The next morning was pure hell as Letty pulled herself into the bathroom. One cold shower and two black cups of coffee later, she picked up her phone and dialed the diner. "Hal's Diner, this is Lindsay," Lindsay's chipper voice rang out.
"Hey, Linds, it's Letty," she groaned back.
"Oh, hey, Letty. Fun night, huh? So, what happened with Lance?" She fired question after question.
"Nothing," Letty mumbled, holding her pounding head in her hands. "I was just wondering if you could swing by on your lunch and take me to get my car."
"Sure no problem," Lindsay replied happily, "I'll be there about one."
"Thanks, Linds."
"Sure, what are friends for?" There was a click on the other end. Friends, huh? Sounded good to Letty.
By one thirty, Letty and Lindsay were pulling into the bar's parking lot. The Nissan looked awkwardly out of place in the little Texan town. It bright paint job and bold graphics sprung out against the back drop of Dodge Rams and Ford Mustangs. She smiled in pride as she slid out of Lindsay's Corolla and into her carbon fiber driver's seat. The engine erupted into life, and she realized how much she missed the races. Push it away, Letty, she told herself, that's all over with now. Sighing sadly, she followed Lindsay back to the diner. Over a grilled cheese and fries, Lindsay explained to her the basics of the diner.
"Linds," I used to help run a café back home," she laughed, "I think I'll be okay." Lindsay smiled and told her to come in at twelve the next day.
"All right, well, I'm gonna get outta here," Letty said, getting up and handing Lindsay a wad of ones. She exited out of the cool diner and into the bright afternoon sunshine. Deciding to walk rather than drive, she headed for a little boutique across the road. The shop owner was a petit older lady, and Letty assumed she wouldn't be able to find the trendy threads here that she was used to.
"Afternoon," she smiled as she finished rearranging a rack of blouses.
"Hey," Letty smiled as she headed for the jeans. Choosing a couple of pairs of flares, she headed for the shirts. Everything had either lace or flowers, so she decided to pick up some boys' T-shirts. Walking back to her car, she spotted a familiar truck parked in front of the diner behind her Nissan. The little bell on the diner door dinged, just as she was placing her bags in her trunk.
"Hey, girl," Lance smiled broadly.
"Hey," she grinned, pushing her sunglasses back up on her nose.
"How ya feelin'?"
"Nothing a cold shower and black coffee couldn't cure."
"Good," he replied, "Well, I gotta go feed my horses. I know, it's typical." Letty laughed.
"It's cool, I'll cut you some slack this time."
"Hey, you wanna come with me?"
Letty's eyes widened beneath her sunglasses, "Uh, I've never…"
"C'mon," he entreated, "It'll be easy. Last night you had never boot-scooted."
She thought it over for a moment, "Okay," she groaned in submission.
The city faded away behind them as they headed out to the outer lying ranches. She gazed at pastures, where long-horned cattle roamed free, idly chewing the grass as their big, dopey eyes followed the blue pick-up down the road. "Here we are," Lance announced as he pulled the truck up to a high gate outside a large stable. Letty opened her door and slid off the seat, her feet hitting the dusty ground below. She followed him through the gate and into the stables. It was cooler inside, the scent of the horses, hay, and manure all mixing and wafting into her nostrils. Lance strode over to the first stall to the right, gently murmuring as he stroked the mane of a beautiful, black mare. "C'mere," he said over his shoulder to Letty.
Hesitantly, she joined him in front of the stall. The horse turned its attention to her, sniffing her and snorting loudly. The sound caused Letty to jump in surprise, which was rewarded by a laugh from Lance. "C'mon, gimme your hand." Reluctantly, she let him take her hand and press it gently against the soft neck of the mare. Letty was tense, knowing that the animal could turn at any moment. Lance stroked their hands down the side of the horses head, and it seemed to visually relax.
"If you'd have told me a last week that I would be standing here petting a horse, I would have laughed in your face," Letty smiled. Lance let her hand go, and she gently rubbed the mare's nose.
"You want to ride her?" he asked suddenly. Letty looked at him as though he'd gone completely insane.
"W-what?"
"I'd think even a city slicker Californian would know what riding a horse is," he joked.
"Shut up," she laughed and playfully punched his arm, "I know what riding a horse is; I've just never done it before."
"Really?" Lance said, giving her a "duh" look.
"Fine," Letty announced defiantly.
Twenty minutes later, Lance was leading the mare, Sasha, out into the yard, as Letty nervously paced back and forth. Get it together, she told herself, you can control the Nissan at 130 miles per hour with a hundred shot of NOS, you can control a horse. Still, her palms were sweaty as she gripped the reins. "Okay, just take it slow. Don't spur her sides, and pull back on the reins to stop," Lance instructed. He walked with them at first, gently speaking to the horse, soothing both it and Letty. "The horse can sense your tension, Letty. You gotta calm down."
Trying to slow her breathing, she rolled her shoulders and attempted to relax on the saddle. Eventually, she began to lighten up as the horse became accustomed to her. She even began to have fun, much to her surprise. The sun began to set over the dusty plains in the distance, and Lance suggested they head inside. Together, they finished feeding and brushing the rest of the horses.
"Well, I have to admit that I had a lot of fun. Thanks," Letty smiled, wrapping a rope up around her elbow and then shoulder.
"Wow, you're even coiling rope!" Lance muttered in mock shock, "We'll convert you yet!" She laughed as he turned to finish straightening the supplies. She caught herself watching him, his sleeves pulled up to his shoulders, revealing the smooth curves of his tanned muscles. Deciding there was no harm in looking, she studied the way he delicately organized his supplies, his dark eyes considering every detail. Suddenly, his dark, chocolate eyes found hers, and she turned away bashfully.
They didn't really speak on the way back to the diner; a comfortable silence was the only thing filling the truck. "Thanks, Lance, I really had a great time," Letty smiled as she leaned against the driver's door of her Nissan.
He stood in front of her, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "Me, too." Letty bit the inside of her cheek, unsure of what to say.
"Okay, well, I guess I'll see you lat-" Before she could finish the sentence, Lance had captured her words against his lips. Letty was caught off guard, and a flood of thoughts entered her mind.
Pushing him away gently, she chose her words carefully. "Lance, I-it's too soon. I mean, we just met, and I've got a lot of things going on," her words trailed off as she bit her lip nervously.
"Yeah. Okay. Well, I'll see ya later," Lance said with a short smile, his cheeks colored in embarrassment. Nodding to her politely, he got back into his truck and pulled away from the diner.
Letty was just about to get in her car, when the diner door opened. "What happened, Let?" Lindsay asked quizzically.
"Nothing," she answered sadly.
"You wanna come in, have some coffee?" Lindsay offered.
"Nah, I'm gonna head home," Letty answered, "I'll see ya tomorrow."