Page 12 of Bodyguard Crush
I smile as I slide down. I tie Pepper to the fence post, then climb over to saddle a horse for Kaden. He follows me every step of the way as I pick up everything we’ll need from the barn. I hand him the heavy saddle and tell him to follow me to the pasture.
A little while later, we’re out of the pasture and making our way around the property on horseback. Pepper is smaller and faster than Maverick, the horse Kaden is riding, so we’re leading the way as we barrel across the empty field. When I look over my shoulder, Kaden looks to be holding on for dear life, but he doesn’t slow down in fear of losing me. I giggle to myself as I push Pepper to go just a little faster. We race to the far side of the property, stopping at the pond where she likes to drink.
A good minute or so later, Maverick comes to a stop next to me. I look over at Kaden, and he has a look of pure terror on his face. I chuckle. “You okay?”
He’s out of breath, and he nods as he wipes the sweat from his brow. “Fine.”
I laugh and shake my head. “You have to learn to relax.”
His angry eyes swing in my direction, making me laugh harder. “The horse isn’t trying to kill you. Loosen up and become one with the horse. If he moves, you move. You’re resisting, and it’s going to make you sore as hell.”
He swings his leg over the horse and jumps down. “I think I’ll walk back.”
I roll my eyes and shake my head as another giggle falls from my lips. Everything grows quiet as a soft breeze picks up and blows across my warm face. The sun dips behind a cloud in the sky on his daily descent. The world around us looks pretty perfect from this one spot.
“It is nice out here, peaceful,” he says, stealing my attention away from the horizon.
“I love it. Sometimes, when I just need to be alone, need a moment to breathe or think, I come here. It always helps to quiet the anxiousness inside me.”
He looks up at me. “Why are you anxious?”
I shrug. “Everyone gets anxious from time to time.”
"You're not everyone. You should have someone to get anxious for you.” He laughs. “You know, like you have someone to cook and clean.”
I know he’s joking, and a smirk pulls at my lips. “I wish it were that easy.”
He climbs back up onto his horse so I can look over at him.
“What are you anxious about?”
I press my lips together as I think it over. “Life, I guess. I mean, it’s hard when everyone’s eyes are on you. Before I moved here, I was lonely. But I couldn’t just go out to a bar and find some guy to bring home, you know? If I did that, I had to worry about what the magazine covers would say. I had to worry about what this guy would say about me on a later date, and if he would try to get paid for his story, which could be completely made up. I had to wonder if this person liked me for who I really am or if they just want a piece of me.”
“Well, that was then, right?”
I shrug. “It hasn’t changed much. I mean, I don’t have to worry about the magazine covers so much, but I still worry about people’s intentions. That’s why I hadn’t left these gates since I entered them.”
“What about now? Now that you’ve been out there and you see that you’re just like anyone else?”
"I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. It’s not like I can go anywhere by myself right now anyway.”
He nods. “I promise, Abby, we’ll get this taken care of. You deserve to live your life the same as anyone else.”
His words cause me to smile as the honesty in his intense eyes makes my heart race. My lungs suddenly lose their natural rhythm, and I find myself breathless. I have to shut my eyes and clear my head in an attempt not to let him see how much he affects me. “What about you?” I blurt out.
“What about me?” he asks.
I shrug as I turn my attention to the bright-orange sun. It’s turning the sky to various colors as it sets. “I told you about my little place in the world. Where’s yours? What do you like to do? How do you escape?”
His brows lift. “Oh, we’re sharing now?”
I look at him with one brow raised.
He laughs. “All right,” he mumbles, shaking his head. “Up in this mountain range, there’s a creek. My dad would take me there as a boy to fish. That’s my little spot in the world.”
“Tell me about it.”
“It’s beautiful with nothing but thick trees on either side. The water is crystal clear. You can see straight through to the pebbles at the bottom. If you sit on the edge of the creek, you can hear the sounds of the wildlife running through the forest. The birds chirp and bounce from tree limb to tree limb. The squirrels leap from treetop to treetop. The water bubbles as it rushes over the pebbles on the bottom. You can even sit and watch the tiny fish as they swim through the shallow parts. They cause crawdads to scurry around. It’s peaceful and relaxing.”
