all the fights with my mom, and most recently this dreadful relocation. Paige and I had talked on the phone every day since I left San Francisco. I didn’t think I would’ve survived the road trip without our daily phone calls.
I began with our arrival and I finished with Emma getting plastered and puking all over me.
“Wow,” Paige said. “Why couldn’t Emma save that performance for when I come to visit you for your birthday? I’d pay to see her make a fool of herself. You must be super pissed.”
“I’m going to kill her in the morning.”
Paige laughed. “From the anger in your voice, I almost feel bad for Emma.”
My friend had witnessed countless fights between me and my sister over the years. Emma never came out on top.
“Who am I kiddin’? I don’t feel bad for Emma,” Paige recanted. “It sounds like she deserves your wrath…But enough about Emma. Tell me more about the rugged cowboy that came to the rescue. Is he cute?”
I pulled the covers over my head and laughed. “When he took his shirt off and handed it to me, my heart started to race. He’s so beautiful. He has broad shoulders and a perfect six-pack.” I had to stop to catch my breath. Just talking about him sent tendrils of excitement through my body.
“Wow.” Paige sighed.
I searched for the right words to describe James. “And he’s more than just easy on the eyes. I actually enjoyed talking to him. He’s different than other boys. He seems older, more mature.”
“You enjoyed talking to him?” Paige sounded surprised. I thought a lot of guys were cute, but as soon as they opened their mouths I lost all interest. Guys could be so egotistical and dumb.
I knew Paige was trying to read between the lines. I couldn’t keep anything from her. “We didn’t really talk that much. It wasn’t so much what he said, it was what he didn’t say. He didn’t ramble on and on about himself and talk about football like every other guy I met. Mostly I liked how instead of pointing out how ridiculous I was acting, he gave me time to walk off my anger.”
“And?” She pressed me for my details.
“I thought he was going to kiss me and then, right on cue, Emma…” I ground my teeth as I said her name. “…started throwing up.”
“Oh, the irony!” Paige exclaimed dramatically—she liked to use borrowed vocabulary and phrases from the classic literature she was always reading.
“He asked me if I had plans tomorrow,” I whispered.
“Well, what did you say?”
“I agreed to go on a hike with him. He’s going to call me in the morning.”
“A hike?” Paige sounded confused. She knew I’d never gone on a hike in my life. I walk to and from school, but I’m a city girl. A hike implies nature.
“Yes, he thinks that because I insisted on walking home from the party that I must be into hiking. So, we’re going to check out a nearby trail.”
All I heard on the other end of the line was shrieking. I pulled the phone away from my ear for several seconds to prevent permanent damage to my eardrums until I was sure Paige had regained control.
“I better let you go so you can rest up for your big hike.” She giggled. “And don’t forget to call me tomorrow night.” Her commanding tone left no room for me to ignore her request. “I want details.”
I yawned. “Right. Details. Tomorrow night.” I closed my phone. I hoped I would be telling Paige all about how right I was about James being different than other boys. I could almost feel his strong arms holding me close as we shared a first kiss.
Chapter Six
Dooner
My alarm went off at six o’clock this morning and I’d been mucking stalls ever since. I paused for a second to wipe the sweat from my forehead. Even though it was still early, I could tell it was going to be a hot and humid day. I finished laying fresh hay in the last stall. I couldn’t wait to be done with my chores. I was so hungry, I could’ve eaten a six-egg omelet without blinking
I began with our arrival and I finished with Emma getting plastered and puking all over me.
“Wow,” Paige said. “Why couldn’t Emma save that performance for when I come to visit you for your birthday? I’d pay to see her make a fool of herself. You must be super pissed.”
“I’m going to kill her in the morning.”
Paige laughed. “From the anger in your voice, I almost feel bad for Emma.”
My friend had witnessed countless fights between me and my sister over the years. Emma never came out on top.
“Who am I kiddin’? I don’t feel bad for Emma,” Paige recanted. “It sounds like she deserves your wrath…But enough about Emma. Tell me more about the rugged cowboy that came to the rescue. Is he cute?”
I pulled the covers over my head and laughed. “When he took his shirt off and handed it to me, my heart started to race. He’s so beautiful. He has broad shoulders and a perfect six-pack.” I had to stop to catch my breath. Just talking about him sent tendrils of excitement through my body.
“Wow.” Paige sighed.
I searched for the right words to describe James. “And he’s more than just easy on the eyes. I actually enjoyed talking to him. He’s different than other boys. He seems older, more mature.”
“You enjoyed talking to him?” Paige sounded surprised. I thought a lot of guys were cute, but as soon as they opened their mouths I lost all interest. Guys could be so egotistical and dumb.
I knew Paige was trying to read between the lines. I couldn’t keep anything from her. “We didn’t really talk that much. It wasn’t so much what he said, it was what he didn’t say. He didn’t ramble on and on about himself and talk about football like every other guy I met. Mostly I liked how instead of pointing out how ridiculous I was acting, he gave me time to walk off my anger.”
“And?” She pressed me for my details.
“I thought he was going to kiss me and then, right on cue, Emma…” I ground my teeth as I said her name. “…started throwing up.”
“Oh, the irony!” Paige exclaimed dramatically—she liked to use borrowed vocabulary and phrases from the classic literature she was always reading.
“He asked me if I had plans tomorrow,” I whispered.
“Well, what did you say?”
“I agreed to go on a hike with him. He’s going to call me in the morning.”
“A hike?” Paige sounded confused. She knew I’d never gone on a hike in my life. I walk to and from school, but I’m a city girl. A hike implies nature.
“Yes, he thinks that because I insisted on walking home from the party that I must be into hiking. So, we’re going to check out a nearby trail.”
All I heard on the other end of the line was shrieking. I pulled the phone away from my ear for several seconds to prevent permanent damage to my eardrums until I was sure Paige had regained control.
“I better let you go so you can rest up for your big hike.” She giggled. “And don’t forget to call me tomorrow night.” Her commanding tone left no room for me to ignore her request. “I want details.”
I yawned. “Right. Details. Tomorrow night.” I closed my phone. I hoped I would be telling Paige all about how right I was about James being different than other boys. I could almost feel his strong arms holding me close as we shared a first kiss.
Chapter Six
Dooner
My alarm went off at six o’clock this morning and I’d been mucking stalls ever since. I paused for a second to wipe the sweat from my forehead. Even though it was still early, I could tell it was going to be a hot and humid day. I finished laying fresh hay in the last stall. I couldn’t wait to be done with my chores. I was so hungry, I could’ve eaten a six-egg omelet without blinking
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