Page 74 of Brim Over Boot
Colton doesn’t notice me, not right away. I wish he’d look over here, if only so I could see that blush spread across his cheeks that’s been a near constant these past couple weeks. For going on nearly forty, the man is surprisingly…pure. Not in a sexual sense. There’s nothing innocent about the way he pleads with me to make him come with my hand, my cock on his, or even my mouth.
But as soon as the deed is done, he turns almost…bashful. Embarrassed, maybe? Is he still struggling with his sexuality?
Somehow, I don’t think that’s it. He’s only gotten bolder in that regard. If anything, he seems downright eager to get his hands on me every time he visits my barn, even as he assures me with breathily spoken words that he hates my very guts.
Message received.
Yet, for all the ways Colton claims to despise me, he still blushes when I tell him how good he feels. Or when I threaten to put him on his knees.
When I call him little Colt.
And that, well… I’m not sure I’ve ever felt anything as satisfying as making Colton Darling show his begrudging arousal.
Part of me says it’s because I’ve found a weakness of his to exploit. That’s all.
But the truth is—seeing Colton look at me with something other than contempt for once? It feels like a battle I’ve been fighting for years.
And finally, I’ve won.
Colton still doesn’t notice me, so I head over to a table with donuts, shedding my jacket as I go. It’s plenty warm today, even this early in the morning, and it’ll only get warmer as we move into summer. The maple trees in the park are fully leafed out now, their green foliage spanning out like stars.
I eat a custard donut as I wait for the contest to begin.
“Hi there, Noah.”
Wiping my mouth, I turn to find Marigold Darling appraising me. Her brunette hair, mixed heavily with silver these days, is loose, reaching just below her shoulders. Her eyes are a shrewd yet warm brown. I see a lot of Colton in her. The squared jawline. The shape of their noses. Even the crinkles at the corners of their eyes.
“Ma’am,” I reply, cleaning the sugar off my fingers with a napkin.
“Haven’t seen you around since the Shoein’,” she says.
I simply nod.
“It was quite the sight watching you and my son compete. I know he wishes the results would have swung in a different direction, but there’s no denying you did a fine job with that horse.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
She snorts lightly, a small smile twisting the corner of her lips. “You can call me Marigold. Not that it matters one way or another, but are you self-taught or did you go to a farrier school?”
“I took courses back in Wyoming,” I tell her. “Horseshoeing, blacksmithing, animal husbandry, and the like. Got my business degree there, as well.”
She nods thoughtfully. “No wonder my son found such a worthy adversary in you. I hope you two keep pushing each other.”
I raise an eyebrow, but Mrs. Darling doesn’t give me a chance to respond.
“Glad to see you’re doing well, Noah. Good luck today.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
Marigold walks back toward her family, and I lock eyes with Colton, who’s looking at me with a furrowed brow. There’s a question there, one I don’t have an answer to. I’m not sure why his mother came over to talk to me.
I pull out my phone, looking away only to type.
Me: Ready to lose?
Colton looks surprised as he grabs his phone from his pocket. He reads my text, and I swear the corner of his mouth twitches before he flips me off, attempting a scowl.
I snort.
