Meant to Be by Jessica James

don’t trust me,
do you?”
    She bent her head back and
looked up at him. “Even if I didn’t trust you, which I’m not saying
I don’t—it wouldn’t necessarily mean I don’t like you.”
    “ Yeah, I get the feeling
you don’t trust much of anybody.”
    She was going to say, “You have good
instincts,” but he interrupted her.
    “ I’d give you my number,
but we can’t have phones with us during training so it wouldn’t do
much good.”
    “ Well, it’s not that I’m
against giving you my number, exactly.” Lauren inhaled deeply.
“It’s just that I don’t get very good service where I’m going. And
I don’t even carry my phone half the time, and if I do the battery
is generally dead.”
    “ Hmm,” is all Rad said, as
if he didn’t believe her.
    Lauren closed her eyes, not knowing
what else to say. The phone she had was for business, and as far as
she knew, her direct superior was the only one who had the
number.
    “ A business phone would
work. I could leave a message.”
    “ I’ll think about it,
Rad.”
    She felt him draw a deep breath, like
a condemned person hearing that execution, though inevitable, had
been postponed.
    “ Okay, well, think fast.
Time’s flying.”
    As if by magic, the moon suddenly
burst out from behind a cloud, casting a brilliant beam of light
over the ocean that reflected off the water like a pathway to
heaven.
    “ It’s the most beautiful
thing I’ve ever seen,” Lauren said excitedly, afraid to take her
eyes off the mystical sight in case the moon would become covered
again.
    “ Yes. It is.”
    The deep, sensuous tone of his voice
made Lauren look up, and she found herself staring straight into
his unwavering eyes.
    “ I’m talking about the
moon,” she said after a moment’s hesitation.
    “ I’m not.”
    All was quiet for a breathless moment
as both seemed to wait to see what the other would do. Then a voice
interrupted the silence.
    “ Rad! Rad! You out here
somewhere?”
    “ I’m right here.” He
sounded disappointed as he stood and pulled Lauren to her
feet.
    As they moved unhurriedly in the
darkness toward the low hum of voices, Rad seemed somehow taller
and more solid to Lauren, making her wish he would reach out and
hold her one last time. She had the feeling he wanted to do just
that—or at least say something—but if he did, he never had the
opportunity.
    “ There they are.” Someone
from around the campfire had spotted them and pointed them out as
they walked up the beach.
    “ Rad, get up here,” Wynn
shouted above the sound of the music. “We need you to settle
something.”
    Both Rad and Lauren blinked at the
brightness of the low flames of the fire as they approached the
group standing around it. The size of the party had diminished to
just a handful of men, so Lauren knew it must be late.
    “ Pops and Reese are having
a discussion about horses,” Wynn said. “They agreed to let you
settle it.”
    “ If you had the choice,
would you want a Quarter horse or an Arabian?” Pops walked toward
Rad and handed him a beer. “I say Quarter horse is the better
breed. Reese likes Arabians.”
    Lauren answered for him. “Seriously?
How about a Thoroughbred, or better yet, a Hanoverian?”
    “ You got
to be kidding me,” Reese said. “What are they good for?”
    Lauren shook her head. “Who wants a
weeny little Arabian or fifteen-hand Quarter horse between their
legs when they can have the power of a Hanoverian?”
    Rad twisted off the cap of a beer and
spoke casually. “See guys, it’s like I’m always tellin’ ya.” He
took a long, slow sip before speaking again. “Size
matters.”
    Lauren was the first to burst out
laughing, but the others soon joined in before starting to gather
their things to head back to their rooms.
    “ We’re calling it a night.
You two kids have fun.” Wynn slapped Rad on the back, and the two
had a quiet conversation while Lauren said goodbye to Reese and
Pops.
    “ You guys have something
to