Element, Part 1 (8 page)

She gathered up her yearbooks and put them back on the
bookshelf. Even though it was only 9:00 p.m., she wanted to catch up on her
sleep. Going to summer school and working would be tough and she needed to
start fresh. She flipped off the bedroom light and the second she crawled into
bed, her cell phone chimed. Before she could get to the phone on her dresser,
it chimed again. She saw that she had two messages; one from Lise and the other
one from Ryan.

Instantly her heart began to race. Why did she get so
excited and nervous every time she heard from him? She decided to read Lise’s
message first:

Guess what? Ryan went home today. Call him.

Natalie shook her head. Why was Lise so persistent?

She texted back:

I’ll think about it.

She waited for a second and then went to Ryan’s message:

Just wanted to say hi.

She texted back:

Hey, how’s it going?

Immediately he responded:

Good. I’m actually home. I had to come help my brother
w/the ranch.

She anxiously typed back:

Really?

He replied:

Yes. Would you like to come over tomorrow?

Her heart beat wildly. She wanted to see him but didn’t want
to seem desperate. She hesitated and then texted the following:

I don’t think I can. I’m going shopping tomorrow with my
mom.

A minute later he responded:

How about a horse ride on Saturday?

A horse ride?
She hadn’t ridden a horse in several
years. In middle school, she rode all the time. More than likely, it would be
at his ranch which meant his family would be there and that made her feel more
relaxed.

She replied:

Let me think about it. Won’t it be hot?

He texted back:

Not if you get here around 10. 

He had a point and she wanted to see him. Then her head
warned her again. The more she thought about it, she could hear her
grandmother’s voice from the other day. “Have faith. God will send the right
guy.” What if Ryan was that right guy? She had to take that leap of faith if
she was ever going to find love again.

She sighed, praying she was making the right decision. She texted
him:

Okay, see you at 10.

Chapter 4:  Feelings Unleashed

“Good morning, mija. You’re up early for a Saturday. Are you
going somewhere?” Natalie’s dad, Richard, leaned over and kissed her on the
forehead.

Natalie swallowed a mouthful of cereal. “Morning dad. Yes,
I’m… ummm… going horseback riding.”

“Oh, you are? Where at?” Her dad walked over and poured
himself a cup of coffee.

Using her spoon, she pushed the squares of cereal down to
the bottom of the bowl. She had nothing to hide from her dad and she respected
their request of honoring the rules while being home. However, she didn’t feel
like being asked a thousand questions. It wouldn’t help the apprehensiveness lurking
in the back of her mind about her decision.

“She’s going to a boy’s house.” Her sister giggled as milk
seeped out the sides of her mouth. “Oops.” She grabbed a napkin and cleaned her
mouth.

“Thanks, Laura.” She gave her sister a less than friendly
smile. “I’m headed over to Ryan Garrett’s house to go horseback riding.”

Natalie’s mom walked into the kitchen, catching the tail end
of the conversation. “Garrett. That’s not the Garrett’s on FM 1886 is it?” She
wore a robe and her hair wrapped up in a towel. She had that fresh fruity smell
of apples and freesia that told Natalie she had just finished her morning beauty
routine.

“Yes, Mom, it is.” She prepared herself for the interrogation.

“So how do you know their son? Isn’t he a few years older
than you?” Her mother started the slew of questions.

“Yeah, he graduated two years before me.”

Her mom took a coffee cup out of the cabinet and poured
herself a cup of the morning brew. “Doesn’t he go to college here? Oh wait a
minute, I think I remember one of the neighbors telling me that he got hurt and
lost his scholarship.”  Her mom stirred her coffee slowly, squinting her eyes,
as though trying to recall the gossip she heard.

Natalie waited for her mom to put the pieces together or
continue asking her more questions. She looked over at her dad. His eyes
narrowed and he rustled the newspaper in his hands. He had no problem tuning
his wife out. She didn’t blame him because she wanted to do the same.

He snapped the newspaper closed. “Aside from school, how do
you know Ryan?” He sipped on his coffee, blowing the steam away in between
swallows. His blue-green eyes stayed fixed on her, waiting for her answer.

“He transferred this past year to UT. We ran into each other
at Kronberg Laboratories, where we will both be interning this summer.” For
whatever reason, her dad’s method of questioning didn’t bother her, unlike her
mom’s. Probably because she thought and acted much like he did.

“Oh. Well, have a good time and be careful. It’s been a
while since you have ridden a horse.”

“I know dad, I’ll be—”

“Oh wow. What a coincidence that he ended up down in Austin
with you. Maybe you two can ride home together. That would make me feel so much
better knowing that you wouldn’t be driving alone. I know you have a cell
phone…” Natalie’s mother continued to ramble.

“That’s what Lise said.” Natalie managed to get a few words
in.

“That you could ride home together?” Her mom held the coffee
cup with both hands.

“No, Mom,” Natalie shook her head, “that it was a
coincidence that we ran into each other in Austin.” She bit her lower lip and
held back any disrespectful remarks.

“Oh.” It took a few seconds before her mom’s eyes lit up. “So
that’s why you wanted to go shopping yesterday.”

Natalie’s dad smiled at her. She wanted to cover her face. Her
mom always knew how to embarrass her. The clock in the living room struck 9:30.
She sighed in relief.
Saved by the bell, thank God.

“I better go. I don’t want to be late.” She shot up, causing
the chair to skid across the tile floor. She fumbled to collect her breakfast
dishes along with the milk and box of cereal.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll clean up later.” Her mom
motioned for her to set them back down.

“Thanks, Mom.” Regardless of her mom’s constant questioning
and nagging, she appreciated how considerate and caring she could be.

She kissed her dad bye and walked over to her mom. “Aside
from my date today, I really did need some new clothes that fit.”

“And new makeup and curling iron too? By the way, mija, you
look beautiful. He’ll be impressed.” Her mom hugged her and fixed her hair,
ensuring the waves fell to the front of her face. Natalie smiled and wondered
if she did this for herself or to impress him? Maybe it was a little of both.

“And she’s not wearing her glasses.” Laura chimed in.

Her dad spoke up. “I noticed that.”

“I thought it would be wise to wear my contacts instead.”
She tried to justify why she didn’t wear them.

“I also took her picture this morning with her phone. Let me
show you.” Laura rushed over to her side and tried to grab Natalie’s phone from
her hand.

Natalie raised her hand out of Laura’s reach. She shook her
head and motioned for her sister to be quiet. She didn’t like to boast or seek
attention by taking pictures of herself. In fact, she only allowed her sister
to take the pic so she would stop hounding her.

“I’ll let you show them later. I need to leave.” Natalie
winked at her sister.

“Promise?”

“Yes. I promise.” She slid her phone into her back pocket
and took her keys from the bar. “I’ll be back later.”

“Be careful.” Her dad reminded her, waving from the table.

***

Natalie crossed under the wrought iron metal sign that said
‘Garrett Ranch’ and drove up the gravel road. She had passed his family’s ranch
a million times growing up and never once did she ever think she would be asked
to visit. Flutters circled around in her stomach and she prayed she wouldn’t
later regret eating this morning. She told herself she had nothing to be
nervous about but the butterflies didn’t stop.

Hidden behind tall bushes and stout oak and pecan trees was the
large white ranch-style house trimmed with evergreen shutters and a large
wraparound porch. It overlooked acres of farmland with barns spread out here
and there. Red and pink petunias outlined the pavestone walkway leading from
the road to the house. She pulled her car up the driveway and parked behind a
black pickup truck. Next to it, her Mazda looked like a toy car. The tires were
almost the same size as her little silver car.

She walked up the stairs to the front porch and rang the
doorbell. She fiddled with her keys, waiting patiently for someone to answer.
When no one came to the door, she decided to walk around back. She looked
around but didn’t see Ryan or anyone else. She waited awhile and then pulled
out her cell phone and dialed his number. It went straight to voice mail. 

“Darn,” she muttered under her breath. She hit the end call
button and slid the phone back into her pocket. The thought of leaving crossed
her mind. When she turned to walk back to her car she saw out of the corner of
her eye someone coming out of a nearby barn. She lifted her sunglasses and
placed them on top of her head to get a better view of the guy wearing a cowboy
hat, plaid button down shirt, and faded blue jeans walking in her direction. A
surge of adrenaline hit her veins and immediately she knew it was Ryan.

He glanced up, holding his cell phone in his hand. Natalie
pressed her lips firmly together, trying to keep from smiling. Happiness flowed
through her, making it difficult. He waved his arms in the air and gave a big
Texas smile. She gave a small wave back.

“Good mornin’.” He adjusted his cowboy hat.

“Hi. Thanks for inviting me. I rang the doorbell, but no one
answered.” Natalie glanced back at the house, wondering if anyone had come to
the door after all.

“Sorry. I forgot to tell ya that my parents and sister are
out of town. They went to buy a steer. It’s just me and my brother … and his
family. They live in the house out back.” Ryan pointed behind him with his
thumb.

“Oh. Okay.” Even though he wore a cowboy hat, she noticed
how light his brown eyes looked in the bright sunlight. They had streaks of
gold that glistened when the light hit them the right way.

“Let’s go inside for a minute, if ya don’t mind. I wanna
grab a few bottles of water before we head out.”

Natalie nodded, trying to keep her focus on the
conversation. For some reason, she couldn’t stop checking him out. “Sure.”

She walked by his side, to the house, when a strong breeze swept
down and knocked his hat off his head. He tried to catch his hat but ended up
stumbling forward. She reached up, catching his hat before it blew away.

“Good catch.”

She handed him his hat, completely surprised that she caught
it too. “A lucky catch I guess.”

Another gust of wind blew, surrounding her in a chamber of
bergamot and sandalwood. It traveled up her nose and through her body, melting
everything along the way. Why did his smell intoxicate her to the point of
bringing her down to her knees? Another wave of dizziness hit her like a brick
wall. Her head throbbed and pulsated causing an incessant panic to rise in her
heart. She stopped and held her hands out to the side of her body. “Whoa… not
again.”

“Hey, are you okay?” Ryan put his arm around her.

“Yeah, sorry.”  She held a hand up to her head, willing
herself to take control of the situation. Within seconds the dizziness faded
away.

He removed his arm but stayed close by her. “Have you called
your doctor yet?”

She inhaled deeply and let out a long breath. She lowered
her hand and glanced at him. “No. To be honest, I forgot about it. I haven’t
had any more dizzy spells since last week, so it didn’t cross my mind. I guess
I’ll call Monday.”

“Do you think it’s a good idea to go ridin’? I mean, we
don’t have to go if you don’t feel well.”

Natalie thought about what he said. Despite the dizzy spell,
she wanted to spend time with him and get to know him. “Let’s go inside for a
while and see how I feel.”

“Okay.” He led her inside the house.

The old wooden floors creaked, indicating years of passing
feet, shuffling in and out of the country-style home. She followed him into an
airy and brightly sunlit room, filled with pictures on every wall. They all
told a story of how his family had grown over the years. She noticed a few
pictures of him and Sal when they were young.

“Are you and Sal related?”

“Yes, we are cousins. Our moms are sisters. I guess I forgot
to mention that to you.”

“I actually see a resemblance between you two.” She pointed
to one of the pictures on the wall. Then she looked at a family portrait. “Are
these your parents?”

“Yes, that’s my mom, dad, my brother Lance and my sister,
Ellen.”

“So, are you like half Mexican? I mean, not that it
matters.”  She hoped the question didn’t sound rude.

“Yeah, I am. My mom’s Mexican and my dad is White.” Ryan
removed his hat and set it on a nearby end table. He pulled out a handkerchief
from his pocket and wiped his forehead. That explained his tawny skin tone and
sandy brown hair and brown eyes.

“Me too! How wild is that? My mom is White and my dad is
Mexican. Vega… obviously.”

“That is wild. I guess you get your blue eyes from your
mom?” Ryan walked up behind her. She could still smell his manly scent,
swirling around her and latching on to her.

“Actually, I get my eyes and hair from my dad. Spanish blood…descendants
or something. My mom has light brown hair and brown eyes, kind of like you.”
She had to take a few silent breaths to clear her airway from his intoxicating
aroma that filled the room.