Page 31 of More Than Falling in Love

Kent:Yesterday.

Me:Awesome.Put me on the calendar for tomorrow afternoon.I can’t wait to see his reaction.

Kent:See ya tomorrow, Flutter

I love my nickname a little more each time he uses it.

Chapter 12

Kent

Sunday morning, Mason bounces on my bed earlier than I want to be awake.“Wake up, Dad.Let’s finish our chores so we can go to my lesson.”

I wince when I check the time.“It’s not time for your riding lesson.Parker said we’d do it after breakfast.In about four hours.”

“Oh.”He stretches out next to me.“I heard a door close somewhere, so I thought people were awake.”

I roll onto my side.Before long, moments like these will be a thing of the past.“You excited about riding a horse?”

“Super excited.Do you think Parker will let me ride by myself?Will I be able to ride it on the trail?”

“Not sure, but Parker is a good teacher, so you should listen to him.”

“I will.”He fidgets with the sheet, trying his best to be patient.

Being up before five isn’t how I wanted to start the day.Normally this is my one day to sleep until six.“Give me a minute to wake up.Why don’t you start getting dressed?”

“Awesome.”He slides off the bed and bolts out of the room.

Scrubbing my face, I drag myself out of bed and get clothes on.

Mason appears in the doorway.“I’ll be on the porch.Is that okay?”

“Stay near the house.And turn on the light.”I’ve warned him about many of the dangers out here on the ranch and am finally at a place where I don’t fight gripping panic when he’s outside alone.

I’m pulling a T-shirt on when I hear Mason talking.People on the ranch are up early, but before five on a Sunday, this place is usually silent.

“Do you want to do chores with us?Dad and I are going to feed cows and check on the new babies.”

His question makes it clear who’s outside.I jam my feet into my boots, then hurry to the door.

“Poppy, hey.You’re up early.”It’s still dark out, but not dark enough to have my bed head on display, so I lean inside and grab my cowboy hat.

“My body clock is on Eastern time.”She kicks at the dirt with the toe of her boot.“And I like to walk when I’m here.This place is beautiful, peaceful.”

Mason crosses his arms, mimicking my stance when I’m talking about rules or boundaries.“You need to be careful walking by yourself.That’s what my dad told me.”

He isn’t wrong, and I hope she takes his words to heart.

“I’ll be careful.”She shoves her hands into her back pockets like she did the day I first saw her.But today, she isn’t wearing tennis shoes.

“You’re wearing your boots.”I step off the porch and fish the keys out of my pocket.

“Like them?Being on the ranch seemed like a good reason to put them on this morning.”

“You look good.I mean, they look nice.”I need to watch what I say with little ears around.

Jiggling the keys, I nod toward the truck.“We’re going to get a snack from the mess hall, then get chores done before breakfast.”

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