Claire's Story: Chapter 9

It had been almost a week since she’d first met Sean. Claire’s hopes of seeing him again had dwindled, and their meeting had begun to seem more like a dream than reality. In fact, he had already made several welcome appearances in her dreams. Each time Claire had awakened with her heart thudding hard inside her chest, her subconscious full of lust and longing. After waking up to reality, the disappointment would set in, and Claire would go about her days just as she had before meeting the handsome cowboy.

Just before heading out the door to go to her team’s final basketball game, her cell rang, and an unfamiliar number was displayed on the screen. “Hello?” she answered without pause.

“Claire? Hey, it’s Sean Burnett. How are you?”

“Sean?” she asked, happily surprised. “I’m great, how are you?”

“Doing well, thank you. I got your number from Darla, I hope that’s ok.”

“Of course that’s ok,” Claire responded, trying not to sound too thrilled that he had called.

“Well, I was just wondering if you’d be interested in riding with me to Seminole tomorrow evening. I have to take a couple of bulls down that way, and I’d love to have some company.”

“Uhh, sure. That sounds fun.”

“Ok, I should be driving through Flatland around four, will that work?”

“Yeah, that’ll be great,” she replied. After giving him her address, they hung up, and Claire drove to the school to coach her team, half skipping in excitement on her way into the gymnasium.

***

The next day, Sean’s big black diesel pulled into her driveway ten minutes past four, and Claire met him outside, climbing into the passenger seat. She was thrilled to see that he was smiling almost as big as she was, and was even happier when he reached over his sleeping dogs to give her a friendly hug. She inhaled deeply to breathe in his musky, leathery scent, his scruffy cheek brushing against her smooth face as he pulled away.

“It’s great to see you again, and I’m so glad you decided to come with me today!” he said, his voice as deep and rumbling as it had been in her dreams.

“I’m glad you called. It’s been pretty boring around here lately.”

Sean asked about the giant dogs he’d seen inside Claire’s fence.

“Those are my Leos. An Austrian breed, they’re kind of rare.”

“Leonbergers, huh?” Sean questioned knowledgably. “I’ve only read about them, never seen one.”

Surprised by Sean’s knowledge of the breed, she told him that he’d have to meet her dogs when they got back to her house.

Sean then decided it was Claire’s turn to share about herself, as he’d already told her much about his childhood the last time they’d been together. She talked about her parents, of whom she was very close. She had one younger sibling, as sister, who also worked as a teacher in nearby Lubbock. Claire’s family was important to her, one of the main reasons she hadn’t made a break to live on a ranch in the Rockies, he instinctively assumed. She told him about growing in Flatland, about all of the basketball tournaments and summer camps she’d attended, which left little room for much else. Although she’d been passionate about horses since she could remember, she hadn’t really gotten the chance to pursue it until later in high school. It was then that she began working odd jobs in barns, on ranches, or at racetracks just for the chance that she’d occasionally be allowed to ride. She got her first horse in college, but similar to his own experience, being a college athlete allowed little time for anything else. So it was just in the past few years that she’d really had the time for her horse, and she was just starting to realize what kind of riding she wanted to pursue. Ranch riding.

Like a lot of young girls, she had started off in the equestrian ring, learning the proper mechanics of riding and showmanship. She had then taken an interest in behavior and horsemanship, following the theories popularized by Ray Hunt and Pat Parelli. In the last couple of years however, she had been spending her summers on a large horse and cattle operation managed by her cousin in northern New Mexico. The cutting horses were fantastic, truly happy and as natural as they came in their instinctive ability to run with and work cattle. There, Claire fell in love with her second horse, a talented mare named Emerald. Claire and Emmy had developed a connection that she’d never achieved with her first horse, likely due to the fact that both horse and rider loved the ranch and all the opportunities it provided. Although she was still very much in the beginning stages of learning about the ranch, cutting, and roping, her willingness and desire to learn were most evident to Sean, just through her talking about it.

“So why are you coaching in Flatland if it’s not what makes you happy?” he probed, thinking he probably already knew the answer.

“That’s the same question I ask myself most mornings,” she answered despondently, turning her face away from his to stare out the passenger window. “You know, things just happened to keep me here. Family. Relationships. Convenience. Security… I haven’t been brave enough until just recently to make a break for it, to really pursue it, I guess.”

He nodded with sincere understanding, and rested his hand on her knee. “I do know. It’s the fear of the unknown and taking a leap of faith. Of thinking that it’s not really feasible to live out your dreams when you feel like you should be content in all you’ve already been blessed with.”

Claire turned violently to stare at him in the fading twilight, her mouth open in astonishment. “I’ve never heard anyone put it like that. That is exactly how I feel. How, how did you know?” she stumbled.

“Feel the same way I guess. Like something is missing and I’ve just haven’t been brave enough to really go after it.”

They sat in silence for a while, both mulling over the words that the other had so perfectly stated. It was unusual for both parties to feel such understanding, especially from someone whom they had so recently met, and had only begun to trust. It was a good feeling.

They arrived at a large cattle ranch a few miles outside of Seminole where the bulls were to be delivered. The animals were unloaded with little excitement, and the pair was back on the road into town in no time. They stopped to grab a quick dinner, and returned to the truck with a little snack for the Aussies as well. The mood on the way home was at first tense, as if Claire had allowed too much of her heart to be exposed, and she needed to be more cautious. Somewhat sensing her wariness of sharing more personal thoughts, Sean kept the conversation lighthearted and humorous with stories of his college football days and the ridiculous antics of his roping buddies. The two hours back to Claire’s passed in no time, and she invited him inside to meet her beloved companions.

The dogs were immediately at ease with Sean, even her younger pup who was often wary around men. He scratched behind their ears and rubbed their chests until the hundred plus pounds of muscle and fur were lolling about his feet like kittens. “What great dogs!” he exclaimed, “Wonder how they’d get along with Betts and Barn?”

“Let’s bring ‘em inside, I’m sure they’ll be fine. These two could get along with anybody they’re so easy-going.”

They introduced the two Aussies to the much larger Leos, and Claire was right. The house was soon filled with the sounds of playful barks and flying clumps of hair as the dogs wrestled and played with unabashed vigor. “Okay, okay, you all have to go outside so I can hear myself think!” Claire announced as she opened the backdoor and the herd of fur rambunctiously filed outside.

She took Sean on a quick tour of her century old farm-house, and he seemed impressed with her collection of antiques that complemented her no-nonsense, rustic décor. He excused himself to the restroom while Claire turned on some music and started a pot of coffee.

“Hey Claire?” he called from the restroom, the door still closed.

“Uh, yeah?”

“Could you bring me a screwdriver, I’m gonna fix your toilet.”

“Oh brother, how embarrassing,” she thought to herself as she approached the bathroom. “Sean, you don’t have to do that. I can fix it, I just haven’t exactly figured out how to yet.”

He opened the door with gusto, a broad, teasing smile plastered on his face. “Just let me fix it for you, we won’t tell a soul if that’s what you need to keep your ego intact.”

With a bashful smile and a feigned sigh of disgust, she stomped off to get fetch the requested tool. Upon her return, she held the screwdriver out for him, but instead her grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her into the narrow room toward the faulty device.

“Here, I’m gonna show you how to fix it instead.”

“No, it’s okay. I’m perfectly happy to let a man take care of it,” she said in a mocking tone of refute.

“That’s a big, fat lie and we both know it. Here, it’ll take just a second.” He guided her to the open toilet, and expertly instructed her where and what to adjust, pointing out the details from over her shoulder. In no time, the leak that had persisted for months was corrected. Claire spun around on the closed lid, and looked up into the defined face of the man who was still leaning over her, his solid arms forming walls around her shoulders. They seemed frozen as the physical nearness of one another’s faces caused both to anticipate and over-think the next move. Claire could smell the faint tinge of peppermint on his breath, and she was sure that he could hear the pounding of her heart that had suddenly leapt to twice its normal speed. After a few long seconds, Sean stood up, and exhaled slightly as he did. He reached for Claire’s hand and helped her up casually, abating the intimate tension that had just occurred.

They returned to the kitchen where she poured them both cups of steaming coffee, and they retired to the comfort of her living room. Sean could not stay much longer however, as it was still at least a three hour drive back to his home in the northern panhandle. He soon gathered up his dogs and Claire followed him to her front door, again reluctant to tell him goodbye.

“Thanks for riding with me Claire, it definitely made the trip seem a lot shorter. And gave me something to look forward to,” he continued, unabashedly allowing his feelings for her to be known.

“I had a nice time too. It was really good to see you again.”

“Does that mean it’d be ok if I called you again?” he ventured.

“Well, maybe,” she said coyly. “I mean, you did fix my toilet. I guess I owe you.”

He laughed whole-heartedly and pulled her into a friendly embrace. The hug was comfortable and familiar, and she didn’t want him to let go. When Sean released her their eyes locked, and with a confident smile he stepped back and told the dogs to load up into the truck. With a slight nod, his headlights disappeared down her driveway and into the darkness.