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“Then let’s get to know each other. Let’s stop focusing on what we are and start focusing on learning more about each other,” she says. She gestures to the heating pad and bottle of pain killers. “Starting with whatever that’s about. If you’re so eager to share.”
Shit.
I walked right into that one.
“Tell you what,” I say. “I’ll give you the full story over dinner. Real dinner—which means eaten at a restaurant in public.”
“Together?”
I let out a laugh. “Yes, Miss Vivica. Together. You done busting my balls or what?”
“I couldn’t help it,” she says with a laugh of her own. “Alright, let’s do it. Finally a real dinner date.”
“There’s a first time for everything.”
We wind up at The Barnyard, a local family-owned restaurant in town. It’s loud, unpretentious, and packed almost every night.
The food’s worth the wait, and the speaker system blares country music at any given moment.
We’re shown to a table and spend a couple minutes debating items on the menu.
In the end, I order the chicken-fried steak, and she gets the double-cut pork chop with a side of redskin mashed potatoes.
Our waitress brings over our craft beers, and we spend the time waiting for our food trading different war stories. She tells me about how she decided becoming a veterinarian was the career for her. I make her laugh with the story about the first time I rode Buttercup.
“It wasn’t pretty,” I say, swallowing some beer. “First week at Silver Creek, Buck tells me to take her out to the north pasture for a perimeter check. Simple ride, nothing complicated. I get about ten minutes in and she decides she’s done cooperating. Starts bucking, sidestepping, tossing her head like I’ve personally offended her. I’m hanging on with everything I’ve got, and she’s trying to launch me into the next county over.”
“Nope, don’t believe it!” Vivica says with a shake of her head. “Buttercup is a sweetie. She nuzzles my hand every time I check on her.”
“She is now,” I correct. “But she’s particular. She doesn’t warm up to any ol’ body. You’ve got to earn her trust, and she damn sure makes you work for it.”
“Wow, so she has high standards. Good for her.”
My lips twitch into a grin even as I sip from my beer. “Guess I’ve got a thing for females like that.”
Vivica’s gorgeous face glows with more humor. “I am a tough nut to crack. But you’re too damn charming for your own good. You know that, right?”
“I’ve been told.”
“I bet you have.”
Our food arrives and it’s every bit as good as the packed house promised.
We eat and talk and laugh over a second round of beers. Our conversation has an easy flow about it, where we really do feel like two lovers bonding and getting to know each other.
…only the beginning if I’ve got anything to say about it.
Vivica tells me about the craziest animal emergency she’s ever handled: a goat that ate an entire bag of Halloween candy, wrappers included.
I share about how Joaquin electrocuted himself on the electric fence that borders part of the ranch (though thankfully he’s alright, just lost a few braincells).
Eventually, we land back on the heating pad and Vivica’s inquisitiveness about learning more. I decide to come clean for real this time.
“I’ve got a back injury—three herniated discs in my lower spine. Happened when I was still in the Air Force. It was a bad parachute landing where I hit the ground at the wrong angle. Spent a whole year dealing with military doctors trying to fix me.
“Turns out, there’s no real way of fixing this. It’s pretty much permanent. So then I spend a whole ’nother year being medically discharged,” I explain matter-of-factly. “Came to Silver Creek to find my way and figure myself out. For so long I thought the military would be my life, but now that’s suddenly over. Most days the pain’s manageable.”
“And the other days?”
