Page 67 of Giddy Up, Daddy

“You have to do more than tell her, boy.”

“How do I do that? I’m new to this, remember?”

Grandpa Jack grunted. “Yeah, well. It’s like any relationship, isn’t it? You got to talk to her. Which means actually being here. There’s nothing more important than your girl. Nothing.”

Stafford closed his eyes and nodded. He really had fucked up. “I’ve been so focused on getting the ranch up and running that now I can’t seem to switch off from it.”

“You’ve got to learn how. The ranch is fine. You’ve done a good job with it, boy.”

He had?

That’s the first time his grandfather had told him that.

“Now, it’s time to nurture other things. Like your girl. Talk to her. Figure out what she wants. What she needs. Lay out what you expect. Like for her to call you if she gets hurt. Might not hurt to ask her about her Little. You know, how young she is. What she likes to do. Get her a few things to help. Set the scene. Yeah?”

“Thanks, Grandpa,” he said.

“Just remember, I go to sleep early. And when I take out these hearing aids, I can’t hear a thing.” His grandpa winked at him.

Lord help him.

“This is a darn foolish idea, girl.”

“Grandpa Jack, people clear dead leaves from gutters every day. Are you going to go around telling them that it’s a foolish idea? What is a dumb idea is leaving them blocking the gutters. Orleafingthem blocking the gutters. Get it?”

He stared at her blankly.

“You didn’t get it.”

“Oh, I got it. It was just terrible. What I don’t get is you climbing up a ladder by yourself to get some leaves out. When you should justleafthem.”

“Good one,” she said with a grin. “And this has to be done.”

“Then Stafford can do it.”

“Stafford is way too busy to do this. He’s got important things to do.”

At least that’s what she told herself when she started feeling sad that he wasn’t around much. She’d known what she was getting herself into when she’d agreed to be his.

Well, when he’d declared that she was his.

When he was home, he was attentive and loving. She’d never felt so cared for and she didn’t want to complain. It was just . . . well, she didn’t feel comfortable showing him her Little. Even though he had reassured her that she could.

It didn’t feel quite right. As though she was demanding too much from him or something.

“Important things to do? More important than making sure you don’t break your neck?”

“I’m not going to break my neck,” she said with exasperation as she started climbing the ladder.

He was such a drama queen.

Muttering, he wandered off inside. Which was really the best place for him. Yesterday, she’d tripped on one of the rotten boards on the deck and scraped her knees. And now she was worried that Jack would do the same.

He seemed to be venturing more and more outside. Which she was telling herself was a good thing.

But she didn’t want him getting hurt.

Blakely moved carefully. Heights weren’t her favorite thing. But she’d seen how blocked up the gutters were getting and they were due to get some heavy rain tomorrow.

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