Chapter 51

The day after Jeff called it quits with me; Keegan completely lied about Izzy, and I was spent. I talked with Jagger about a lot of what had happened, just to ensure she still wanted to take me on a date. She said it hadn’t changed how she felt at all. She planned to pick me up around 6:00 in the afternoon. I was excited to see what she had planned.

I wore my dark ripped jeans and my dark purple turtleneck sweater. It was only 63° today, so it would be chilly. I put my hair back into a slicked ponytail after I straightened it with a flatiron. I wore red lipstick and tall black boots. I waited anxiously by the bay window for her truck to come down the road. I needed something good in my life right now and I think Jagger was exactly what I needed.

After about 10 minutes, I saw headlights pulling down the street. It was Jagger! I texted my mom and brother that I was headed out and then made my way out the door. I opened the door to her truck and hopped in.

“Hey beautiful! I love the hair,” Jagger said, flicking my ponytail with her fingers.

“Thank you. I wanted to look extra pretty for you on our first date,” I said.

She smiled at the thought and then began to back out of the driveway.

“So where are we headed?” I asked.

“We are actually going to my dad’s farm. I know it sounds odd, but I thought maybe we could ride horses and have a picnic. Maybe even shoot some guns in his range?” she said.

She seemed so excited. I was completely on board. A picnic sounded romantic. Jagger’s dad was the sweetest man too. I like that he would allow us to have our first date at his farm.

When we arrived, I saw a giant blue farmhouse and a white barn next to it. It didn’t look how I imagined. For whatever reason I pictured it being dirty and pigs and chickens running everywhere. But it was closed in by a gate and the house and barn was beautiful.

“Where are all of the animals?” I asked, searching my surroundings.

“Dad only has horses and chickens. The horses are in the stable and the chicken are in that coop over there,” she said pointing to a smaller white building as she parked the truck.

“So you ride horses? I never knew that about you. But now it makes sense why you have so many pairs of cool riding boots. I thought you were just a fashionista,” I joked.

She took my hand and led me into the barn. There were 8 horses tucked inside of their stables. The black one drew my attention. She was stunning. Her mane was braided and she had a blue and white cover thrown over her back. She looked like a show pony.

“What’s her name?” I asked, pointing at the black beauty.

“That Stella Noir,” Jagger said, “she is my horse.”

Jagger walked over to her and nuzzled her nose. The horse nuzzled her back and lightly bit at her jacket. Jagger took the blanket off of the horse and opened her stable. I will admit this scared me slightly. I had never been around horses. Jagger nodded to me to follow her. We walked out to an open field that was surrounded with white fencing.

“I’ll ride first and show you how it’s done and then you can do a guided ride with me and Rebel. That’s dad’s horse. He is older and slower. A great practice horse,” she said, mounting Stella Noir.

She kicked her heels against the beast and they took off. Jagger's hair flowed briskly in the wind. It was a beautiful sight. She was so good at this. As she rounded the fencing she began to halt the horse.

“Whoa Stella, whoa!” she shouted, while pulling back on her reigns.

“I’m not sure I can do that Jag. That was intense,” I said.

“What if I ride with you? Maybe we can head out to the field where the picnic is set up? It’s quite a ways out,” she said.

I agreed. She helped me mount the horse as well. I sat in front of her. Her legs were warm against mine. She held on to me with one hand and used the other to guide the horse. We trotted along slowly. I felt very comfortable. When we arrived to the back field I could see a beautiful blanket sprawled out on the ground. There were small lanterns surrounding the area and what looked like some fancy pillows. It was absolutely beautiful.

Jagger helped me down off of Stella Noir and tied her reins to the post. She grabbed my hand and led me over to her picnic area she had created.

“Jagger, I don’t even know what to say. This is beautiful,” I said, sitting on the blanket after removing my boots.

She grabbed the picnic basket and sat as well.

“Well I hope you like the food as well. I should have asked you what you like, but I just grabbed stuff I liked and hoped you would as well,” she said pulling out some green grapes.

She popped one off of the vine and fed it to me. It was delicious. We ate mini submarines and even had alligator jerky. Everything was so good.

“It’s getting a little cold, Jag. Maybe we should head back,” I suggested.

She held up one finger and jumped up from the blanket. She went over to a small enclosed shed and then returned with two fuzzy blankets.

“Is this okay?” she asked, handing them to me.

“Yes, that’s perfect,” I said, unfolding a blanket and wrapping it around me.

Jagger sat behind me and wrapped her arms around me. I leaned back and took in her warmth.

“I’m glad you are here with me, Brees. I wasn’t sure we would get to spend time together like this,” she admitted.

I turned my body around so I could face her. I grabbed her hands in mine.

“I’m sorry I made you feel that way. It’s been chaotic in my love life and I don’t want to drag you down with all of the drama. I’m sorry I’ve been distant,” I said.

“Well you’re here now and that’s all that matters,” she said, kissing me softly.

Her kiss was brief but sensual.

“I’m sorry, I should have asked before I did that,” she said, blushing.

I pulled her back towards me and kissed her again. We kissed for a while, taking in one another’s energy. It was refreshing being with Jagger. No expectations and no judgment.