The Butterfly Effect (Boggy Creek Valley #1) - Kelly Elliott Page 0,4
up her hands in defeat. “Fine, I’m out of here.”
I didn’t wait for her to say anything else. I opened the front door and walked out into the frigid night, slamming it before heading down the path that led to the barn, where we kept the horses and a few goats. My father usually kept most of the horses in the east pasture, but there were a few he stalled up on colder nights.
I’d take spending time with a horse over a stupid college party any day. It wasn’t like I was interested in any guys anyway. My heart belonged to one man and one man only. Aiden.
I smiled as I thought about him and the last letter he’d sent to me. I loved that he handwrote me letters; it felt more special. Most of his letters were just about nothing really. He asked me more about me than he said anything about him.
A few strands of blonde hair had fallen out of my ponytail, and a sudden gust of wind caused them to whip against my face. I wrapped my scarf around my neck tighter and marched forward as I whispered, “I wish you were home, Aiden.”
As I walked into the barn, I removed the scarf and shrugged off my coat, tossing both to the side. The heated barn felt good after the brief walk from the house. I noticed a light coming from the tack room and shook my head. My father would be pissed if he knew the light had been left on. He was a stickler for not wasting money. It was the farmer in him.
With a sigh, I headed toward the room and mumbled, “Hunter, you left the light on again.”
A whinny came from my right, and I turned to see Firelight bobbing his head. “I know, buddy, but it’s going to snow and we all know you’re actually a pansy ass when it comes to snow. Plus, it’s dark out. You don’t like the dark. You don’t want to go ride in the snow and the dark, do you?”
I walked over and gently rubbed the side of his neck…and frowned.
Sweat.
I looked into the stall and asked, “Did someone ride you?”
“Someone did.”
I froze. I’d know that voice anywhere.
Slowly, I turned—and saw Aiden leaning against the tack room doorframe.
I was positive my mouth hit the floor and my insides nearly burst on the spot. If I had thought eighteen-year-old Aiden was handsome, I was not ready for twenty-one-year-old Aiden. He stood before me in jeans and a long-sleeve T-shirt that hugged his upper body in the most delicious of ways. It was almost sinful how hot he looked. A backwards baseball cap sat on his head, a SEAL trident stitched on the back. His jaw was covered with the slightest bit of stubble. His body looked like one of those chiseled statues you’d find in Rome somewhere of a handsome Roman fighter. He had a smoking-hot body.
Oh. Holy. Hell.
“Aiden,” I whispered as a smile grew across my face. “Oh my gosh, Aiden!”
Without even thinking, I ran to him and threw myself into his outstretched arms. I hadn’t seen him since he had graduated more than three years ago.
Three years.
He had come home once since then, but I had been on a school trip to Italy at the time and had just missed him.
“You’re home! You’re really here!” I said as my body instantly heated from Aiden’s arms wrapped tightly around me.
“I’m not home long,” he said, his arms slowly letting go of their grip on me. “I’m between deployments, I have to head back to Virginia Beach in a few days. I’m sorry I missed you the last time I was on leave.”
“It’s okay! I hated that I was on that stupid school trip.”
He finally stepped back and gave me a once-over. “Wow, Willa, you’ve certainly grown up.”
“You’ve changed too,” I said with a slight chuckle. I ran my finger along his stubble and tried not to let him notice how my hand trembled. “I didn’t think you could possible get any more handsome.”
He laughed and shook his head. “You never were afraid to say what you thought.”
I grinned. “Does Hunter know you’re here?”
“Yeah, we were together a couple of hours ago. I wasn’t in the mood for a college party, so I asked him if I could come ride for a bit and come see you.”
My heart felt like it skipped a beat. “You wanted to come see me?”