We both gasped, then laid still, feeling each other as one. Soon, Walker was moving in and out of me again, in slow, beautiful movements. Our lips found each other and I was lost again in a world that existed for just the two of us.
“Forever, Liza,” Walker whispered in my ear.
Wrapping my arms and legs tightly around him I whispered back, “Forever.”
IT HAD BEEN a week since Liza and I had returned from Austin. We hadn’t told either of our parents that I’d asked her to marry me. I wanted to wait until we had a ring on her finger. Plus, I wanted to ask Layton for permission first.
Walking into the barn, I checked out all the horses. My heart beat like crazy and I was instantly sweating. I closed my eyes and prayed that I’d get over this crazy fear of getting on a horse. I’d almost lost it all in one fall. I couldn’t stand the thought of not running this ranch. But I also knew that I needed to be able to ride. Pulling out my phone, I thought about texting Jase. He and Ava had both headed back to UT about a month ago. Ava was the only one I’d told about my fear, though I was pretty sure Liza knew as well.
I walked over to Raindrop and ran my hand along her neck. Someone cleared her throat behind me; I turned to see Liza leaning against the barn. She was breathtaking. But something was off. She’d been sick since we got back. She looked nervous. Scared, even.
I started walking to her. Liza was chewing on her lip, so I knew she was either thinking hard about something or nervous. Usually when she was deep in thought she’d stare off in silence.
“Hey,” I said as I stopped and kissed her on the lips.
“Hey,” she said, barely above a whisper. “Would you go for a ride with me?”
My heart dropped into my stomach. “Um…”
Liza placed her hand on my chest and smiled. “It’s okay to be afraid, Walker, I’m afraid too, but we can do this together.”
I looked into her eyes as tears built in mine. She slid her hand down and took my hand in hers as she made her way back into the barn. She walked up to Raindrop and looked over her shoulder at me. “Let’s ride her bareback, okay?”
Swallowing hard, I nodded and turned for the tack room.
A few minutes later, we were both on Raindrop. I was holding onto the reins as Liza sat in front of me. We walked for the longest time in silence as I got use to the feel of sitting on a horse again. It had been six weeks since my accident, but it felt like it had happened yesterday.
“How does she feel?” Liza asked, resting her head back against my chest.
I smiled and realized how incredible it felt to be on a horse again. Granted, Raindrop was nineteen years old and probably one of the sweetest horses ever.
“It feels better than I thought it would,” I said, kissing the top of Liza’s head.
“I knew it would fall back into place, Walker. Sometimes, we have to face our greatest fear to realize it wasn’t really a fear after all—just a small hole we needed to step around.”
Chuckling, I said, “That sounds like something your daddy would say.”
“Nope, I just pulled that one out of the air,” she said with a giggle.
We walked for a bit more in silence until we came to one of the tanks. It reminded me of the days Liza would come down here, throw a blanket down on the dock, and read.
“Have you been coming down here to read at all?” I asked.
She sighed and shook her head. “Not like I need to. Maybe I’ll see if my mom wants to. We use to come down here all the time and read. It’s a good place to think.”
Something was off with her. She must not be feeling good.
I stopped Raindrop and dropped the reins, allowing her to graze while we sat on her.
“Turn around, Liza, and look at me.”
Somehow Liza gracefully turned and faced me, sitting on Raindrop. I placed my hand on the side of her face and moved my thumb across her soft skin.
“Talk to me, Liza. Something’s not right. Are you still feeling bad?”
A small smile played across her face as she looked away. Looking back at me, she said, “I turned down the teaching position. I’m going to continue working for Daddy.”
I sucked in a breath. “What? Liza, why? This is your dream, baby. Why would you turn it down?”