Blazing the Trail (Sunshine & Shadow Book 5) (3 page)

BOOK: Blazing the Trail (Sunshine & Shadow Book 5)
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“Yes,” April said.

“But...I didn’t do
anything wrong. I wasn’t lying when I told you I loved you. I lied to you about
Violet because that’s what my career needed. I was protecting you! If I lost
everything; you’d lose everything, too.”

“If I lost everything, I
could survive, because I’d have you, and I would know that you loved
me
more than anything else...more than your career, your future, your money...the
other girls...everything.”

“But, I want you to be in
my future.”

“You should have thought
about that before you lied to me. Before you chose to sleep with
her
instead of me last night.”

April turned on her heel,
rushed down the stairs. Lex stood stunned at the top. She left the house, slamming
the door behind her. As she jumped in her car, she felt a sob erupt from her
throat. She didn’t want Lex to see her cry so she turned the key and peeled out
of the driveway. She had to get out of there. She drove as fast as she dared
through the crowded streets and pulled up in front of the cottage. She leapt
out, leaving the door open.

Up in her room, she
grabbed her suitcase from the closet. She emptied the drawers into it, not
caring about folding her clothes. She ran to the bathroom and wiped the items
on the counter into her arms, dumping the contents into the bag. She zipped it
up quickly and heaved it off the bed, throwing her jacket over her arm and running
through the house, scanning one last time before locking the door behind her
and heading down the porch steps to the car.

She drove to the rental
shop, jumping out and tapping her foot impatiently as the man behind the desk
billed the car to Lex. She handed the keys to him and left the lot, searching
the street for a cab. When she saw one coming, she waved her arm and the car
slowed. She threw her suitcase onto the seat beside her as she slid in.

“Take me to LAX please.”
She handed her credit card to the driver. He swiped it.

“No problem.”

The city rushed by
outside the window. Tears begun to fall from April’s cheeks again, and she
wiped them away, embarrassed.

The driver noticed.

“You okay?” he asked in a
British accent.

April nodded.

“Running away?”

She looked up, surprised.

“Sorry. I see a lot of
people like you. This city has a way of breaking hearts.”

She nodded. “It sure
does.”

“I’m Nando, by the way.”

“Nando?”

“I know, my parents must
have hated me.”

“I’m April.”

“So where’re you
heading?”

“Home. Finally.”

“Lucky. Wish I could. But
everyone knows this is the place to be if you wanna be a
somebody
.”

“What do you do...you
know, when you’re not a cab driver?”

“No, this is what I do...this
is how I’ll make something of myself. Driving a cab is my dream. It’s
exhilarates me.” His sarcasm was thick. “I’m an actor.”

“Tough business,” April
murmured.

“Actress?” Nando asked.

She shook her head.
“Horse trainer.”

“A horse trainer? In L.A?
Sweetheart, I think you picked the wrong city. You’re not gonna find a job here
doing that; not unless you know somebody that is.”

“I did know somebody. I
had a job; a great job.”

“Ooh. Let me guess; it
wasn’t the city that broke your heart.”

April shook her head.

“Yeah, the men here have
something, don’t they? Something that draws you in? I see a lot of girls with
that story, too.”

“You drive a lot of sad
people around, eh?”

“Eh? You must be from
Canada.”

April nodded.

“I’ve always wanted to go
to Canada. Is it true you have moose as pets?”

She shook her head. “No,
that’s not true. I’m sure you
could
, but you’d have to be pretty brave.”

“Why?”

“They’re...” She gestured
with her hands. “...big.”

“Oh, right.”

April listened to the
radio. The jockey introduced the next song and her stomach tightened.

“Could you turn the radio
off?”

“Not a fan of Lex
Mitchell?” Nando looked at her in the rearview mirror.

April shook her head.
“Not anymore.”

The cityscape turned to
fields and commercial buildings and April counted down the minutes until she
could be on a plane and on her way home.

Chapter 2

 

 

 

The sunlight streamed
through her bedroom window. She had spent most of her day yesterday on a plane,
then a bus, then a truck; she was exhausted.

April looked around her
room. Nothing had changed. Her books were still piled on her desk a foot tall
in places. Her bulletin board was still covered in newspaper clippings and
pictures of her horses and friends. One photo stood out from all the rest. She slid
out of bed and touched the edges.

Her and Kip smiled at the
camera, their arms entwined around each other. The photo beside it was from the
same day; Kip alone, carrying a saddle. April tried her hardest not to be
sucked into the memory; she didn’t need a reminder that she had ruined possibly
the best thing in her life by making a stupid, immature decision.

April felt a tear running
down her cheek. Looking at the photo made her heart swell, reminded her of a
time before everything had gone wrong. She wasn’t sure if it made her sad or
happy.

Her feet dragged on the
wood floor as she wandered into the kitchen, seeing the snow falling outside in
flakes the size of quarters. It was late in the season for snow, even for the
Cariboo.

April poured herself a
cup of coffee and waited for the rest of the ranch to wake up. Sliding onto a
bar stool at the kitchen island, she blew the steam from her coffee cup. Her
hands were slowly warming up. A horse whinnied outside and she looked towards
the barn.

Might as well
,
she thought.

April wrapped herself in
a winter jacket from the peg in the mudroom and headed to the barn. The smell
enveloped her as she entered and she walked straight to Chinook’s stall,
unlocking the door, and surprising the sleeping horse.

“Hey buddy,” she
murmured.

Chinook nickered softly,
nuzzling into her stomach.

“Did you miss me?”
Another tear rolled down her cheek. She stroked the horse down the neck,
winding her fingers into his thick winter coat. His lips tugged at her jacket,
grooming her back.

“I’d say so.”

April turned around at a
familiar voice.

“Kip,” she said.

Her mind went blank.
Never before had she been stricken speechless by this man but something changed
inside her. She looked into his eyes and didn’t know what to say. She didn’t
know whether to apologize, or hug him, or smile, or cry.

“Your dad told me you
were back.”

April nodded. She looked
at her horse and rubbed behind his ears.

“Why?” he said.

Her cheeks flamed. Shame
hit her stomach and she felt like she was going to be sick.

“Lex...just...We just
didn’t work out.”

Kip raised his eyebrow
and handed her a brush.

April turned back to her
horse and began to run the comb through his soft, smooth coat.

“Did someone...?” she
began.

Kip nodded. “I groomed
him every day.”

She was silent for a
moment, speechless again. Finally, she said, “Why? I don’t even groom him every
day.”

Shrugging, he chewed on
his lip and patted the horse once on the rump. Then he turned on his heel and
left the stall.

“Kip,” April called out. She
leaned over the door.

Kip stopped but didn’t
turn around.

The ache in her chest was
back, but April said, “Kip, I’m so sorry. I’m sorry I left the way I did.”

“You should be.”

The pain hit her stomach
and Kip strode from the barn, his boots making close to no sound on the soft
sand. April covered her mouth with her hand to stop a sob from erupting from
her throat. She bit her lip and turned back to Chinook. He was concerned, ears
forward. He nickered to her as she resumed her grooming, feeling the tears roll
down her cheeks.

April took a deep breath
and began to sing softly to him. Chinook snorted when she paused and she wiped
her eyes, smiling.

“Yeah, I like that song
too.”

April wiped the tears
from her cheeks and coughed. Chinook nickered again, concerned. She stroked him
once down the face and left the stall, tossing the brush into a grooming tub in
the tack room and heading out of barn. She saw Kip disappear into the pasture
behind her.

He was avoiding her.

 

“Tell me everything,”
Hailey said.

She and April were
sitting on the couch in the lodge, drinking tea later in the evening.

“There’s not much to
tell, Hailey. He lied, and cheated; that’s kinda it. You know pretty much
everything already.”

“What did Kip say?”

April looked at her
hands.

“Bad?” Hailey asked.

“He’s avoiding me. I
didn’t tell him why I came home. Not the truth, anyway.

“Why?”

April sighed. “Because
what I did was stupid. I gave up everything to be with Lex, and it was all for
nothing. I wasted so much time when I could have been here. I lost Kip...and
I’m afraid he’s not gonna forgive me.”

“I’m sure you didn’t lose
him. He’s just upset. He missed you a lot; I could tell.”

“I missed him, too. He
won’t even give me a chance to tell him, though. I tried to apologize.”

“Apologize? You’re a bit
past an apology. You left. We didn’t think you were coming back. He basically
grieved as if you’d...died.”

“What do you mean?”

“He was acting as if
you’d...you know. He was angry, then he was distant, then he denied it, refused
to believe you weren’t coming back. Then he accepted it. And that’s when he
brought Danielle home.”

“What’s she like?”

“She’s nice, I guess.
Kinda city, though. At least that’s what it seems like. Blonde.”

“Blonde?” April had
always thought Kip preferred brunettes. “Is she pretty?”

Hailey nodded. The
expression on her face intrigued April.

“What are you not
saying?”

“April...he seems really
happy whenever she’s around. The first time she came over was the first time I
saw him smile since you left. You really hurt him.”         

“And what about now? I’m
back; is he going to avoid me forever?”

Hailey shook her head.
“He’ll come around. You know Kip; you have to give him some time. He’ll forgive
you.”

“Yeah, but what if he
doesn’t?”

Hailey didn’t say
anything.

April refused to cry, and
when tears pooled in her eyes, she closed them, trapping the pain inside. She
couldn’t imagine her life without Kip. He was her best friend; the only person
she had ever felt truly safe with. She couldn’t believe how stupid she had
been. How could she have given him up?

April spent the following
days getting back into the swing of things at Blue Haven. The ranch was gearing
up to go into another season of Trekking. The guests weren’t due to arrive for
another few months, but there was plenty to do before that time came. April
kept herself as busy as she could, completing tasks that could have been put
off. But she liked to have something to do; if she sat idle, she would think.
And thinking just caused her pain.

A week after coming home,
she was surprised when she walked into the lodge for dinner.

A tall, blonde girl was
standing with April’s mom beside the fireplace.

“You must be April,” she
said, offering her hand. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

April shook her hand,
looking pointedly at her mom.

“Honey, this is Danielle,
Kip’s new...um, friend.”

Danielle smiled warmly at
April who forced her lips to return the gesture. She studied Danielle’s face. The
girl really was quite beautiful and looked nothing like April at all. Where
April’s eyes were blue; Danielle’s were brown. April’s hair was dark; Danielle’s
was almost platinum. April’s cheeks were always flushed; Danielle’s alabaster
skin smoothed over her entire face, the tone perfectly consistent.

Kip appeared from the
kitchen and sat down. April slid into her chair and made eye contact with
Hailey beside her. The girls didn’t say a word, but April knew she had Hailey’s
support.

April was sitting
opposite Kip, and it was difficult not to look up. She focused on her plate. It
was one of the longest meals of her life.

She offered to wash the
dishes afterwards and she looked out of the window as she did. The moon was
full and bright, illuminating the horses in the paddock, their silhouettes
obvious against the grey sky. The window was open, and April heard a wolf howl.
She watched the horses prick up their heads, freezing in their tracks. It was
silent. The herd moved as one, disappearing behind the barn, spooked by the
wild animal’s call.

Someone behind her made
her jump.

“Oh!” she said, when she
noticed Danielle setting plates on the island.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to
surprise you.”

“It’s okay,” April
murmured, scrubbing a dish.

“Can I help?”

April shook her head. “I
can do it. Thanks.”

“April...did I do
something?”

April stopped what she
was doing. “Not at all… Why?”

“I don’t know. I just get
the feeling that you don’t like me very much. Maybe I’m wrong, but...”

“No, you didn’t do
anything,” April said, resuming her task. “I’m just not a chatty person.”

“Oh okay,” Danielle said.
“I guess I’ll go, if you’re sure you don’t need me?”

April nodded. “You’re
good.”

Once Danielle was gone,
April leaned against the sink. She took a deep breath. She hadn’t lied; Danielle
hadn’t done anything, except date Kip. But that wasn’t a crime, was it? It
wasn’t like Danielle had made Kip mad at her. She had done that all on her own.

Hailey entered the
kitchen, laden with dirty dishes.

“Hey, I saw Danielle come
in here. What happened? Did you give her the old, ‘stay away from my man’
trip?”

April laughed
humorlessly. “Kip’s not my man. He’s just my friend. So, no I didn’t. She seems...nice.”

Hailey nodded, dropping
the dishes in the sink. “She is. She’s been over a few times.”

April paused, then
continued her scrubbing.

“She seems pretty
intuitive.”

“Why do you say that?”

“She had the feeling that
I didn’t like her.”

“You don’t, thought.
Right?”

April stopped. “I’m not
sure,” she said, after a moment. She dropped the dish cloth.

Hailey grabbed it. “Go
see Chinook. I’ll finish this.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. For some reason,
your horse seems to give you all the answers. Maybe you can figure it out while
you’re in the barn.”

“Maybe.” April dried her
hands, slipped her boots on, and headed to the barn.

It was true that she had
found a lot of clarity while around horses, and even more while riding. Maybe
that’s what she would do; go for a ride. The moon was illuminating the world
enough to see where she was going as long as she stayed out of the trees, where
the ground was covered in shadow.

She rounded the corner and
opened the tack room door.

“Oh my goodness. I’m so
sorry!”

Kip and Danielle’s lips were
locked, arms around each other. April froze, her cheeks flaming. The couple
pulled apart, embarrassed. Kip and April’s eyes met and April quickly looked
away. She grabbed a halter from the wall rack and rushed back the way she had
come, apologizing again.

When she reached Chinook’s
stall, she slipped inside and buried her face in her hands, letting out the
breath she had been holding. She slid the halter over his nose and buckled it
behind his ears. Using his mane as leverage, she lifted herself smoothly onto
his back, reminded of the last time she had ridden bareback; on Prime Time in
L.A. She urged Chinook forward and rode past the entrance to the barn just as
Kip came out.

“April!” he called.

She stopped her horse and
turned to face him.

“Are you crazy? You can’t
go for a ride at night! There’s a cougar in the area.”

“So what?”

April chewed her lip. She
wasn’t planning on going far. And she would avoid the trees anyway, because of
the darkness. She would be fine.

“I’ll be back soon.” She
turned the horse back towards the driveway.

“Are you crazy?” Kip
asked, grabbing Chinook’s halter.

“No, I’m not. Let go of
my horse.”

“You must have a death
wish. Did you not hear me? There’s a cougar out there—a big one.”

“And there are wolves,
and probably bears. I’ve ridden these mountains more times than I can count.
And I’ve always come home, haven’t I?”

BOOK: Blazing the Trail (Sunshine & Shadow Book 5)
12.15Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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