Page 56 of Single All the Way

I did want to go back to sleep, but he probably did too. He’d woken me up twice last night, and I’d returned the favor once.

I laughed quietly, like a satisfied cat. Had we really done it four times? The delicious tenderness between my legs said yes.

I had zero regrets.

I stretched my legs, appreciating the warm cocoon of blankets for a few seconds, then tossed the covers aside and sat on the edge of the bed. When I crept up the stairs to my room, Ben was still in the bathroom.

In my room, I threw on warm sweatpants, a long-sleeved tee, and a thick sweatshirt, plus wool socks. Twisting my hair up on my head in a scrunchie, I hurried down to the kitchen and found Ben starting a pot of coffee.

“What are you doing?” he asked as I walked into the room.

“Feeding the beasts with you. It’s time for me to learn the ropes.”

“You don’t have to. Have you looked outside?”

I went to the kitchen window and peeked out. “Snow.” It was tough to judge how much, but there were drifts a third of the way up the garage door. I shrugged. “Esmerelda and Betty still have to eat.”

Ben laughed. “They do. You’re welcome to come out with me if you want.”

We put our boots, coats, gloves, and hats on. Ben picked up a shovel from the entryway on our way out. I immediately saw why. Pristine white snow covered everything in every direction, drifting over the steps and giving no hint of the usual route to the barn.

He scooped a path down to the driveway. “I’ll have to get the plow going to do the rest. Animals first though.”

Taking my gloved hand, he waded through snow that was probably seven or eight inches deep, with me following in his footsteps, literally. When we entered the barn, one of the horses nickered and another made a snuffing sound.

“Morning, everybody,” Ben called, making me smile.

This was Ben’s version of walking into the office and greeting everyone for the day.

He made his rounds to all three horses, rubbing their necks, saying good morning, and giving them compliments. I stuck next to him, telling each horse hello but not going close enough to pet them. I wasn’t really afraid of the horses, just a little intimidated, but this was me taking a first step toward getting used to them.

“I’ll need to go up to the hayloft and get more hay, but first we’ll refill their water and get them their grains.”

“Will you show me what to do?”

His brows shot up. “Really? You want to feed the horses?”

“I didn’t like having to depend on the kids to do it last night.”

Ben nodded, then showed me how to fill the water buckets, where the corn was stored, how much to give each horse, and how to secure everything in the stalls.

Ben’s horse, Smoky, nuzzled me as I gave him his grains. I caught my breath and then laughed because it tickled.

“He likes you,” Ben said.

“What do I do?”

“He likes to have his neck rubbed, although he’s picky and doesn’t usually ask for attention from anyone but me.”

“Really?” I looked at the horse, who was studying me with those big, astute eyes. Even though his corn was there for the taking, all his attention was on me.

Ben came up to us. “Hey, Smoke. You know a pretty lady when you see one, huh? You trying to steal my woman?”

“Temporary woman,” I said in a stage whisper, grinning and playing along.

“He doesn’t need to know that,” Ben said. He stroked Smoky’s neck. “Try doing this.”

I reached over and rubbed the other side of the horse’s neck, tentatively at first. He nuzzled me again, startling me and making me laugh.

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