Finding Her Way

Chapter 24

I drove. I drove Rider far away from all of our problems. I took him somewhere extremely special to me.

He was silent the whole time, his eyes angry. He wasn't going to let this one go, probably ever.

I drove for an hour, eventually pulling into a park. Not a single soul was there. K

I hopped out of the car, Rider following reluctant.

"This, is the last place I talked to my dad," I said, sitting at a picnic table. "The last day I saw him, was here. The day before he died he took me here. We spent the entire day together. My dad was the only good thing left in my life. But Rider, you walked into my life, and you brought color. You brought life to my life. I can't tell you how much I love you. And I know you are beyond pissed at Rusty, but you can't be angry at me, okay? You are my everything and I can't risk losing you, so don't project your anger at me, I was the victim," I explained.

He sighed and ran his hand through his black hair, making me swoon.

"I didn't mean to make you feel that way. I just want an easy life with you, I want Rusty gone. This fight needs to happen so he'll leave you alone, us alone. I love you too much to ever let you go. I'm going to be selfish and keep you for myself, nobody else can have you. I'm just mad at myself for letting this happen," he said, kissing my cheek.

"Let's not worry about the fight until the day of," I said, kissing him back.

"Agreed," he said. "So this place is kind of dead, what would you and you're dad do?"

I smiled. "Follow me."

I led him through a path in the woods.

"Please don't kill me after I just declared my undying love for you," Rider teased.

I rolled my eyes, "I'm not going to kill you."

We walked about 20 feet farther. I led him through a couple bushes, a few hitting him in the face, and walked into the clearing.

Beyond the bushes was a lake. The sun was glaring at the right angle, making it sparkle. The slight breeze made little ripples in the water.

"Woah," Rider breathed.

"Yeah, I know. My dad and I would fish here and go kayaking. It was always peaceful here," I replied, sitting on the small beach.

He sat down next to me and grabbed my hand.

"Thank you," he said, kissing my temple.

"For what?" I asked.

"Understanding me. Nobody else would have known to get me out of town and to distract me. I seriously don't know what I would do if I lost you," he explained.

"When words won't describe how much you love someone, use actions," I laughed.

"You're perfect," he replied.

"I know I said to forget about the fight until the day of, but where is it?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

"The fight club. I'll take you," he said quickly.

"Promise?"

"Promise."

******************************

Rider drove us home, I was exhausted. I must have fallen asleep in his car because I woke up on the couch in my living room.

I rolled over and made contact with Rider's hard body.

I groaned, "What time is it?"

"About 3 in the morning," he whispered, smiling at me.

"Have you slept at all?" I yawned, snuggling close to him. He wrapped his arms around my waist.

"I've been watching you sleep," he admitted.

"That's nice," I said, mumbling.

"I wanted to ask you something," he continued.

I took a deep breath in, smelling his woodsy scent. It was relaxing.

"And what's that?" I asked.

"Go on a date with me,"he whispered.

"Like a date date?" I asked, closing my eyes.

"Exactly. I'll take you out, you dress up, I dress up, we have a good time, I pay for everything, that kind of date," he explained. I could hear the smile in his face.

"Okay," I agreed.

"Right now," he begged.

"Absolutely not," I argued.

"Fine, it was worth a shot, but I'm taking you out this weekend. Say Friday?" He questioned.

"Friday sounds good," I agreed.

It was Thursday.

"Go back to sleep, princess. I'll be here when you wake up," he cooed.

"You better be here," I smiled.

"I love you."

"Love you, too," I replied.

"Love you more," he continued.

"Rider, shut your face," I demanded.

"Sorry, princess," he said, kissing my forehead.

Sorry it's so short. Some of my readers were demanding a chapter be uploaded. You know who you are:) I'll try to update one more tonight, but most likely tomorrow. Thanks for reading.