Chapter 21 – Sunshine
TWENTY-ONE
SUNSHINE
“Are you sure about this?” Harmony asked me. We were standing next to each other in what basically served as the Lodge’s garage. It was a separate building, adjacent to the house, but it’s where all the equipment and vehicles not horse related were kept.
The building was big enough to house five trucks, four ATVs, and two dirt bikes I assumed were used more for fun than actual ranch business.
“Absolutely sure,” I said. I’d spent the morning in front of the computer and I had given myself one hour to step away from the screens and the numbers and the stress. I had my phone on me if anything started to happen, and I was going to take one hour to do something fun.
Ethan asked me if I wanted to learn how to ride one of the ATV’s and my immediate answer had been yes.
“A horse, an ATV? What’s next for you?” Harmony asked.
“Anything. Everything,” I said, feeling like that could be true. “Why didn’t I do any of this stuff as a kid? It’s fun.”
Harmony shook her head. “You just never wanted to. ”
“Well, that was dumb,” I decided. I followed Ethan out to the gravel area that was just outside the garage, and listened as he walked me through the gas and brake. Then he handed me a pair of sturdy gloves to wear and a helmet.
“You’re not wearing a helmet,” I said.
“I’ve been riding one of these since I was six.”
“Wear the helmet,” Harmony told me. “We need your brain intact for this crypto thing.”
When I sat on the seat and put my hands on the handlebars, I wasn’t sure I was going to have the strength to grip the clutch.
But it squeezed easily, and with a jolt I was moving.
Another squeeze of the brake clutch, and I stopped.
After a couple of those attempts I felt like I had some control over the vehicle.
“How far can I go?”
“Not far!” Harmony insisted.
“Stick around the Lodge,” Ethan said. “That way, I can keep eyes on you.”
Without another word, I was off.
And it was exhilarating. Almost like stepping on to a New York sidewalk for the first time during morning rush hour and truly having a sense of how many millions of people fit on a single, tiny island.
This was nothing like that, obviously, but it gave me the same buzz.
The wind blew my hair back, I kept my body loose as the machine ran over the dips and ruts of the land.
After a few trips around the Lodge, I could feel my butt starting to ache from all the abuse, so I pulled the four-wheeler into the garage.
As soon as it was parked I pulled out my phone, knowing who I wanted to share my excitement with.
Me: You done work?
Tag: Yep.
I waited a second to see if he would follow that up with an invitation. But when it didn’t immediately come, I decided to woman up.
Me: Can I come over to your place? Otherwise, I have to spend all night watching Ethan and Harmony be in love…(vomit emoji)
Tag: That sounds worse than Netflix.
Me: So, can I come?
Tag: Baby, you can always come with me.
Me: Sorry. Looking for this emoji (eye rolling emoji)
Tag: Yes, you can come over. But, bring food with you. Otherwise, it’s Pop’s cooking.
Me: I might like your dad’s cooking.
Tag: Pop makes hot dogs and beans when it’s bad weather. Burgers on the grill when it’s good weather. Tonight’s looking like a bad weather night.
Me: I’ll bring food. But, are you really sure this is okay? I don’t want to seem pushy.
Tag: I’m pretty sturdy and don’t push so easy. I’ll come over and get you.
Me: No, I can take one of the ATVs on my own. Ethan gave me a lesson this afternoon in case there was an emergency. I’m good at it.
Tag: I’ll come over and get you.
Me: I can do it! I swear. And I need more practice.
Tag: I don’t like this.
Me: Tough. (wink emoji)
“I want another horseback riding lesson,” I said.
“She wants another lesson,” Pop said, looking at me.
“Why?” Tag asked. “You said it yourself, all this investment stuff is going to come to a conclusion in the next few days.”
“Yes, but it’s fun!”
Dinner was a lasagna that Mrs. Walker gave me from one of the three storage freezers in the garage.
Tag had been waiting for me at the door as soon as I pulled up to the cabin.
But, I didn’t let his scowl impact my mood.
He had to accept that I was a grown woman and I was going to do what I set my mind to.
I’d pushed the bottle of wine and a covered lasagna dish into his chest and he’d accepted both with a grunt.
Bold, and high on the markets shifting and my ATV ride – I’d kissed him on the lips. Hard and fast .
While the lasagna was in the oven, I set up my laptop, checked the markets, and found them climbing. With one eye on my laptop, I’d played a few matches of chess with Pop. But, because I was distracted this time, he’d taken me two out of three.
Now the lasagna was gone, we were all full, and I was a little buzzed from the wine and I boldly asked for more lessons on Shirley.
“And,” I said. “I’ll be back more, now.”
I looked away so I didn’t see Tag’s reaction to my plan to return. I didn’t want to see him look startled or nervous that I’d be coming back, expecting something more from him. Because I wouldn’t.
Would I like to keep this… affair going with Tag? Very much. But I wasn’t in the business of asking for more than what I got. And I got plenty from Tag. I didn’t want to ruin what we had by changing the rules now.
“What kind of lesson did you have in mind?” Tag asked me. My eyes flew to his, expecting to see some heat there. A smirk. The shared memory of what we had done to each other. But he was just eating the last bit of cheese and pasta off his plate.
I tried not to be disappointed.
“I want to be able to get up and get off Shirley on my own.”
“I can show you how to do that,” Pop offered.
Tag glared at his father.
“What? You’ve got to run the ranch. I’m the retired guy here.”
“I’ll show you how to get up on Shirley,” Tag said. “You can ride her on your own, but you have to stay in the paddock. ”
“That’s no fun,” I pouted. “You’re like Ethan, who would only let me ride the ATV around the Lodge.”
“Something I plan to have words with him about. You don’t know what you’re doing on an ATV and it can be dangerous.”
“I was fine. I want to go back to the south pasture to see Annabelle.”
“Who’s Annabelle?” Pop asked.
“My cow friend.”
Tag shook his head, but he was smiling a little bit like he was charmed. It made me smile, seeing him smile.
“We don’t name the cattle, Sunshine,” Pop said. “First rule of ranching”
“Thank you,” Tag said, pushing back from the table and picking up our empty dishes.
“Fine, but I don’t want to stay in the paddock. I want to ride down into the valley.”
“You get up first thing, and I mean first thing, and meet me at the barn. I’ll take you out,” Tag said, as he started to wash the dishes. “Need to check on the calves in the south pasture anyway.”
I would be up hours before him because that’s when the Asian markets opened. Once I had a handle on those, I could meet him for an hour in the barn. I clapped. “I’ll get to wear my new cowboy hat.”
Having decided that I couldn’t borrow my sister’s clothes forever, I’d put a large order in at a quality store that included handmade cowboy boots and my own cowboy hat. I’d paid a premium to have expedited shipping to the Lodge, but now I didn’t have to borrow everything from Harmony.
Pop laughed. “A cowboy hat, huh? Next thing you know, we’ll get you into a pair of chaps and you’ll never want to leave. ”
“She’s leaving,” Tag said abruptly, a blast of cold air in the cheerful warm air of the cabin. He came back to the table to pick up the lasagna dish. “Once all this is over, she’s got a big time promotion waiting for her back in New York.”
“That right?” Pop asked quietly, and I nodded.
“But, I really do plan on coming back to visit,” I said, but Tag was at the sink and he acted like he didn’t hear me.
Later that night, after Pop went to bed, I sat in front of my laptop, watching the European markets close. Tag walked by and put a hand on my shoulder.
“Let’s go to my room and finish that series we started the other night.”
“Are you asking me to Netflix and chill?” I asked, spinning around in my chair to look at him.
“I’m asking you to finish the series we started last night. I want to see if that Scottish cop gets that woman out of the compression tank.”
“Do you know what Netflix and chill means?”
“It should mean lay down on my bed and finish the series, but from that look in your eye, I think it means something else.”
“Oh, it does.” I gave him a saucy wink and he pulled me up from my chair.
“Sorry, babe,” he said. “Pops a light sleeper and you are not quiet when we play.”
“It’s all right,” I said. “Another time.” Though we were running out of time at an alarming rate. Days were slipping by so fast.
We got into his bedroom and laid down, both of us still dressed, minus our boots. I leaned against his shoulder and he turned on the TV. I was nodding off halfway into the episode.
“Hey there, darlin, we better get you home before you fall asleep,” he said, when the credits rolled.
“Too late,” I snuggled deeper into his side.
“No can do,” he said, rolling off the bed.
That took me off guard. “Why? I slept here last night. You asked me to stay.”
“You did and I did,” he said, his jaw tight. “But I don’t think we want to make that a habit.”
“Two nights is hardly a habit,” I muttered, feeling rejected. I rolled off the bed and stomped my feet into my boots.
Sleeping with people wasn’t something I’d ever done before. Not the whole night. And I realized this morning I liked it. Not just because I’d been able to sleep through the whole night without waking up, my brain turned off like Tag knew exactly where the switch was.
But, because sleeping curled up with Tag was the safest I’d felt in my life.
Now I had to get back on the ATV and ride through the night back to the Lodge and my lonely guest bed.
What a letdown.
“This isn’t because you’re afraid of my brothers, is it?” I asked him, as I stomped, yes, stomped, after him toward the front door.
“I’m not afraid of your brothers,” he grumbled. “I could take every one of them if I had to.” He paused a beat. “Maybe not Seth, but he wrestles steers for a living.”
Then a darker thought occurred to me. “You’re not…embarrassed? Of me?”
He frowned as if he was genuinely confused.
“You know,” I said. “I wasn’t exactly the most popular kid in school. Or in town. I’m still not. Especially, if I don’t pull this financial trick off. One false step and they’ll probably run me out of Last Hope with pitch forks. Go home, city girl, all over again.”
Again, his brow furrowed. He shook his head. Opened his mouth and shook it again. “Your brain, Sunshine. It can be a scary place.”
“You’re telling me.”
He cupped my face in his hands, forcing me to look at him. Look into him. “You think I care about what anybody thought of you in high school?”
“It’s a small town. People talk.” I shrugged, and tried to pull my face free. This was stupid. This was why I should keep my mouth shut and not ask for more than what I’m given.
One arm at a time, he wrapped himself around me. Pulling me against that wide chest that I was learning by heart. I dropped my head on to his shoulder and just let him…hold me.
“Darlin, I don’t care what anybody thinks, or says, or even shouts at some damn council meeting. I like you. I fucking love fucking you. And tomorrow, I’m going to teach you how to ride because you’re not afraid of anything. Who doesn’t want to be around a person like that?”
I lifted my head to meet his eyes. His expression was soft and I knew everything he said was true.
“Okay,” I whispered, moved by his words.
“Now, you’ve done it,” he grumbled.
“Done what?”
“Made me change my mind,” he said, as he took my hand and pulled me with him back to his bedroom.
“But you said I couldn’t stay.”
“I said I didn’t want to make a habit of this,” he grumbled, even as he led us back to his room. “Habits can be hard to break.”
I watched him undress. His shirt, his socks, his jeans and his boxer briefs. He was semi-hard and it made me smile, because I knew it was because he was thinking about being in a bed with me, even if he had no intention of doing anything.
Come to find out, Tag was a very neat cowboy. Instead of tossing his clothes to the floor, he had a hamper in the corner of the room and tossed them there. Then he pulled out a pair of pajama bottoms from a dresser drawer and tugged those on, completely unconcerned with his hardening cock.
“You like looking at me naked, darlin?” Giving himself a long, slow stroke before pulling the pajamas up over himself.
“I like looking at you any way,” I said, honestly.
He opened another drawer in his dresser and tossed me a shirt. It was just a white cotton tee, but it smelled like him.
This shirt was going to go back with me to New York, where I would never wash it in the hopes of keeping the smell of him in it forever.
“I’ll just change in the bathroom,” I said.
“No, I don’t think so,” he said, as he climbed into bed. “We can’t play, but I would be much obliged if you got naked right here in front of me.”
“Won’t that make it…harder for you?”
He dipped his hands inside his cotton pants and was clearly stroking himself. “Sometimes the tease is worth it. Now strip.”
I did. Not in any kind of sexy way. Just an orderly removal of my clothes, which at one point left me bare up top with nothing on but a pair of panties. I knew he was watching me, because I could hear him mutter words under his breath.
Things like fucking beautiful.
When I got into bed, his shirt like a dress on my body, he spooned me, my back against his chest, his knees tucked up under mine. His arm wrapped around my waist. His now hard dick nestled into my butt.
“You’re sure you don’t want to…” I let my voice trail off.
“Pop would die if he heard the sounds you make, and he would spend the rest of his life never looking you in the eye. Instead…” He slid his hand under the tee he’d given me and cupped my breast in his big, callused palm. “Let’s just enjoy this.”
Lying here, touching each other, being aroused by the other, but not doing anything about it. It was more intimate than sex. Then kissing.
His thumb casually brushed my nipple. His cock twitched against my ass. His breath in my ear fell into a steady, deep pattern.
He was right. Sometimes the tease was worth it.
He was also right about the habit thing.
This was going to be a hard one to break.