To Not Let Go

Chapter Thirteen

         "Alright, are you sure that I went over everything you can think of for taking care of the ranch?" Swayde shifted his weight nervously. He had never left his ranch for this long in the six years he has been the proud owner. "We went over the feed, where all the equipment is, we talked about the waterers, minerals, creep feed and pasture rotation. We talked about any vaccines and protocols in case something happens...what am I forgetting?" He mumbled as he stared at the ground, lifting his cowboy hat off of his head to scratch his forehead, plopping it back on forcefully. 

        Kyle, Swayde's best friend, chuckled. "Yes, I am positive. I think we have gone over everything at least three times, actually." Resting a hand on his friend's shoulder, he gave it a comforting squeeze. "Seriously, man, everything will be fine. Bernie is coming out to help, too. You have nothing to worry about. And if you think you forgot something, or are worried about how things are going, you can just call us, alright? And no offense, but Bernie and I have been ranchin' longer than you have been alive, so it is safe to say that we know what we are doin'. And besides, we have been out here to help you on numerous occasions, so we have seen how you do things." Kyle dropped his hands from Swayde's shoulder. "Seriously, you have nothing to worry about." 

        Swayde let out a heavy sigh. "You're right. I'm sorry, man. I'm honestly just a little nervous about leaving the ranch behind." Fishing his keys out of his pocket, Swayde hopped into the cab of his truck, rolling down the window, and shutting the door. It was all he could do to not stand here and go over the chores for his ranch once more.

        "I know you are, but I can promise you everything will be alright. You goin' to Montana with Renne means a lot to her, more than she will probably tell you." Kyle rested a hand on the window sill of Swayde's truck.

      "You're right, man. Thank you, again." He replied, staring at his steering wheel as he started the truck. With his hand on the shifter, about to put his truck in reverse, Swayde added, "And I gave you the house keys, right? Did I tell you that I left y'all detailed notes on the kitchen counter?" The wave of nerves returned to him. 

       Kyle chuckled, glancing at the bouquet of fresh flowers sitting on the passenger seat of Swayde's truck. "Don't you have a girlfriend to go see? Or are those flowers your new truck decorations?" He joked, shooting Swayde a smirk before turning to walk away from his truck before Swayde could try to add to his long list of concerns about leaving his ranch. 

      "See ya later, man. Thanks again." Swayde shouted, waving as his truck pulled out of Kyle's driveway. 

       Ten minutes later, with a grin, Swayde pulled down the all-too-familiar gravel driveway of Renne's grandparents house that she called her home. Heck, it had even become a second home for Swayde as well, especially since he was here so much, helping out with chores and the day to day tasks of the family ranch. Not to mention all of the time spent here to be with his girlfriend. 

     Biting his bottom lip, trying to contain his grin, Swayde snatched up the bouquet of Renne's favorite flowers with one hand, turning off the truck with the other. Hopping out of his truck, keys between his teeth, Swayde smoothed down his shirt front with his free hand before carefully sneaking up the front porch steps. When him and Renne were dating as teenagers, there were many nights that Renne would have to sneak in the house after her curfew, or nights that Swayde had "accidentally" fallen asleep on the couch and had to creep out of the house without being heard. As a result of their late night escapades, Swayde and Renne had both memorized where to step to avoid the creaky boards of the porch so they were not heard. This had fared well, and helped with times like now when Swayde wanted to surprise his girlfriend. 

       Carefully pulling the wooden screen door open, Swayde pulled it just enough that he could squeeze inside, immediately kicking off his boots and walking on his tip toes, peering around every corner of the house, trying to find his girlfriend. He knew that Renne was around here somewhere because she had just texted him saying she missed him, and he also knew that Mamaw and Papaw were not home because Renne had also added that tidbit of information in her text.  

       After checking nearly every room in the house, Swayde peeked out of the back door, seeing Renne on her hands and knees, weeding the garden bed behind the house, her back to the door, with a radio loudly playing country music. Trotting back to the front porch, Swayde quickly slipped his cowboy boots back on before creeping back around the house. 

         Once he was behind Renne, Swayde held the bouquet of flowers out in front of her, making her jump slightly, then smile hugely, turning around and lunging into her boyfriend's arms, causing him to fall backwards in the grass. The couple burst out laughing, Renne rolling off of Swayde, standing up as he did. 

         "Man, talk about knocking me off of my feet." Swayde winked, chuckling. "Here, these are for you. They're a little squished now, sorry." He held out the bouquet to Renne, who gladly accepted it, lifting it to her nose. 

       "Thank you, Swayde. They're beautiful." 

        "Not as beautiful as you." Swayde pulled Renne close to him, drawing her lips to his for a long, sweet kiss. Pulling back with a smile, Swayde pointed to the garden. "How much more do you have to get done? It's lookin' really good."

        "Thank you. I have been out here all morning. I think I'm done, though." Renne dusted off her jeans with her gloved hand before picking up her bag of weeds that Swayde immediately took from her. Walking back to the house, Renne announced that she was going to put her flowers in water, and Swayde said he would go add the weeds to the compost pile by the barn. 

        By the time Swayde was walking back to the house, Renne was walking out, "I'm all set to head to your place, if you are?" She stood by the passenger door of Swayde's truck. 

       "Absolutely." He grinned, opening the door for her.

                                                              ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

         "Hey, thanks for doin' my laundry, babe." Swyade called out to the kitchen from his bedroom. Walking out of his room, jeans in hand, he smiled at his girlfriend who was emptying the pantry, filling up one of the coolers with food for their trip.

        "You're welcome, but how did you know I was the one who did your laundry?" Renne grabbed a box of white cheddar Cheez-it's, settling it into the bin. "How do you know it wasn't Mamaw or Papaw or something?" 

        "Because you're the only person who folds my jeans like this." He held up the neatly folded, worn Wrangler jeans. 

         Renne quit her task to lean against the counter. "What? With the right back pocket showing? I always fold jeans like that so the Wrangler patch is showing, so you can tell which pair of jeans it is." 

         Setting the jeans down on the counter, Swayde opened up the ziploc bag of puppy chow that Renne had made, plunging his hand into it, grabbing a handful of the sweet treat. "But all of my jeans are pretty much the same, and I don't pay attention to which pair I grab from my dresser." Reaching for another hand of the chex treat, Renne swatted his hand away, making Swayde chuckle. "Either way, thank you for doin' my laundry, and folding all of my clothes. I love how you fold my jeans because every time I open my drawer and see them, I think of you." He walked forward, dropping a kiss on her forehead. 

         Rolling her eyes teasingly, Renne chuckled. "How much more packin' do you have to get done? We leave before sun-up tomorrow morning." 

          "Just about done. You gettin' a little excited for our road trip or something?" Swayde slipped an arm around Renne's waist, staring down into those loving blue eyes of hers. 

          Renne rested her hands behind Swayde's head, interlacing her fingers. "What, eight hours in a truck, just you and me, and a couple weeks in Montana? I'm beyond excited. What could go wrong?"