Page 50 of Paper Horses

“She’s shaking,” I said, finally finding my voice.

“They don’t like the storm.”

“Will they be okay out here? There’s a lot of water out there.”

He looked over at me, his brows scrunching. “Already?”

“Yeah. I had to hop over a stream.”

Concern crossed his features. “We need to get you back inside. The house is up high enough, and the barn is on a raised foundation, so there shouldn’t be any flooding in here.”

“We could stay a little longer,” I said, rubbing my hand over the horse’s mane. There was something soothing about horses that had always calmed me.

“No, I need you inside where I know you’re safe.”

My head whipped to him, but he looked away, averting my eyes like he knew he’d slipped.

“I would have thought you’d leap at the chance to get rid of me,” I replied, focusing back on the horse.

“I never said that. Let’s go.”

He walked past me, and I nuzzled my face against the horse’s before I followed.

“Where did you get that rain jacket?”

“In your Jessie keepsake drawer,” I taunted.

He shot me a look over his shoulder, his eyes dark. “That’s not what that is.”

I shrugged as he opened the door. His curses had my alarms going off.

“I want you to run to the house. That water is rising and moving fast. If it catches you, I don’t know if I can grab you fast enough.”

“What?” I snapped, my eyes flying to his. “Grab me? Why would you need to grab me?”

I’d just crossed the water and been fine, but the stream had widened in the short time I’d been in the barn.

“Because water moves fast.”

“How is that an answer?” I asked as he pushed me through the door.

“Run, Olivia.”

“I don’t run, Hudson.” I had run partway to the barn, but I would never admit that.

He snatched my elbow and dragged me with him, my feet struggling to catch up with his long strides. The wind was vicious, biting at me as it sent my hair snapping like a live wire.

I tugged my arm away and took a step right into the stream, not realizing the water was moving so hard it had left a divot. My balance tipped, and I went over, caught in a tide of water that sent me tumbling. I screamed, a sound I had never heard from myself, right before I slid into a deeper tide of water that swept me down the property. Fear collapsed on me, and I clawed at the ground, trying to gain purchase but failing as the water continued to push me further from Hudson, just as life had done.

“Olivia!” he yelled, running after me. I saw only flickers of him between the flashes of water and darkness. “You need to grab the tree to your left, but don’t hit it!”

What that meant, I didn't have the capacity to figure out as I struggled to keep the water from filling my mouth.

“Now, Olivia!” I heard him bellow. “To your left!”

I reached out, my hand smacking into the tree with a force that rattled my bones, but I ignored it as I fought to hold on to it. Bark scraped at my arm where my sleeve had rolled up, but my head was above the water. Right before my strength gave out, Hudson’s hand caught me. He roared as he pulled me from the water and into his arms, where I clung to him, not caring what it looked like. My body shook uncontrollably as he smoothed his hand over my drenched hair, saying, “I’ve got you. You’re safe.”

And the resounding truth of those words had me burying my head into his chest and letting him carry me back up the slope to his house. I didn’t let go until he dropped my feet to the bathroom floor and unpeeled my arms from his. I stood there shivering, my teeth chattering so hard the sound reverberated. Hudson turned the water on and returned to me, tugging my jacket off.