Crossing the Line

Chapter 8: Three Little Words

The next day, I drove myself to work. My car was finally fixed and I was independent again. I immediately spotted Tristan and smiled to him. He shook his head slightly and mouthed ‘no’. I understood immediately… Crystal was here. I wanted to scream and throw her out, but I knew that wasn’t possible. I put on a small fake smile and walked into the barn. Crystal was on a horse and was about to ride out.

“Hey Holls!” she smiled. “I’m going out for a trail ride, do you guys want to come?” she asked, talking to Tristan as well. I shrugged and walked to start the feeding rounds.

“Sorry Crystal. I have morning work to do here,” I heard Tristan say. I smiled to myself softly. I went into the tack room and waited with my arms crossed. A small smile lit my face. Tristan walked in a few moments later. He hugged me gently and kissed me. My smile widened and I relaxed into his arms.

“You said you loved me,” I whispered happily. He chuckled and squeezed me a little tighter.

“Because I do,” he smiled. I sighed contently and closed my eyes.

“I love you too,” I smiled. The door started to open and I moved away from Tristan and pretended to be cleaning a saddle. Tristan moved to the bridle.

“Oh, hey Holly… Tristan,” a bright peppy voice acknowledged. I turned and smiled easily at Alyssa. Alyssa worked at the ranch as well.

“Hey,” Tristan smiled.

“Are you guys going to the Overnight tomorrow?” Alyssa asked. I smiled and nodded.

“Yeah, I’m packed and ready to go,” Tristan beamed. I turned to the saddle and smiled. Alyssa grabbed a brush before she left, closing the door behind her. I skipped over to Tristan and pulled him closer to me. He kissed me deeply before he rested his forehead against mine.

“I’m excited for this weekend. I won’t have to worry as much about running into someone else,” he smiled. I nodded in agreement and kissed him quickly. He slipped something into my back pocket. He winked at me before I walked out to the aisle. I turned the corner before I pulled out the slip of paper. I opened it and smiled at the neatly scripted writing. It simply said ‘I love you.’ I read it three times over and bit my lip as I smiled.

“What’s that?” Crystal’s voice broke through my thoughts. I cringed mentally and sighed. I would have to be more careful with Tristan’s notes. I folded the paper back up and slipped it back into my pocket.

“Nothing,” I replied sternly. She walked closer and tried to get it out of my pocket. I backed up, slapping her hand away as I did so. My face grew red as my fists balled. “Crys! Stop bothering me at work! I have a job, and you being here isn’t helping. Can you go a week without coming here? We both know you have no interest, whatsoever, in horses or riding… or any of this! You can see me at home and if you’re coming for Tristan, you can see him on your dates,” I snapped. I turned on my heels and went to the tack room. After saddling Hercules, I rode off quickly down the West trail. The anger slid off of me by the time I reached the lake. I tied Hercules up and sat near the lake. I wrapped my arms around my legs and looked out over the waters.  I had five minutes of peace before my peace was interrupted.

“Crystal went home… she’s really upset,” Tristan voice said quietly from behind me. I sighed and closed my eyes.

“I didn’t mean to snap at her. I just… she’s always here and it’s starting to bother me how she always sticks her nose into my life. It’s irritating,” I explained softly. Tristan sat next to me and pulled me into him. I held him close to me and played with the edge of his shirt.

“She asked me if I knew anything about it. Of course, I told her no,” Tristan continued. I wanted to get that off of my mind.

“Bring your swim trunks to the Overnight. We can sneak off and take a swim here during the scavenger hunt or something,” I smiled changing the subject. He laughed and kissed me gently. “Or we could take a swim now and forget the swimsuits,” I smiled. He laughed even harder.

“We still have work to do today. Are you still coming over to my house for a movie today?” he asked. I smiled and nodded. He touched his nose to mine. “The Overnight is going to be… amazing.”