Page 10

“You okay?” she’d asked, her voice barely more than a whisper.

I didn’t answer. Just kept playing. The notes were raw, like open wounds.

She stepped closer. “Was it another one?”

I nodded once. My fingers didn’t stop. A nigga wasn’t embarrassed. When I was young, other kids thought I was soft because I played the guitar, but the teasing didn’t faze me. My demons outweighed their taunts or whatever they thought of me.

“You always do this after?”

“Only thing that works,” I muttered, barely loud enough for her to catch it.

She sat down on the floor across from me, legs pulled to her chest, watching like I was something fragile about to break.

“I didn’t know you played like this,” she said. “It’s… it’s beautiful.”

“Yeah,” I said, eyes still on the strings.

Snapping out of my thoughts, I tried to shake her from my frontal lobe.

It’s been a few days since the incident at my house.

I chuckled just thinking about how Olivia beat the breaks off Bambi’s non-fighting ass.

That woman was wild, beautiful, smart, and feisty.

All the things I loved about her were all the things that drove me crazy.

And yet, underneath all that fire, there was this softness she didn’t let many people see.

I saw it in the way she watched me when she thought I was asleep.

The way she loved for me to hold her as she lay on my chest as she slept.

The way she would get sassy when she couldn’t get her way.

Olivia wasn’t just a storm—she was the calm right after it too. And damn if that didn’t keep me hooked.

I stayed in the studio for another hour before the rumble in my stomach let me know that I hadn’t eaten anything since this morning. Shutting down everything, I left the studio and headed to the kitchen to heat up some leftover lasagna that I cooked yesterday.

Once the oven hit the perfect temperature, I slid the lasagna in and decided to take a ride around the grounds while I waited.

I headed back to the room, peeled off my shorts, and pulled on a pair of worn jeans.

I threw on a plaid long-sleeve shirt next, and then ok[-some boots.

I rolled the sleeves up to my elbows, ready for a warm ride.

I made my way to the stable, the air cooler now, carrying the scent of pine, dust, and something faintly sweet from the wildflowers that’d started popping back up near the fence line.

“C’mon, boy,” I said, stepping into the stall. My horse, Ghost, snorted softly, ears flicking toward me before he nudged my shoulder like he’d been waiting on me all day. I patted his neck and slid the saddle on, routinely tightening the straps.

Mounting up, I clicked my tongue and nudged him forward, easing into a steady pace that took us toward the outer edge of the property. I loved being out here. It was so peaceful and therapeutic for the soul. The land didn’t lie to you—it didn’t pretend. It either held you up or let you fall.

I let Ghost take his time, reins loose in my hands as we rounded the far corner of the fence line.

The sound of crickets and the occasional creak of tree branches swaying—there was nothing but open land and fading sunlight in my view.

Already, I could feel the stress of the day leaving my body.

That was until I saw her, and my heart began to thump inside my chest.

At first, I thought I imagined it—thinking it was just a shadow by the old pecan tree near the ridge. I pulled on the strap and slowed Ghost to a stop, squinting against the light. Sure enough, it was Olivia.

She was standing with her arms resting on top of the fence, the denim jacket she took from me wrapped tight around her.

I licked my lips, slow and deliberate. Olivia knew every inch of space between us was hers to command.

Her confidence is another thing that attracted me to her.

She wore a white, sleeveless button up shirt that tied at the waist. The blue jeans she wore clung to her curves, tracing the lines of her hips perfectly.

“What are you doing here, O? And how did you know I was here?” I asked, my voice low and sharp. I was still angry, but damn, it was good to see her.

“I tried calling you first. When you didn’t answer, I called your grandmother, and she told me that you were here. Can we talk?” There was a glint in her eye, something unreadable. Ghost went to sniff her, and she quickly backed up. She was always scared of him.

I smirked. “Why are you scared? I told you… he’s harmless.”

“Bo, you already know I don’t fuck with his big ass. Now, back up. Look at him… he’s sizing me up like I owe him money.”

“Man, stop it. Come on. Get on and ride with me.”

She shot me a look, keeping her distance. “Bo, you know I don’t mess with that horse. His big ass got too many opinions.”

I laughed under my breath, while Ghost snorted as if agreeing with her. “You’re ridiculous,” I said. “You're just dramatic, man.”

“I’m just tryna stay alive,” she muttered, eyeing him like he might lunge at any second.

I glanced back at her, then toward the trail ahead. The sky was still open, wide, and gold-tinged. “Come on,” I said, patting Ghost’s side.

She blinked, hesitating.For a second, she looked like she might say no. Then she sighed, rolled her eyes, and stepped forward slowly. “If this horse gets to actin’ up, I’m going to tase his ass.”

I grinned. “Fair enough.”

She approached cautiously, one hand hovering near Ghost’s neck like she was trying to make peace without saying it out loud. I offered my hand, steady and familiar.

“Put your foot here,” I said, tapping the stirrup. “I got you.”

She gave me that look again, half doubt, half challenge, but took my hand anyway. I helped her up, steadying her as she swung her leg over. She adjusted quickly like her body remembered what her nerves didn’t.

“You good?” I asked once she was up behind me, her arms on either side of me.

“As long as he doesn’t do that wild side-step thing,” she muttered, stiff as a board.

“He won’t. He likes you.”

“That makes one of y’all,” she said under her breath, but I could hear the sadness tucked behind her words.

We rode in silence for a while; the only sound was the soft clop of hooves over dirt and the occasional rustle of wind through the trees.

The golden fields stretched wide around us, a slow-creeping dusk settling.

It was the kind of stillness you can’t fake.

I guided Ghost toward the clearing near the old creek, where the cottonwoods bowed just slightly over the water.

We stopped there, and I slid off first, then reached up to help her down.

Her hands lingered in mine this time. Not long, but just long enough to make me feel it.

“I never stopped thinking about you, Bo,” she said, almost a whisper.

I stepped closer, close enough to feel the warmth between us. “Don’t do this, O. We both know where this will end.”

She looked down at her hands. “I miss how simple things used to be.”

“We were never simple,” I said, voice low. “We were just better at pretending.”

“Yeah… maybe.”

“Are you ready to head back?” I asked. I wasn’t taking it there with Olivia. She made her choice. It was time we moved on.

She nodded, and we mounted up again, this time with a little less hesitation on her part.

Ghost carried us back toward the house. By the time we made it back to the stable, the sky had dipped into a deep blue, just shy of night.

I swung down first, then reached up to help her down.

She stepped back, fixing her hair as I led Ghost into his stall.

I unbuckled the saddle, and he huffed softly, already settling down for the day.

We walked back to the house in silence, the air thick with whatever we weren’t saying. Inside, I headed straight for the bathroom to wash my hands before heading to the kitchen to check on the lasagna. I pulled it out and set it on the counter to cool.

“Are you hungry?” I asked over my shoulder.

She hesitated. “Yeah… I could eat.”

I nodded once, grabbing two plates from the cabinet. “You can go clean up if you want. Towels should still be where they always were.”

She gave a small, tired smile and walked out of the kitchen.

A few minutes later, she returned with a fresh face and damp hair. She was wearing one of my old hoodies she must’ve found tucked in a drawer and a pair of leggings. I didn’t say anything. Just passed her a plate, then sat across from her at the table.

For a while, we ate in silence. The food helped fill the spaces between us, but not completely.

Eventually, I set my fork down, leaned back, and looked straight at her.

Her honey-brown skin glowed like it was kissed by the sun.

Even with her hair wet and no makeup, Olivia was the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met.

“What’s the deal, O?” I asked, voice low but steady.

“I told you, I’m not doing this anymore.

I laid everything out for you. Every feeling, every damn part of me.

And all I got was a fucking letter… I thought we were better than that.

Yes, I knew you had a nigga, but I’ve never made you choose.

I just ask that you keep it a hundred with me. ”

She didn’t say anything—just stared at her plate.

“You chose to walk away,” I continued. “And I respected that. But I’m not about to keep getting dragged through this back-and-forth shit. I have feelings, too, baby girl.”

Her eyes flicked up to mine, but I didn’t stop my rant.

“I’m not sharing you with another man. I’m not standing in the wings while you figure out who you wanna be with either.

I’m damn sure not chasing you to prove something I’ve already made clear.

” I leaned forward with my elbows on the table.

“I don’t operate like that, O. You know me better than that,” I told her the same thing I had repeatedly said before today.

The room felt heavier after my words, but not out of anger. The room was heavy with truth.

She swallowed hard, then finally spoke. Her voice was quieter than I expected. “I never played games with your feelings ’cause no matter the situation, it was always you, Bo. I know it’s fucked up how we started… but it’s complicated.” She sighed, going silent again.

“I heard that before, Olivia, and I still don’t understand. What? That nigga holding some shit over your head or some shit?”

Her silence continued before she looked up at me as if she was ready to spill her soul, but she shut down again. I shook my head before standing up to put my plate in the sink. I left the kitchen and headed up to my room to shower. I refused to let Olivia continue to play with my heart.