His Nightingale

11

Chapter Eleven - Sadness & Smiles

I rush outside and away from the house before finding a bench to sit on. I will my racing heart to calm down but the more I think about the situation at hand the more I wish I could just disappear off the face of the earth. But nothing is that easy. My eyelids flutter shut as the cool wind of the evening kisses my cheeks. How I wish I could just live a carefree life without having to constantly look over my shoulders.

"What's wrong?" I hear from behind and turn to see Ryder frowning at me.

"Roman said that Curtis, my dad's friend, is missing and it's likely that Seth took him." I explain shakily.

"I'm sure Roman will find him, Ella." He murmurs gently but I shake my head.

"I-I don't want him to get hurt because of me." I whisper as I remember all the painful things Seth did to me when he took me. "I can't stop thinking about him."

He sighs and glances behind him before turning to me. "Come on."

I follow him in confusion as we make our way to the stables. He takes Knight out and puts his gear on before guiding him outside. I don't question him as he helps me up before sitting behind me. His body's warmth seeps into mine and I find my belly fluttering with nervousness at our proximity.

I hold onto the horn of the saddle as Ryder takes the reigns and away we go. Knight leisurely gallops across the vast land of the Jackson ranch and I take everything in with content. But when Ryder steers him in the direction of the woods at the back of the land I stiffen slightly. I feel his hand rub my arm soothingly before his touch is gone but it sends my body into an excited frenzy regardless.

Knight makes his way through the tightly packed forest before my gasp is taken by the wind when we break out of the trees. Ahead of me lays a huge lake with more of the forest surrounding the perimeter of it to the other side. The setting sun casts a warm orange glow to the sky which also reflects beautifully on the water.

"This is so beautiful." I whisper in awe as a flock of birds fly past above the treetops.

"I'm glad you like it." Ryder murmurs gently as he hops off before holding his arms out to me.

I jump off Knight and my hands land on Ryder's shoulders before grazing down his torso since I'm smaller than him. His hands tighten briefly around my waist before he lets go and guides me towards the water. There's a concrete deck of sorts which we sit down on cross-legged.

"Is this where you come whenever you take Knight out?" I ask curiously as I watch the horse lay down by the water.

"Yeah." He chuckles as he throws a skipping stone into the water. "It helps me to think things through or if I just need to get away for some quiet time."

"You own a medical company right?"

"Yes. We supply life support equipment as well as general use ones such as hospital beds, wheelchairs, crutches and more." He explains with a proud glint in his eyes.

"Wow...but why Canada? Why not supply from home?" I frown in confusion as I bring my knees up to my chest.

He shrugs halfheartedly as he gazes out at the water. "I studied in Canada and it became my second home. I came up with the idea in college and some of my friends helped me establish my business. We all just decided to stay in Canada because we were still studying at the time."

"My mom was from Vancouver." I smile sadly as memories of her flood my mind.

"Really?" He perks up in interest. "So, were you born there or...?"