I scrambled to get out of bed as I hopped over her. I put my T-shirt on and then slipped on my jeans. “Why are you getting dressed?” She opened one eye this time. “You don’t have to leave for another two hours.”
“I want to watch the sunrise with you,” I told her, and her eyes lit up as she smiled. “So get dressed.” She got up and put on sweatpants and my shirt. She slipped on her flip-flops and grabbed my hand. We walked to our special part of the grass, and she sat in front of me as usual. I pushed her hair aside and kissed her neck right beneath her ear. “I love doing this with you.”
“It’s my favorite time of the day,” she said as she laid her head back on my shoulder far enough for me to kiss her. “Every day with you is my favorite.” She looked ahead as I waited for the sun to peek out from the horizon.
When I saw the little yellow start to come out, I moved into place. I got in front of her on one knee, but she didn’t know what was going on until I took the box out of my pocket. “Sunrise.” Tears poured down her face, and she put her hands in front of her mouth. “I want to do this with you every single day for the rest of my life. I want to sit with you on our porch and watch every sunrise with you. I want all my days to start with you by my side.” I slid the ring on her finger. “Will you be my wife?” All she could do was nod her head.
I put the ring back in the box and make my way to the bedroom. I can’t explain to anyone how this moment feels. I feel almost empty. When I left her behind, I closed myself off. I locked it down and never looked back, but now seeing her, being near her it’s so much more than I ever thought it would be. I collapse in the bed, and tonight, the nightmares are almost unbearable, so when I wake up gasping for air at four a.m., I give up and head over to the gym. I work out while the sun rises, and at seven fifty-five, I show up at the barn.
“Look who it is,” Quinn says, walking out of the barn. “Dad said you would be coming in.”
“Did he?” I look at him and see that he looks exactly like Casey when he was younger. “Where is he?”
“He had a meeting with Mom somewhere,” he says, “but he said you would know what to do.” I nod my head and look at the training facility where I spent most of my time. I would train before school, and I would train after school on the weekends and all summer. I lived, breathed, and dreamed rodeo. Walking into the training arena, I look up at the banners that are hanging. Some of them because of me and I smile. “Does it look the same?”
I go in a circle and look up and around, the whiteboard in the middle of the room. “It does.” I look at the side where the bulls are in their own separate pens. “How many train in the morning?” I ask.
“Today, it’s just the three of us,” Quinn says, going over to the stands and then grabbing his gloves. “Keith and Reed are going to be here in twenty minutes.”
He walks over to the chute area as one guy loads a bull in its place. I walk over and introduce myself to him, and five minutes later, I’m watching Quinn come out of it. He is bounced off after two seconds. I walk over to him and give him a couple of pointers, and when he tries it again, he stays on longer. When Keith and Reed come into the door, they stop and just look at me.
“Get ready, Reed, you’re up next,” I say, and he just nods, going over to the stands and putting down his bag. He comes back with his gloves on and all he does is listen to my instructions. When it’s Keith’s turn, I see Reed and Quinn sitting there taking in the notes I’m giving him. After two hours of training, the boys grab their bags and head out. Reed stays behind for a second and comes up to me. “What’s up?”
“Chelsea said she spoke with you,” he starts. “She says that you’re sorry about leaving.”
“I am,” I say, walking over and grabbing a water bottle and downing it all. “I can’t regret the path I took because it led me to the military, but I am sorry that I didn’t keep in touch.”
“I heard you were badass,” he says, taking his own drink of water. “Will you tell me about it sometime?”