Page 78 of Road Trip
“Abra Mora. It’s really nice to meet you.”
Katie didn’t even try to hide her gawking. Her eyes practically undressed Abra as she took in her appearance and tattoos.
“You are totally not what I expected. It’sverynice to meet you!”
“What the heck is that supposed to mean?” I asked, frowning.
Katie shrugged. “I always thought you would end up with some Barbie chick actually named Barbie or Buffy or something, and not the cool Buffy. You have to admit you’ve dated some pretty plastic girls in the past!” She was right.
Abra snorted. “I knew it. Well, if he wants to take a walk on the wild side…”
“Abra,” I said in a warning voice. I didn’t care that my little sister was here, I’d call her bluff. She better not think that that was why I was with her
“Well, I’m guessing you two must be tired after that long drive. Maybe I’ll see you tomorrow, Abra?” She seemed genuinely interested in getting to know Abra and that warmed my heart. Katie had been through some bad stuff. A lot of it she brought on herself, but it was still rough for her and I wanted her to find some happiness. Working at the ranch and giving riding lessons made her happy, so I was glad she was back here.
I hugged her once more and said in her ear, “Please behave with this one. I want to keep her around.”
Her eyes bugged out when she looked at me and then she offered me a sad smile. I could only guess that while she was happy for me, she was also very lonely and sad. I wanted my relationship with Abra to be a good example for her.
She called goodnight to us as she headed back to the big house. I picked up the bags in one hand and took Abra’s hand in the other. She was still looking around at the place in wonder. I gave her hand a little tug.
“I’ll give you the full tour and a riding lesson tomorrow if you want.”
She looked up at me with her eyebrow raised. “I don’t want to get in the way of family time or anything. You and your sister have catching up to do.”
She was right, but I just wanted a little more time…
I unlocked the door to the guesthouse, and we went inside. On one wall was a bunch of pictures of Katie and me when we rode as kids in the super stuffy equestrian getup. There was even a glass case with our trophies and ribbons. I gave up competing when I got serious about baseball in high school, but I was still proud of what I’d accomplished. Abra’s eyes were wide as she took it all in. I set our bags down inside my bedroom and turned to watch her walk to the fireplace and look at the family pictures.
“This has to be your mom,” she said, pointing to one of Mother standing with Katie and me at Katie’s high school graduation.
“Yes. She and Katie look a lot alike.” I watched her moving in my space and it just felt right. I was ready to be done with the house in Livermore anyway after all the bad stuff going on. My mind started to spin off to that place where I went and I imagined us living here, getting married, making her pregnant with several kids. And then I recalled the conversations about guns, which led me to dissect other tense moments over the past week. We had a long way to go.
“Hey, Farm Boy,” she called out from the doorway to my room. The look she gave me was all I needed to get me moving.
