wound its way through the meadow. Being small herself, Taycee had always
felt a kinship with the little fall. She’d spent hours and hours playing in it,
unafraid to stand beneath it like some of the bigger ones. Luke had once even
given it a name once: Taycee Lynne Falls.

“This is it?” Sterling said. His hands rested on his hips as
he studied the waterfall. “Back in Washington, we have falls that are hundreds
of feet tall. This is more like a trickle.”

“Maybe to you.” To her it was a special treasure. She walked
over and placed her hand under the cold rush of water, loving how it splayed up
her arm.

Sterling stepped up beside her. He shoved his hands in his
pockets and looked around like he was bored. “Hungry?” he finally said. “I brought
some food in my backpack.”

Taycee wasn’t hungry, but the sooner they ate, the sooner they
could leave, so she nodded and followed him back to the horses. Sterling spread
out a thin blanket before kneeling down, and Taycee sat as far from him as possible,
hoping he wouldn’t notice. He handed her a slightly smashed sandwich. “I hope
you like club.”

“Sounds great. Thanks.”

“No problem,” he said. “So you’re into horseback riding?”

Taycee leaned back on her palm and stretched her legs out. A
gentle breeze trembled through the air, carrying with it a scent of earth and
pines. She breathed it in. “Yeah, although it’s been awhile. When I was younger
we used to go riding all the time.”

“We?”

“My brother and I.” And Luke, although Taycee kept that part
to herself.

Sterling took a big bite and studied the horses while he
chewed. Small bits of sandwich flew from his mouth, making Taycee grateful he
wasn’t facing her. “I didn’t know you had a brother.”

“Yeah. He graduated from law school awhile ago. Right now he’s
with a large firm in Phoenix, but he’s hoping to move back here and start a
practice once he finishes up some stuff.”

“I can’t imagine there would be much business in
Shelter—especially lately.”

Taycee rested her sandwich on her lap, not liking what Sterling
implied. “He’ll probably look closer to Colorado Springs. But Caleb’s the type
of guy who will be successful wherever he decides to practice law.”

“He really should stay with a big firm for a while and get
some experience. At least that’s what I’d do.”

“Well, Caleb isn’t you.” Or, at least Taycee hoped he wasn’t.
Lately, she was beginning to wonder. And worry.

“He’s going to have a hard time of it then,” Sterling said.
“It’s important to get several years of experience with an established firm
before you set off on your own.”

Taycee leveled him a look. Sterling didn’t even know Caleb.
Who was he to say how much work experience her brother needed? It hit a nerve. “He’s
been working sixty to eighty hour work weeks for a couple of years now. If he
keeps that up, he’s going to forget there’s more to life than work. I wouldn’t
wish that on anyone.”

Sterling set down his sandwich and looked straight at her, his
face serious. “That’s what I’m doing right now. It’s called putting in your
time. Someday I’ll make partner and it will all pay off.”

“That’s a matter of opinion,” said Taycee, knowing she needed
to change the subject before she said something she might regret. “By the way,
how did you get the time off for this if you’re . . . uh . . . still putting in
your time?”

“I’m using all the PTO time I’ve accrued.”

“Oh.” Taycee immediately wished she hadn’t asked the question.
She didn’t want to hear about the sacrifices these guys made to be here. It
made everything too real, too heavy. She preferred to believe that everyone
felt the same as her. That this was a silly competition benefitting a good
cause—not something worth investing too much money or emotion or PTO time in.
Yet deep down, Taycee knew these guys were doing exactly that. The knowledge
didn’t settle well.

“What about you?” Sterling said, brushing crumbs from his
shorts. “Is living in Shelter Springs and arranging flowers something you want
to do for the rest of your life?”

“Yes,” Taycee said without hesitation. “I’m happy here.”

He nodded. “So what happens if you fall for one of us
bachelors? What then? Are you planning to ask whoever it is to drop everything
and move here?”

Taycee shifted in her seat and picked at a nonexistent piece
of lint. It was a fair question and one she should have been prepared for. But
she wasn’t. Probably because she never thought a few dates could lead to a
discussion like this. Yet here it was, waiting for an answer.

A few blades of grass tickled her palm, and Taycee tugged on
them, uprooting them from their home—the same thing Sterling thought she should
be willing to do.

“No,” she finally said. “I would never expect anyone to pick
up and move here for me. But if I do make a lasting connection with someone,
I’d hope we’d both be willing to compromise.”

Sterling nodded and took another bite of his sandwich. “Fair
enough,” he said, as if they’d reached their own compromise.

But Taycee didn’t feel like they had at all. The fact was, she
wasn’t falling for any of the bachelors and would never be willing to
compromise. She suddenly felt like the type of person who was okay with
stringing people along in a game where the stakes had suddenly increased—stakes
that were never supposed to get this high.

They continued to eat in relative silence, and as the sun
dropped closer to the horizon, Taycee finally said, “It’s starting to get dark.
We should probably head back.”

“Okay.”

Sterling repacked the backpack while Taycee folded the
blanket. Once Burt had secured his camera equipment, she walked to Chaos’s side
and swung up on the horse’s back. After a gentle prod on the reigns, Chaos
lifted her head, only to drop it back down and continue to nibble. A stronger
tug produced the same results, only this time Chaos took two steps further into
the meadow.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Taycee slid to the ground and
pulled hard on the reins, trying to lead the horse from the meadow and back toward
the trail. Sterling and Burt weren’t having any better luck.

Taycee surveyed the scene as an uneasy thought struck. Trail
horses were stubborn, lazy animals. But given enough time to graze, they should
be willing to head back. Unless, that is, they were used to following a certain
leader and that certain leader wasn’t here.

No, Luke wouldn’t.

Well, that wasn’t entirely true. He
would
—just not
without a good reason.

Did he have a good reason? An uneasy thought came to Taycee’s
mind, accompanied by an uneasy feeling. Luke couldn’t possibly know about Missy
or the manure, could he? Carl would never say anything, and Missy, well . . .
she promised not to either.

The uneasiness magnified.

Luke had to know. It was the only explanation. That’s why he offered
Sterling the use of his horses. Her eyes drifted shut. Not good. Not good at
all.

An eye for an eye.

It was a saying Luke had used often growing up, mostly to
rationalize all the pranks he used to play. Was he now hanging out in the
comfort of his home, thinking those same words and laughing at her?

Probably.

Burt stepped into Taycee’s peripheral vision, a rude reminder
that her crazy, messed up life was no longer as private as it used to be. She
suddenly felt like stomping her foot and asking everyone to go away and leave
her alone. She was beyond sick of it all. Dating. Being filmed. Worrying what
she said, how she looked. And now, here she was, stuck in some stupid meadow
with a spitter and a camera-happy guy, miles away from any civilization—not
that Luke could be called civilized.

Sterling tossed the reins on the ground and strode toward
Taycee, throwing his hands in the air. “I give up.”

Spittle hit Taycee’s cheek and she cringed. If Sterling spit
on her one more time, she would throw him into the river he’d called a trickle
and hoof it back dateless. Taycee loped Chaos’s reigns around a nearby tree.
“C’mon, it’s getting dark. Let’s get going.”