Road Not Taken

Chapter 4: Babysitting

I watched Mallory as Tessa helped my family around the farm. I was outside trying to work with a horse that was stubborn. Mallory watched me in silence, sitting on the fence. I hop off the saddle and sigh in defeat.

"What are you doing?" Mallory asks.

"Trying to ride this damn horse."

"That's a bad word."

"Sorry." I guess I should try to watch my mouth around her.

"What's wrong with it?"

"Nothing, it's just being stubborn."

"What does stubborn mean?"

"It means that no matter what I do, this horse just refuses to listen." I say as I take the saddle off. I take the rope that was attached to the reins and tie it to the fence.

"Can I try?" Mallory asks, pointing to the saddle.

"Nope."

"Why?"

"Do you think your mom would let me?"

"No."

"That's what I thought."

"But she's not here."

"I know, but I would rather have her permission than yours."

"Mommy is boring." She says while crossing her arms.

"I'm sure she isn't." I could tell from Tessa's attempt to steal one of our horses that she had an adventurous side to her.

"Of course, you say that. You like mommy."

Kids think they know everything, don't they? "I never said that."

"Do you love her?" She asks, drawing out the o.

"Alright, that's enough questions from you." I realize that it is getting dark. "Go back inside the house, I'm sure dinner is almost ready."

"But-"

I raise a finger. "No buts."

"Fine." Mallory hops off the fence and goes back to the house. That is one well behaved child, Tessa must be a great mom.

I take the horse back to the stables and smile as I think about how Mallory is a lot like her mother. I leave the stables and find Tessa leaning against the door outside, wearing an off the shoulder top, giving me a peek of some of the scars that mark her skin. "What are you doing out here? It's freezing." I take off my denim jacket and offer it to her.

Tessa smiles and drapes the jacket around her shoulders. "I know, I just wanted to say thanks for watching Mallory."

"No problem, she's a great kid."

Tessa looks down at the ground while hugging herself. "I know." She seems off, and a little too quiet for my liking.

I move closer to her. "What's wrong?" I ask and hold her hand. I noticed yesterday that it calmed her down.

"Nothing."

I nudged her shoulder. "Come on, tell me."

"Did she talk about..."

"About who?"

"Them."

"Them?" It takes me a second to realize what she is asking. "Oh. You mean the people that you are running from?"

"Yeah, them."

"No and I didn't ask her either."

"Why not?" She asks as she looks me in the eyes.

"Because it's not my place and I would rather hear it from you. But I understand that you don't want to talk about it and I'm still a stranger to you. So, I promise to respect your wishes."

"Thanks."

"Like I said, no need to thank me." A comforting silence falls between us. "You know.... if you ever do want to talk, I'm all ears. And I don't mind doing most of the talking." I didn't want to be a stranger to her forever.

She looks away from me for a second. "So.... what did you and Mallory talk about?"

"Nothing really."

"What?" She looks me in the eyes again and it's like she already knows the answer.

"Nothing."

We stare into each other's eyes for a while until Tessa starts shaking from the cold.

"Can we go inside now? It's freezing out here."

I chuckle. "Sure thing."

We walk back inside the house, and I can't help but think about how much I am starting to like this woman and how much I will miss her when she leaves.