Page 8 of Run with Me

I grippedthe podium’s metal frame and glanced down at the dirt street below. Vibrations from the earth traveled up my arms and through my body. The jitters were making their way here from all the way across town, where the buzz and excitement of today’s festivities rose higher than the lifted dust in the distance. The drum of anxious hooves intensified. I could barely see the town’s last roof near the north end through the hovering cloud of stirred dirt. I quickly glanced to the south end, where the copper tones of Mr. Garcia’s junkyard stood out against the backdrop of sunflower fields in the Sonoran Desert. Within a few minutes, the gated field beside his new house would be filled with raging bulls.

And still, there was no sign of Xavier.

I’d been standing there since early morning, hoping that before the bulls were released, I’d see him. The podium gave a good view a few blocks to the south and north. I was too scared to go back to the Bistro and ask about him. More so, I was afraid that all I’d find there would be a pool of blood by the table where we’d been sitting last night. There was no sign of him anywhere, and I hadn’t seen Ben either. On some level, I’d been hoping that Ben would persuade Xavier to run with the bulls. That would have at least given him a chance.

“Don’t lean too far, Anna.”

The familiar voice shot a much-needed jolt of happiness through my body. I stepped away from the railing and turned around. Hands in his jean pockets, John stood near the top of the podium, grinning at me as if he hadn’t seen me in ages, though it had only been a week. He wasn’t supposed to return from the retreat until next week. He’d just completed his seminary studies and was now on his way to becoming a deacon at our parish. I couldn’t wait until he was hired by Father Francis.

“John, what are you doinghere?”

“I knew you’d want a front row seat. Why do you insist on watching them from one of the most dangerous spots possible?”

“Because it’s the best view. I missed you.” I hopped up the steps and jumped into his waiting arms. I threw mine around his neck and brought my mouth to his for a delicious kiss. Instant warmth filled me as the heat of his lips imprinted on mine. I melted into his body, which immediately reminded me of its strength as the muscles there bunched against my skin. When I finally pulled my mouth away, his excitement had already grown.

“I missed you as well,” he said into my mouth, when he sealed a fresh kiss on mylips.

A day without him was too long, never mind a week. Among our friends, the girls had steady boyfriends who lived in town, of course. Maybe that’s why they’d all gotten knocked up before high school finished. Most of my peers were already mothers with two point five children. It seemed like the moment they gave birth, they were pregnant again, and many were halfway through their third pregnancies right about now. Sometimes I felt like there was an invitation to the birthing club that I’d missed, and that was a good thing. I was not ready for children yet; I would do it the right way, after I marriedJohn.

I didn’t know what my friends saw in the guys from our town anyway. Most had nothing more to offer than beer bellies, guns, and apparently a lot of spit in their mouths, because they were hacking every two steps as if they were marking their territories. John wasn’t one of those boys. He was simple, loving, and the best-looking guy I’d ever seen. Well, except maybe for Xavier. He was definitely good-looking; but since he wasn’t from Pace, he didn’t count. I leaned over the railing at the side, scanning the street to the westside.

“Anna, you better stay back. You know that bulls can leap high if they want to,” he warned.

Of course I knew, but I was worried about the man who had so honorably pushed me away from danger last night, and Ben was much more dangerous than any bull. Since I hadn’t seen him that morning, I was hoping that I would run into Xavier at the Assumption Fiesta near town hall. Everyone and anyone would be there. It was tradition. The roads wouldn’t be open until tomorrow morning, anyway. Where else could Xavier havegone?

A quick cold chill ran through me, and I stepped up on my toes to smack my lips to John’s for another warm smooch, and then took a safe step away from the railing. Far in the distance, the sound of a metal-against-metal clash of the opening gates marked the start, but as John’s arms wound around my waist, I ignored it. Bulls couldwait.

“Me faltaban tus besos. I missed your lips, your eyes, and your mouth.”

“Then you’re going to need to kiss me some more, to make up for losttime.”

“I’m not peeling myself away from you again.”

“I think you may need to remind me why, mi cariño.”

The cheering and clapping were getting louder, and I felt the first tremble underneath my feet. When the bulls ran, it felt like you had pins and needles in your soles, except magnified a thousand times.

“Because I love you. Are you coming over right after the run?” John asked.

“Of course. I picked fresh tomatoes for your mom this morning.” I pointed to the basket near the bottom of the stands. “She said she has everything ready for the fiesta this evening. All we have to do is bring stuff over to the townhall.”

As John held me around my waist, I felt a sense of peace wash over me. I never figured out what it was about him that drew us together so much, but his good heart could never be replaced. He was the reason I hadn’t run away from town yet. If it weren’t for his faith in Pace, I’d ditch this place and never look back. I’d take Xavier’s offer to leave without a second thought. But I couldn’t. John’s family was the only one I had. I’d been eating dinners at the Hernandez household for the past four years, ever since my parents died in that housefire.

“That sounds perfect,” he replied.

“Listen, have you seen this new guy in town? He’s passing through, and we ran into Ben last night at the Bistro.”

“You went to the Bistro? Anna, please tell me you’re joking.”

“You know how it is with Ben. You don’t have much choice when he cornersyou.”

“Did he hurtyou?”

“No, I’m fine.” I waved my hand as if my heart weren’t beating like crazy, ready to pop out of my chest.

“You shouldn’t have put yourself in that situation in the first place. Why did you cross the boundary?”

“I went to see my parents.” I lowered my head, and John brought me closer to hisbody.

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