Free Fool Me Twice by Mandy Hubbard

whatever.” To be honest I just want to quit because now I’m not sure how to act—do the same thing I just did, or go back to being slow, like he expected me to be? Force the swing wide around the big blue plastic barrels? Knock one down completely?
    He nods and slides off the railing, dropping to the dirt. Even on foot, he’s tall. Close. He rests his hand on the toe of my boot, and I swear I can feel the heat of it through the thick leather. He seems comfortable, casual, while I’m so hyperaware of his every single touch.
    “I’ll go grab Storm and we can walk her out on the trails. Give Zoey a break from arena work.” He starts to turn away, heading toward the far gates.
    “You can’t,” I say, and he stops. “Remember?”
    He levels a look at me. “It’s only one day early and I’ll take it easy. I doubt falling off at a walk is going to do much.”
    “Yeah, okay,” I say, slowly, not sure if it’s a good idea. He took a serious hit to the head. He probably should stay off the freakinghorse, but I don’t protest. Because I kind of like the idea of hitting the open, dusty trail with him. We did it so much last summer.
    “Meet me at the gate in five minutes,” he says.
    I nod and watch as he slips through the railing and then jogs across the dusty drive, disappearing into the shadowed entry of the barn.
    I turn Zoey and walk lazily across the dirt-clouded ring, lengthening the reins so she can stretch her neck. At the gate, I use my right leg to signal a side-step, and she moves to the left, close enough that I can flip open the horseshoe latch and swing the gate wide.
    Just as I’m riding through the opening, my cell rings, startling me from my relaxed stupor. I unbutton the little pocket at the front of my western shirt and slide the phone out.
    Mom Calling flashes across the screen. I tap and put the phone to my ear.
    “Hello?”
    “Mackenzie?” Mom says. Like she’s not sure who will answer, as if she doesn’t recognize my voice or something.
    “Yep. What’s up, Mom?”
    “Just checking on you,” she says. “You’re so far away, you know?”
    I smile. My mom’s a stay-at-home mom, and my sister moved out of the house a couple of years ago, so whenever I leave for the summer, Mom never seems to know what to do with herself. After the first few weeks on the ranch, she gets used to it. “I know, Mom. It’s just for the summer.”
    “But you’re only back a few days before WSU.”
    I blink, realizing she’s right. I mean, I knew it all along, but hearing it like that reminds me that I won’t be home much over the next four years. From the ranch to WSU, and then possibly back again. If they’ll have me for another summer. “Yeah. It’ll be good though. And you can always visit.”
    I watch as Landon appears at the exit to the barn, leading Storm toward me. The horse is different today. Relaxed and ready for an easy ride.
    “Yeah. Anyway,” my mom says, “I’m not calling to whine. You got some paperwork from WSU and I wasn’t sure if I should open it or forward it to you.”
    I look at Landon again as he crosses the drive. He can’t hear me talking to my mom about college paperwork. I wasn’t doing college paperwork last year, because I hadn’t applied yet. Neither had he. Did he even know he’d already graduated? Was he going to college too? Maybe me not telling him of his memory loss would have bigger effects, like the part where he forgets to go to college.
    No, wait. After I dump him, I’ll tell him the truth, because I want him to know why I’m dumping him. Want him to know that the pain he’s feeling is his own fault.
    There’s rustling in the background and I realize my mom must be actually holding the envelope in her hands. “Why don’t you open it and then call me later and let me know if it’s anything I need to worry about?”
    “Okay,” she says, and I swear she sounds a little gleeful that she gets to open my mail. “Sure.”
    “Anyway, I gotta get