Chapter 25
Addison’s time on the ranch is coming to an end, and I’m not ready. In four days, she’ll be leaving. The season is slowing down with school starting and fall approaching. The colder the days get, the heavier my heart is.
I don’t want her to leave.
We’ve settled into a routine. In the mornings, Addison wakes me up with gentle kisses all over my face and neck, pulling me from deeper sleep than I’ve gotten in ages. Then, we make breakfast and coffee together while stealing kisses and casual brushes of our hands together.
After dinner, we come back home, trading sensual touches in the shower that sometimes lead to more.
Some days, we’re so exhausted that all we do is fall into bed.
We debrief about our days before sleep overtakes us, all while curled up against each other.
On our days off, we lie in bed and trade orgasms until our bodies demand fuel.
It’s been the sweetest torture to have this time with her, knowing that in four days, I’ll have to go back to being on my own. I’ll fall asleep alone in my cold bed, shower by myself, and spend my days reminiscing about my time with the girl I’m in love with.
I’ve gotten to a point where I can finally admit to myself that when she leaves, she’ll be taking a huge piece of me with her—one I don’t think I’ll ever be able to recover. Whoever comes after her won’t get my entire heart. Part of it will be with Addison.
She’s talked to Oscar, Cillian, and Bea’s dad, and he gifted her an old horse trailer that needed a bit of a facelift but is safe and secure enough for Athena to travel in. We spent the last two days cleaning it out and getting it ready for them to travel.
Her departure is starting to feel real, and I hate it.
We finished sending off the last guests we had this week, and I’m helping Kathy clear cabins so we can be done in time for Addison, Oakley, Briggs, Rusty, and me to head to The Mule for one last night before they leave.
Briggs and Rusty aren’t going far, just moving over to work at Reclamation Ranch.
The Hayeses and McCains offered them a permanent job after my dad raved about how helpful they were.
Part of me wishes Daddy would offer Addison a permanent job here, but I know this isn’t where she wants to be. She called her old trainer and already has arrangements to stay at the training facility in Nevada while she gets Athena into competing shape.
As I strip the beds, the door to the cabin creaks open, and Addison fills the doorway.
She’s not wearing a hat today, and I can see droplets of sweat beading on her brow and she’s breathing like she ran over here.
Her footfall is heavy across the floor as she makes her way to me.
I don’t have time to ask her what she’s doing before she’s ripping the sheets from my hands, pressing me up against the wall, and mauling my mouth.
She doesn’t waste any time teasing my lips open with her tongue, and I’m a willing participant, parting for her immediately.
There’s an urgency in her kiss, like we’re on borrowed time and she’s going to make the most out of it.
She works a thigh between my legs, rendering me immobilized as our tongues dance.
One of her hands slides up beneath the Forget Me Not Ranch shirt I’m wearing, pulling my bra cup down so she can rub her thumb along my nipple.
Pleasure sends goose bumps skittering across my skin, and I moan into her mouth.
She kisses me harder, my sounds spurring her on as my hips take on a mind of their own and grind against her leg.
I’m extra glad I decided to wear a skirt today.
The fabric rides up around my thighs as the rough denim of her jeans rubs me through my underwear, catching my clit and sending fresh waves of lust through me.
If she keeps this up, I’m going to leave a wet spot on her pants.
Addison pulls back, gripping the flowy black fabric and pushing it around my waist. I’m sure the pale pink panties I’m wearing are nearly translucent now with how turned on I am, and I don’t care.
“Damn it, Juniper. My only intention was to kiss you senseless—not fuck you—but how can I resist when your pussy’s soaked for me? Look at the mess you’re leaving on my jeans.”
I look over the swell of my belly to see that I have indeed left a small damp spot on the material of her pants. She could play it off as her spilling something, but if I keep going, it’s only going to get messier.
“I’m sorry,” I say breathlessly. I’m far from sorry, but I can’t muster any other words when I’m so close just from grinding on her thigh.
“No, you’re not. If you were, you wouldn’t be moving your hips even more. Are you going to come from a little thigh action?”
“Yes.” Embarrassment shouldn’t add to my arousal, but her teasing always riles me up.
“Do it, sunshine. Come on my thigh, then you can taste the mess you made on my jeans.”
Addison tweaks my nipple as I grind myself harder, the spot growing damper, making my glide easier. My pussy clenches around nothing as my climax rocks through me. My head thuds against the wall as pleasure zips through my veins, and my hips stutter.
She kisses me as my orgasm subsides, then removes her thigh and helps me steady myself before she steps back.
My face, already flushed from my orgasm, heats further when I’m confronted with the evidence of what happened.
The wet patch on her thigh is obscene, made even more so when she rubs her fingers along the length of it and presses them into my mouth.
“Taste yourself. Taste how impatient your cunt is. Didn’t even take ten minutes to have you coming on my thigh.”
I swirl my tongue around her fingers, the tangy taste of my own arousal invading my taste buds.
“Can you wait until later for more, or do you need another one to hold you over until I can have my way with you?”
She pulls her fingers out so I can answer. “I can wait.”
I know if I do, it’ll be well worth it.
“We’ll see.” She wipes her fingers on her jeans and loops her arm around my waist again, kissing me senseless. She groans as she tastes me, and it has me clenching my thighs together.
Maybe I can’t wait.
Knowing we only have a few days has made my libido sky high. If I can get every orgasm out with her, maybe it’ll cushion the pain of her leaving.
“Let me help you take this to the laundry room,” she says, “then I can go change my pants before we head to The Mule.”
“You don’t have to, I’ve got it.”
“I want to. Let me spend as much time with you as I can before Monday.”
I can’t argue with her when she says something like that.
We finish stripping all the bunkbeds in silence before taking the sheets and towels down the path to the laundry room. Kathy’s house is attached to the small shed-like structure, so she doesn’t have to travel far on laundry days.
Once we’ve loaded the machine, I leave Kathy a note letting her know which cabins I’ve done and which sheets are in the machine. Then Addison and I head back to the main house.
As soon as the house is in view, she lets go of our previously intertwined fingers. “I’m going to change. I’ll meet you inside in a minute.”
“Sure. I was going to see if Mama needed help with anything else before we leave.”
Glancing around to make sure no one can see, she gives me a parting kiss on my cheek before heading toward my house.
I turn to head inside, but the crunch of tires on gravel has me turning back in time to see a silver sedan approaching. I don’t know anyone with that car, and we aren’t expecting any new guests.
My spine snaps straight. I pull my phone out to call Daddy as whoever’s in the car rolls to a stop.
“Mama! Daddy! Get out here—now!” I yell as the person in the driver’s seat gets out of the car.
The front door slams open, my parents rush out, and Mama immediately breaks into tears.
“What on earth are you doing here?” Daddy gasps, rushing down the stairs.
“I need help.” My sister gestures to the back seat, where a car seat is barely visible through the glass. “We need help.”
She looks haggard. The weight of the last few months is evident in the way her shoulders hunch and in the dark circles under her eyes. She’s thinner than I’ve ever seen her, like she hasn’t been able to rest or eat in months.
I rush to the back of the car and open the door, tears springing to my eyes when I see the most perfect little boy fast asleep. His curly brown hair flops on his forehead, his cheeks red from sleep, while a stuffed horse is gripped tight in his chubby fist.
Mama wraps Briar in a hug, squeezing her like she’s liable to float away if she doesn’t. Daddy joins me at the car door, peering in to look at the tiny human my sister’s in charge of now.
“Come inside, Briar,” Mama says, going into mother hen mode. “When was the last time you ate? Or slept? Tell me everything,”
Our voices must wake him up, because the little boy jolts awake, and his bottom lip starts trembling before he lets out the saddest cry.
Briar gently pushes me out of the way as she unbuckles him and pulls him out, cradling him to her chest. He immediately settles, lying his head on her shoulder as his big hazel eyes blink at us.
“Everyone, meet Hudson,” Briar says in a soothing voice, rocking him side to side. “Hudson, do you want to say hi?”
Hudson shakes his head and burrows deeper into her neck.
“Sorry, he’s shy.”
“Don’t apologize, honey.” Mama takes the diaper bag from the passenger seat. “I’m sure he’s had a rough time the last few months, and it was a long drive from Nevada. Come inside, and we can see if he warms up to us a bit.”
I grab his stuffed horse before we head inside the house.
Hudson starts fussing, wriggling in Briar’s arms, murmuring something that sounds like a mumbled ‘drink.’
“Mama, do you have some apple juice?” Briar asks. “Huddy’s tired of my bottled water.”
“You’re in luck, we just bought some for the ribs we’re having on Sunday for the farewell cookout. Where’s his bottle?”
Briar fishes out a bright orange sippy cup and hands it to Mama. “Make sure you—”
“Cut it with water, I know. This isn’t my first rodeo.”
My sister sits down on the plush leather sofa, and the little boy on her chest sits up and looks around. He takes in the pictures on the walls, lingering on the ones with horses in them, then shyly looks at Daddy and me. He shies away when his gaze catches Daddy’s default analyzing face: a scowl.
I nudge him with my elbow. “You’re scaring the poor kid.”
Daddy frowns but tries his best to fix his face into something more comforting. “I’m sorry, Hudson. We weren’t expecting to meet you today.”
At the sound of his name, Hudson burrows back into Briar’s neck. Mama comes back with the sippy cup and hands it to her.
“Here, buddy, apple juice,” Briar says. “Nice and cold for you.”
Hudson takes the cup and starts drinking while she talks.
“I know my showing up out of the blue must be stressful. I’m sorry if it throws a wrench in your plans.”
“Briar, don’t you dare apologize for showing up again. We’re family. We’re here for you when you need us. How long are you staying?” Mama asks.
“I… I don’t know. After Taylor and Danielle’s funeral, I took some time off to figure out care for Hudson while I worked.
I interviewed some nannies, but none of them felt right.
My friends helped where they could, but they have their own lives, and I don’t want Huddy to keep bouncing around to a different person every day.
He needs stability, and…” Her voice cracks. “I need my Mama.”
Mama’s eyes shimmer as she sits next to her and wraps her in a hug. Hudson doesn’t seem to mind much that Mama’s smothering him. “You can stay here as long as you need to, honey. This sweet boy will warm up to us in no time, and we’ll help you figure out the next steps.”
“We’re here for you, for whatever you need,” Daddy says. “You and Hudson will have to share Juniper’s old room until Oakley can move out of yours, unless you’d rather stay in one of the cabins.”
“Who’s Oakley?” Briar asks.
“She’s our new chef,” I explain. “Landry’s retiring.”
Briar blows out a long breath and shakes her head. “Everything’s changed so much, I feel like I barely recognize this place. We’ll be fine sharing a room for a bit, as long as it won’t bother Oakley?”
“Oakley won’t mind, I’m sure. It’s a good thing Addison moved into Juni’s place after all, isn’t it?” Mama teases, causing my face to heat.
Briar raises a dark eyebrow in question, and I shake my head. I’ll tell her later.
All of our heads turn when the back door opens and we hear footsteps approaching.
Addison pokes her head into the living room, her eyes going wide when she sees our two new guests. “Oh, um, I’m sorry. I was looking for Juniper, but I can see you’re busy.”
Daddy stands, motioning to his spot on the couch. “Nonsense. Have a seat. Addison, this is our oldest, Briar, and that little fella is Hudson. Briar, Hudson, this is Addison. She’s our wrangler for the summer.”