Page 31 of Falling

“That’s stupid. We could have picked something you wanted to do too.”

“I don’t hate this,” I answer. “I’m just not in horse-riding shape. Besides, I got to spend two days with you uninterrupted by the outside world. That’s worth all the pain my ass has gone through.”

“Damn it, Peter. When you say things like that, I want to kiss you all over again.”

“I won’t say no to that.” I can’t stop grinning. We’re having “that” conversation, and it’s not as painful as I thought it would be. I like that she doesn’t seem to regret kissing me. There’s no doubt I’d like to continue.

“What are we going to do about this?” she asks, reining her horse to stop so she can face me.

“I don’t know,” I admit. “There’s too much at stake. We’d still have to work together if it’s short-lived. A breakup would hurt us all.”

“But what if we don’t break up? What if we stay together and build something amazing? Don’t we owe it to ourselves to find out?” She stares at me for a beat before pushing her horse back down the trail.

She’s some distance away when I finally follow. Have I been thinking about all of this wrong? Have I been so focused on an ending that I didn’t even consider a future together?

We travel down the trail without speaking. My mind is too jumbled to contemplate intelligent conversation. Geneva doesn’t act very inclined to talk anyway.

I think about us together. A house, kids, a thriving business? Could we really find that kind of happiness together? Do I need to just tell her brother to fuck off and go for it?

It’s an easy morning ride to the trailhead. Good to his word, Rusty and his brother are there to meet us. It figures that my ass is finally acclimating to that saddle. Maybe when we get settled in Austin, we can ride more. I can’t believe I’m even considering that.

I swing off of Willie, and Geneva waits this time for me to get her. We hand the reins to Rusty.

“How was it?” he asks.

“Beautiful,” Geneva answers. “This has been wonderful. Thank you.”

“Our pleasure, ma’am.” Is Rusty flirting? I’ll murder him. They’ll never find his body. “Rhett is going to take you back to your car,” he adds. “Thank you for your business.” He holds his hand out for me to shake. Then he hugs Geneva. A growl bubbles up in my chest. Great. One real kiss, and I’m turning into a possessive alpha male asshole.

“If you’ll follow me, I’ll get you on the road again,” Rhett pipes up. He leads us to an SUV. Geneva is offered the front passenger seat. That relegates me to the back. That’s fine, I have a feeling I need to keep an eye on this wrangler-turned-Romeo also. I shouldn’t have worried. Geneva falls asleep in the seat from the moment we hit the pavement.

“Thanks,” I say, shaking his hand when we reach my car. I pull a sleepy Geneva out of the front seat of his SUV.

“Anytime, man.” With a wave, he’s gone.

“How far until we stop again?” she asks.

“Not far. You’ll have just enough time to finish your nap.” I settle her in the passenger seat. When I slide into the driver’s side, she lays her head on my lap. My hands brush her hair behind her ear. Do I have what it takes to make this my life? House, kids, and a business?

I start the SUV and pull out of the parking lot. Maybe the Grand Canyon will hold all of the answers. I guess we’ll find out.

twelve

PETER

With the season ending,I was lucky to find a rafting trip down the Colorado River at all. The guy who booked the trip warned me to bring cold water gear.

There would be a full raft of people if this were summer. He assured me there would only be a small handful this trip. We have a night to recover between high-adventure activities. Did I mention it’s a two-day float trip? At least I get to sit on rubber this time.

“Wow, Peter,” Geneva says, sitting up straighter in the passenger seat. I agree with her. I did a pretty good job of booking our lodgings this time. We pull under the porte cochere of an upscale-looking lodge in the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. If she thinks this is good, wait until she sees the view from our two-bedroom suite.

“We’ll check in, clean up, and go find something to eat,” I suggest. I know I could use a shower at this point. I drop her at the door and go to find a parking space, and I meet her at the check-in desk with our bags. A bellman takes us to our room.

“Oh my stars,” she sighs when he opens the door. Directly across is a large bay window with the curtains drawn back. It offers a breathtaking view of the canyon, lit with all the glory the sinking sun has to offer. “It’s beautiful.” She gawks at the show outside while I deal with the bellman.

“I’m going to take a shower. I stink,” I say.

“I’ll go in a second.” She waves me off. Her eyes haven’t moved from the view.

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