Going Au Naturale at Hallow’s Cove (Hallow’s Cove)

6. Sydney

Chapter six

Sydney

I flopped down on the bed, exhausted from the day. Though I was used to the constant walking in the city, something about the unevenness of the ground and the constant change of terrain made my feet hurt even more than usual.

Once I was showered, I grabbed my laptop and camera bag and flopped down on the bed. I wasn’t sure what detergent they used, but as I did, the scent of flowers wafted up toward me, as if the floral pattern held its own scent.

After opening my laptop and my camera case, I took the USB out and slid it into the computer to move all the photos there. I then opened Lightroom, thinking about doing some edits. Those photos I took of Chicken earlier would do well with a bit of saturation and a white balance adjustment. He let me get really close, so I ended up with some interesting angles.

I laughed to myself as I thought about that name. Chicken. I would need to ask Brooks why he’d named it that.

My mind instantly flicked to him in that worn hat, shirtless, muscles flexed. No one should have the right to look that sexy. And it wasn’t just his looks—it was his charm. It was obvious he was aware of it, which is why I refused to acknowledge it, but inside I was melting. I prided myself on my hard resolve, but I wasn’t sure how long I could last if he kept it on.

Keep it professional, Sydney.

A person’s charm wasn’t new to me. I’d spent my fair share of time in clubs, letting them buy me drinks and sometimes going home with them. I was all about casual sex. Relationships were a distraction—one I didn’t need. Though I had a nine-to-five job, I would, on occasion, take freelance gigs taking photos, like the usual professional headshot or the occasional family photo shoot, but I knew I wasn’t good enough to turn it into a full-time thing. Still, dreaming about it was nice.

I scrolled my gallery and paused on one of the photos I’d taken of Brooks. He was checking on one of the chickens, his smile as bright as the sun rays peering out from behind him.

Gods, why do I have to be this drawn to him?

I slammed the laptop shut harder than I meant to and lay down, staring at the ceiling. The fan was on low, whirling around in my vision. Why did my thoughts keep flitting back to Brooks? And not in a professional way.

I needed to do something to relieve… whatever I was feeling for him. It had to just be physical attraction. When was the last time I had sex? I couldn’t actually recall, which probably meant I was just pent-up, ready to crawl up the first attractive person I saw.

With that in mind, I went to my rolling suitcase and dug to the bottom until I found it. My blue rabbit vibrator. It was curved, with a slightly flared tip and a smaller clit stimulator at the bottom. I crawled back into bed and got under the covers, closing my eyes and letting my mind flit, which instantly meant Brooks.

The thought of his bright smile and the way he winked at me were enough to make me feel warm all over. I brought my hands up to my breasts, imagining they were Brooks’s rough, calloused ones. I flicked my nipples, giving them a tighter squeeze than I normally would—the way I thought he would.

Then I removed my pants and teased my opening with the toy. I was so wet it went in easily, and I felt it stretch me. This was a fairly large one, and I was glad for it, since it made my fantasy even better. I had no way to prove it—well, I did, but I wasn’t going there now—I was sure Brooks would have a huge cock. Big enough that I might be nervous about it, but I somehow know he’d be careful.

I nudged it in more, imagining him sliding in deeper and deeper, slowly until he bottomed out. I wondered if his expression would change. If he would still look carefree, or if something different would come over him as he lost control.

As the toy hit my G-spot, I turned it on, and the vibrations made my back arch off of the bed. A sheen of sweat broke out over me as I got closer to release.

I lowered the toy a bit and let the small protrusion rub against my clit. It made me think about him on his knees, using his tongue on me. Maybe that was the way to get him to stop talking and asking me questions.

I smiled as I fucked myself harder, hitting that spot over and over. It would only take a little more to send me over the edge, so I pushed the toy all the way in and pressed the vibrator to my clit hard. I imagined his face when he came deep inside me, filling me up, marking me as his.

The thought sent me spiraling into my orgasm. Everything fell away, and the only thing that was left was the image of Brooks in my mind.

I took a deep breath as I came down, shutting the toy off and throwing it to the side. Though I felt sated, I was frustrated when I realized I was now thinking about Brooks more than before.

I grumbled, fixed my clothes, and went to clean the vibrator and put it away. As I rolled off the bed, I heard a loud groan but didn’t think much of it until it happened a second time. Louder.

All of a sudden, the ceiling above me burst open and a flood of water came through. I shrieked as it covered the floor quicker than I could react. I picked up my suitcase, already soaked at the bottom, and made a mad dash to my backpack and camera bag, which were safely on the desk in the corner. Once I got those, I jumped across the bed and went to the door.

The same kind-looking rabbit shifter I’d seen this morning was already making her way over, worry on her face.

“Oh dear! What happened?”

“T-the ceiling burst and water started pouring into my room.”

She looked as alarmed as I felt. “I am so incredibly sorry. Let me get the plumber on the phone and see if we can get it sorted. It might take him a minute to get here, but you can wait at the café if you don’t want to stay here.” She went to her desk and dug around the drawers until she pulled something out. “It’s a complimentary ticket for a drink and a scone. We give them out if we can’t serve breakfast for any reason. Please enjoy while we get this sorted.”

“Thanks, I appreciate it.” Though I didn’t want to go out like this, a hot drink did sound nice.

I left my suitcase and backpack behind the counter, took my camera bag, and headed toward Cool Beans. It had an artsy, industrial vibe, with brick walls and a dark chalkboard menu. After perusing the menu, I decided to go with the lavender latte and the rose water meringue. The wolfman at the counter took my order and I went to stand at the end, waiting for it to be delivered.

“Sydney Jacobs?” I heard from behind me.

I hadn’t heard that voice in a long time, but it still gave me a viscerally unpleasant reaction.

I turned to see Preston Fairfield standing there. He looked just as average as he did in college—same basic blond hair cut short, same dark eyes, same receding hairline he was still trying to hide.

“Hi,” I said, hoping to keep the interaction brief.

“How are you? I haven’t seen you since college.”

“Yep, keeping busy,” I replied. I looked at the counter, hoping my order would appear so I could go back to the inn, but there was no luck quite yet.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Work stuff. Completing an organic certification.” Though I didn’t want to talk to him, I couldn’t help but wonder why he was here. I was pretty sure he lived in the city, working for his father’s company with his wife. Maybe they were here on vacation. Or maybe she sent him on a solo one. Though we weren’t friends in college or anything, she was way out of his league, and it never made sense why she liked him.

“Do you mean at Hoffman Farm?”

“Yup,” I said, hoping not to engage any further.

“Interesting.” The way he said it had me turning in his direction. He had this evil glint in his eye that made me squirm.

“Sydney,” I heard from the counter. I took a relieved breath and moved to get my order.

However, before I could get far, Preston’s hand shot out and grabbed me. I turned to tell him off, but before I could get a word out, he said, “How about you come sit with me and we have a little chat? I think we could help each other.”

I pulled my arm from his weak grip. “I’m not interested,” I snapped.

I grabbed my stuff, and when I turned around, I expected him to be gone, but he was now totally in my personal space.

“I think we should talk. Maybe about your little… side business in college.”

I froze at his words, my heart falling into my stomach. Does he mean the tests? I didn’t know, but I had to be sure.

“Fine,” I gritted out.

I took my things and followed him toward the table near the window in the corner. I slid the metal chair out, the sound of it on the hard floor grating my nerves as I sat.

He leaned back casually, taking a sip of his drink as if this was a casual meeting. “You know, I really appreciate your help during college. My dad would have been pissed if I’d failed my LSAT.”

I crumpled my cup slightly under my grip. In college, I’d been lucky enough to get a full ride, but there were things you needed to buy that no one talked about: textbooks, clickers to answer silly questions in class for attendance, and software. Why couldn’t every teacher just agree on the platform they wanted to use for homework instead of making us buy a new one every semester?

But because of that, I started taking tests for people. It started with a single test for a friend—her Biology 102 final—and she’d paid me three hundred dollars.

At the time, I had a part-time job, but I was sick of it, and it consumed so much of my time I was barely getting my work done. But when my friend told me someone else wanted me to do the same for them, and they were willing to pay double, I couldn’t say no.

So I kept going. I only had to do a bit of extra studying, and I was quickly making hundreds. It seemed like the perfect gig, and it was always for classes so large no one noticed me.

My friend at the time had acted as a liaison. She got me clients and told me where to be, and I gave her twenty percent. It had been great until I left college and was able to get a real job. Now I was comfortable enough to have an acceptable wardrobe, my own apartment, and the occasional splurge item, and I couldn’t let some rich douchebag ruin me by exposing my test-taking scheme. The school could denounce my diploma, and then I’d be back at square one.

“What do you want from me?”

“Hm, those are the words I wanted to hear,” he said in his slimy way. “I want you to fail the farm.”

I paused. Out of all the things he could ask, that wasn’t the one I was expecting. “What? Why?”

“You don’t need to worry your pretty head about it. You just do this for me, and I won’t expose you to the school board, who will probably revoke your degree.”

“You can’t just threaten me. You don’t have any proof. And besides, that would mean you had to admit you didn’t take you’re own test. You’d be fucked too.”

He shrugged. “You can choose to believe that. But I can assure you, I always save these things. And you think I’m worried about that? My family is paying for the new wing of their law building, I assure you, I’m safe. A nobody like you though…” he shrugged.

I could feel my eye twitch. I couldn’t tell if he was lying, but could I truly risk it? If I lost my degree, I would lose my job and probably wouldn’t be able to get back into any other university. All of my dreams, my goals, would shatter.

“I’ll think about it.”

“I trust you’ll do more than think about it.” His grin made my skin crawl.

“What are we thinking about?” A soothing voice said from behind him.

I looked up and realized Brooks was standing there. And his face was far from the pleasant, carefree one I’d seen earlier. It was… intense.

“Nothing for you to worry about, Mr. Hoffman. Thought any more about my offer?”

Brooks’s nostrils flared in irritation. “Nope, and I can promise you, the answer will always be no.”

Preston picked a piece of lint that didn’t exist from his cuff and, seeming unbothered, turned back to me. “I’ll see you later, Sydney.”

With that, he got up from the table, abandoning his empty coffee cup.

“Was he botherin’ you?” Brooks asked, his voice still taking on that heavy tone. And while I was still out of sorts from that interaction, it was weirdly comforting.

Like he was standing up for me. Wanting to defend me. And I felt okay with that.

“N-no,” I replied hesitantly. “He just recognized me from school.”

He nodded, but his shoulders still sat tight.

Something about it told me he wasn’t buying it, but he luckily let it go.

Well fuck.