"You sure you're ready for this?" Slade asked, a hand on Lacey's back as she stared at Bud, who's back was eye level to her since she was on top of the mounting block with Slade. 

          "If you keep askin' me, I am goin' to say no. Now, can you please just help me up?" Lacey replied, still staring at Bud who was standing patiently beside the mounting block. 

           "Alright. Here we go." Slade tried to contain his smile, but he couldn't help it. He had been planning and praying about this day for months, so it was hard to hold back his excitement for Lacey at the moment. 

           Slade carefully wrapped his arms around Lacey, lifting her effortlessly from her wheelchair. Carefully, he hoisted her up onto Bud's back, helping her push her leg over the side so she was straddling the broad horse. Once she was safely in the saddle on Bud's back, Slade, who kept one hand around Lacey, hopped up behind her.

           "How do you feel so far?" Slade asked, carefully leaning down to slip each of Lacey's feet into their stirrups. Keeping one hand securely around Lacey's waist, Slade grabbed both of Bud's reins in his other hand, preventing him from walking forward. 

           "I feel nervous, but okay." Lacey let out an airy chuckle, instinctively leaning forward, holding tightly to the saddle horn like it was the only thing keeping her in the saddle. 

           "Lean back, Lace, I got you. It's okay." Slade comforted, rubbing his hand over Lacey's waist.

          "Are you sure?" She asked, partially disappointed in herself for not having as much upper body strength as she thought she did. By now she should have been able to hold herself up. 

          "I'm positive. Lean back against me, Lace." Slade comforted, helping Lacey sit up enough to lean herself against him. He realized that this was the first time that he had ever been able to hold her like this. Sure, they had snuggled on the couch, but this was the first time that he had been able to have her fully in his arms, and he loved the feeling of it. Taking in a deep breath, he thought about how unique of a couple him and Lacey were, and how there were small things like holding hands as they were taking a walk that they would never be able to do like a normal couple would. Despite knowing that there were certain things they wouldn't be able to do, Slade still wanted nothing more than to be with Lacey. He knew that there would always be ways around things and that with God, all things are possible. If someone had asked Slade if he thought he would be able to convince Lacey to ride again, he would have chuckled and said no; today was just proof that God already has a plan set out, and He will always be there to direct. 

        "You ready to start walkin'?" Slade asked, softly kissing the top of Lacey's head that was against his chest. He could feel her shaking with nerves, but her body relaxed some when he buried his face in her hair.

         "As ready as I will ever be." Lacey replied, keeping her eyes fixed forward. She felt Slade's arm tighten around her waist before he lifted his hand, telling Bud to walk forward. Lacey's body tensed up again at the sudden slight jerk forward of Bud walking, and her mind instantly began to play back to her accident, but Slade's comforting words he whispered in her ear told her it was going to be okay. It was like he knew what she was thinking without her having to say a single word. 

          Slade let out a chuckle once they made a full lap around the round pen. Just to be sure Lacey was alright, Slade pulled back on the reins to stop Bud. "Still doin' alright? I don't want to push you." He asked kindly, not wanting their ride to be over already. 

          "Um, can we go around a couple more times, please?" Lacey ignored his question, glancing at Slade over her shoulder, seeing his eyes glow like they never had before. It was as if, by Lacey asking if they could keep riding, Slade had won the lottery; he looked happier and more proud than she had ever seen. 

          "Absolutely. I'm so proud of you, darlin'." Slade said, confirming Lacey's guess. "See, I told you you wouldn't have a problem riding again. It's just like ridin' a bike." He said it playfully, knowing Lacey disliked it when folks used that phrase in terms of riding a horse. 

         "You know I cannot stand that phrase." Lacey teasingly rolled her eyes, looking back at Slade. She was already feeling more comfortable in the saddle. The only thing she wasn't used to yet was the feeling of her legs being completely useless on either side of the horse. Her entire life, her legs and heels had been a huge part of how she rode, so without their movement, it was like she had to completely relearn how to ride again. 

          Looking back down at Bud's slow, patient pace, then back to Slade, Lacey asked, with a look in her eyes, "Can I take the reins?" 

           A huge grin spread across Slade's lips as he nodded, handing Lacey the reins, making her turn her attention back forward. 

           "Can we try to trot a little?" Lacey asked Slade in a quiet voice, still leaning back against his strong, safe chest. 

            "You sure you're ready for that?" Slade asked, really not wanting to rush their progress.

           "I'm positive, but please take it slow. More of a jog than a trot, please." Lacey felt the butterflies returning in her stomach, but once again, it was like Slade knew what she was thinking because he wrapped his arm tighter around her waist, holding her back against him. 

            "Of course. Here we go." Slade every so gently applied pressure with both of his heels against Bud's side, asking him to jog. The remarkably calm horse obeyed, almost as if he knew his rider was handicapped. Just as Slade opened his mouth to ask how Lacey felt, a chuckle escaped her lips. Her chuckle erupted into a full out laugh, filled with a happiness that Slade had never heard before. The sound brought an immeasurable joy to Slade's heart, making him chuckle himself, simply out of pure happiness. 

            A couple more laps jogging around the round pen, then Lacey used her reins to slow Bud back to a walk, letting him cool off. Lacey had asked Slade if they could lope, but he had told her not today; he didn't want to rush anything, and Slade wanted to work with Bud more on loping with extra weight before he tested it out with Lacey. 

          After the ride, Lacey fed Bud a carrot as a reward for the ride. Resting her head against his, Lacey dropped a kiss between his eyes. "Thank you, Bud, for reminding me how much I love to ride." She whispered to him, slipping off his halter, before turning him loose in the pasture. 

        Lacey followed Slade back to the barn where she hung up Bud's halter and lead rope. Thinking about her day made her realize how blessed she was. Turning around, Lacey had the biggest grin on her face, but it quickly faded when she saw the look on Slade's face. 

           "What's wrong?" Lacey asked, concerned. She rolled up next to where Slade had taken a seat on the hay bales. 

           Slade was looking down at his hands that he was rubbing together. Taking in a shaky breath, he looked at Lacey with teary eyes. "I...I'm just so-" He swallowed the lump in his throat. "I'm so proud of you, Lace. I really am. There are no words to describe how I feel right now." He was now kneeling in front of Lacey. 

         When she saw a tear fall to Slade's eyes, Lacey reached up, wiping it away with her thumb, keeping her hand on his face. Fingering his bottom lip with her finger, Lacey whispered, "I couldn't have done it without you, Slade. Thank you." Now it was Lacey who's eyes were beginning to get blurry with tears. 

            Slade reached out to hold Lacey's face in both of his hands. Looking into her eyes, he said in a broken voice, something he should have said long ago. "I love you, Lacey Anne Ferry." 

            "I love you, too, Slade Reid." She chuckled out the tear filled response. Her eyebrows were pushed together in confusion; not because she wasn't sure she loved Slade, but because she wondered why she hadn't said it to him before. 

         Without another second of hesitancy, Slade lunged forward, kissing Lacey with everything he had in him. At first Lacey was slightly surprised, but she quickly relaxed, wrapping both of her arms around his head as she kissed him back. Deepening the kiss, Slade's hands ran their way down Lacey's torso to her waist, continuing down until they were resting under her legs, his lips never once leaving hers as he picked her up from her chair, carrying her to the large stack of hay bales in the aisle of the barn. Ever so carefully, Slade laid Lacey down on them, pausing his kisses for just a second to climb up beside her, giving her a long kiss before working his kisses down her face to her neck where he nestled his lips on her skin. Slowly, Lacey's eyes closed; she was fully intoxicated with Slade's kisses. Thankful for the chance she got to catch her breath, Lacey attempted to take in a gulp of air, but found it was hard due to Slade's sweet, soft kisses. Her hands were tangled up in his hair, holding his head against hers. 

            Before she knew what was happening, Slade was laying on top of Lacey, still kissing her, and holding her tight against his chest. With her eyes still closed, Lacey moved her head so she could steal a kiss from Slade's lips again. Without much thinking, her hands found their way down to Slade's shirt collar where she popped open the first button. The sound was enough to make Lacey stop herself. Reality had set in. In the heat of the moment, Lacey was about to make a huge mistake she knew she would later regret. 

           As much as she didn't want to, but knew she had to, Lacey pulled back. "Slade, we need to stop." Her fingers were still on his partially open shirt. 

           Slade seemed like he was just about to say the same thing based on how quickly he pulled back himself. Propping himself up on one arm, Slade looked down at Lacey. He was still very far, but also so close to breaking a promise, a vow, that he had made to God when he gave over his life to Christ a year ago. Lost in the heat of the moment, Slade almost allowed himself to break that vow, all for a few minutes of pleasure with the one woman who made him want to wait like no other woman had ever wanted to make him wait before. Just the feeling of Lacey's hands on his shirt had been enough to make him snap out of it, realizing what he was about to do. 

            Knowing how the situation could have ended if he hadn't been more careful made Slade sad and mad. He was mad at himself for slipping up so easily, knowing full well this could have ended differently; but he was also sad because he had promised Lacey he would never put her in a position to have to make him stop from going too far. In just a few minutes, Slade had broken that promise. Sure, he had thoroughly enjoyed making out with his beautiful girlfriend, especially since they had never kissed more than three times on the lips, but he should have stopped himself before he even picked her up out of her chair. 

           Silently, Slade said a prayer, asking God for forgiveness. Once his prayer was over, Slade, still partially laying over Lacey, reached a hand down to run a finger over Lacey's cheek. "I'm sorry, Lace." He whispered. "I went way too far." He gazed deeply into her eyes, realizing for the first time just how important his purity was. 

           Lacey hadn't realized her hand was still on Slade's shirt collar until she heard the barn door open, followed by someone harshly calling her name. In one motion, Lacey dropped her hands from Slade, flipping her gaze to whoever just walked in. It was the one person who would react the worse about this scene. It was Zane, Lacey's father. Lacey was sure how bad it looked from his end, but she was glad he hadn't walked in just a few seconds before. Either way, Lacey knew she was about to get into huge trouble from her father. 

           At the same time that Lacey had dropped her hand from his chest at the sound of her name being called, Slade had slid off from the hay bales, immediately standing up to defend himself to Lacey's father. Taking a step forward, Slade nervously started, "Sir, I can expl-"

           Zane's eyes were cold and furious as he looked between Slade and Lacey, then back to Slade. Before Slade could even finish his sentence, Zane's voice interrupted with two words that had never sounded so serious rolling off his tongue. "You're fired."