Changes

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

As I made my way down the stairs, the smell of the grill overcame me. Was he cooking steaks?

I started to make my way through the living room when I saw the sliding glass doors pulled back and Laz standing out on the patio manning to what I assumed to be a grill.

    "Hey," I softly said, stepping out onto the concrete and appearing beside him.

    "Hey," he replied with a small smile. He used the tongs he was holding to flip over one of the steaks that was on the grill. "Maybel surviving without you?"

    "Yeah, she was just really worried. Which is understandable, I guess."

He turned to look at me for a moment. "Are steaks okay with you?"

I grinned. "Absolutely."

"How do you like yours cooked?"

I thought for a moment. "Um, medium," I answered with a small smile.

He returned the smile. "Me too."

We stood there in silence for a moment, listening to the sound of the sizzling coming from the grill. I looked out towards the pasture and took everything in. I know I've said it a thousand times, but this place was absolutely gorgeous. It honestly was beginning to take my breath away every time I looked outside. The pasture was long, and extended so far back I couldn't see the end. On the outskirts of the fence the pasture was lined with beautiful trees. We were definitely in the country. I could only imagine the beautiful memories that Ms. Alma made here, and it saddened me that those memories probably fill her with sadness now.

    "Have you ever ridden one?"

His voice brought me out of my gaze. "Ridden what?" I turned to look at him.

He chuckled. "A horse?" He nodded his head in the direction of the pasture where a brown beautiful animal stood close to the fence.

I shook my head. "I took lessons when I was really young, but I was bucked off at one of my recitals and it scared me. So my mom took me out."

He flipped one of the steaks over. "Would you want to ride again?"

I shrugged. "I don't know, maybe. I really hate that my mom pulled me out of the lessons. I really enjoyed being around them. They are such large animals, but they are so loving too. They always have fascinated me."

He picked the steaks off the grill with the pair of tongs and placed them on a pan covered with tin foil. "How about in the morning?"

I looked at him. "In the morning?"

"You surely don't think I'm taking you back to the apartment tonight, do you?"

I thought for a moment. Did I? Did I even want to? But that would mean sleeping here. Where would I sleep? With him? My eyes widened at the thought. Oh how glorious that would be. But I can't. We can't. Right? I had to shake myself out of the thought process so I could come up with some sort of an answer.

"Well, I hadn't really thought about it, to be honest. But I do have a paper due in this criminal justice class Tuesday," I winked with a small smile.

He returned the grin. "Oh, do you now?"

I love our playful banter. It feels better than talking about the seriousness of what's happening between us.

"How about this," he began, taking the pan in his hands and making his way back through the glass doors. I followed him into the kitchen, watching him as he set the pan down on the counter.