Photograph ( Marina )

Chapter Twenty-Two

Come on."

"NO!"

"Carina." Maya shook her head at her girlfriend with a small grin on her face.

"If you would've told me you were going to make me get on an overgrown donkey death trap then I would've just stayed home." Carina jutted out her bottom lip as the marine tugged her along to the barn by a little ways away from the ranch house. Having been too excited to see her childhood horse, Maya left everything in the truck and took the smaller woman's hand in a rush.

"He's a horse Car." Maya laughed and came to a stop as she reached up to unhook the door hinges of the barn and led the doctor in to meet her friend. "Relax, he's super gentle."

"It smells like shit in here." Carina grumbled as they came closer to the stall and suddenly regretted agreeing to this in the first place. Not the time with Maya, just the well, horses. Once they came up to his stall the horse stuck his head out in greeting and naturally scared the shit out of the younger woman.

"Carina, this is Spartan. Spartan this is Carina." Spartan nodded his head up and down and Maya let out a childlike laugh at the notion. "He's my most trusted horse and the most tame, so he's gonna be yours tomorrow when I take you for a ride."

"Trusted my ass, he nearly scared me to death." Carina came up behind Maya and peered over her shoulder at the horse. He was beautiful to say the least, all black with a small spot of white between his eyes. He seemed like a friendly guy but being from Italy and then moving here from New York, Carina hadn't encountered many horses. She reached a hand out and brushed her fingers along his snout and smiled. "He's really beautiful. I've never really seen one up close before."

"Really? Where the hell have you been?" Maya chuckled and took in the exchange between her girlfriend and Spartan.

"Italy." Carina deadpanned which caused the marine's face symbolized 'oh shit'. She laughed at her lieutenant's facial expression as she continued, this time with a soft smile on her lips. "There weren't many there and New York didn't have any at all."

"Makes sense." Maya nodded and passed the younger girl a handful of oats to feed Spartan as a little treat. "Here, he loves these things. Just put your hand out and he'll do the rest." Carina did as was told and laughed as the horse's lips tickled her hand and brush her hand over the his coat. "There you go buddy! See he's not all that frightening once you get to know him."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right." The doctor smiled over to the marine and took a moment to take in her appearance. For the first time in a week Maya seemed as if she was truly at ease and that alone made Carina's heart swell. But the look she gave back to the younger woman could've lit a thousand fires with how much love was burned into that gaze alone. She placed a quick kiss on the older woman's cheek and slipped her hand into the marine's rougher one with a small content sigh.

"Let's go inside." Maya whispered as she kissed Carina's forehead tenderly. "I want to show you around."

Once the lieutenant had grabbed the suitcase from the bed of the truck she tossed Carina the keys and gave her a go ahead nod to unlock the door. When she did, she couldn't believe the sight she was met with. The ranch house looked beautiful from the outside, but the small doctor couldn't imagine that it would've been just as incredible inside. But it was. Her jaw dropped the moment she stepped inside and laid eyes on the rather large living room with a stone based fireplace and an older looking couch set. There were photograph's of people who Carina assumed to be Maya's grandparents and a couple pictures of the marine when she was still a child. On top of the fireplace sat the blue-eyed girl's graduation picture and a few others of the older couple with her late parents. The coffee table had a brown coloured candle set in the middle of it which matched the brick red walls quite nicely. Carina assumed this is what it would've been like to have met Maya's parents and visited her childhood home. A lump formed in her throat at the realization.