A/N: Sorry its been awhile! With the holidays, I had ideas but never the time to sit and write. Each chapter takes at least an hour and a half, if not longer.
Riley/Lucas fluff as requested. I had reviews saying this has became all about Joshaya, but I find it easier to write about them than Rucas.
So much is written about Riley and Lucas, that I always hesitate, is this my brain or something I read.
Anyways... here's the latest ramblings of my mixed up brain... I don't own the characters or show, but if I did, it would still be on the air somewhere!
Chapter 28
Riley's POV
'Its so quiet here.' I thought to myself as I sat on the front porch watching the sunrise, and watching Lucas take care of the morning chores.
Somehow in all the craziness we convinced our parents, mainly mine, to let us come down to Texas to visit Pappy Joe. Lucas and Josh tag teamed Maya and I, taking my phone away except for a certain time every night. Maya is trying to finish the wedding planning, and the guys said if we could talk about every decision, nothing would get done.
"Morning, Darling." Pappy Joe said, handing me a fresh cup of coffee.
"Thanks. I can see why he wants to be a vet, watching him with the animals. It's all so natural to him." I mentioned.
"What about you? What are your plans for the future?" Pappy smiled.
"I want to teach. I've always thought about being a lawyer like my mom, but as I grew up, I realized I'm more like my dad. I want to be the teacher he was to us, and what Feeny was to them. I do think I'd rather work with little kids however, instead of teenagers." I answered.
"I haven't decided on a school yet. I know its a great honor to have all these choices, and some I applied to, just to see if I could get in, not necessarily because I wanted to attend. It was an amazing feeling just to get accepted into Harvard and Yale, but they aren't really known for having wonderful teaching programs." I continued.
"What does that leave? Where did my grandson get accepted? All he has mentioned is that he wants to major in veterinary medicine." Pappy asked.
"Lucas and I both got accepted into NYU and Texas A&M. He also got accepted into Baylor, Texas Tech and Columbia. Both have great education programs, and NYU has an undergrad in Animal Sciences that can lead to veterinary school. Texas schools have a better veterinary program, but he won't go to a school that far away. I don't think I'm ready to move half a continent away from my family. I love Texas, but I don't know if I'm ready to make it my home." I let all my concerns flow.
"Follow what your heart tells you to do. Don't worry about your family there or here, or this ranch. The ranch and this old coot won't be here forever, so please don't make life plans around us." Pappy answered softly.
"Well, our Lucas has about finished the morning chores. It looks like its time to get started on breakfast so its ready when he is cleaned up. He mentioned taking you into town to show you around this morning, and a trail ride this afternoon. You can talk on the trail and make your decisions with nobody around but the animals who don't argue." Pappy held the screen door open for me and let the topic drop.
By the time Lucas had cleaned up, we had bacon, biscuits, eggs, hash browns, and homemade jam sitting on the table waiting for him. Pappy claimed this was a normal everyday breakfast and reminded us to pick up some fresh honey when we were in town.
When we were finished eating, the guys cleared the table and washed the dishes while I took the opportunity to get dressed for town.
I pulled a few things out of my bag, and looked in the closet where I hung some of my clothes when we arrived last night. I finally decided a blue flowered sundress with boots would be cute but not too dressy. As an afterthought, I grabbed my denim jacket in case I needed it inside. I'm not used to this Texas climate, with outdoor temperatures in the 100s but the cold air conditioning inside everywhere made it 60 indoors.
As we walked around town, and ate lunch at the cafe, I was once again amazed at the slower pace of life. Everyone seemed to know Lucas, and know his family. I was introduced to a lot of new faces that I have no chance of matching names to faces. Several old buddies teased Lucas about falling for a city girl, and Lucas always just laughed and said I fell for him first.
After lunch, I changed into jeans and enjoyed the slow ride through the pastures. At one point, we stopped to rest, and I brought up the college conversation again.
Lucas apparently had been thinking of it also, as it didn't take us long to agree to a plan. We decided to accept the offer at NYU and complete our undergraduate courses there. That would allow me to get my teaching certification, and then we could see what our future held at that point and look at vet schools together.
I couldn't wait until after supper so I could talk with Maya. I may have been in Texas for only about 24 hours, but I had a lot to share with her. We may not be college roommates like we had planned, but at least we will still be in the same city for the next 2-3 years.
