The Ridge

By G.C Ford

Katrina Taylor is a woman who knows everything about betrayal. For seven years, she has tried to forget the bitter memory of her past—until the confrontation she avoided with her father and the man she loved reappears in the form of Dylan Sands. Will the passion that she and Dylan resisted for so long come back to haunt them? will past mistakes threaten the passion that awaited her at The Ridge?

• Language: English
• Publisher: G.C Ford
• Release date: Aug 18, 2010
• ISBN: 9781458158888

G.C Ford

A first time Author, G. C. Ford lived in New York and in Costa Rica before settling in San Diego, California where she now makes her home. A freelance writer who has written various articles for a local magazine in New York and in Costa Rica has turned her love for writing into focusing on the idea that men and women are not that different, especially when dealing with love and passion.

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The Ridge

G.C. Ford

Published by G.C. Ford at Smashwords

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher and/or author.

This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, place, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. All characters are fictional, and any similarity to people living or dead is purely coincidental.

Copyright © 2010 by G. C. Ford.

For the women in my life that have shown me that love is about hugging, yelling, and being there even when space was required.

For the men in my life that taught me that sometimes the best things in life are the things that are not seen like dreams or kisses . . .

I miss you, my heart . . .

This book is dedicated to you.

Chapter One

New York City is everything I had imagined it would be. The city is so vibrant and alive. I see now why she moved here. I can still remember when Kat and I would look up New York City and its attractions, and we made it our goal to get here and make our dreams come true together. It seems funny to say our dreams now. I never imagined a life without her, but for seven years now, our lives have become separate worlds and our dreams a distant memory.

When James Taylor, Kat’s father, asked me to bring his daughter back, I was in shock. He knew all this time where she was, and for him to ask me of all people to bring her back to the ranch instead of asking her brother Max had me puzzled. Santa Fe was a long way from New York, and the welcome mat was not going to be laid out for me. What were James’s plans for sending me of all people to get her? I did not know, but I knew eventually I would, and I am just hoping I can survive it.

Growing up with Kat and Max was the closest I had for a family. Kat was my constant shadow, following me everywhere I went. My friends thought I was crazy for spending so much time with a girl that was three years younger than I was, but I did not care. I always felt a need to protect her, to be around her, and besides, I loved spending my time with Kat.

Many springs had passed, and it took a full moon in May to make me realize that I had fallen in love with her, or maybe all those years before I already was. It was also that same night that her father saw us kissing. Her father and I had an intense argument, the lines were drawn at that point, and I was not allowed into the ranch again or to be near her. I would not let her go. She had branded herself into my heart.

After that, it was all about where we could meet and where James could not find us. For the first time, I let my guard down, but it was always that way when I was around Kat. It was true love in the most beautiful and innocent possible way.

I was not about to let it go because James Taylor said so. I’ll be damned if I was going to let it happen. I practically grew up in the ranch; therefore, I knew how to sneak in and out without being seen.

There were many times we would avoid each other as there were eyes watching us, but there was one place that not even her father could touch us.

Deep inside a remote part of the ranch, a trail leads up to a canyon. If you continue on the trail, it will lead you to a creek. One summer, Kat and I were being adventurous, and we happened to notice the absence of the sound of the stream. It’s when we located the cave. We wandered into it, and there we found the falls. It was the most beautiful thing I saw. Nature created this delicate waterfalls that created an untouched pool.

The Falls was what we named it, and it was our secret place. To this day, it is my refuge. It was the one place we could be, and no one could separate us. Those days seemed so long ago and, now, so unreal to me. Our last summer together was also the same summer her father had decided that she needed to move away from the ranch. The news was devastating to us. The realization that we could not be together was upsetting and was something we would not tolerate. I was old enough to take care of her, of us, and we decided that we would run away to New York.

She was shy away of being of legal age, and we knew we wanted to be together. We planned it all out, and we were going to take advantage of the annual town BBQ to leave. All was planned precisely, and we decided while the town was celebrating the end of summer, we would meet up at the falls, but she never came; she never showed up. I stayed at our falls, way into the night. I remember the skies were turning completely dark with clouds, and the wind was howling through the trees. Then blazing lightning and earsplitting thunder was exploding all around me. If as my anxiety was overflowing into nature, my desperation because she was not there. I ran all the way to the ranch, and I found myself knocking at the side door, seeing Milly, and asking for her. I could not believe she had left without me. My heart was broken, and so was my spirit. After a year of wandering from town to town and working odd jobs here and there, I came back to Santa Fe.

Was it just a coincidence or by chance, I happened to run into her father. It was James that welcomed me back and, of all people, offered me a job at the ranch. Odd enough, the one place I was not allowed to come back now welcomed me but, of course, at a price, which I paid.

It was not easy to gain his trust, but with time and proving myself, I did. Seven years had passed since that night, and I am a different man. I grew up, but at the thought of seeing her again—my heart was pounding. As I walked closer to the studio, I could hear the music getting louder, the beat stronger, and the bass pounding harder, or was that my heart? Compose yourself, what the hell!

With one turn of the doorknob, I was walking back into the past. For a second, I didn’t breathe, but I pushed myself to enter, and I saw her.

Kat had reached her dreams. She is well-known in the fashion industry, as a model and as a photographer. I would see her in almost every magazine layout or cover. Her work was well-known and respected among her peers. She had achieved status quickly, what would have taken others years to accumulate. Either see her in bathing suits or in elegant dresses or her name will be in the fine print under the photos she had taken for travel magazines. I, on the other hand, would lose myself in work and in women to forget the soft curve of her full lips or how my eyes would trace the outline of her shoulders, but all that I would find were empty memories of a false love I thought to be real. I do not even care to know why she left and why she ruined our dreams. As I stood and stared at her, my heart began to race, and I could feel the ache in my chest burning. She was there, in front of me, gracefully dancing as other dancers watched her move around the studio. I could see Kat move every part of her body to the beat of the sound. I was astounded to see how seven years could change a woman’s body. It was a pleasure but definitely hard to see. She had changed physically in so many ways. Her blond hair was longer and brighter than before, and her body was definitely fuller in all the right places. I always knew she would turn out beautiful. I stood where she could see me.

Kat, I said, trying to get her attention.

Kat was all smiles as she was dancing across the floor. When she heard her name called, she turned to face where it was coming from.

Oh God! Please let it be my imagination, I said to myself.

I can’t believe it’s Dylan Sands.

I can’t believe he is standing there, staring at me with those electric blue eyes that I loved to gaze at when I was younger and now I learned to hate with all my heart. Seven years had just made him look more handsome and his body much stronger, but I have to continue on with my routine as if he was nothing important to stop for.

Kat is ignoring me; I can see she still remembers me. Do not know if I should be flattered by her enthusiasm in seeing me. I smiled at her sarcastically when our eyes met.

You’re still beautiful, I said loudly over the music so she can hear me, and I began walking toward the center of the room where she was dancing, giving her no chance to continue with her routine. I was commanding attention from her; I will not be ignored by her. She had no choice but to stop. Kat instead of walking toward me I noticed her stepping away from me. I can see that Kat did not want to be near me, and that just was upsetting me more.

After what I saw, how could he give me compliments? I said, annoyed at the situation I was in. He has no right. I had to take control of the situation.

I was not about to let this get out of hand. I need to talk to my instructor and give him some excuse. I am not about to get into details.

Where is she going now, and what was she whispering to the instructor’s ear? I can’t believe this woman, she moves to the big city, and she forgets her manners. She leaves me standing here like a jerk. I guess she wants me to follow her, typical of Kat.

As I entered the room, I noticed it is a mini-version of a dance studio. There was nothing special about the room, wall-to-wall mirrors and a pole to hold on to. I quickly turned to close the door behind me, and I can already hear Kat is with an attitude. I can hear her breathing aloud as if she was bothered by my presence, which I must admit I am enjoying. I can still ruffle her feathers.

Let me just smile, lean against the door, and face her. I can get a better look at her too.

What are you doing here? Kat said to me.

I could hear the hostility in her voice, and I can’t help but smile and enjoy this. She is as beautiful as I remember her to be. I miss those emerald eyes staring back at me again and seeing the tiny beauty mark near her full lips. I can’t help myself but remember how it felt to kiss her and hold her in my arms. I can see my body still yearns for her, but how after so long and after what she did? How can I want to be near her like I do?

Your father wants to see you, I said, watching her expression. She is so beautiful, how can this woman provoke these feelings in me. Stop it. She is like all the others, a player.

You could tell my father to go to hell, I said to Dylan.

Why is Dylan looking at me as if he doesn’t understand, with that look of detachment, confusion in his face, and I really do not care why. He had lied to me seven years ago, and I was not going to let him take advantage of me again.

I will not, Dylan said calmly. You will go if I have to drag you there myself. I was getting tired of Kat’s attitude.

I knew Dylan well enough to know he would do it, but I was never frightened of him, so why should I be now? What I don’t understand is, why was he doing my father’s dirty work and why the respect toward him? I don’t like the fact that the two men that said they loved me once were now friends.

Go to hell! I said to Dylan, looking directly into those beautiful blue eyes of his as I walked toward him, showing him I was not afraid of him or my father.

I cannot believe he is standing in front of me. I see him there, but I can’t wrap the thought that there he was, Dylan Sands, the guy that broke my heart, the one person I would have done anything for, was just a couple of steps away. Part of me wanted to kick the living daylights out of him, but that would give him the power of knowing he broke me; the other part just wanted to touch him, to make sure it wasn’t a fragment of my own imagination.

Why is he so confident of himself? I can be the same way, Dylan.

She is getting so aggravated, the tension in this room, between us, it’s just too much to bear, and this needs to end. I have a schedule to keep. I am glad about one thing; she still talks back to me. I missed that fighting spirit of hers, and I’m glad to know she still stood her ground. The women I associated myself with would always agree with me; they are putty in my hands, and in some cases, it was so easy to get into bed. I never did get that far with Kat, but that could also change. I’m older and wiser.

You still have a mouth, I said, stepping at arm’s reach of her.

And I still remember how to fight, I said to him as I pushed my body forward toward him.

Good, you should. It took me long enough to teach you, I said to Kat, taking a step closer now to her.