Page 31 of The Making of Mila and Blake
I nod. There is no malice behind his request. He just needs space right now and I ought to give it to him. As I take a step toward the door, I hesitate.
“Look, I know we’re in a weird place right now, but I’m always here for you. I understand having parents that are hard to deal with more than most people. Remember that, okay?”
Blake stares at the tiled floor, sticky with spilled liquids. He doesn’t say anything, but the twitch of his mouth is all the acknowledgment I need.
I close the front door behind me and head back to the idling SUV.
“Who was that girl?” Dad asks as I climb in.
“Blake’s girlfriend,” I answer, clicking on my seatbelt, my movements feeling heavy.
“And you still care about him even when he has a girlfriend?”
“I don’t really have a choice.”
Dad falls quiet and as he begins the drive back to the Harding Estate, I press my forehead to the window and watch Fairview fly by. I wish I did have a choice, because I know exactly what the easy way out is. Forgetting about Blake, moving on, letting him talk music with his drum-playing girlfriend from Belmont all night long.
But the heart chooses, and mine chose Blake two years ago.
12
Things are still a little awkward with Savannah at the end of the week. It has taken a lot of apologizing and pleading to get her to even talk to me again, but I think my persistence proves that I really, seriously,don’t like Teddy like that. I’m relieved when she takes twenty minutes away from the stables for an afternoon canter out in the open fields with Tori and me. Sheri is a very lax boss– as long as Savannah and Teddy get their workload finished by the end of each shift, she doesn’t mind if they slack off in between tasks.
Fredo, as always, is my horse of choice. I have a real knack when it comes to working with him and after all this time, I really do believe he ismyhorse. Savannah parades around on Princess and Tori has remarkably taken a liking to Spirit, despite him being the fastest stallion Sheri owns. Savannah has worked hard to build Tori’s riding confidence over time and now Tori no longer complains when we all head out riding together. In fact, I think she secretly enjoys it. She just won’t admit it.
It’s Friday and the construction crews are wrapping up for the weekend. I’ve been observing Jason the past few days and he has been back on shift, seemingly working hard and sober. If he were to mess up at work again,I think I’d have no choice but to turn him in for misconduct.
Sheri is working with her fifth client of the day over in the riding pen and I am forever amazed that she works around the clock without losing the smile on her face. She has found her passion, something to keep herself busy rather than existing purely as Popeye’s caretaker, and it makes me happy to seeherhappy. I often worried about Sheri, but not anymore. She is so inspiring to me.
“Mila.Mila,” Tori says, clicking her fingers in front of my face.
I snap out of my daze and crash back to reality. I lose balance in the saddle and tighten my hold around the reins, becoming acutely aware of every detail around me. The soft breeze in my hair, the buzz of insects, Savannah and Tori on either side of me.
“Are you daydreaming about Teddy again?” Tori asks with a devious undertone.
“Not funny,” I say, and I grimace at the way Savannah quietly lowers her head. Tori realizes neither Savannah nor I are at a stage where we can joke about my kiss with Teddy yet. She instantly holds her hands up in apology.
“Sorry, guys,” she says. “Too soon, I know. But I just can’t believe you did all that to make Blake jealous, Mila.”
“C’mon,” I plead, pursing my lips. “We’ve been over this a thousand times already. It was stupid and I wish I hadn’t done it. You know that by now, Savannah, don’t you?”
Savannah trots ahead with Princess and flicks her strawberry blond hair over her shoulder as she glances back at me. There is the tiniest of smiles toying at the corner of her mouth and I know in that instant that she won’t be mad at me forever. “I think you deserve to suffer a little while longer for locking lips with my bae.”
Tori pretends to gag. “Teddy is not yourbae,and if you ever use that word again, I’m disowning you as my best friend.”
“My lover, then?” Savannah suggests with a goofy grin.
“Ew. That’s even worse. Just stop talking,” Tori says, then dramatically shudders. I remain silent in the hope that they won’t interrogate me, but if I can count on Tori for one thing in life, it’s teasing her friends. However, when her gaze pierces mine, her expression is no longer playful. “Mila,” she says, and then hits me hard with the next question: “Do you still have feelings for Blake?”
I know the answer. I think I knew it even before my plane touched down at Nashville International. Feelings like those I had for Blake don’t just fade over time. They were too raw, too intense, and those feelings have remained embedded deep within me. Easy to ignore when we’re miles apart, but impossible to prevent from rising to the surface when we’re together. Right now, they are fizzing and bubbling. Being around him creates a chemical reaction.
“Umm– I—” I stutter, and Tori and Savannah both gasp in unison.
“She totally does!” Savannah exclaims, pointing a finger at me. She reels back the reins, circling Princess around to block mine and Fredo’s path. “You told me you wanted to make Blake jealous, but why would you even care unless you aren’t over him?”
“See, Savannah?” Tori says smugly. “It’s really your hot ass cousin she’s after.”
“Oh no, oh no, oh no,” Savannah babbles as she combs her fingers through Princess’s mane. “This is bad. This is really, really bad. He’s dating that girl he met at college!”
