Page 68 of Wild and Unruly
He was talking about more than team roping. He was talking about us. That he would willingly wait for me to come home just so we could be together.
I try to hide the tears that well in my eyes as conversation continues around me, but one glance at Didi Cash tells me that she sees right through my hiding, and the smile that graces her face confirms what I already know.
Stetson Cash loves me.
25
stetson
The past fourdays have been absolute bliss with Bonnie by my side. Every day, we worked together on the ranch, her helping me with my training and sticking by my side with whatever work I had to do. She wasn’t working right now, which meant she was free to do as she pleased, and she chose to stay with me.
That did something to my heart that I wasn’t prepared for.
I watch her move Freckles around the arena, seeing if she can get her to latch and connect with her, and when she does, she takes a plastic bag out of her back pocket, using it to rub all over her, under her belly, up her neck, down her legs, and all the while the little filly doesn’t move except to twist her head and sniff at Bonnie.
I could see love forming between the two of them and ideas formed in my own head faster than I could guess.
“You okay for a minute? I need to check something,” I callfrom atop the highest post on the round pen where I was watching her work.
She doesn’t give me any kind of look aside from a thumbs-up. I jump down gently, walking into the barn to find my cousin, and when I do, she’s smiling at CT, who stands there hovering over her.
I feel bad for interrupting their moment, but I don’t have a lot of time.
“I want to buy Freckles from you,” I announce, resting my hands on my hips and waiting for their attention.
CT frowns and looks behind me. “Who’s Freckles?”
“That little paint filly,” Dani says softly to her husband, her eyes on me. “Why do you want her?”
“She’s…” I debate if I want to say anything about Bonnie, then decide they’ll figure it out eventually and say, “Bonnie and her are getting along great. I was hoping I could get her trained and she could be Bonnie’s new team roping horse.”
My cousin’s expression melts, and she waves a hand at her face, tears springing forward. I frown at her, wondering why this was hitting her so hard. “That is the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard.”
CT’s brows draw together as he looks to his wife. “Honey?”
“I’m sorry, I’m hormonal.” She continues her hand gesture and looks over at CT. “Are you good with that?”
He looks confused. Hell,I’mconfused, but I watch them anyway, waiting for an answer. “Um, yeah. I don’t really care. Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m fine.” She shoos him away and comes closer to me. I reluctantly tug her under my arm in a hug, glancing at CT for some sort of answer to why this was happening, but he is as clueless as me if his shrug meant anything. “Stetson, you’vedone so much for this ranch. You jump in whenever we need you. The least we can do is give you that horse.”
“I want to pay for her,” I answer, even though I appreciate the gesture. If I don’t pay, then it’s not really a gift.
“Really, Stetson?—”
“Two grand, I’ll sign over her papers to you right now,” CT says before Dani can say anything else, and I give him a nod of thanks.
“Fine,” Dani grumbles, pulling away from me. “I really like Bonnie. I hope she sticks around.”
The comment has me stuffing my hands in my pockets and clearing my throat, unsure how to reply when I don’t have definite answers myself. “Me too.”
With that settled, I head back to the woman I love and see that she’s being nuzzled by the little two-year-old that I just made hers.
I wasn’t sure when I was going to tell her that I bought her, not right away. Maybe as a going away present when she leaves.
She hasn’t explicitly said when she’s leaving. All I know is that she has to be in Kentucky next week, and because she hasn’t brought up her leaving, I wasn’t going to either. I was already fucking missing her, and we’ve spent the last few nights in the same bed, domestically creating night routines with each other and then waking up in the morning curled in each other’s arms.
We went back and forth from The Lodge to my apartment, and I let her have that security of her room, even though I wished she would just be with me at my place. It was going to be our place someday, or maybe her apartment in the city would be.
