The Cowboy's Christmas Courtship. Brenda Minton

“Could you stop being so mean?”

      Layla closed her eyes and nodded. “I’m sorry. I’m not a mean person. I’m just tired.”

      The bleachers moved and creaked as he sat down next to her. His shoulder bumped hers, and she inhaled the scent of the outdoors. How could he smell that good when he’d been working all day?

      “I know you’re not mean.” His voice was soft. “I was teasing.”

      Her heart tried to open up. She couldn’t let it. “You hurt me.”

      “I know and I’m sorry.”

      She nodded, not looking at him because she couldn’t look into his eyes right then, not when her emotions were worn thin and she needed someone to lean on. It couldn’t be him.

      “What is it you’re doing, Gage? Are you trying to earn my forgiveness?”

      “I don’t know.” He leaned back against the bleacher seat behind them and stretched his leg in front of him. “Maybe I’m trying to find my way back.”

      “God doesn’t require you to make amends to be forgiven.”

      He didn’t respond for a minute. She wondered if she’d hit the nail on the head. She looked up at him. He was staring at the arena, his strong jaw clenched. She focused, for whatever reason, on the pulse at the base of his throat.

      Finally he sighed. “I have to do this.”

      “I forgave you a long time ago. When we’re young everything feels like forever. I was a typical teenage girl who thought if you smiled at me, we’d probably get married. I know better now.”

      “Girls really think that?” He smiled at her.

      “Maybe not that drastically. But when the teenage girl is already...” She didn’t want to have this conversation, but it was too late. “When the girl isn’t feeling loved, she is probably looking for someone to love her.”

      “I’m sorry that I wasn’t the person to love you.”

      So was she. “Well, you did me a favor. You taught me to be more careful. We’ve all hurt people, Gage. It’s part of life, part of growing up.”

      “I know. But somehow I’ve skated through life with almost no repercussions and other people have suffered....”

      He had more to say, but she didn’t want to hear it. They weren’t friends. They didn’t share secrets. She stood up and moved away from him, away from his story and his emotions.

      “I should go.”

      He grinned and stood up. “Too much?”

      “Yeah. I think if you need to confess, I’m not the person. But I’ll take the help with my brother.”

      “Thank you.”

      She took off his coat and handed it back to him. His fingers brushed hers. Layla pulled back, surprised by the contact, by the way his eyes sought hers when they touched.

      “Good night, Gage.” She hurried away, leaving him standing in the arena alone.