Chapter 3 #2
With my phone in my pocket, I went about my day. When I returned to the barn a little after 1:00 p.m. I grabbed my lunch and decided to check social media. There was a message from Joe that had been sent mid-morning.
JOE
Oh. Okay. What do I do?
Something about his response made me chuckle.
GENTRY
Can you meet me tomorrow at Mr. Wilson's barn?
JOE
There are so many Mr. Wilson’s with barns. Which one?
I chuckled again. He wasn’t wrong.
GENTRY
Your brother’s barn. We are using one of his horses.
JOE
Depends on what time. I’ve got a man I need to spend some time with in the morning.
Around 1:00 p.m., okay?
His response intrigued me. I would learn more about it tomorrow.
GENTRY
That would be fine. I’ll see you tomorrow.
JOE
I’m excited. I’ll see you then.
From the little bit of interaction I had with Joe, he seemed nice. I looked forward to tomorrow. I enjoyed meeting new people, and Arthur Wilson was such a nice person. I hoped his brother would be the same.
By the time 1:00 p.m. rolled around, I was sweaty and covered in cow shit.
One of the water systems had broken, and I had been kneeling in wet mud in the pasture for the last few hours.
I loaded Dusty in the horse trailer and drove up the road.
The barn I was going to belonged to Montgomery Wilson, and I hoped there would be tack I could use.
While I unloaded Dusty, a car pulled in. I kept an eye on it as a slim man with shoulder-length hair stepped out—he was hot. He gave me a quick smile, then went to his trunk. He pulled out a pair of cowboy boots. Thankfully, he had come prepared.
“Hi! I hope you are Gentry, or I should probably call the police.”
I grinned at him.
“I most certainly am.” I looked at him. For the first time in a very long time, I felt a little flicker of something.
He was sexy as hell, with dark, soulful eyes, a smirk that made something flutter in my belly, and I itched to run my fingers through his hair.
I couldn’t help the grin that found its way to my face.
“I guess I am yours for a bit while we make you a horseman.”
“That’s not exactly a hardship for me.” He smiled back. It reached his eyes, which made him even more attractive, and I hadn’t missed his flirtatious comment.
The second we met, it was obvious we were going to be friends. There was electricity between us, which surprised me because I thought those feelings were long dead in me. I brought Dusty over and introduced him to Gentry.
“I have a close friend named Dusty.” He smiled at me. “Actually, they are both quite handsome men.” He reached out and ran his hand down Dusty’s face and muzzle.
“Do you have a lot of experience with horses?” Most people are nervous around the huge animals, but Joe had reached out, pet my best friend, and even gave him a little compliment.
“No. I’ve seen them a few times when my brother went riding, but this is the closest I’ve ever been.” My heart did a little swoop. He wasn’t scared of Dusty, even with no experience. That was sexy.
I dropped my backpack and dug through it. I pulled out an apple that I packed this morning, cut it into quarters, then smiled at Joe.
“Want to give him a treat?”
Joe gave me a soft look—damn, my heart beat hard.
“Yes. He won’t bite, right?”
“Dusty is the best. I promise he will be gentle.”
I took his hand and placed it palm up on top of mine, my body wrapped around Joe’s back, and I leaned over his shoulder. “Is this okay?” I asked quietly in his ear.
He giggled nervously, “Yeah. Yup. It’s fine.”
“Just hold your hand under his muzzle, keeping your fingers flat so he doesn’t accidentally get you,” I said right against him. I was pretty sure I felt him shiver, which made me do the same.
Dusty carefully took the piece of apple, his lips touching Joe’s palm. “It tickles.” He giggled a little, which made me feel light inside. It had been so long since I felt anything toward someone that my body must be hypersensitive.
“One more?” He nodded his head, so I placed another piece of the apple on his palm. Dusty chomped on his snack. Joe laughed a little more—I soaked up the sound like an addict.
“I like him.”
I chuckled, not wanting to move away. “I think he likes you, too.”
Reluctantly, I released Joe, then put the lead rope over Dusty’s neck. I knew he would follow me, which gave me the opportunity to focus on Joe.
The three of us walked toward the barn. Once inside, I was amazed at how modern everything was— these horses lived the good life.
Each stall had a name tag. Dusty and Joe followed me until we stood in front of the one that read Amber.
She stuck her golden head over the door, nickered softly, and Dusty bumped noses with her.
“This is our girl, let’s get her out and start your first lesson.” I would swear Joe fluttered his lashes at me,
“I was nervous, but you and Dusty have me relaxed already.”
That made me feel good. “I’m glad. Horses are just big dogs.”
He laughed again, and each time I heard it, I felt warmth flow through me.
“I’ll have to come up with a way to pay you back for taking such good care of me.”
“Oh. And we just got started.”
I would one-hundred-percent let him pay me back, and based on my half-hard cock, it had ideas of its own about how he could do it.
“I’ll look forward to that.” There was no way I would discourage him. I slipped a halter on Amber and led her out of her stall.