Healing At Forever Love Ranch

Chapter 20

Three months later

Ashleigh glanced at her cell phone for the fifteenth time. Why isn't he texting or calling me? What could be the hold up?  Ashleigh was at the airport cell phone waiting lot anticipating Caulder's arriving flight. She double checked her flight status app to make sure she had the right time then she shot another text to Caulder to let him know she was waiting for him. 

The summer had gone by in a blur. Henry, Agnes and Caulder had talked about how Caulder's time would be split between Forever and Montana. They had agreed since Agnes' program was still in its infancy stage to wait until after the summer before Caulder visited Montana again. This was good news for Caulder and Ashleigh, since it gave them all summer to get to know each other better. After work they would sometimes go to The Pony to get a bite to eat or they would go out for a trail ride. Thankfully, Ashleigh had gotten more comfortable with the surrounding trails and hadn't gotten lost again. The summer had passed by too quickly. 

Caulder had been gone for two weeks but it felt like two years. Ashleigh was surprised by how much she missed him. She had gotten used to having him nearby all day at work.  They had tried to talk some each night but both were exhausted from their day and the conversations were usually fairly short. Ashleigh had greater appreciation for couples who were in long distance relationships.  It took a lot more time and effort to communicate. 

Caulder was going to be in town for a month before he had to go back to Montana.  She turned on a podcast and listened while she waited for Caulder's text to let her know he was ready. She must have drifted off because the next thing she heard was a knock on the driver's side window. 

She startled and turned to see Caulder waving at her.

"Caulder." Ashleigh opened her door quickly and in her excitement she got her right foot tangled in her seatbelt. She tripped but was able to catch herself with the car door.

"Careful there!" Caulder said laughing. "I almost got my nose smashed in. Miss me?" He opened his arms inviting her in for a hug.

"Yes" Ashleigh said as she snuggled into his embrace. "I missed your hug and most importantly I missed you!"

"Sorry it took me so long. I brought some fish back with me and it was a hassle trying to retrieve it from baggage claim." Caulder said as moved to the trunk to put his luggage inside. He kept a Styrofoam container with him, presumably the container with fish,  and slid it into the backseat. 

"Why did you bring back fish? Don't we have fish here in California?" Ashleigh said as they settled back into the car.

"Seriously?" Caulder looked wounded. "This isn't any kind of fish. This is fish caught fresh in the cold waters of Montana. My dad asked me to bring some back for him. You can't beat the freshness of fish caught out in the wild. Wait until you try it."

"Hmm." Ashleigh said not convinced. She didn't eat a lot of fish and so she wasn't an expert in what they should taste like. She shuddered recalling the fishy aftertaste she usually experienced when she ate a fish.

Caulder saw her grimace and laughed. "I need to take you out fishing and then you would understand the appeal. I remember my grandpa used to take my brother and I fishing at a retirement center.  It was catch and release of course. But the residents loved having the opportunity to sit on the dock and fish. Some of my best memories come from spending time with him while fishing." He sighed wistfully and turned to stare out the window.

Ashleigh eased onto the highway. They lapsed into thoughtful silence. As Ashleigh had gotten to know Caulder she had learned to appreciate his silences. Caulder was a man of few words but when he spoke you knew he carefully weighed out his words.  But Caulder was also learning to express more of his thoughts out loud and Ashleigh was learning to pause before blurting out everything she thought. They complimented each other.