He knows I was bothered by what he said at the dance. He has to say something, right? If he thinks he can just forget about it, he's wrong. "I do hope Emily is well," he says, as we pass the barns and head up a grassy knoll. "Oh, I'm sure she's fine," I say dryly. "In fact, I'm certain she'll feel totally healthy by the time we return." Healthy enough to bombard me and ask how this whole ride went. The weather is beautiful today: blue skies and a warm breeze. In fact, given the three layers I must be wearing, it's a tad on the warm side. There seem to be birds everywhere, from the tree limbs and fence rails around us to the sky above us, chirping and squawking. Everything smells so fresh. And clean, and just. .. new. "Do you own all this?" We've crested the small hill and fields and fields stretch out before me, trees dotting the landscape, with a forest up ahead. The place is bigger than my entire neighborhood back home.
