Page 28 of Chaos

“Henry, could you help her get some riding gear while I check out Myra?” Drex asked. It didn’t sound much like a question, but more of a statement.

“Could I help you?” I used the same tone he had with Henry, remembering this was how we normally behaved. I wasn’t trying to be an ass, but I came off as one and I knew it as soon as the words left my mouth.

“You could.” He paused and leaned against the doorframe, crossing one foot over the other. “But, honestly, I didn’t think you’d want to. You seemed a little frightened by her, and she’s a little unpredictable right now.” His voice was calm and caring as he tried to explain he was only trying to keep me safe.

“He’s right. I had to send his sister out to hunt him down because he wouldn’t return any calls. Myra won’t let me do much of anything, but she’s always liked him better anyway.” Henry backed up Drex’s story, both making me feel like an even bigger asshole.

“I’m sorry I’m a shit.” I huffed in an attempt to backpedal a little. I needed to say it, if not for Drex’s sake, for Henry’s. Both Drex and I had our fair share of bad moments, but I didn’t want Henry to think I was always like this.

“It’s okay. We’re all shits down here,” Henry said in a loud whisper and they both laughed. My curious eyes darted between both of their faces.

“It’s an It reference,” Drex explained, but it meant nothing to me. I shrugged my shoulders in response.

“She’s friends with Lexie,” Drex told Henry, pointing his thumb in my direction.

“Ah. Makes sense,” he replied and walked a few steps away from where we all stood.

“You coming?” he called to me over his shoulder as he stood in place, waiting on me to join him.

I nodded my head and chewed on the corner of my lip, wondering why being friends with Lexie aka Courtney would even be an answer to my confusion. The words the men exchanged didn’t seem to give away a lot, but their body language said a lot. Both had a very relaxed stance, one you would have around a friend. Was it possible Drex had friends? Of course, he did. I was positive most people, other than myself, surrounded themselves with many people. Even the most foul of a person usually had at least one person who was as rude and negative as they were.

Henry took me through a breezeway that connected the barn and a nearby building. He held the door open for me, and the cold air-conditioned air kissed my skin. Momentarily, I closed my eyes and stood just inside the door, soaking in the artificial air.

“Lovely, isn’t it?” he all but moaned and mirrored my actions, curling his fingers on the door handle and securing it.

“Mhm.”

“Let’s get you some clothes. Your T-shirt should be fine. I’ll get your gloves, hat, pants, and boots.” He took off across the floor and disappeared into a doorway to the right.

“I didn’t give you my sizes.” I cocked my head to the side and followed where he had gone, puzzled by his flighty actions. Henry wasn’t visible in the room full of riding attire. My fingertips ran along the jackets hanging and admired how soft they felt beneath my skin.

As I rounded the rack, he popped out from the end of two aisles over from me. “These should fit.” He gleamed, shoving the clothes, hat, and boots into my arms when he was within arm’s length.

“How?”

“Did I know your sizes?” he finished my question after I’d checked the size of every item he’d given me. “I love clothes. If being a veterinarian hadn’t come so easily to me, I would have designed clothes. I make some of my own things.” He waved his hand down his flannel shirt and tight-fitting pants.

“Huh,” I simply said, not really sure what to say. I’d met plenty of doctors here and there, and even a few veterinarians when Jaxson adopted a family of mice…a cat…and a dog. None of them looked or even behaved like Henry, but then again it seemed no one from this area was really like the people I knew from back home.

Henry showed me where to change and informed me I could leave my clothes on the bench in the locker room. “No one here today should bother them,” he said. Although, the only people I saw here were Drex, Henry, and I.

When I found my way back into the barn, Henry was gone, and I found Drex instead. Instantly, my mouth went dry. He wore a white long-sleeved shirt with a crisp collar and top buttons he’d left open, exposing his muscular chest. The black ink across his chest stared back at me, and I questioned the words I’d never given much thought to before now. “Conatus Sum.” The tips of blue waves crashed against the words, crying out the hidden meaning.

My eyes traveled the length of his torso and then to the tight black pants he wore. They hugged his strong calves and left nothing to the imagination, which actually surprised me. I always assumed men wore cups when they rode a horse. The look was complete with matte finished black shoes with a small heel. I licked my lips, trying to wet them, desperate for a drink of water or anything really.

Drex cleared his throat and my eyes darted to his face, which held humor behind squinted eyes. He smirked and scratched his jawline through his beard. He nodded toward the open barn doors and waited for me to reach him before he took a step. Perhaps life was about finding someone who took steps at your pace, not just their own.

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