Giddy Up, Daddy (Dirty Daddies 2024 Anthology #5)

Chapter 1

Chapter One

Kennedy

“Arrogant sonofabitch has the nerve to tell me how to do things as if I’ve never been on a ranch before,” I mumbled under my breath as I readied Topaz, my gorgeous American quarter horse. My secret crush and longtime friend Alden had offered to keep Topaz housed at his barn. It made sense for many reasons, and I wouldn’t have argued. It was a convenient excuse to see him more often. Topaz sighed, shaking his mane and hoofing the ground. I knew he sympathized but would inevitably side with the man who took care of him most.

“Don’t forget to hang your tack, darlin’.” I mimicked Alden with an exaggerated drawl. “Check the gates. Refill the water. Turn around three times and click your heels together.”

Topaz nickered, but I didn’t know his true thoughts, obviously.

“Right? He has to have the last word. He thinks he’s all that! Alden tossed a rope around, won some money and prizes while his horse did all the work!” I defended my rant to Topaz. Sure, we spoke different languages. No one had invented an animal-to-human translation device, but Topaz understood me on a deeper level. My sweet-tempered horse could tell I was feisty today.

“Just because Alden gives you treats doesn’t mean he loves you more.”

Mounting Topaz, I rode around the large ring. Since my divorce, I’d gotten back on the saddle and back into trick riding. The love of it renewed a long-lost passion that my ex had tried to extinguish. It hadn’t taken that long to shake off the dust.

Returning my thoughts to Alden, I wondered why I was so bothered by him today. His rough exterior and cocky swagger hid a gentle heart. Alden was tender with me, something else I missed. But it was more than that. I wasn’t in the mood to pick apart whatever the issues were.

Instead of being laser-focused on Topaz, my mind was wandering, relying on muscle memory rather than our surroundings.

Off in the distance, a tractor’s roar split through the air, the metallic screech loud enough to jar me out of my thoughts. Topaz jerked, startled by the noise. Yanking the reins hard, I attempted to steady him. My efforts were fruitless as the reins snapped–the leather fraying in my hands like an unraveling thread. Without control, Topaz reared unstrained. He knew me, but his instincts were to gallop to safety in the opposite direction.

Looking around, I saw Alden near the barn engaged in conversation with our friend Wyatt. “Alden!” Waving one arm while shouting as I attempted to get his attention did nothing. Tearing my red-flannel shirt off in a clumsy attempt to get Alden’s attention only further frustrated me as it sailed over my head without him noticing. Cool air chilled my skin as I was left in a flimsy purple bra, but it was the least of my concerns.

Galloping around the ring without control was one thing, but Topaz headed toward the wide-open gate leading to open land. Heart hammering in my chest, I held on tightly as Topaz rushed into the thick woods. Wind whooshed around us as I ducked large branches and rubbed his mane. What had merely been an unfortunate situation turned dangerous. Alden used to joke about wrangling me off a horse with his rope skills. If I wasn’t so scared, I might have laughed at the irony.

Alden

Something red flashed in my peripheral. I had a split second to recognize Kennedy’s shirt over her head before it flew out of her hand. Perplexed, I titled my head to the side. “What in the hell?”

“Damn. Kennedy is overheated today, huh? Giving us a show,” Wyatt, my best friend joked.

As I started to laugh at his statement, he suddenly shoved my arm. I opened my mouth ready to give Wyatt a piece of my mind but he pointed at the gate. Someone had forgotten to latch it. “Shit!”

“Topaz isn’t heeding whatever the hell she’s doing!” Wyatt yelled, taking off running toward the barn.

We raced inside while I thought about the worst possible scenarios, stopping long enough to grab a blanket.

“Topaz is out of control, we need rope,” I said as if it wasn’t obvious.

Wyatt agreed, nodding as we saddled and mounted my two fastest horses: Tinkerbell and Thunderstomp. They weren’t trained as racehorses, but they were the best choices at times like these.

“Something bad must have happened, Alden.”

“I know and I can’t find any rope. Which is the dumbest thing I’ve ever said.” Every minute counted. Topaz could buck Kennedy off him at any minute.

“Found it.”

Wyatt wound it around his arm, tucking it so it would be easy to lasso and tossed it to me.

Riding out toward the gate, we communicated via hand signals. It was like we were back at the arena as we had been years ago. Solidifying a plan, I hoped it was efficient enough to work. Locating Kennedy was easy, but that’s where it got so much harder. By some miracle and making our job a bit easier, Topaz had slowed significantly. I approached, coming as close as I could but hoping not to spook him any further. Looping my reins around the saddle horn, I glanced at Kennedy. Her features were laced with concern though she appeared surprisingly calm. It wouldn’t help the horse if she freaked out. Wrapping my arm around her waist, I tapped her hip with my fingers signaling her to relax without words. She softened under my touch.

“Good girl.” It wasn’t likely that she could hear me over the din of the horses’ hooves. Still, saying it gave me a minute to gather my resolve. Tugging her off Topaz and onto Tinkerbell would be a feat all on its own. I had one chance, maybe two maximum. Messing up had the potential to injure both of us. Years of experience were on my side. However, something else pissed me off. Her ex-husband made her stop trick riding when they got married. If she’d been practicing this whole time, at her level she’d be able to stand up on Topaz and practically do a backflip to land on my saddle.

As if I needed another reason to hate that man.

Clenching my jaw in determination, I tightened my grip on her. The movies made it look simple. Rope the horse. Grab the girl. Ride off into the sunset. The reality was much more complicated. Digging my fingers into her side, I steeled my nerves and plucked her from the saddle. Kennedy landed hard in front of me, her legs and thighs banging into the edges of my saddle until she seated herself more firmly. She was going to be sore tomorrow. Hopefully she didn’t have any serious injuries.

Unhooking my reins from the saddle horn, I glanced across to Wyatt. He gave me a thumbs up, riding parallel to Topaz. The horse would only run for so long. The biggest danger had been to Kennedy. I rubbed her shoulder and draped the blanket over her. I trusted Wyatt to get himself and Topaz back in one piece.

Circling Tinkerbell, I praised her for a job well done. I leaned into Kennedy’s ear so she could hear me better. “Are you hurt?”

“Everything aches, even my hair.”

“Aw, sweetheart. Your adrenaline is fading fast. Let’s get back so I can check you over.”

“Everything is fine. Probably lots of bruises in fun places.”

“I’m going to look anyway.”

“Didn’t get enough of my boobs, huh?”

“Don’t get smart, darlin’.”

“I bet you got an eyeful,” she said sarcastically.

“It was more important to get you off Topaz in one piece.”

She grunted and rubbed her thigh. “Yeah, I know. My legs are absolutely killing me. I don’t get it. They were okay a minute ago.”

“Grabbing someone off a horse looks daring in the movies, sweetheart. But it hurts like a bitch in real life. You need to take it easy and rest.”

She glanced over her shoulder. “Since when do I listen?”

“You will if you know what’s good for ya’.”

Kennedy relaxed against my chest. I loved the way she trusted me. Tension knotted my shoulders as I thought about how badly she could have been hurt.

“Your knuckles are turning white,” she said, resting her hand on top of mine.

“I want to get home. Tinkerbell can’t fly but she acts like she can.”

Kennedy praised the horse, gently rubbing her. It seemed to be soothing her as much as the horse. “She’s a good girl. It’s not easy carrying the two of us around. Now, tell me why you’re on edge.”

“You might be injured.”

“I’m okay, Alden. Really. You prevented anything bad from happening to me.”

“That’s not the point.”

It seemed to take an eternity to get back to the barn. We stayed quiet, seemingly lost in our thoughts. Dismounting first, I held my arms up to Kennedy and assisted her to the ground. My hands rested on her hips. She wiped something off my face, dirt or sweat, while her gorgeous gray eyes studied mine.

“I knew you’d save me, Alden.”

“Glad you had that much faith, darlin’. My rescuing skills are rusty.”

She kissed my cheek. “I wasn’t worried. At least not too much.”

Spinning on her heels, she took one step toward the barn door before her knees buckled. Sweeping her close to me, I cradled her to my chest. “If you wanted a lift to the house, you could have asked.”

“Very funny. I thought it wasn’t that bad, but my legs feel like jello that’s been lit on fire.”

“The crash after adrenaline pulses through your system is a bitch. Sometimes Wyatt would get off his horse in the arena and his knees would buckle like yours just did.”

“Did you carry him like this too?” Kennedy leaned her head on my shoulder.

“Only sometimes,” I said, happy that her sass had returned. It meant that she wasn’t in shock, as I’d been fearing.

“I don’t want to go to urgent care,” she said as if reading my mind.

Carrying her up my steps to the back porch, I let out a breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding. One of our many medically minded friends could stop by. If Marissa wasn’t pregnant, she’d be the best pick as she lived closest, but there were others. Elias, Dalton, and August all lived nearby and would drop everything if I asked.

“You need some food, water, and electrolytes. Then I’m inspecting your body. If you don’t want me to, let me know who to call.”

She blushed, looking away. I’d explored every inch of her from her mouth to the hollow dip in her collarbone to the swell of her breasts all the way to her dainty feet. And everything in between. It wasn’t about titillation this time.

“No need to call someone. I trust you,” she said softly.

“Good to know.”

We’d been friends a long time, but never more than that. She’d gotten married to some asshat on a power trip. I never cared for her ex-husband, but I’d kept my mouth shut.

People only did what was best for themselves no matter how much bullshit piled up in front of them. He forbade her to ride horses at all. It hadn’t been just to control her, but to limit her time around her close friends. Him stopping her training sessions was only one of many things I found out later. Last summer, after they’d broken up, Kennedy and I spent almost every day and many nights together. She’d challenged me multiple times. Moody, lonely and reckless was not a good combination for someone like her. I’d received late night phone calls from concerned friends. Kennedy would drink herself silly, and I’d show up and collect her. She never put up a fuss. I’d given her the summer, but I wouldn’t allow her to go off the rails again.

It was one of the many things I wanted to talk to her about. She’d benefit from a Daddy if she’d stay in one spot long enough to listen, and I considered myself the man for the job.

My guidance would be good for her, but it was unlikely she’d surrender. Gently taking some things off her shoulders would give her room to blossom out of the shell her ex stuffed her into.

Despite everything, it felt nice to hold her in my arms. Maybe it was finally time to broach the topic of a relationship. I wasn’t getting any younger, and the way she was looking at me made me feel like a superhero. One who saved damsels in distress with wrangling skills instead powers.