Faith and Freedom

Chapter Fifteen

His hands moved to my waist and mine tangled in his hair as he kissed me. Sparks lit my whole body on fire from our kiss. The kiss was my frantic need to show him I didn't cut on purpose and that I wanted him to trust me. The kiss became fervent and was full of passion. My gray eyes opened as we pulled away, both gasping and in need of air. My face was red and my lips were swollen from the kiss. He wasn't looking much different than I was, though his eyes were brighter than I had ever seen them.

"That... That was... Wow." He gasped, air finally coming to us both.

"Was that proof enough?" I huffed, needing a second longer to breathe.

He nodded pulling me close again and smashing his lips on mine, threading my hands in his hair again. Passion coursed through my body and for the first time since my parents died, I felt whole again. Our bodies where as close as I thought they could be but I was proved wrong when he pulled me closer.

"Connor," I mumbled through our kiss, causing him to break away. "As much as I really don't want to stop kissing you, I have to ask, where is my little sister?"

"She's with Ivory, one of the younger girls who came in just a few weeks before you."

"Okay." Was all I said before I took his hand and led him to his room.

He grabbed his laptop and put on Parental Guidance. Next thing I knew, I was almost asleep.

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The next morning I was up before the sun was and the whole ranch was in a deep slumber. While I let Connor sleep, I got up and decided to go see Red. I decided to take her out for a ride, so I grabbed her western saddle and put it on the saddle rack. Her ears perked up and she was fidgety as I quickly groomed her and tacked her up. Her western bridle was gorgeous, silver stars lined the sides and the browband and glittered in the dim light of the dawn. I stepped into my stirrup and gently swung my leg over and settled into the saddle. Without a second glance, Redemption took off into a fast trot with excitement and I let out a giggle.

I decided to let her go into a canter and she sped herself into a gallop, letting out a neigh of approval. I decided to ride the perimeter of the field where she had taken me the night before. Slowing her to a walk, I let my mind wander as we continue our ride down the fence line. Her peppy attitude coincides with my happy mood. But as my mind wandered farther and farther with each stride of Red's hooves, my thoughts became gray at first, and soon, completely dark. I found myself remembering what should have been happy memories of my parents with an extreme distaste of sadness. I was always close with my mother and she was like my best friend. At the same time, I was always a daddy's little girl and I looked up to my father. His strength, confidence, humbleness, and sheer kindness made him my hero, my protector against the world. But without my protector, my hero, I felt lost. I was almost to the end of the first fence when I heard the thundering of hooves behind me, alerting me that someone was there. Connor galloped to my side and I rode silently, not a word escaping my lips.

"Hey, you okay?"

Without a word, I nudged Red into a trot and nodded yes, waving him off. Of course, he followed.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I want to be alone." With that, I pushed her into a canter and left him alone.

Redemption kept on with her easy flowing canter and when I felt we were far enough away, I leaned back slightly, closed my leg, and eased her into a walk.

Her ears flicked backwards toward me, then forward again, always coming back to me, listening for my next direction or next word. My head spun with thoughts and words unspoken to anyone, dying to escape. To be honest, I'd grown to like being at the ranch with Connor. It was like I had a second chance at being happy. I didn't have to pretend to be okay around the ranch because everyone here had their own issues and didn't judge me for mine. When I finally finished thinking, I realized that I was almost back at the barn, so I urged Redemption into a slow canter and let her choose whether she wanted to break from it or not.

As I rode up to the barn I saw Melody standing with Connor, looking at me with a smile. I grinned in return and called out, "Hey, Little bear!"

A small smile graced Connors face and for once, I felt like I didn't have to worry about anyone else. I could just focus on healing.

Word count:847