Page 35 of The Making of Mila and Blake
I turn to face Blake but his face is downcast, his hood still shielding him from me. “I’m so happy you feel like yourself again,” I say with the utmost sincerity, and my heart soars with pride. I can see how hard this is for him to talk about, to admit having needed a little help, but there is nothingto be embarrassed about. Slowly, I raise my hand to his face and softly push his hood down, my eyes finding his. “And Iamalways here for you. No matter what. You can trust me with anything.”
Blake holds my gaze. My hand rests on his shoulder, but he reaches up and moves my palm to his cheek, making me feel the coolness of his skin as he nods against my palm. “Do you remember this wall?” he says, breaking into a smile. My hand drops as he crosses to the wall, angling his head back to stare up at the very top. “It was right here that you used to sneak in and out of this place to meet me.”
“Yeah. That summer was pretty crazy, huh?” I say with a laugh.
I move to join him, and we both lean back against the stone, staring out across the expansive fields of the ranch. I can see the faint outline of the riding arena under construction in the near distance and the glow of lights from the house. If only that rickety old ladder was still lying around, Blake and I could hop this wall and take off again just like old times.
“Are you warm enough?” Blake asks, but without waiting for an answer, he whips his hoodie off and passes it to me. He runs a hand through his ruffled hair. I smile to myself as I recall wearing PJs that first night Blake met me at this exact spot, right here in the very back corner of the ranch, and gave me his hoodie then too. At least this is one thing thatcanbe like old times.
“Thanks,” I murmur as I pull his hoodie over my robe. It’s warm inside and smells of his musky cologne. The sleeves are so long they dangle from my arms, but God, feeling enveloped in Blake’s scent like this is the most comforting thing in the world.
“I broke up with Olivia.”
My dreamy gaze sharpens. “You. . . What?”
“I broke up with Olivia,” he says again. He stuffs his hands into the pockets of his shorts and exhales into the cool evening air. “She’s amazing, but I can’t. . . I can’t do it.”
“Can’t do what?” I whisper with bated breath.
Blake closes his eyes for a moment, and when he turns his head toward me, they flicker back open, all raw and enchanting, and then he says it out loud. “I can’t get over you.”
And it’s like an explosion erupts within my core, radioactive energy spreading all the way to my very fingertips and electrifying every inch of my skin. This is all I needed. Not some sneaky plan to win Blake back, but the simplicity of letting him figure out his feelings on his own.
“And maybe that doesn’t change anything, but I just wanted you to know,” he says, then breaks his focus on me to whistle and recall Bailey from exploring too far. Bailey bounds through the grass toward us, tongue hanging from his mouth, and Blake clears his throat. “Walk me back to my truck?”
I nod and start forward. My mind is in overdrive, a thousand different thoughts pricking at my skull, and I can’t think straight. I knew I wasn’t over Blake the moment I laid eyes on him outside Jefferson’s and all the pent-up anger I had for him immediately melted away, but it never crossed my mind for even a second that Blake might have conflicted feelings too. I thought Blake and I being back in Fairview this summer was a recipe for drama.Thisis definitely not what I expected.
As we trace our route through the grass back toward the house, I stare at Blake’s hand swinging by his hip. I craved taking it in mine earlier, longing to comfort him, but it would have been wrong of me to do it knowing he had a girlfriend. . . But not now.
I don’t deliberate for a second longer. I slip my hand in his and my heart throbs at how perfectly our fingers interlock just the way I remember. We exchange a look and as Blake gives my hand a tight squeeze, his smile reaches his eyes.
“You should know,” he says, “that I’ve played at Honky Tonk Central a few more times this past year. Way more successful than that first gig.” He laughs, easy and weightless. “And I’m playing again on Wednesday night, so if you don’t have any plans. . .”
“I’d love to come see you!”
“Great!” His smile grows teasing with a slight uncertainty attached to it. “But don’t bring your dad this time, okay?”
It’s too soon to joke about that, so I roll my eyes and say, “I promise.”
As we near Blake’s truck, I spot a motorcycle that wasn’t here before parked next to it. Teddy’s bike. What is he doing back on the ranch on a Friday evening? He and Savannah finished their shifts hours ago.
“Whose bike is that?” Blake asks, but before I can answer, Bailey clocks Teddy in the distance, taking off at speed, bursting from the field and tracking down Teddy like prey. But Bailey doesn’t want to maul him, he only wants to say hello, and he jumps excitedly all over Teddy’s legs.
“Hey! Leash your dog!” Teddy yells, and I’m surprised by the sharpness of his voice.
“He’s friendly,” Blake calls back, but he breaks his hand away from mine and picks up his pace to catch up to Bailey.
“That’s what people say who haven’t trained their dogs to have manners,” Teddy remarks. He tugs Bailey off him by the collar and reluctantly pets his head until Blake and I reach them. Teddy fixes Blake with a threatening look. “Leash him,” he orders.
Blake laughs at Teddy’s overreaction. “Dude. Relax. Look around.” He recalls Bailey, instructs him into a sit between his legs, and then gestures to the empty land around us. “He doesn’t need to be leashed in here. Where is he going to go?”
“We have horses on this property.” Teddy catches my eye. “And some wildlife that I don’t want to be disturbed by a happy-go-lucky golden retriever.”
“Teddy, what are you doing here?” I ask, furrowing my brows in confusion, both at his presence here on the ranchandhis unusual attitude.
Bailey lunges to play with Teddy, but Blake latches onto his collar to hold him back before Teddy goes off again. He glances at me. “You know this guy?”
“Yeah. He works here with Savannah,” I mumble. My pulse begins to race as I realize just how awkward this is for Teddy and Blake to meet. Teddy and I kissed solely to trigger a reaction in Blake, and how can I possibly explain thatnow?
