Page 63 of Wasted

I glanced down at the box by the door. It was a medium-sized brown shipping box with no writing on it, and the lid wasclosed. Bailey disappeared into the kitchen, and even though I was beyond curious about what was in the box, it would have to wait. If I didn't stay with Bailey, she'd get us in trouble.

I followed her into the small kitchen, which was also restored to its original beauty. In fact, as we went from one end of the house to the other, it was all restored exactly like I remembered. Everything was new and clean, and it smelled amazing. The bedroom doors were closed, and even though I wanted to see my old bedroom, it didn't feel right to invade their privacy.

My heart swelled with a bittersweet happiness. I was happy the ranch went to someone who could see its true beauty and not see it as a large piece of land to develop.

"We should go." I sighed, and Bailey nodded. "Let me grab the box, and I'll meet you in the truck."

I knelt, wrapping my arms around the box, unsure of how heavy it was, and jerked it up. I over-judged the weight and stumbled back. "What the..." The box was empty. Unease coated my insides and sank to the pit of my stomach.

Why would they ask me to come pick up an empty box?

I carried the empty box outside, stopping on the porch. "It's empty."

Bailey stopped at her truck door and twisted back to me. "What?" Her eyes narrowed on me before dropping to the box. "Did you open it?"

"No." I shook my head. "I can feel there's nothing in it." I shook the box back and forth to demonstrate it was empty, but then, on the last shake, I thought I heard something hit the side of the box, like a paper. I laughed. "I probably forgot my birth certificate here or something." I skipped down the steps, slightly amused that he'd used such a big box for one sheet of paper.

"You should open it."

"I will once we get back to the bar."

"No," she said. The seriousness in her tone gained my attention. "You should open it now."

"Okay," I said, drawing out the word. I sank onto the step and set the box beside me before pulling the box open.

Reaching into the box, I pulled out a single sheet of paper that read:'There's someone in stable twenty-one that's missed you.'

"Rodeo," I whispered. "They still have Rodeo." I dropped the paper in the box, pushed to my feet, and headed for the stables. My heart raced as I fought back the tears. I thought I would never see him again. It would suck saying my goodbye's again, but it was worth it to see him once more.

I picked up my pace, not wanting to waste any time. Something caught my attention, and my gaze shifted to the old barn in the distance, and I froze. It was completely redone. The old red barn was now white with no holes or broken windows. It was exactly what I pictured when my mom talked about turning it into a wedding venue. My chest tightened at the memory, and I shook my head to clear it.

I pushed myself forward, stepping into the stables, counting as I passed each stable and smiling when I said, "Twenty, twenty-one." I rounded the corner of stable twenty-one and sucked in a harsh breath.

It wasn't Rodeo.

It was Cole.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Taylor

Standing frozen, I let the mixture of emotions roll through me. I tried to speak as my face twisted with confusion, but the words were lodged in my throat. He was the last person I expected to see standing here in a horse stable. I actually thought I'd never see him again unless it was on the TV.

"Hey, Taylor." He smiled.

"What are you doing here?" I finally managed to push out. "How," I twisted, pointing back toward the house, "did you... I mean..." I turned back to him. "How did you get the new owner to play along with all this?"

"He's a friend." We both stood silently, staring at each other for a long moment. "I have two horses saddled up and ready to ride." He nodded toward the back of the stable. "You coming?"

My smile widened. "Yeah." My tone oozed with excitement, and my face lit up. I thought my riding days were over.

"Oh, wait." I frowned. "Bailey's out front waiting on me..." My voice trailed off when I recognized his scheming smirkspreading wider. "She's not out there anymore, is she?" He shook his head. "She was in on it." He nodded.

He led the way out of the stables, and even through my excitement, I couldn't help but wonder why he was here when, a month ago, he was willing to let me go forever. "I guess you'll tell me why you're here on the ride?"

"I'm here for several reasons," he said, stopping in front of a black and brown mare without bothering to look at me. He ran his hand down the neck of the horse. "One of those is because I missed you." His gaze lifted, meeting mine, and my lips curled into a grin. "I missed this," he patted the horse's neck, "and I have so much to tell you."

"To tell me?" I touched the tips of my fingers to my chest.

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