By Summer's End (Christian Fiction) (22 page)

An
hour later, Holly and Ryan left the ice cream parlor.  The time had flown and
Holly was surprised at how at ease she felt in his company.  When he asked her
if she would mind accompanying him to the grocery store to pick up a few items
before heading home, she readily agreed.

Inside the store, he reached for a
cart.  “Annabelle is determined to try out some new recipe,” he told her,
pulling a small piece of paper from his pocket.  He grimaced and glanced around
the store, as if lost.

Holly took the list from him and
hurriedly directed him to the items.  They were done shopping within moments. 
“Did you need anything?” Ryan asked. 

“No,” she told him, though she knew she
could probably use a few staples.  Unfortunately, her budget precluded her from
shopping for a few more days.

Back in his truck, Ryan smiled her way
as he started the ignition.  “Hey, thanks.  I would have been in that store for
an hour or more searching for those few items.  I’m not much of a shopper.”  He
grinned.  “Hate shopping, really.”

“I already know the store like the back
of my hand,” Holly said with an answering smile.  “I’d like to find my way to
one of the Costco stores in Vancouver eventually.”

“I can take you,” he said readily. 

“But you hate shopping,” she reminded
him.

He gave a shrug.  “Turns out, I like
shopping with you.”

Holly smiled and felt heat rising in her
cheeks. 

“You’re blushing,” he said.  Their eyes
held and his direct gaze electrified every nerve in her body.  To her surprise,
he leaned close and brushed her cheek with a kiss.  He pulled back slightly,
smiled into her eyes, and claimed her lips this time.  She lost herself in the
kiss, awash in sweet sensation.

When they ended the kiss, he continued
watching her, even as he started the ignition.  Finally, with a contented sigh,
he turned his attention to driving.

Holly still felt the warmth of his lips
on her cheek and lips.  Ryan was the first man to kiss her in years, but she’d
never enjoyed a man’s kiss more.  Regardless of how things eventually turned
out between them, she knew his kiss would be seared in her memory.

She knew something else, as well.  She’d
fallen in love with him.  Despite her resolve to avoid romantic relationships,
Ryan had literally happened along and disrupted her neat, orderly world.  

She wondered, was it time for her to
allow someone in?  She’d been alone for several years before Brianna had
entered her life.  And now, Brianna fit seamlessly and she couldn’t imagine
life without her.  Brianna had enhanced her life and given her a reason to wake
up each morning.   

She uttered a silent prayer, asking God
for guidance.  She honestly didn’t know what to do about her developing
feelings for Ryan.  It was all so new to her.  And there was the matter of her
firm convictions.  And her debt…

As if he sensed her unease, Ryan reached
across the seat and took her hand.  He gave it a squeeze and then his fingers
curled around hers.  Holly felt a calm settle over her.  This closeness with
Ryan felt right.  Perhaps God had brought them together? 

Suddenly, the serenity of the moment
came to an abrupt end, as Ryan pulled his hand away and sat up taller in the
seat.  His head suddenly spun, as if he was watching the car that had just
passed them.

“Is everything all right?” Holly asked
worriedly.

Ryan nodded, but raked a hand through
his hair.  “That car…  I believe it belongs to the guy who showed up at your
house the other night.  I meant to tell you…  I should have told you…” he
muttered, as if angry with himself.

“What, Ryan?”

He suddenly pulled over to the side of
the road and pulled his cell phone from his shirt pocket.  Holly watched him,
unsure what was happening.  He quickly dialed and put the phone to his ear.  He
began speaking in a clipped voice.  “That car I told you about the other night—the
plate I gave you to run…”  He drew silent.  “Yeah, it’s headed into town. 
Yeah, currently traveling south on Meadow Lane.  Right.”

He ended the call and turned to Holly. 
“Sorry.  I meant to tell you…”  He shook his head, as if he was frustrated with
himself.  “Anyway, I’m a reserve deputy for Clark County.”  He gave a
dismissive wave as if that was neither here nor there.  “I had a friend at the
Battle Ground Police Department run the plate of your visitor from the other
night.  Turns out he’s bad news.  He was recently released from prison.”

“What…?  What did he do?”  She shook her
head.  “I thought he was just a kid.”

“Apparently he looks younger, but he’s
twenty-eight,” he clarified.  “He did time for robbery.  But he was also picked
up for improper contact with a minor.”

Holly gasped and her heart began
thrumming in her chest.  Panic gnawed on the edges of her composure, as she
remembered the way the guy had looked past her that night, attempting to get a
look at Brianna.  She drew a shaky breath and tried to sound calm when she
spoke.  “Will they...  Are they going to pick him up?”

He nodded.  “They hope to.  At least they
plan to have a conversation with him.”

“But … can they arrest him?”

He gave a weary sigh.  “Not until he
breaks probation or commits a crime.”

“He knew about the fence out back
needing repair, and that the barn door stuck.  Is that cause to arrest him?”

“I’m going to call the department
again,” he said and quickly dialed.  He spoke to his friend again in order to
remind him about the guy’s knowledge of the fence and barn.  Maybe it was
enough to arrest him.

After the call, as they drove toward
home, Holly struggled to slow her pounding heart.  She suddenly had a bad
feeling and couldn’t stave it off. 

She was relieved when they reached her
house, but she was surprised when he drove past.  “I’m sorry.  I should have
asked you first.  Will you come home with me?  I’m sure Annabelle could use
Brianna’s help with meal preparation…  I could drive you and Brianna home after
dinner…

Holly suspected it was a ruse, to assure
they were safe.  He probably feared their visitor might return.  Regardless of
his reasons for asking, his eyes were hopeful and Holly couldn’t help herself. 
She nodded and found herself looking forward to an afternoon and another
evening spent with the McGraws.

When Ryan’s phone rang, he pulled over
once again to take the call.  Holly watched his face as he listened to whomever
was at the end of the phone line.  His expression drew tight, and then
incredulous.  “You’re kidding!”  He raked a hand through his hair.  “Okay. 
Okay.”

After ending the call, he turned to
her.  “According to my buddy at the police department, the guy claims he’d been
on the property before, with Ben’s permission.  He said Ben hired him to do
some work around the place.”

“Have you ever seen him before?”

“No.”

“Do you think he’s telling the truth?”

Ryan shrugged.  “It’s hard to say.  Ben
had a heart of gold.  It wouldn’t seem unreasonable that he tried to help the
guy out.”

He shifted into drive and pulled onto
the road.  Within moments, they arrived at his home.  Inside, they found
Annabelle and Brianna sitting at the dinette table, pouring over bridal
magazines.  “For Pete’s sakes,” Ryan said, “for a wedding that’s supposedly
happening by summer’s end, you don’t seem to be making much progress.”

Annabelle gasped.  “We have too.  I’m
feeling pretty good with our progress, in fact.  I have my venue—here,” she
said, “and my gown is being shipped, as we speak.  Brianna and I have narrowed
my flower choice down to two.”  She flashed a grin at Holly.  “I wanted Holly’s
opinion, and then we’ll make the final decision.”

“Oh, my,” Holly said with a wince. 
“Please don’t look to me for opinions.  I’ve never even been a bridesmaid
before.”

“Really?” Annabelle said, sounding
surprised.  She glanced at Brianna and back to Holly.  “It’s funny you’d say
that, actually, since…”  She rose from the chair and brought her hands
together.  “Well, I’ll just say it.  I was hoping that you and Brianna would
agree to be bridesmaids in my wedding.”

Brianna gasped and jumped out of her
chair.  “Are you serious?”  She searched her friend’s face.  “You’re serious. 
Holly, she’s serious!  Yes.  Yes!” she cried.  “We’d love to, right Holly?”

Holly was utterly surprised by the
request.  Although she and Brianna had grown close to the McGraws in a
relatively short time, she was still stunned by the invitation to serve in
Annabelle’s wedding.  She turned to Annabelle, who had brought her hands to her
mouth and was watching her expectantly. 

“Are you … sure?” Holly asked. 

“Yes!  I’m absolutely certain.  Frankly,
I don’t know what I would do without Brianna—she’s like the little sister I
never had.  And you…”  She smiled and nearly divulged her real reason for
asking her to participate in her wedding—that she was certain her brother had
fallen in love with her and she hoped to do anything in her power to bring the
two closer together.  What better way than to pair them off in her wedding.

Holly smiled kindly.  “Annabelle, I
understand if you’d like Brianna in your wedding.  I know you’ve grown close. 
I’m delighted that you want Brianna in your wedding, but please don’t feel
obliged to include me.”

“But I want you too!” she insisted. 
“I’ve always wanted four bridesmaids in my wedding.  Two of my best friends are
local, so they’ve already agreed to act as bridesmaids.  My other friends have
all moved away and we’ve lost any real closeness.”  She gave a shrug.  “I don’t
know.  I just feel as if you and Brianna are like family.”

Holly couldn’t help the smile that lit
her face.  “Well, okay, I’d be delighted to be in your wedding.  Just let me
know what I have to do.”

Annabelle closed the distance between
them and gave Holly a quick hug.  “Thank you so much.”

Brianna, who was still beaming, grabbed
Annabelle by the arm.  “Okay, then, as one of your bridesmaids, I have to tell
you that we have a lot to do…”

“I thought you were making some sort of
special dinner tonight,” Ryan reminded his sister.

“Oh, you’re right.”  She checked the
time on a nearby wall clock.  “Whew,” she with relief.  “I have plenty of
time.  Holly and Brianna, you’re staying for dinner, of course.  Harrison is
coming and I’d like you both to meet him.”

“Sure, we’ll stay,” Brianna said, before
Holly could respond.

Annabelle laughed.  “I’m counting on you
to help me out with the dinner,” she told Brianna.  “I’m going to do all the
work,” she was quick to add.  “But I need you for moral support.”

“You’ve got it,” Brianna said.

“I
really feel as if I should be inside helping Annabelle and Brianna with
dinner,” Holly said.

Ryan shook his head.  He had her by the
hand and was pulling her toward the barn.  “I want to visit our newest family
member.”  He gave a brittle laugh.  “We need him like a hole in the head.  I
don’t know what Annabelle was thinking bringing the stallion here.”

“But you’re fond of him,” Holly said
knowingly.

He only smiled in reply.

“Did she tell you why she bought him?”
Holly asked with interest.

He laughed again.  “She’s tells me she
bought him for me.”

“Oh.  Well, that was thoughtful of her.”

He didn’t respond but continued leading
her to the barn.  When they reached one of the stalls at the far end of the
barn, he slowed and urged Holly to do the same.  “He’s still a little
temperamental,” he explained.  “But he is a beauty, isn’t he?”

Holly’s eyes widened when she saw the
massive horse again, with its muscled legs and haunches.  Despite the fact that
she knew nothing about horses, even she could see he was a fine specimen.  “Can
I pet him?” she asked, as the horse turned in his stall and approached.

“Uh, sure.  Let me make sure he’s
minding his manners first,” Ryan said, as he began stroking the horse’s nose. 
“Okay, yeah, he seems pretty accommodating right now.”

“Is he normally contrary?” Holly asked,
finding herself intrigued by the huge horse.  She’d never been so near to such
a sleek, beautiful animal.

“He can be,” Ryan admitted with a smile.

Holly reached a tentative hand toward
the horse.  He promptly nosed at her hand, as if urging her to touch him.

“He likes you,” Ryan said. 

“He does?”

“He sure seems to.  Generally, he’s not
keen on anyone but me touching him.”

“Well, I’m flattered,” Holly said,
smiling at the horse.

“Hey, let’s ride,” Ryan said, and
reached for her hand.

“On him?” Holly asked with alarm.

“No, not him,” he chuckled.  “You’re a
newbie.  It’ll be awhile before you’re ready to ride Zeus.”

He tugged her to a stall near the barn’s
entrance.  They walked past ‘Cover Girl,’ Brianna’s favorite mare, and to the
most sedate of the McGraw’s charges.  “This is Millie.  We’ll ride her this
afternoon.”

She watched as Ryan saddled the horse
and led her out of her stall.  Outside the barn, he helped her onto the horse,
and then swung himself into the saddle behind her.  “Ready?” he whispered in
her ear. 

Holly nodded and gripped the saddle
horn.  “I think so.”

“Relax,” he whispered, as he urged the
horse to walk. 

Millie responded, walking slowly away
from the barn and toward the nearest pasture.  “No, girl,” Ryan said.  “We’re
heading to the trail.”

The horse seemed to understand him,
since she turned and began walking toward an open expanse of ground that was
fenced off from the manicured lawn in front of the house.  Once there, Ryan gathered
the reins, made a clicking sound, and squeezed the horse’s girth with his
legs.  She began trotting across the grassy area and toward a clutch of trees.

“Trail’s just ahead,” Ryan said.

Holly adjusted in the saddle, attempting
to relax with the movement of the horse.  “Good,” Ryan praised.  “You’re a
natural.  Would you like to take the reins?”

When she nodded, he slowed the horse to
a walk and then brought her to a stop.  He passed her the reins and gave her a
quick tutorial.  “Are you ready?”

Holly took a shoring breath and nodded. 
Urging the horse forward, she was grateful Millie seemed to understand what was
expected of her.  Any success she experienced in riding Holly attributed to the
compliant horse.

“You’re doing great,” Ryan praise.

“Millie’s doing great,” Holly countered.

She felt Ryan’s warm breath against her
ear.  “You’re both doing great.  Would you like to go faster?  Millie won’t
mind.”

“If you don’t mind, I’m kind of partial
to our current pace.”

“Fine with me,” he said, wrapping his
arms around her waist and giving her a squeeze.  “Yep, I’m perfectly happy.”

A wave of exhilaration washed over her
and she felt her heartbeat quicken as he kissed the side of her face.  She
couldn’t help smiling.  She turned and their lips met briefly, before she
turned to focus ahead once again.

Holly regretted when Ryan said it was
time to go back to his house.  This was her second time on a horse and she
found she had really enjoyed it.  She suspected, however, that she wouldn’t
have enjoyed riding nearly as much if Ryan hadn’t been on the horse with her.

Back at the house, they found Annabelle
and Brianna in the kitchen, heads bent over a cook book.  “But don’t you cook
the pasta first?” Annabelle asked.

“Well, you could,” Brianna answered,
“but usually I cook the pasta while the meat is cooking.”

“Oh, okay.” 

Annabelle glanced up when the couple
entered the great room.  “Did you enjoy your ride?” she asked of Holly.

“I really did,” she answered, sounding
surprised.  “I never really expected to have an opportunity to ride a horse,
but I really enjoyed it.”

“Isn’t Battle Ground great?” Brianna
enthused and her eyes widened, as if she had a terrific idea.  “Holly, you can
get a horse too!  You said you like riding.  We can ride together.”

Holly didn’t miss the look that passed
between Annabelle and Ryan.  She felt a niggling fear travel along her spine. 
When Ryan averted his eyes, Annabelle sighed, but visibly shook herself.  She
forced a bright smile.  “Brianna, you can ride over here anytime you want. 
Okay?”

“But you’ll be gone soon,” she said, her
shoulders drooping.  “Oh, wow.  It just hit me.  Annabelle, you’re leaving.  I
don’t want you to go.  You’re like a second sister to me.  We have so much in
common.”  Tears sprang to her eyes.

“It’s only for a year,” Annabelle said,
as she draped an arm over Brianna’s shoulders.  “And then I’ll be back.  And
who knows?  Maybe you can even visit me out east.”  

Holly hurried to comfort her, as well. 
She understood Brianna hated for Annabelle to leave.  She’d suffered so much
loss, it would be hard for her to easily accept the absence of a dear friend. 
Frankly, she was going to miss Annabelle too.  She was a genuinely kind person
who had opened her heart and home to both women.

“I’m going to miss you too,” Holly said.

“Hey!  I’ll be here,” Ryan said. 

What had he just said?  Would he be
here?  He turned to Holly.  Would
she
be here?  Because he realized with
absolute certainty, he wanted to be with her, wherever she happened to be.  He
was in love, completely, unequivocally, in love with Holly Holton.  

***

“You’re going to be here, Ryan?”
Annabelle snapped.  “Really?  Because it’s the first I’ve heard of it.  So,
you’re sticking around, huh?”

He had just returned from dropping Holly
and Brianna by their house.  They had had a pleasant evening.  Harrison had
just left, as well.

“It just…  It slipped out,” he said. 
“But…”

“What?”

“I’m not going anywhere,” he declared
with certainty.  “If Holly will have me, I’m staying.”

She laughed.  “Oh, really.  You think
she’s going to stick around after finding out about the property?  She’s going
to be furious.”

He began pacing.  “She’s going to be
furious with both of us.”

Annabelle’s eyes widened.  Ryan was
right.  She could have told Holly about the property as easily as he could
have.  And Brianna…  She was going to be devastated, destroyed by the news that
they didn’t own the land beneath their home.  She was going to feel horribly
betrayed by her.

“Ryan!” she cried.  “This is all your
fault.  Brianna is like a little sister to me, and although I don’t know Holly
that well, I really like her.  I know we could be the best of friends if given
the chance.”  She moaned and dropped into a chair.  “We shouldn’t have allowed
this to go on.”

“I didn’t bank on falling for Holly,
Annabelle.”

She searched his face.  He was as
distraught as she was. 

“I’ll tell her soon,” he said.  “I’ll
find a way to make everything okay.”

“How, Ryan?  She’s going to ask you why
you didn’t tell her the truth from the beginning.   And why didn’t you?  That
first day, when you found her alongside the road.  When you delivered the desk
for her, you should have told her then.”

“I know.”

“Why didn’t you?” she persisted.

“I don’t know.  There was something
about her…  I just couldn’t tell her.”

“Well, it isn’t going to be any easier
now.”

“I’m going to lose her,” he said with
certainty, as he sat down in his recliner.  “She’s going to hate me.”

He looked utterly miserable and
Annabelle felt her heart go out to him.  She’d never seen her brother torn up
about anything.  He’d learned years before to stifle his emotions, to ‘man-up’
as his father had demanded of him at every turn.  Now, he looked close to tears
and she wanted nothing more than to help him.  She rose abruptly.

“Ryan, I’m going to talk to Holly and
Brianna right now.  I’ll fix this.”

He shook his head.  “No.  It’s up to
me.”

“Are you going over there now?”

He checked his watch.  “No.  Holly said
she had an early morning.  But I promise, I’ll talk to her as soon as I can.”

“And when will that be?”

“As soon as I can,” he said in a surly
voice, but his manner softened.  “I think I am going to stick around here,
Annabelle.  Holly seems to love it here.  To be honest, I’m starting to see the
old hometown through her eyes.”

“There’s no place like home, eh?” she
teased with a sad smile.  “I’m glad you’re going to stay, Ryan.  Aside from
Harrison, and Brianna and Holly now, you’re all I have in this world.”

“You have a million friends,” he
protested.

“I know.  But nobody can take the place
of family.”  She cocked her head and watched him thoughtfully.  “If you stay,
and now that you’re selling the business, what do you think you’ll do with
yourself?”

He sighed and gave a shrug.  “I don’t
know.”

“Did you tell your potential buyers that
you’re no longer interested in considering their offer?”

“I did.”

“And…?”

“They upped the offer.”  He grinned. 
“Sort of made me realize what we really have here.”

“We’re fortunate, that’s for sure,” she
said.  “We own some of the most beautiful land around here and close-in to
town.  It’s hard to find anymore.”

“You’re right about that.”

“I’m going to bed.  I’ll see you
tomorrow.”

He shook his head.  “I’ll be long gone
before you roll yourself out of bed.”

She gave him a dirty look.  “I don’t
sleep in past seven, ever.”

“And I don’t sleep in past five, ever.”

“Well, you should try.  You’re
sleep-deprived.  It makes you surly.”

“So much to do, so little time,” he
said, as he headed off toward the stairway leading to his bedrooms upstairs.