11. Harle
HARLE
I grabbed my work gloves and headed outside, desperate for a distraction. Because this was a bad idea. An incredibly bad fucking idea.
I don’t know how you do this without making it sleazy.
Yeah, me either, because right now, the idea of Cassidy lying in my bed, doing what she was doing, had me rock hard. I’d one hundred percent brought it on myself, of course. But there was just something about that sad stoicism of hers that made me want to go the extra mile for her. Every fucking time. Now here I was, adjusting my jeans as I grabbed the hammer and nails and headed towards the paddock.
As always, the fence needed mending, so I set to it with way too much energy, hammering nails and replacing rotted boards. Sweat trickled down my back as I worked, the physical exertion helping to clear my head.
It worked so well that time slipped by unnoticed, until I stopped to grab a drink of water. Glancing at my watch, I realized with surprise that over an hour had passed since I’d left Cassidy in my room. She’d said she usually waited an hour, so why hadn’t she come out yet?
It was a small house, she couldn’t have gotten lost. She also wouldn’t have just left without coming to say goodbye. So what the fuck was going on? I took another swig from the water bottle, debating what to do. I let a few more minutes pass, but when there was no movement from inside the house, I started to get really concerned.
I could at least go to the door, make sure she wasn’t crying or something. Yeah, that would be okay.
Moments later, I approached the bedroom door, frowning when I realized it was open slightly. What the fuck? I’d definitely pulled it all the way closed behind me. I stood still, listening for any sound from inside. Nothing. I knocked softly. “Cassidy? You alright in there?”
No response. My heart rate picked up as I slowly pushed the door wide and peeked inside.
The sight that greeted me robbed the breath from my lungs. Cassidy lay curled on her side, fast asleep in my bed. Her face was peaceful, lips slightly parted. Buddy was snuggled up against her back, his head resting protectively on her hip.
I stood frozen, unable to look away. She looked so small, so vulnerable, that a fierce wave of protectiveness washed over me. It was so strong that I had to take a few moments to catch my breath.
Buddy’s tail thumped softly against the bed as he gazed up at me, clearly pleased with himself for keeping her company.
“Good boy,” I whispered, careful not to wake Cassidy.
Maybe leaving her sleeping wasn’t the best idea, but I couldn’t bring myself to wake her. Instead, I backed away, quietly closed the door and retreated to the living room, my emotions a tangled mess.
Around fifteen minutes later, I was sitting quietly on the sofa, working on my tablet, when I heard soft footsteps coming down the hall. The slow roll my heart did at the sight of her was painful enough that I had to rub at my chest as Cassidy stepped into the living room.
Her hair was tousled, a few strands falling across her face in a way that made my fingers itch to brush them aside. The top buttons of her shirt were undone, revealing a tantalizing glimpse of skin.
She walked across to the kitchen and peered out the window, obviously looking for me. Her feet were bare, and I found myself staring at her delicate ankles. Never knew I had an ankle fetish, but here we were. It wasn’t just the ankles, though, it was the whole package. She was just unbelievably gorgeous. Of course, the knowledge that she was standing there with my cum dripping out of her didn’t help.
I cleared my throat, trying to regain some semblance of composure. “Hey there. Have a nice nap?”
Cassidy gave a start and turned to face me, her cheeks flushed pink. “Oh, I didn’t see you there. God, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to fall asleep.”
“No worries. Buddy seemed pretty happy to have someone to cuddle with.” Buddy, with impeccable timing, chose that moment to appear from the bedroom and sit right next to her, leaning heavily against her leg.
She glanced down and her lips curved in a sweet smile as she ran a hand over his head. It was then that she noticed her messy clothes. Her blush deepened as she fumbled with the buttons of her shirt. “I, uh... I should probably...”
“You could stay for dinner, if you like.” And here we have very bad fucking idea number two, but I guess I was becoming a masochist. I don’t even know what made me blurt it out, just that I didn’t want her to leave.
I held my breath, waiting for Cassidy’s response. Her head tilted to one side, those green eyes studying me intently. I braced myself for a polite rejection, already kicking myself for even suggesting it.
But then she surprised the fuck out of me.
“You know what? I’d love to stay for dinner.”
My heart did a little flip in my chest. “Yeah? Great! Hope you like pasta.”
A small smile played at the corners of her mouth. “Pasta sounds perfect.”
I got up from the couch and headed for the kitchen, taking the opportunity to breathe in her scent as I moved by her to the cupboard.
“Anything I can do to help?”
I grabbed a pot and filled it with water. “Nah, I’ve got this. You just relax and take a seat.”
She did, sitting on one of the barstools with Buddy by her side, his head resting on her thigh. He was clearly smitten with her. Join the club, boy.
As I moved around the kitchen, pulling out ingredients, I could feel Cassidy’s eyes on me. The air between us felt charged, crackling with energy.
“So who is this sweet guy? Or girl.”
“That’s Buddy. And the lazy guy over on the couch is Max.
“Cute names.”
“I didn’t choose them. They came with those names.
“Where from?”
Laying out the vegetables on a board, I started chopping. “A shelter. They’d been there for a long time and no one had adopted them, because they’re so big and, you know, not puppies. They were about to be put to sleep, so I took them.”
“That’s amazing.”
I shrugged. “Not really. They’re easy to take care of and no hassle.”
She was quiet for a beat, then she said, “Do you always do that?”
“Do what?” I flicked her a quick glance, feeling my heart squeeze at the way she was looking at me.
“Say something is no hassle when it clearly is quite a hassle.”
“Do I really do that?”
“Allll the time.
That made me chuckle. “I didn’t realize I did that, but I guess so.”
As I busied myself with the dinner, I tried to ignore the way my body hummed with awareness of her presence. This arrangement was getting more complicated by the minute. And I was about to make it even more complicated by instigating Very Bad Fucking Idea Number Three. Before I had time to second guess it, I said, “I need to ask you something.”
Snagging a carrot stick from the pile I’d just chopped, she bit into it, waiting for me to continue.
“It didn’t make you feel too weird or uncomfortable, doing the procedure here?”
She flushed a little, but still held my gaze. “I guess not, considering I fell asleep. Why do you ask?”
Here goes. “Well, since my truck is out of action for three days, I can’t come to you.” I paused for a moment, letting that sink in.
“Right.” Her tone was neutral. I couldn’t tell if that was a good or bad thing.
“So either you take this as a one and done for this cycle, and we return to normal programming next month, if there’s still no luck this time around. Or…”
“Or?”
“You come back tomorrow and do it again.”
I held my breath, waiting for Cassidy’s response. The offer hung in the air between us, loaded with implications I wasn’t ready to face.
Cassidy’s brow furrowed slightly as she considered my words. “You wouldn’t mind? I mean, I don’t want to impose...”
Trying to keep my voice casual and no doubt failing miserably, I said, “Not at all. It’s no hassle.”
That made her smile.
“Just, you know, I want this to work for you and if this is what it takes, then okay.”
She nodded slowly, taking another bite of the carrot stick. “Okay, then. If you’re sure.”
“I’m sure.”
Cassidy’s eyes met mine, and for a moment, I swore I saw a flicker of something more than just gratitude. But then she looked away, focusing on Buddy as she scratched behind his ears.
“Thanks, Harle. I appreciate it.”
“Like I said, it’s not a problem.”