Where Forever Lies (27 page)

“Yes,”
Kyra yelled as she tightly held onto the saddle horn with both hands.

Tyler
began walking and Kyra let out a loud shriek. Paige looked up at her,
at first worried that she was scared but then relaxed when she saw
the huge smile plastered on her lightly sunburned face.

“Faster,”
she screamed, giggling.

“Sorry,
little girl, I can’t go any faster than this or your mom will
give me a spanking,” Tyler said as he gave Paige a mischievous
grin. “On second thought, maybe that wouldn’t be so bad.”

“Tyler!”
Paige yelled, smacking him on the arm. “Behave!” Still
laughing, Tyler made a few more laps as Kyra sat happily in the
saddle.

The arena
was dusty, and as the horse walked dust clouds would blow towards
Paige. Normally, she would be throwing her hand up to block it as
much as she could, but now she found that all the dirt wasn’t
bothering her as much as it used to. He was breaking down her
anxieties, one small step at a time and she couldn’t be more
grateful for it. She was beginning to realize that worrying nonstop
about things she couldn’t avoid or control was very taxing on
her emotionally; and with each step she took away from that side of
her that tried to bring her down with anxiety or worry, she felt
lighter, more carefree. It was almost as if each piece of the chain
that had tied her down emotionally was slowly breaking apart, one
piece at a time. It was a slow process but she felt that she was
heading in the direction she should be; and Tyler was a big part of
her healing process.

After a
few more laps, Tyler stopped the horse even with the protests of
Kyra. “Okay, it’s time to get down so the horse can rest.
You can help me brush him once we get the saddle off, okay?”

“Okay,”
Kyra murmured as Paige lifted her off the horse.

They
followed a little ways behind Tyler as he led the horse back to the
barn. Once the horse was unsaddled, Paige stood back and watched
Tyler show her how to brush him down. The sight of Tyler teaching
Kyra stuff about the horse and being so attentive was heartwarming
and Paige couldn’t help but stare. The more time she was with
him, the more good qualities were making themselves known. He was
patient, gentle, kind, and a good dad. He wasn’t the arrogant
guy she’d thought he was when she first met him. Of course, she
knew he could be when he wanted to but that side was beginning to
become few and far between now. She had a feeling he had even more to
him that she had yet to see.

After
brushing the horse down, they waited in the barn for Tyler to turn
him loose and then they headed towards the house. Paige took a seat
on the front porch while Tyler grabbed them some tea and Kyra played
in the yard with Diesel. She sat back in the big, white chair and
watched as Brandon made laps on his four-wheeler, making Paige tense
every time he let his tires slide around.

She heard
the door open and saw Tyler carrying two glasses of tea. He handed
one to her and took a seat next to her, taking big gulps of his tea.
He turned to her, looking her up and down as a smile formed.

“What,”
she asked as she stared back at him, wondering what he found so
funny.

“Oh,
nothin’,” he replied as he took another sip, staring off
at the fields as he watched Brandon ride his four-wheeler and Kyra
play with Diesel.

“You
were smiling at something, so tell me,” she insisted as she
leaned farther back in her chair, letting her eyes drift over to
where Kyra was playing.

“I
just found something funny, that’s all,” he said,
casually shrugging his shoulders.

“And
what would that be?” Paige asked curiously.

His eyes
travelled up and down her body, finally falling on her face and his
mouth turned up into a crooked grin. “The fact that prissy you
are completely filthy, with hair that smells like lake water and
clothes that are dusty and smell like horse, but somehow, even with
all that, you are still incredibly beautiful and I haven’t been
able to keep my eyes off you all day.”

Still
staring at him, she found herself not knowing what to say to that
comment. She looked down at her clothes, seeing all the horse hair
and splotches of dirt, and wondered what on earth he saw that made
her beautiful.

“I
mean it, Paige. A woman showing off her natural beauty is far more
attractive than a woman who has to make herself up to try to be
beautiful.”

She looked
away for a moment and then looked back at him, trying to figure out
if he meant what he’d said. Realizing he had, she thought she’d
better respond in some way. “That’s really sweet, Tyler.
I don’t think I’ve ever had such a nice compliment when I
was this filthy, especially from a guy. This is what you do to me,”
she said as she gestured at herself. She continued when she saw him
laugh, “The old me would be freaking out and running to your
bathroom to clean up and primp, but now you’ve gotten me to
where being dirty is the norm.”

“Well,
I mean it, you’re beautiful anyway you are.” He leaned
over and gripped her by the back of the neck, pulling her closer to
him as he pressed his lips to hers.

“Today
was really nice,” she said as she stared out into the huge
field in front of them. She saw Kyra to her right, playing in a small
pile of dirt and cringed. A hot bath as soon as they got home was
definitely on the agenda. As much as her anxieties were fading away,
they weren’t completely gone yet. She yearned for the day when
seeing her daughter covered in dirt wouldn’t make her tense.

“Yeah,
it was. Hopefully we can do this more often, from now on,” he
stated as he reached over and grabbed her hand. He brought it to his
lips and gave it a light kiss before letting it rest on his leg.

“I
think I would like that,” she said with a smile.

“She
looks like she’s having a lot of fun over there,” Tyler
remarked as he watched Kyra play.

“Yes,
and she’ll have tons of fun when she’s sitting in a hot,
soapy bath.” Paige eyed the mud clump hanging off her
daughter’s pony tail and the smudges of dirt across her
forehead and sighed. They were both filthy so it didn’t matter
and, according to Tyler, she was beautiful like this. She didn’t
understand his way of thinking but he was easy to please, which made
her happy.

Watching
the sun begin to set from Tyler’s front porch was a beautiful
sight and Paige wished they could stay longer, but knew she needed to
get Kyra home and cleaned up and ready for bed.

She looked
down at a sleeping Kyra who was draped across her shoulder and said,
“I’d better get her home and to bed. I’m pretty
sure she’s beyond exhausted from all the fun today.”
Paige stood, struggling for a moment with Kyra who was getting bigger
every day, and began to walk towards the car. Tyler was right behind
her and quickly opened the back door for her so she could get Kyra
buckled in.

Once she
was settled, she shut the door and turned to meet his gaze. “I
had a lot of fun today, Tyler, and I know Kyra did as well. It really
meant a lot to me for you to spend some time with her. She’s
not around very many men since my dad and her dad are both gone.”

Tyler
leaned his arm against the car as he studied her expression in the
dim light. “Well, I had a lot of fun, too. I enjoy being around
kids, believe it or not,” he said with a grin.

“Good,
because if we make days like today more frequent, then you’ll
be around both of us a lot more,” Paige said with a wink.

“I
can’t see how that would be a bad thing,” he said as he
leaned in and kissed her.

Paige
kissed him back, feeling a whole new world opening up to her.

Paige took
a sip of her diet coke as she listened to Brooke and Kyleigh talk
about how good looking the new doctor at Anderson Hospital was. They
were on their lunch break, sitting at a small café just down
the street from the hospital, and Paige was ready for the day to end
so the weekend could begin. Fridays were their day to get away from
the hospital and eat somewhere else for a change, if they were all
working together that day since their shifts sometimes varied
slightly. She had heard this conversation every day for the past
week, and it was getting tiresome. As they discussed how fit he was
and how they’d like to find out more about him, Paige found
herself thinking about Tyler instead.

She had
never been happier in her life and at times she wondered when it
would all come crashing down around her. When everything she and
Tyler had built so far would just tumble to the ground, leaving her
standing in a pile of rubble. She tried not to think too hard about
that because she didn’t want that to happen, but there were
times she knew it was on its way. It had to be, because being this
happy couldn’t last forever.

“Paige,
are you here with us?” Brooke questioned as she took a loud sip
of her Coke.

Paige
brought her attention to her friends who were staring at her. “Yes,
I’m here, sorry, I just don’t find Dr. Harris
interesting,” she said as she rested her chin on her hand. She
laughed when their expressions turned into shocked horror.

“What
do you mean you don’t think Dr. Harris is interesting? He’s
like the hottest guy in the hospital and he’s a doctor on top
of that,” Brooke stated.

“Maybe
to you two, but he just doesn’t cut it for me.” She took
a nibble off her burger as they sat speechless. She didn’t know
what was so shocking about that but they had been harassing her all
week about her lack of interest in the new doctor.

“Before
Mr. Evans walked into your life, you would have been drooling all
over Dr. Harris and you know it,” Kyleigh said, as she pointed
a French fry at her.

Shoving it
away, Paige admitted, “Maybe, but I’ve realized how much
more attractive a guy is who’s not afraid to get dirty.”

“I
do have to admit that Tyler is pretty damn hot,” Brooke said
giving Paige a devious grin.

“Hey!
He’s mine, so stay back!” Paige said as she threw a fry
at her. She laughed as Brooke dodged it, letting it fall to the floor
beside her.

Her phone
buzzed and she looked down at the new message, her face lighting up
as she saw who it was.

Tyler:
Date
night with me tonight?????

Paige:
Maybe.
What time?

Tyler:
Seven
good for u?

Paige:
No
Brandon this weekend?

Tyler:
I
get him in the morning. He’s with a friend tonight.

Paige:
Oh,
ok. I’m sure my mom can watch Kyra for a few hours.

Tyler:
Ok.
Meet me at my house then.

Paige:
Can’t
wait. 

“Care
to share why you’re cheesing like an idiot?” Kyleigh
asked.

“I
bet it has something to do with Mr. Country Boy,” Brooke
teased, her voice rising an octave at the end.

Paige
shook her head, laughing. “Well, it’s definitely not
about Mr. Slick, the new Dr.” Paige couldn’t help with
the nickname, considering his hair was always slicked back with some
kind of gel. She thought it fit him perfectly.

“Paige,
that’s so mean! How dare you talk about my man like that,”
Brooke said, her eyes wide.

“Anyway,
yes, Tyler wants to go on a date tonight,” she said smiling.

“What
are you guys going to do?” Kyleigh asked.

“He
didn’t say, so I’m not sure.”

“On
a serious note, how are things going with you guys?” Kyleigh
questioned as she picked around at her salad.

“Things
are going really well, actually. So well that I’m waiting on
that something bad to make its presence known, like always. But
that’s just my negative, worrying side coming out. He’s
actually really good with Kyra too. It all seems too perfect, you
know, like in the movies.”

“That’s
really good. I’m so happy for you and I don’t think you
have anything to worry about. It’s all going to work out and
you’ll live happily ever after together in the boon docks,”
Brooke said with a smile, reaching out and touching her hand. Brooke
was rarely serious so when she was, Paige always knew she meant what
she was saying from the bottom of her heart.

“Thanks,
Brooke, but I don’t see myself living out in the country. It’s
beautiful and all; but you know my love for the city. Anyway, so I
hear Mr. Slick is single. Are you thinking about making your move?”
Paige inquired.

Brooke
started laughing and said, “I seriously doubt I’m the
type a doctor would be going for. So, he’s my man in my dreams
only.”

“You
never know,” Paige said. She knew Brooke was a little out there
but she had a lot of good qualities about her, too, and shouldn’t
have any trouble finding someone. As far as Paige knew, she had been
single for a long time. Brooke never really elaborated on dating,
that was one of the few things she kept private. With everything
else, she was an open book.

“Believe
me, I know,” she said.

After a
lunch full of discussing all the guys in their lives, they headed
back to work. The rest of the day seemed to crawl by for Paige and
there were times she thought all the clocks in the hospital had
stopped. Soon enough it was time for her to go home, and a few hours
with Tyler never sounded better.

She made a
quick pit stop at her house to get ready and then made her way to
Tyler’s. It was already getting close to eight by the time she
got there, and as she pulled in, she saw him sitting on the front
porch, one leg propped up on the rail as he leaned back in his chair,
waiting. She smiled as soon as he looked her way. His navy blue shirt
complimented his khaki colored skin that was tan from working outside
so much and his dark Levis looked good with his brown cowboy boots.
Paige stared, she couldn’t help it, he looked really nice,
almost as if he had something already planned for them.