“Shut up. I am not.”
“It’s cute.” He shrugs.
I blush as I stick my tongue out at him, and his smile widens. I have to force myself to look away.
When we get to the pumpkin patch, Cooper lets everyone out of the trailer. They disperse, looking for the perfect pumpkins for the pumpkin carving party tomorrow. When I notice a woman trying to carry two pumpkins by herself, I head over to help her.
“I can carry one of those for you,” I tell her, taking one of the pumpkins.
“Thank you so much,” the woman says.
I let her know I’ll put it in the trailer; then I help a kid pick a pumpkin from her selection of three nearly identical ones she’s torn between.
“You picking one for tomorrow?” Cooper asks before we head back.
“I probably should.”
Everyone climbs into the trailer, and Cooper and I walk around until I find the perfect pumpkin—one that actually inspires my idea for what I’ll carve into it.
Cooper’s face contorts when I get it back to the hayride. “Of all the pumpkins here, why are you picking the ugly, warty one?”
“You’ll have to wait until tomorrow to find out,” I say as I climb onto the bench.
“Ah, intrigue.” He grabs the reins. “Guess I have no choice but to hang out with you tomorrow, then.”
My eyes whip to him. Is the icy wall between us finally melting for real? Does heactuallyforgive me for blowing him off years ago?
Trying not to read too much into it, I face forward and bite back a smile as he gets the horses moving. “Guess so.”
When we get back, Cooper goes to grab an ice pack and throw away the bloody tissues. We spend the rest of the day making trips to the pumpkin patch, and as the hours pass, his swollen nose begins to shrink back to normal.
By the end of our last trip, the sun is low in the sky, and the temperature has dropped. “Do you need help with anything?” I ask as Cooper unhooks the horses from the trailer.
“Yeah, come here.” He walks Ink around the trailer until he’s standing beside the bench. I keep my distance as I approach. “You have to get closer to get on him.”
“Um, what? I’m not getting on that thing. He hates me.”
“He doesn’t hate you. He just happened to shake off flies when you were going to pet him. This is your chance to live out your equestrian dream. Sort of. I’ll hold the reins and walk with you. Your only job is to not fall off.”
“No. Nope. Not happening. I’ve seen enough movies to know that if something spooks this guy, I’m done for.”
Cooper laughs. “All right, fine. What if I ride with you? Just a short walk down the trail and back.” I gnaw on my cheek, considering. “I’m not going to make you. If you say no, I’ll drop it. I just think you’ll enjoy it.”
Climbing on the horse with Cooperisa chance to take a step forward in our friendship and leave behind the mistakes I made with him.
And remembering the heat that fizzed through me when he gave me a piggyback ride at the apple orchard, I can’t say I’m nottempted by the thought of being that close to him again….
So, against my better judgment, I say, “Yeah, okay. Let’s do it.”
Cooper grins, his dimple popping and his eyes bright.
I follow him up to the bench, and he climbs onto the giant horse. He takes the reins and scoots forward on Ink’s bare back, leaving space for me to climb on behind him.
“Just swing your leg over and hold on to me,” he says. My limbs shake as I slide on and grip the back of his shirt. He lets go of the reins, reaches for my hands, and moves them to his waist. “I’d feel better if you weren’t relying on my T-shirt to save you from falling.”
“Got it,” I say, my body thrumming at the electrifying feeling of being this close to him.
“Ready?” he asks.
