RIVAL: An Enemies to Lovers Why Choose Country Romance

Chapter 13

“What the fuck is wrong with your face?”

Sitting on the ground, I lift my head from where my kitten, whom I still need to name, is rubbing his cheek against mine with purrs, and stare at Mason. I’m not sure how to even answer him. I know I can’t tell him what really happened, so thinking quickly, I respond the same way I did with Griffin last night.

“It’s nothing. Just a mishap from yesterday. Would you like me to do the same thing as yesterday?”

Mason marches over until I see the tips of his scuffed boots in front of me. He squats down, a finger slipping under my chin to lift my face for his perusal. His eyes look over my face for a moment before they narrow on me. “That’s bullshit. This is no fucking mishap. It looks like you got punched or something slammed into the side of your head. Don’t lie to me, Edith. What the hell happened to you?”

I stiffen under his gaze, but I know I can’t tell him it was my father. Instead, I lean my head back to dislodge his hand from my chin. “I’m working on a construction site, working here, and doing chores at home. Sometimes things happen. I promise I’m okay.”

Mason remains silent for a moment before he huffs out in annoyance and stands up. “I need your help out in the field today. I want to get the calves out there. The vet is coming to help tag them as well as give them shots. It’ll take more than just me and my dad is taking my mom to an appointment. You think that’s something you can do? If you can’t, I’ll call in someone else.”

“I can do it.” My reassurance is quick, maybe a bit eager, but I can tell he’s relieved he doesn’t have to call in anyone. “What do I need to do?”

“What I say. That’s all. I won’t know ‘til we get out there. Can you ride?”

Gulping, I shake my head slowly. “I can’t. I’ve never… No. I don’t know how to.” I look away, ashamed when he is clearly annoyed.

“Of course you can’t. Meet me outside in fifteen.” Mason marches away, slamming the barn door behind him, and I flinch at the sound.

Sighing, I brush my fingers over my kitten’s head, then whisper, “Maybe someday he won’t be so aggravated with me. Mason is a cranky man, isn’t he, little man?”

The meow my little guy lets out has me chuckling as I stand and stretch my back. Picking him up, I set him in front of the fresh food I’ve set in his bowl. I leave him as he attacks it like he’ll never get another meal again and slip outside into the early morning sun.

I don’t know where Mason disappeared to, but after only waiting for about five minutes, I hear the thump of hooves just before he comes around the corner on the back of his horse. “Come here, Edith.” His order is gruff, and my nerves wrack through my body. Holy fuck, I’m about to ride a horse. What do I do?

I obey him, hurrying over, and he holds his hand out to me. “I’ll pull you up to sit behind me.” It’s a crisp, clean, no-nonsense order, and I find myself frozen as I stare at his outstretched hand. “Come the fuck on, Edith.”

Flicking my eyes up to him, I let them trail down to the back end of the horse, eyeing it warily. I know my voice is wobbly as I ask, but I push my question out anyway. “What should I do?”

Mason rolls his eyes, clearly irritated with me. “Grab my damn hand. I’ll pull you up and just swing your leg over the saddle behind me. It’s not rocket science.”

In my experience, nothing I ever try to do ends with the results we want, so I’m sure this is going to be embarrassing for both of us. But Mason obviously doesn’t have patience with me, so I quickly step up next to his massive horse and grip his hand. I’ve barely touched him before he’s yanking on my hand hard and hauling me up behind him. Squealing, I throw my leg up and scramble over the back of the saddle, grabbing onto him to keep myself from falling off the other side.

“Jesus. You weren’t kidding. How the hell do you get to your age without ever mounting a horse?” He shifts forward as I try to get myself settled behind him, his animal shifting under us from the added weight, and I panic that I’ll slide off the back.

“I-I don’t think I’m on right,” I exclaim, grabbing his shoulders to keep from falling off to the ground. He grunts when I start sliding and claw at his arm.

“Jesus fucking Christ.” His murmured complaint embarrasses me further, but what am I supposed to do? I feel like I’m literally falling off the back. “Move forward and sit on the actual saddle, Edith! You’re going to fa—”

Just as I start falling, he reaches his arm behind me and hooks around my waist to catch me. “Goddamnit!” he growls loudly. Twisting around, Mason uses his other arm to pluck me up and swing me around to his front. I scramble to position my legs so I’m facing forward, my back pressed hard against his chest, sucking in air loudly. “Just… Edith. You need to relax. Austin isn’t going anywhere, but he’s gonna bolt if you keep kickin’ your feet like a fuckin’ child.”

“Who’s Austin?” I cry out, grabbing for the handle pressed against my body, worried I’ll fall forward and dive headfirst to the ground.

“My fuckin’ God! Jesus Christ! What the hell is wrong with you?” he shouts just before wrapping an arm around my stomach and pulling me back. He’s actually lifted me up so I’m sitting on his thighs with one arm around me, the other reaching out to grip Austin’s reins, keeping him from moving around so much. “Take a breath and relax.”

His words melt into my neck where his lips are pressed, and I do my best to listen. I force my body to freeze, then eventually relax against him when my mind accepts I’m in fact not going to fall off his horse.

I’m panting hard, my heart racing so fast I’m worried I’ll pass out from the adrenaline until I’m able to focus on Mason’s reassurances.

“Just relax, Edith. That’s it… Let your legs relax and feel that he’s not going anywhere… You good now?” His words are both a comfort to me and the animal who was feeling as anxious as I was. Austin snorts out a loud breath and shakes his head to ease the tension we were both feeling.

I can only nod once, afraid that if I move anymore, it’ll upset his horse.

Well, not just his horse. I’m certain I’ve pissed off Mason as well, and I want to crawl into a hole over the way my body flailed as soon as he got me up here.

“So sorry,” I whisper, dropping my chin to my chest. “I-I’ve never—”

“Just… stop talkin’ for a minute, would you? Take another breath and a moment longer to relax. Your body is as rigid as a goddamn board. You can’t ride if you’re this stiff. You’ll freak out Austin.” The hand he has holding my stomach starts to circle, as if he’s trying to soothe me as one would a wild animal.

Looking down, I watch his hand slowly move over my body and it distracts me long enough to fully settle down. Mason thrusts his hips forward and just as my mouth drops open in shock, I find myself shoved forward onto the hard leather of the saddle instead of his lap.

His arm leaves me, and I grapple for the handle again as his arms frame my body to gather the reins. Clicking his tongue, he urges Austin to turn around and head toward the field.

I glance over my shoulder toward the calf barn. “Don’t we need to get them out first?”

“I did it while you were wasting the mornin’, sleepin’ in. All of them are already out. Vet’s gonna be here in about thirty.” As soon as we clear the barns, he pushes his horse to pick up speed and I stiffen once more, not sure what I’m supposed to do when Austin starts bouncing us more with his gallop. Mason’s left arm releases his hold on the leather straps to slide across my body again like before, holding me firmly against him. “So,” he breathes into my ear. “You gonna give me the real answer on what happened to your face now? I don’t buy the whole mishap bullshit.”

Staring straight ahead, I’m overwhelmed with his chest moving against my back as we sprint toward the fields. Plus, throw in his hand pressing against my stomach where I can only focus on each finger pressing into my side; I’m at a loss for words. I have to lie. Right? I hate lying.

When I don’t answer soon enough, he digs the tips of his fingers into me and growls. My hands grip the handle harder as I focus on the field in front of us and lie. “I wasn’t paying attention yesterday and knocked my head against a beam.”

I feel him curl his body over me to drop his chin on my shoulder. “I didn’t hear you, girl. Speak up if you’re gonna give me lies.”

Blinking rapidly, I jerk my head to look at him, our faces only inches apart. My mouth opens and closes, more stunned by the closeness than trying to come up with a way to answer him.

Our eyes meet and he raises a brow, huffing at me before pulling back, and I jerk my head forward. What the hell was that? The rest of the ride is made in silence, our bodies rolling together as Austin runs. Mason’s thighs are cradling mine, keeping me braced just enough so I don’t need to worry about falling anymore. His whole body is tight, every muscle tense against mine.

Finally, I see the dots of the calves ahead and he draws Austin up to slow him down until we’re moving at a slow trot, then finally stop. Mason drops the reins and grips my waist, picking me up to drop on the ground. I stumble as I try to catch my footing, then watch as he easily unseats himself and drops next to me.

Handing me the reins, he lifts his chin to the nearest tree. “Tie him up over there. Vet should be here soon.”

His voice is cold, but thankfully he doesn’t seem as angry as before. I do as I’m told, then walk back just as quickly to wait with him. One of the babies comes up next to me, sniffing at my pants. I can’t help my smile as I pet him. My eyes lift to catch Mason watching me, and I quickly drop them to look into the deep brown of the baby’s eyes. Leaning down, I murmur sweet words to him before he trots off to check out a thick patch of grass.

Both Mason and I lift our heads when we hear the engine of a truck, and I move out of the way when it comes to a stop. Steve Williams, the local vet, is from one of the towns surrounding Broken Ridges. I met him a few times, but we’ve never had more than a couple of words in passing.

“Hey there. You ready to get started?” he calls out as he walks around to the bed of his truck to gather his equipment.

“Yup. Just tell me what you need,” Mason hollers back while he slips his lasso around the calf nearest him.

“If you tie ‘em and both of you hold ‘em down, it’ll only take me a minute to get each done.”

Mason lifts his chin to indicate I should come closer. “I’m gonna tie them. I need you to stay up by their heads and do your best to keep them calm. Stay clear of their legs or you’ll get a hoof to the gut. I don’t much feel like explainin’ to your daddy you got hurt, so stay by their heads.”

I nod and hurry over, dropping to my knees by the first one who’s already on his side. Mason is quick to wrap the rope around his legs, laying over the calf’s body to hold him still. Leaning down, I press my lips to the baby’s forehead, his eyes wide and panicked over being restrained.

“This is perfect,” Doc says. He quickly tags the calf’s ear, the tool he’s using snapping so loud that I flinch. Then he grabs a prepared syringe and administers it as fast as he can. Two more shots follow while both Mason and I try to keep the calf from escaping. His eyes are wild, and the moment Dr. Williams is done, Mason releases him from the ropes and he takes off like his butt is on fire.

I watch him run and wish I could follow and snuggle him until he’s calmed down. I’m sure the whole ordeal was horrible for him and a bit painful. When I look over at Mason, I find him studying me hard. Swiping away a stray tear, I stand up and ask, “Which one is next?”

“You know he’ll be fine, right? It’s just a small pinch and doesn’t really hurt them.” I shrug away Mason’s comment, but I can’t help but feel sympathy for the little guy. Even if it’s quick, it hurt him while it was happening and it makes my heart ache.

I force a smile and link my fingers in front of my body to wait as Mason wrangles the next one. “I’m fine,” I tell him. I’m not sure if he believes me, but he busies himself with tying up the next baby just as Dr. Williams drops a hand on my shoulder, drawing my attention.

“He’s right. It’s only a split second where they’re uncomfortable, then it’s like nothing. The whole process is very humane.” He seems like a decent man, and his eyes are warm and honest as he tries to reassure me.

This time when I smile, it’s less forced. “I’m really okay. I’ve never seen this done before, so it just makes me feel bad for them.”

He laughs softly and prepares the next set of injections as Mason finishes with our next victim. I hurry over to him and fall heavily to my knees, taking up my role as the comforter as Dr. Williams does his job. Every time it happens, my heart breaks a bit more for them and by the time we’re done, hours later, my chest is in actual pain, and I’m emotionally wrecked.

Mason thanks the vet for his help and lets him know to send a bill to the farm. As soon as he hops back into his truck and leaves the field, Mason turns to me, his expression thoughtful, but he says nothing.

I wait awkwardly, wondering if I should start walking back toward the barns, but he stops me. “Come on over here. I’ll put you up first this time.”

With Austin’s reins in one hand, Mason is holding a hand out in my direction, so I go to him. I eye him, then up to the saddle, wondering what I’m supposed to do. He rolls his eyes, less annoyed with me than normal. “I’m gonna hang on to him and set you up on his back. Then I’ll get on. Put a hand on my shoulder and as soon as your feet leave the ground, grab on and throw a leg over.”

Swallowing hard, I nod and place a shaking hand on his shoulder. I ignore the way his muscles move under my fingers and close my eyes just as he grabs me and heaves me onto Austin’s back.

The horse takes a small step to the side, but I scramble a bit more gracefully onto his back and right myself as soon as I’m seated. Blowing out a breath in relief that I didn’t go right over him and fall on my face, I tighten my legs around his body and hold on for dear life as Mason steps into the stirrup and slides into the saddle behind me.

As soon as his arms rise around me to signal Austin to move, I feel more secure and close my eyes in relief.

This time, as we head back, Mason keeps our pace slower. I lean forward a bit, not wanting to lie against him. It was a long morning and my only desire at this moment is to not upset him and be as unintrusive as possible.

Mason releases a loud sigh before pulling me back against his body. I’m so short in front of him he’s able to rest his chin on top of my head. The squeeze he gives me is brief, but I notice it just before he lets me go a bit and simply holds me to him so I don’t fall off.

We’re silent for a few minutes before he asks, “You okay after that?”

“I’m fine,” I tell him immediately. I’m not, but it’s silly that I’m so upset by watching all of those poor babies get their shots and tagged. Tomorrow, I have every intention of giving every single one of them a bit more love and kisses.

I feel him working his jaw above me, but he doesn’t call me out for my lie this time. Just before we come to a stop in front of the barn, he drops his mouth next to my ear, his breath tickling as he murmurs, “You did good today, girl.”

Gulping, I remain silent and let him help me off the back of Austin. If he’s gentler with me this time, I refuse to acknowledge it. Instead, I hurry away and make a quick exit to the road to get to the barn for my afternoon work.

But his compliment has my heart pounding extra loud in my ears the entire way.