"Kay?" she heard. She turned around from putting clothes in her drawers.

"Daddy!"she yelled jumping into his arms.

"How's the birthday girl?" he asked giving her a kiss on her forehead.

"Fine."

"Come on. I have something for you," he said putting her down.

He led her out of her room and down outside of the house. He turned towards her, told her to trust him, and blind folded her. He placed his hands on her shoulders and guided her several yards. When they came to a stop, he told her to wait.

"Take it off now, sweetie."

Kay took off the blind fold and her jaw dropped at the sight of a beautiful horse. "Daddy," she screamed, "He's gorgeous!" She ran up to her father and hugged him tightly. "I love you, daddy," she cried.

"I love you, too, princess," he said.

Kay opened her eyes and felt tears escape her eyes. She hated yet loved her dreams lately. She hated them because they brought back memories that she couldn't relive. Yet, she loved them because they were always about her father. It was the only place where she could spend time with her father. She sat up and rubbed her face. She was glad that it was Saturday. She was home alone most of the day. As she got up and got some clothes to wear, the doorbell rang. She walked down to the front door and opened it.

"Hey," Bradin said.

"Hi," she said, "You do know that-"

"Yeah," he told her, "We have off on the weekend. But, I need to talk to you. Do you have a second?"

She stepped aside and let him in. He walked in and looked back at her as she closed the door, admiring her look. To him, it looked like she just woke up. However, she was still pretty. "So, what's up?" she asked.

"Are you busy tonight?" he asked. She looked at him funny. "I told my aunt what you've done for me. She wants to pay you by making dinner and possibly giving you something."

"It's no big deal. I'm glad to have given you a job here. She doesn't have to. But, I can't go out today. I have a lot to do here."

"Do you need help?"

"No. I can handle it." She studied his face expressions when she told him that. "You didn't come here to invite me to dinner, did you?"

"Yes and no. I wanted to see how you were doing. I was worried about you."

"I'm fine, really."

"Can you please think about my offer?" he asked handing her a piece of paper. She took it and noticed that it was his phone number. She looked up and found him walking out of the house. She sighed.

Bradin sat on the beach that afternoon thinking of Kay. He was trying to figure out something she said to him the the day prior to that moment.

"How could you care about someone you don't know?" she asked.

It went through his mind making him think more than he ever has. Could his mind be playing tricks on him? Could his heart be playing tricks on him? He didn't know at that moment.

"Hey Kansas," Erika said walking up to and sitting beside him, "What's wrong?"

"Something's on my mind. I think I need to do this on my own."

"Is it about that owner of that ranch your ditching surfing for?" she asked.

He looked at her as if she was blaming Kay for him not wanting to surf that much anymore. "Yeah. It's her."

"Come back to surfing," she begged, "You don't need the ranch. Surfing is your life."

"No. Yes surfing makes me happy. But, working on this ranch is much better for me. I love the stables. It reminds me of home."

"You're not home, though, Kansas. You're in Cali now. Kansas can't be a part of your life anymore."

"How can you say that?" he asked. "Kansas is and always will be a part of me. God, I can't believe I was in love with you." With that, he stood up and walked away from her with her calling after him.

It was cutting close to dinner time and Bradin knew Kay wasn't coming. Yes, he was disappointed. He was hoping for the chance of getting to know her. As the food wa being set on the table, the doorbell rang.

"Bradin," Susannah said, "someone is here to see you."

Bradin looked up from the table and saw Jay, Kay's uncle. "Jay?" he asked.

"Hi. I came here to tell you that Kay wasn't able to make tonight. She was riding Windmill and he went crazy. As he raised his front legs, she fell off and broke her arm."

"Is she okay?" he asked worriedly.

"She's fine. But, she was looking forward to coming tonight. This just happened and now she can't make it."

Inside, Bradin smiled knowing that Kay DID want to come to dinner. "But, she's fine?"

"Yeah. I didn't find your number where she said it was. So, I asked Hank where you lived since we were out this way and thought I should tell you."

"Thanks. Tell Kay that I'll ocme by tomorrow to see how she is."

"I will."

A/N: hey everyone. i don't know when i'll be updating again. my job has me working crazy hours and its taking up almost everyday of the week. i don't know when i'll have time to write. however, i do plan on finishing it. hope you enjoyed this chap.