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Yeah, he’d liked that a lot. Brightwater Valley and the lake and the mountains were his home, his place. He was connected to them on a level that went deeper than merely the physical, and Sheri had been too. They’d shared that connection.
But Beth hadn’t grown up here and she didn’t have that same connection, and the fact that she’d picked up how important it was to him and wanted to find it for herself felt like a gift.
The whole of the past two weeks felt like a gift, if he was honest with himself. Having her living in his house, sleeping in his bed, sitting out on the deck with her in the evenings and hearing about her life in Deep River…
It was good to have her around. To talk with and to hold. To sit with and spend time with. She was bright and funny, and his house felt as if the summer sun had come inside to stay.
She made him smile, even when he didn’t want to, even when his mood turned dark, and he’d found himself looking forward to getting home at night so he could see her.
She made him feel…lighter than he’d felt since Sheri died, and he didn’t want to analyze why that was; he was just pleased to feel it.
So of course he wouldn’t deny taking her for a trek. It was a beginners’ trip, which made it the perfect introduction.
She hadn’t been nervous of the horses, only excited as he’d introduced her to Carol and given her a carrot to feed to the mare. Beth had stroked the horse’s soft muzzle and neck, smiling hugely, then had given a little gasp of excitement as he’d boosted her up into the saddle.
She was sitting there now as he helped the others, looking like a total newbie, it was true, but also like a kid taking their first ride on a Ferris wheel, wide-eyed with excitement, nervousness, and delighted anticipation.
She wore an old pair of jeans, a worn white T-shirt with a dark-green fleece thrown on over the top, her white-blond hair in a long braid down her back, and a riding helmet, and quite honestly she’d never looked lovelier.
She made his chest ache and he had to turn away from her just so he could concentrate on what he was doing.
Eventually all his charges were mounted and ready, and he turned Jeff in the direction of the start of the trail, leading the way with Beth beside him.
“Relax,” he murmured as the horses walked at a leisurely pace. “Your shoulders are up around your ears.”
“Oh, what? Like this?” She put her shoulders down and glanced at him, copying his loose hold on the reins.
“Yeah, that’s good. Also, you can look around at the view. Carol knows where she’s going.”
“I know. But I want to feel like I’m actually riding and not just sitting on top of the four-legged equivalent of a quad bike.”
Finn grinned. “After the baby’s born, how about I teach you to ride?”
She glanced at him, her eyes sparkling. “Oh, you would? I’d love that.”
The ache in his chest deepened, warmth flickering through him at the look on her face and the way her eyes lit up. There was nothing fake about her now and there hadn’t been for the whole past two weeks she’d been living with him.
But make sure she knows where you stand… because she looks really happy and I’d hate to see her get hurt.
Chase’s voice from that day a couple of weeks ago when they’d made their announcement drifted through his head, though he tried to ignore it.
Shedidknow where he stood. He’d told her. And seriously, what more could he do? Remind her every five seconds that he couldn’t give her anything emotionally?
She hadn’t asked him to anyway, and if she was happy, what was he worrying about?
He dismissed the nagging doubt in the back of his mind, concentrating instead on the trek.
It was an easy ride along the trail and then up a short slope to the ridgeline, which they then followed, the dense green of the beech forest below them, the rolling green fields and the sparkling, deep-turquoise blue of the lake beyond.
The air was warm and full of the scents of dry grass and late-blooming gorse flowers, along with the earthier, distinctive spice of the bush.
“What made you want to buy Clint’s farm?” Beth asked as they rode. “Was it always something you wanted to do?”
The sun was warm on his back, and he was feeling relaxed, and even though it was a subject that ventured into painful territory, he didn’t mind answering her.
“I spent a lot of time with the horses here after Sheri died,” he said. “Clint let me manage them, and then I got the idea of adding horse trekking to Pure Adventure’s list of activities. It turned out to be pretty popular, so when Clint said he wanted to leave, it seemed like a good idea to buy the ranch for the business.”
“I can see why it’s popular.” She waved at the view. “This is gorgeous.” Her hand dropped to Carol’s neck, and she gave it a little stroke. “And who doesn’t like a horse?”
