The horse stopped in his tracks and swiveled his head back to look at her.
Phillip stayed by her side. “Done?”
“For today.” She threaded the reins through her fingers. “I’d really like to ride again sometime.”
“You’re welcome anytime.” The corners of his eyes crinkled as he smiled. “Old Tank would appreciate the exercise and I’m learning I enjoy the company.”
Sarah swung her right leg over Tank’s back and tried to kick her left foot free of the stirrup. Her momentum carried her down but her foot stuck in the stirrup, knocking her off balance.
Phillip grabbed her around the waist before she could fall backward. He disengaged her foot from the stirrup. The move brought his face right next to hers and when he looked away from her foot, their eyes caught and held.
Sarah stopped breathing. This was it, a single moment in time that brought them close enough to kiss. Her gaze dropped to Phillip’s lips then moved slowly back to his eyes. What was she thinking? They hadn’t even gone on an official date. She couldn’t kiss Phillip.
Tank snorted and shook his head, sending the stirrups rattling. The sound shook Phillip back to reality and he took a step away from her. “Let’s take him back to the barn. Mom and Dad will want to know what you think about the chair.”
Sarah tried not to feel disappointed at the missed opportunity.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
This was it. Phillip tugged at his collar and leaned toward the microphone. His throat turned dry, and his mouth worked without a single sound emerging. Why was this so hard? He’d recorded dozens of podcasts. This one shouldn’t be any different. He pushed away from the desk and unbuttoned the top button on his dress shirt.
This one was different. “I’m being spontaneous.” He barely heard the words despite there being no one in the room besides him. He sipped his water and cleared his throat. “Good afternoon and welcome to a special edition podcast.” He sucked in a breath and closed his eyes. An image of Sarah popped up and he smiled. “Have you ever found yourself in a position where everything that could go wrong did go wrong?”
Okay. He could do this. One breath. Another. “You farmers know what I mean. You pray for rain but prepare for drought because you know that there are no guarantees. Well. I found myself in a position like that recently. You see, I met this woman who thought I was a serial killer.”
Phillip spoke for half an hour straight without any awkward pauses. By the time he finished, he felt lighter, freer. What wouldSarah think when she heard the podcast? He started up his editing program and settled in to get the special edition up by the end of the day. He’d made plans to take Sarah riding along with a few of his friends later this afternoon. If he planned it right, she might listen on her way over.
His pulse ratcheted up until it beat so fast his fingertips tingled. She’d listened to every podcast since the one she sat in on. He’d started implementing her feedback and his numbers were growing.
He liked spending time with Sarah. She pushed him out of his comfort zone, and he’d discovered he liked that. He liked how she made him feel. And the way she looked at him…He’d almost kissed her several times the last time they were together. He grabbed the water and guzzled half the bottle before putting it back on the desk.
Time to show Sarah he could be playful and creative too.
Sarah’s phonepinged a text from Phillip. Her phone read the message to her: New podcast episode live now. She chuckled and set her phone to play the new episode while she drove. She’d seen Phillip a few times since the day she rode Tank, but today they were doing something different. Something that felt like a date. A group date. Today, she’d meet a few of his friends. With any other guy, this would feel like a big step in their relationship.
She wasn’t sure how to feel with Phillip since they weren’t officially dating.
His voice crooned from her phone speaker. How did he sound that good on her tinny speakers? She didn’t bother holding back the smile when he mentioned how they first met.
As the miles passed and she heard more, the smile fell away.
“I can honestly say I’ve never met anyone like her before. If you look up klutz in the dictionary, her picture would be there. She’d probably get a papercut trying to find it.” A slight laugh cut through before he started up again. “She paints fabulous artwork on her creations, mostly using her hair.”
Sarah jammed her finger into the phone, cutting him off mid-sentence. Pain thudded through her, a raw mixture of anger, humiliation, and hurt. Why would he say those things? They were true, but that didn’t mean he should advertise them to the whole world. She gripped the steering wheel tight and flicked on her blinker to turn into the long drive.
Her temper threatened to bubble over, but she managed to put a damper on the rioting emotions. She’d enjoy the ride with Phillip and his friends and once they were alone, she’d ask why he made fun of her for everyone to hear.
“Lord, please help me to stay calm and understanding. Phillip is not mean, and I don’t want to think that he did this on purpose.” Surely, he wouldn’t intentionally hurt her. He’d not seemed like that kind of guy.
What did she really know about him though? What little time they spent together almost always had a disaster of some sort. It was no wonder he said those things.
“Stop.” Sarah put the truck in park when she reached the barn but left the engine running. “I am spontaneous, and things often don’t happen the way I think they will. That’s not a bad thing. I love myself. I love not making plans and seeing where the day takes me. Anyone who doesn’t understand that, who can’t live with that, is not the right kind of person for me.” As much as it hurt to say out loud, she felt better for the admission.
She turned off the truck and stepped out into the crisp air. Phillip and four others stood inside the barn doors. They all looked up at her approach and Phillip waved her over whilewearing a bright smile. Not a malevolent look in sight. See, everything was fine.
“Sarah.” Phillip hurried over to her side. “I’d like to introduce you to Tim, Margo, Dwight, and Yvonne.” He pointed out each one, and they shook hands all around.
Phillip didn’t bring up the podcast, so she left the topic alone for now. They had better things to do.