Begin Again

The Girl

"Blake Virginia Barnes! You've been sitting there since we left! You could not possibly been drawing for three days straight," Brandon Nolan Lawrence dropped his boots on the mat at the front entrance of the ranch house. His steel blue eyes seemed to match his personality at the moment, hostile and angry at the quiet redhead, who sat ever so calmly on her one person sofa. Being in Montana during the weekend and coming home at this late in the afternoon was just too much for the poor man. Boo-hoo.

"Nah, I've been debating what we should do at your guys weddings. I say we should sing for each other. That ought to be fun," Blake set her sketchbook down.

"You are complaining that she has been sitting there, the entire time," Carter Ian Rogers shut the front door with a simple swift of his foot. The tall man smiled warmly at the girl by the fire, seeing as her face warmed at their presence. "At least for once we know where she is! Ain't that right? And you will never sing at my wedding- no, no, no!"

"Why no," Blake gasped. "Nolan! How fun would it be embarrassing each other one last time?"

Blake swiftly moved out of the way as the man came for her. Jumping on the table, she ducked as her dog jumped over her, landing its full weight on the man. Blake jumped back down, avoiding his arms. Duke, the border collie, kept its snout on the man's neck as Blake knelt down.

"Why are you changing the subject," Nolan pointed but had to admit that was a good idea. Blake raised her chin as she pulled out her notebook, showing Nolan the sketch she had drawn of him. Easing his sudden rush of anger, Nolan set his backpack down, grabbing the notebook from her hands. "I'd say you're still pining over that British dude you have the senior year of high school. The exchange one."

"Charles," Ian asked, setting down his things on the table.

"Charles...Charlie Edwards," Nolan pointed as he kept examining the sketched picture of him. He turned the book around, handing it back to her. "Are you?"

"I haven't thought about him until you mentioned it," Blake exclaimed, shutting her sketchbook, eyes narrowing. "Well Brand, what do you have to say for yourself?"

He only moved his eyes to look down at her cocky grin, and oh how much he wanted to strangle her right now. Instead, he handed her the sketchbook back, walking into the kitchen where Ian stood, laughing at his dear friend.

"I say she ought to embarrass you at your wedding," Ian pointed as he doubled over in laughter.

"Who sent you," Blake barked. Her cold blue eyes stared into the man's, making sure he knew that she meant business. With fear written across his face, the man blinked rapidly. "A-T-K-I-N-S-O-N...Atkinson...? William Atkinson? What does he have to do with my stolen car parts?"

The man blinked again.

"D-A-N-G-E-R. I am aware of that, or else you wouldn't be here bub," Blake whistled for Duke to let the man go. He gasped for air, rubbing his neck from the dog's saliva. "Who are you?"

The man shoved Blake back as he went running for her office.

"I've told you to pick up in there," Ian complained, turning into the littered office. "Now, I am startin' to take Nolan's side. What happened in here?!"

"Tornado," she winked, picking up her book again. "Dinner's in the oven, by the way."

The man threw her papers everywhere, searching for something.

"YOU HAVE IT!" He screamed over Duke's loud barking. The man whipped around as Blake held up her hands from the piece of wood in his hands. "WHERE DID YOU PUT IT?"

"Put what," she exclaimed.

"THE BRIEFCASE! FROM THE AIRPORT," the man moved Blake to the center of the room. "THE ONE THE WOMAN LEFT."

"Oh. That suitcase? Wait. What was inside the suitcase or the suitcase? Anyways, I don't have it."

"Don't sass me. I've been warned about you."

"Me? What can a possible innocent little redhead do to you?" The man grumbled to himself, turning just slightly to observe the room when his wood stick was ripped from his hands. With that same momentum, he crashed on her desk, spraying the room with dozen of sheets of paper. Blake threw the wood stick out of the room as she threw herself on the man.

"Blake, you destroyed your office," Nolan gasped, staring into the office. Looking back at her again, Nolan shut his eyes not wanting to know anything about anything. Just when he could, he heard the front door open.

"Hello," a woman's voice called out.

"Anyone here," the same voice asked. Ian smiled at the familiar voice. It was his only sense of peace he ever got from this ranch house, besides when Blake would go out horse back riding. "Guys? Blake?! Oh my gosh! What happened?!"

"Amelia, do not even look. Do yourself a favor and back up," Ian turned, trying to push her back for the safety of the living room. Amelia Hughes laughed at her boyfriend, glancing over at Blake's innocent gaze. "Don't fall for that! Look away!"

He tried to pick her up but the farthest he got was to the living room. Blake smirked, gazing over the sketch she had drawn.

"Yeah! You better run," Blake huffed, patting her hands together, watching the older man run for his life down the long gravel road. "Hope the bears don't get ya!"

Duke barked in excitement as Blake grabbed the ripped sheet of paper in her hand. It was coded strangely, which lead to Blake's determined stare at the man running through the tall grasses of Wyoming.

"I need to go. I'll be back by nine," Blake abruptly stood up, grabbing her coat which was laying at arms reach from her sofa. Ian and Amelia glanced at one another as the redhead pulled her coat on before exiting the house for the final time. "See you guys later."

"I'm coming," Nolan called out.

"No, I'm good!"

As she walked with her dog at her side, Blake pulled out that crumpled sheet of paper, examining it one more time before hiding it within the safety of her coat pocket. Those letters played around in her mind for the next day.

A B C R U E M K E I C X I Y M C H A G F S M B-