Liberty Bay, page 15
“I don’t care how much she hates phones. She can’t date my best friend without getting my approval first. So unless she wants to fly to Nashville, she’d better talk to me this way.”
“We’re not dating,” Gina protested, although there had certainly been enough kissing last night to qualify. She had been tempted to stay the night, and she could tell Wren had wanted her to, as well, given how reluctant she had been to let Gina go after she had walked her back to the apartment. Something had held Gina back, though, and she had finally pulled out of the circle of Wren’s arms and gone inside. Her resistance wasn’t strong enough to last—she was surprised she had made it this long, in fact—but she was desperately trying to hang on to her determination to maintain emotional distance. Each line would get easier to cross, and moving forward from laughing together to touching to kissing had felt so natural. If she went too far beyond kissing, she might never make it back to where she belonged. She was already dealing with the stress of commuting to Seattle for photo trips and business meetings. She refused to believe she had lost any of her passion for her work, but she sometimes ended up staying on the farm instead of going to the city for inconsequential reasons. If she had a reason as all-encompassing as being in bed with Wren, she’d probably never get back on that damned ferry.
“Yeah, sure, you’re not dating,” Maia said in a disbelieving tone. “You’re just spending time together, making out, feeding each other…”
“As friends. And we don’t feed each other.” Okay, at one point during the evening, she might have licked some caramel sauce off Wren’s fingers, but that wasn’t really romantic—she had merely been taste-testing dessert. And she hadn’t mentioned anything about it to Maia, so she was prepared to deny it to the end.
“Then you do admit to making out with her,” Maia said with a grin.
Damn. Gina hadn’t mentioned any of the kissing to her, either. “I admit to nothing,” she said. She hesitated at the edge of the barn and peered into the arena. “And she’s riding right now, so maybe the two of you can talk later.”
“Let me see.”
Gina sighed and turned her phone around. She felt too much like a stalker hiding in the shadows and pointing a phone at Wren, so she walked into the open and headed to the arena.
“Walk steadier, or I’m going to be sick…Wow, she really is beautiful.”
“I know, right?” Gina paused on the hill while Biscuit and Grover milled around her legs. Wren continued to ride, completely focused on her horse in a way Gina loved to witness. Her intensity and passion were such an interesting contrast to her more playful side, and Gina loved them both. Liked them, she corrected herself.
Gina turned the phone around again so she and Maia could see each other. “Too bad she’s working right now, or you could have talked to her. Well, I should go—”
“Edit me out,” Wren called.
“I’m not filming,” Gina yelled back. “If I was, I’d make sure I was facing away from you.”
“Oh my God, you two are so cute. Take me over there.”
Gina sighed and walked over to where Wren and Foam were standing near the entrance to the arena.
She hoped Wren would flat-out refuse to talk, although she felt silly for feeling that way. She wasn’t sure why she was so reluctant for them to meet. She had met plenty of Wren’s friends, but somehow this was different since Gina’s social circle was so much smaller than Wren’s seemed to be. Introducing her to Maia was, for Gina, the equivalent of bringing a girlfriend home to meet her family. “Maia wants to meet you,” she said.
“Seriously? You named your phone Maia? I know you love your technology, Gina, but this might be taking it too far. What’s next, are you going to start buying it clothes?” Wren gave an exaggerated gasp. “That’s why you wanted that little antique dresser. Not for herbs, but for all your teeny phone clothes.”
“She’s funny. Hand me over.”
Wren swung out of her saddle and gestured for Gina’s phone. “Yes, hand her over. Is it your friend from Tennessee?”
“Um, yes,” Gina said, surprised by Wren’s enthusiastic response. She pointed at the lens on her phone. “This is the camera. Aim it at yourself so she can see you.”
“Okay. Oh, hey! You’re so clear, it’s like you’re right here, not halfway across the country.”
“I hope it’s not too frightening for you,” Maia said, and Gina could hear the laughter in her voice. “Gina told me you’re a bit of a technophobe, so maybe we should have eased you into this by taping a photo of me on the phone first.”
Wren winced. “One of those newfangled photographs? I don’t know, maybe we should start with a daguerreotype and work up from there.”
Wren unbuckled her helmet and handed it and Foam’s reins to Gina. “He still needs to cool down. Do you mind hopping up and walking him around for a while? I’ll give Maia a tour of the farm.”
She walked off, chatting on the cell as if she hadn’t been bemoaning the loss of her tin cans only weeks earlier. Gina watched her go, feeling as if she’d been dropped into some sort of alternate universe, where Wren was happily embracing technology, and she was standing in the middle of an arena holding a horse.
Foam nudged her gently with his muzzle, and Gina shrugged and twisted her hair into a makeshift ponytail, tucking it under the helmet and buckling the strap under her chin. She had gotten accustomed to being around Wren’s horses, even though they had initially been triggers to remind her of junior high. Although they were no longer stress-inducing, she still hadn’t felt an urge to ride any of them, but she couldn’t be a coward now and simply lead Foam around the arena. Not when Wren was bravely letting a cell phone get close enough to her to manipulate her brain waves, or whatever she was afraid it might do.
She used the mounting block to help her get on since Foam was a lot taller than the small quarter horses she had ridden in school. Wider, too, she discovered once she was in the saddle. Foam started walking hesitatingly around the ring, but once she stopped worrying about his every step and relaxed, he did, too. After a few circuits of the arena, she decided she kind of liked the view from horseback, especially since her main focus was on Wren, who was walking near the paddocks with her dogs right at her heels, laughing and talking with Maia. Gina waited for a sting of jealousy, since Wren had a natural way of connecting with everyone she met, and Gina had never been able to think of herself as having the same gift, but all she felt was grateful to Wren for stepping into her world for at least this moment.
Gina knew Wren was making an effort to get to know Maia because of how important she was in Gina’s life. Envy might have been preferable to the heat that stirred inside her when Wren looked over and smiled at her—if Wren’s agreeable attitude toward the phone call had left Gina with any doubts about Wren’s feelings for her, the expression on her face just now squashed them completely. She smiled in return as Wren came back down the hill, turning the phone so Maia could see her.
“Look, it’s Gina on a horse. For the first time since coming here.”
Gina dismounted and handed the reins back to Wren, taking her phone in return. She wasn’t about to make a permanent swap, but it had been fun to trade places for a little while.
“How was the tour?” she asked Maia, standing close enough to Wren for them both to be visible on the screen.
“Great! It’s such a beautiful farm. You know, she could probably make a fortune renting out your apartment as an Airbnb.”
“A what?” Wren asked, elbowing Gina in the side.
Gina moved out of Wren’s range and headed toward the barn. “I hadn’t thought of that, but you’re right. People would love to stay here instead of a hotel. With these water views and all this peace and quiet…”
“But still close to Seattle…” Maia continued.
“And hiking and boating. Oh, she could build a boat dock down by the water and rent out kayaks.”
“She’s pretty sure the zoning permits would be astronomical,” Wren said, grabbing the back of Gina’s shirt to slow her down.
Gina tried to pull away, laughing at the thought of Wren having to face a new set of visitors every weekend. “The horses would be a big draw,” she said to Maia. “She could do pony rides if the guests have little kids.”
“She’s selling all the horses and replacing them with very mean snakes,” Wren said, wrapping her arm around Gina’s waist when she stopped struggling to get away.
“I’m going to go film now and let the two of you sort this out,” Maia said with a smile. “Thanks again for showing me around, Wren. Promise I can come stay, even if you don’t open to the general public?”
“Of course. But just you, and only for one night. Maybe only an hour or two if I’m in a bad mood.”
Maia grinned. “A whole weekend, and I’m bringing my husband. Plus, we’ll want one of those pony rides.”
She ended the call before Wren could stop laughing and respond. Gina put her phone in the pocket of her jeans and stepped away from Wren’s touch as they went into the barn. She propped her elbows on the open door of an empty stall and watched Wren untack her horse.
“Joking aside, it’s a really good idea,” Gina said. She held up a hand to stop Wren’s protest. “I don’t expect you to turn this place into a guest ranch, but what if you meet some people online who want to ride with you even though they don’t live close? I can see someone coming here from another state, or even country, for a week’s worth of lessons. Not all the time, but maybe once in a while.”
“Or someone who can come teach a clinic for me and my students.” Wren clapped a hand over her mouth, then lowered it slowly. “Now you’ve got me doing it,” she said, shaking her head as she continued unbuckling Foam’s girth.
Gina smiled. Wren seemed to have a natural tendency to want to learn and grow, but she had somehow gotten into the habit of stifling it and hiding behind her equally strong bent toward maintaining the status quo, afraid to let anyone or anything new come into her life in case it devalued what she already had. Gina felt as if she was helping Wren explore possibilities she hadn’t considered before—ones that would add value to her world, not take it away—just like Wren had helped her by getting her out from behind her screens.
Gina had used the internet to make friends when she couldn’t in person and had eventually stopped trying to find any connections in her real life, but these days she was spending more and more time unplugged—more and more time seeking Wren’s company. She halted her train of thought. Yes, they were good for each other, but was any of this good for Gina’s career? Since moving here, she was already finding it too easy to make excuses, to avoid pushing herself into the social situations that would advance her career. She and Wren could continue to grow individually once Gina moved back to the city and Wren moved on with her own life.
“Well, it’s something to think about,” Gina said. “Don’t stop yourself from coming up with options since you only need to follow through with them if you want to. The more ideas you have, the more likely you’ll be to find the ones that really fit.”
“I’ll think about it,” Wren agreed. She handed Gina a brush and then picked up her saddle and bridle. “For now, though, the apartment is yours.”
“For now,” Gina said with a slight shrug, walking over to Foam and starting to groom him without meeting Wren’s eyes.
Wren went into the tack room and put her saddle and bridle near the sink. She picked up a damp sponge and rubbed it over a bar of saddle soap, needing a few moments to herself. Gina had mentioned finding what really fit, and all Wren could think of was how Gina herself seemed to be the perfect fit in her life. Wren loved how Gina challenged her to be more open to new ideas, and at the same time how comfortable it was to be with her. She just wasn’t sure where she stood with Gina.
She was confident that Gina felt the same about her on a physical level, especially after the evening before. Gina also seemed to enjoy spending time with her, since she could easily have shut herself in the apartment with her computer—as Wren had initially expected her to do—instead of seeking her out.
Gina’s repetition of the phrase for now was another one of those moments when Wren felt doubt creep in and take hold. Gina had never lied and had always been honest about wanting this to be a temporary stop in her life, but Wren wished she wouldn’t keep pulling back. That she would be as wholeheartedly in their relationship while they were together as Wren was trying to be.
She scrubbed the bridle’s noseband, removing all traces of sweat and dirt as she reconsidered her wish. Maybe Gina was playing this the right way, keeping some balance between having fun together in the present and acknowledging the truth about their future. Wren probably should follow her example, or she was going to be the one who ended up hurt.
She hung the bridle back on its hook and returned to the barn aisle, where she saw Gina standing next to Foam’s head, scratching his favorite spot behind his ears. She had to stretch to reach, and her T-shirt had pulled up enough to show the curve of her waist. Oh, Wren was going to end up hurt, all right. She might as well accept it now and deal with the pain later.
She picked up Foam’s fly sheet from where she had left it folded on a tack trunk. “I had a brilliant new idea while I was in there cleaning tack,” she said as she put the sheet on her horse. “I think I’ll open up my living room to the public and turn my house into a restaurant.”
Gina nodded, as if giving the notion serious thought. “I like it. You’ll be able to retire on tips alone, with your amazing people skills and sunny disposition.”
“Exactly. Although I’d gladly do it for free, just for the chance to have a hundred random strangers invade my home every night.”
Gina laughed and handed her Foam’s lead rope. “Forget renting out the apartment. You can just have them bring sleeping bags and camp out on your bedroom floor, like a big happy slumber party.”
“And then pony rides for everyone in the morning, right, Foam?” Wren smiled when Gina caught her hand as they walked toward the paddocks. “I probably should get to work on perfecting my recipes, then, in anticipation of the big crowds. I need to learn how to defrost frozen meals, and I probably should invest in a microwave if I want to serve real quality food.”
“Tourists will flock here in droves,” Gina said, giving Wren’s hand a squeeze before letting go.
Wren stayed close beside her. “Since this is all your fault…I mean, your brilliant idea, how about going on a practice pony ride? I can take you to a spot with the best view of the Olympics. Just think what a great photo op that’ll be.”
Gina paused midstride. She felt some misgivings about spending too much time on a horse, but her social media brain was already planning how to turn a single ride into several posts. “Um, sure,” she said.
Even though her response to the invitation was lukewarm, Wren’s answering smile was anything but. “Wonderful,” she said. “I’ll grab a couple horses for us while you change into something you don’t mind getting dirty.”
Yay. Dirt. Gina headed toward her apartment, trying to convince herself that she was doing this for the sake of some interesting photos, not because she would grab on to any excuse to spend time with Wren.
Chapter Fifteen
Gina went upstairs and changed into an older pair of jeans and a long-sleeved dark purple shirt. She had enjoyed a brief moment in Wren’s world when it merely consisted of a few laps of the arena on Foam, but she wasn’t sure how she felt about an hour or so in the saddle. Horseback riding had been bundled with most of her other childhood activities and filed in the never-doing-that-again category in her mind. Riding with Wren seemed miles away from her past experiences, though, and Gina was willing to give it a try. She was already planning the captions for her photos, and she hadn’t even gotten on the horse yet. Her social media career had been good for her in that regard—she tried to be more open about new experiences because she wanted to document them online.
She jogged down the stairs, hoping Wren would find her a quieter, smaller horse to ride. Maybe the little Appaloosa mare that Eric had ridden? Foam had been well-behaved in the arena, but he had felt a little too powerful beneath her. Plus, she didn’t think it would take him long to figure out that he knew far more than she did about riding and possibly decide it wasn’t worth the effort of carrying her around. She wanted some photos from the higher vantage point a horse would afford her, not some from ground level, watching her mount race back toward the barn without her.
She walked into the barn and saw two horses waiting in the crossties while Wren got their tack ready. Wren grinned when she saw Gina and tugged playfully on the sleeve of her shirt.
“You look beautiful. Purple really does suit you.”
Gina laughed. “Would it horrify you to know I only chose this shirt because the front pocket has a button? I was worried about my cell phone falling out.”
Wren shook her head. “It makes perfect sense to me. I only picked these pants because they have a pocket, and I was worried about losing my high-tech gaming console.” She fished a piece of paper out of her pocket and unfolded it to reveal a partially finished crossword puzzle.
“You have one puzzle. I have access to millions of them,” Gina said, wiggling her phone at Wren before buttoning it safely away. “I’m assuming that one’s mine,” Gina added, pointing at the shorter of the two horses. He had a nondescript look about him, as if he’d blend into the background at any barn with at least one other dark brown horse in it. He was standing with his coarse-looking head lowered and his eyes halfway closed, looking supremely bored by the prospect of a ride. His neighbor, on the other hand, was watching Wren’s every move with pricked ears. He was taller than Foam, with a delicate, well-bred look about him that even Gina could recognize as a sign of quality.
Wren laughed and handed her a brush, aiming her toward the tall chestnut instead of her preferred bay. “Nope. Unless you want to trade, of course. The first time I took the Duke on a trail ride he threw me into the bay. Literally into the water. On purpose, I’m sure. You get to ride Kingfisher. He’s a rescued ex-racehorse and is about as quiet as can be.”
