A Matter of Honesty (12 page)

their direction. They all greeted her warmly.

Alan stepped closer to her. “What brings you out here?”

She patted her full stomach. “I needed a little fresh air after the wonderful lunch

we had.”

Edward, Steve‘s maternal grandfather, chuckled and rubbed his own stomach.

“After all these years of good eating, it‘s amazing I can still see my feet.”

They all shared a laugh while Lauryn stood watching them. It was amazing

how well they all got along. If her family had been able to do the same she might not

be in the process of trying to find them now. She wasn‘t wholeheartedly looking for

them because she wasn‘t quite sure it was a step that she wanted to take yet. There

had to be a reason that her family hadn‘t been able to get along. She wasn‘t sure she

wanted to reignite a conflict if it still existed. Bottom line was, she couldn‘t face

another rejection.

She looked up as Russell, Steve‘s paternal grandfather, called her name. “Yes?”

“What‘s on your mind?”

She looked at him with puzzlement and he smiled. “You looked like you were

in a faraway place, so I figured I‘d ask.”

“Oh. I‘m sorry. I drifted off into my own thoughts for a minute.”

“What were you thinking about, if you don‘t mind me asking?”

She stared at the older man, wondering if he would understand her dilemma.

“Well, I was wondering how you guys get along so well.”

His brows furrowed together in an adorable fashion. “What do you mean?”

She sighed heavily and told him about the feud on both sides of her family that

had left her without a family. Russell nodded his understanding, placing an arm

around her. “Well, the thing that keeps us from feuding is we all understand each

other. We respect one another‘s opinions even when they differ.”

Lauryn understood the importance of tolerance. She had seen enough conflict

at her old job as well as in society to know that if some people would just mind their

own business, there would be a lot less of it.

“My grandson must have missed you.”

She looked up and saw Steve was heading their way. Her heart rate sped up

and he smiled as he neared them.

“Hey Dad, Grandpa Russ, Grandpa Ed.”

He stepped up on the other side of her. “You ready for that ride?”

She blushed slightly at the seeming double innuendo. Anyone who hadn‘t heard

their earlier conversation would have no idea what he was talking about. She hoped

he was referring to horses, otherwise she would die from mortification. “Yes, I am.”

“Good. We‘ll saddle up Bruce.”

She waved at the men who had briefly kept her company. “It was nice chatting

with you.”

She allowed Steve to lead her in the direction of the barn. She watched him pull

a saddle and bridle off the wall, but she could hardly focus. Even through his shirt she

could see his muscles ripple. She bit her lip to hold in a whimper. Lord, the man was

walking temptation.

He drew her out of her wicked thoughts as he opened the door to the horse‘s

stall and stepped inside to saddle the horse. He caught her watching and pointed out

the steps to her as he went along. Still, she knew if she had saddle a horse on her own

she would be in trouble. It was labor intensive and she didn‘t have the upper body

strength needed to lift the saddle.

“This is Bruce. Bruce is the first horse I bought.”

She looked up at the horse and stroked his powerful neck. This horse was in a

different league from Princess. “How long ago?”

“About four years ago.”

Steve led Bruce outside and she saw the horse had a pretty brown coat. It

glistened in the sunlight. She hadn‘t noticed earlier because she‘d been distracted. “Is

this the horse you rode earlier?”

He nodded and she watched as he double-checked the girth before swinging up

into the saddle. He held his hand out to her. She looked at him in surprise. “We‘re

riding together?”

The answer was obvious before it was completely out of her mouth, but she

was caught off guard. He nodded.

Shaking her head, she took a deep breath, held out her hand and placed her foot

in the stirrup. He helped her up into the saddle and she slid into place in front of him.

He was keeping his word on letting her be in front. But there was no doubt who was

in control. It definitely wasn‘t her.

“You ready?”

She nodded and he eased the horse into a slow walk, then an easy trot. When

the horse was warmed up, he tightened his arm around her waist before he gave the

command for Bruce to gallop. He led them over the land at a quick speed and she

loved it. The wind was blowing through her hair and the sun was shining brightly on

her face.

He slowed Bruce back down to a trot, then a walk, before pointing out different

landmarks to her. He took her to the edge of their land before turning around. She

was surprised when he handed the reins to her. It had actually been the first time she

had seen someone lead the horse from the back. She knew it probably wasn‘t easy, but

he managed.

“You lead us back to the house.”

Her eyebrows arched in his direction. “You trust me enough to do it?”

He nodded. “You can do it. Bruce is just like Princess. Just let him know how

fast you want to go. He‘ll take us back.”

She took the reins and gave the horse direction to lead them back to the main

house. The horse reacted well to her, and began to walk back to the house. She chose

to keep the pace slow. They were in no rush to get back, plus she had felt enough of

the wind against her cheeks on the way out. Besides, she was sure Bruce needed a

little break. She didn‘t want to tire the beautiful horse out. “How long has your family

had this land?”

Steve shrugged. “At least since the late s. I‘ll have to ask Dad for the

specific year.”

Her eyes widened in surprise. “Really?”

He nodded. “This ranch has been in the family for years.”

They rode in silence for a few moments before she looked back at him. “Would

you ever consider moving back here?”

He shook his head. “No. Don‘t get me wrong, I love the land and my family. I

just like having my own space. Far enough away from the family so I have privacy, but

close enough so I can get home if needed. Then there‘s the store. I definitely can‘t give

that up.”

Lauryn turned her gaze back to the scenery. She liked the land here as well, but

if their relationship did blossom into something more permanent, she wouldn‘t ask

him to move to Stillwater. She wanted to be in a place where everyone would be

happy. Right now that place was Norman for her, in spite of a few bad memories.

They made it back to the main house and he told her to lead Bruce up to the front

porch. When they reached it, Steve took the reins, and then assisted her off the horse,

before leaning down to place a kiss on her lips.

“I‘m going to take Bruce for one more run and then I‘ll be back inside.”

She nodded. “Okay. I‘ll check on Hannah.”

It was quiet; everyone must be upstairs or off somewhere else. She walked

upstairs, heading for Steve‘s bedroom. A smile made its way across her lips the instant

she opened the door. Hannah was still asleep. Her expression was so peaceful it

seemed to be a good idea to join her. She liked having Hannah curled up against her.

The two of them had developed a close bond in a short amount of time. No, she wasn‘t

Hannah‘s mother, nor could she ever take her place, but she nurtured the little girl the

way she had been before her mother passed. The way she had wanted to be cared for

by her father.

She made her way through the bathroom into her room, where she lay down on

top of the covers with a low chuckle as she thought back over the events that had

occurred since arriving late this morning. The Mitchells were very lively. They were

also wonderful people. She could only imagine what they had in store for tomorrow,

but whatever it was, she would be ready.

Steve turned to glance over his shoulder as he heard hoofbeats galloping up

behind him. When he saw Sabrina he smiled until he saw the look on her face.

Whatever was on her mind had her pretty upset. She slowed the horse as she caught

up to him.

” Are you crazy?” she hissed.

Steve looked at her with puzzlement, having no idea what was wrong. “The last

time I checked I was sane.”

Sabrina shook her head, her expression full of disgust. “Well then, you might

want to check again.”

Steve sighed. “What is this about?”

Sabrina glanced around before squaring him with a hard look and whispering

angrily.

“You haven‘t told Lauryn how much money you have!”

Steve groaned, knowing he was going to get an earful. His sister‘s eyes were

flashing with anger. He had learned at a young age that when Sabrina was mad there

was going to be hell to pay. So far, he had gotten an earful from just about everyone

who found out he hadn‘t told Lauryn about his financial status. Now it was Sabrina‘s

turn.

“No, I haven‘t told her.”

“Why not?”

“Because I didn‘t think she should know. When we met she was already

skittish enough. I didn‘t see any reason to scare her any further. Now that a

relationship might be developing between us, I want to make sure it‘s me she actually

wants.”

Sabrina shook her head. “It‘s obvious that Lauryn isn‘t anything like Tina. So

don‘t give me that.”

She leaned back in the saddle and folded her arms across her chest. “This is

more about you and your fear because of what happened in the past. The real question

now is when are you going to tell her?”

Steve shrugged because he didn‘t know when he would tell Lauryn. He knew

he needed to, and soon, but the idea of telling her he had the amount of money he did

scared the hell out of him. He didn‘t know how she would react. Would she still want

to be with him, or worse, use him for his money? Both potential outcomes worried

him. He wasn‘t going to rush it. He looked over at his sister. “When the timing is

right.”

Sabrina‘s laugh was devoid of humor. Her infamous index finger came out and

found his chest. The first poke hurt just as it normally did. He winced, content to let

her have her say or he would never get any peace.

“That constitutes never in my book. But I tell you what, Steve. This one is going

to come back and bite you hard.”

With one last glare she turned her horse and headed back toward the house.

Anger surged through him, more at himself than at Sabrina, because he knew she was

telling the truth. He pushed Bruce into a fast gallop. If he had been looking ahead he

would have noticed the hole in the ground before he got to it, but it was too late.

Steve yelled as Bruce stopped to avoid it, the horse rearing up on his hind legs.

He was unprepared for Bruce‘s reaction and was thrown through the air. He landed

hard on the ground, groaning from the impact. He had a hard time catching his

breath, not to mention he couldn‘t move without wincing. A moment later Sabrina

was back by his side, concern etched into her features. “Steve, are you okay?”

He groaned. “No.”

She dismounted from her horse, rushing over to him. “Can you move?”

He closed his eyes, taking a deep shuddering breath. “Yes, but it‘s going to hurt

like hell so I prefer not to.”

His sister made a sound of sympathy. “Stay right here while I run to the house

and get the car.”

Steve opened his eyes to look at his sister but refrained from asking her from

where he would go, instead trying to smile through the pain. “Okay, and Sabrina?”

She stopped in the middle of remounting her horse. “Yes?”

“Hurry.”

His sister didn‘t respond but he heard the profane word she muttered under

her breath. Steve chuckled before groaning. Sabrina attached a lead rope to Bruce and

called out a command for him to follow before taking off in the direction of the house.

Steve lay there holding his arm to his chest. It hurt like hell.

Lauryn stepped outside onto the front porch. She had tried to take a nap but it

hadn‘t worked. Bethany and Sabrina must have grown tired of talking about wedding

plans because neither of them were where she‘d left them before her ride with Steve.

She looked into the distance and frowned, thinking her eyes might be deceiving her.

She covered her eyes, squinting when she saw dust kicking up in the distance. The

wind wasn‘t strong enough to send the dirt into the air in such a fashion. Concern

traveled through her when she saw it was Sabrina, and that she was leading Bruce

back without Steve. Her heart dropped, and she was out in the yard by the time

Sabrina reached her.

“Where‘s Steve, Sabrina?”

Sabrina dismounted quickly, handing the reins to Alan and Edward. “Steve was

thrown off and he‘s hurt. I need my keys so we can get back to him.”

Lauryn didn‘t have time to respond before Sabrina sped past her to the house

faster than she thought possible, to reappear with Kathleen.

Lauryn sought out Valerie. “Steve‘s had an accident. Can you keep an eye on

Hannah?”

Valerie nodded. “Sure.”