Page 13 of Sub-Divided

Chapter 7

After breakfast, Josie left Max outside the cafe to saunter home alone. She thought about him as she walked back to the house, musing over how much her man turned her on. His hair, presently buzz cut but which he said he couldn’t wait to grow out, now that he was demobbed. His sexy greeny-hazel eyes and square jaw line. His, ‘I take no prisoners’, shit hot grin. Not to mention the fact she only had to smell his unique tangy male scent for it to send her libido into overdrive.

Last night’s homecoming had been spectacular. She’d missed his brand of sex and discipline while they’d been apart. Although Max insisted the spankings he gave her were fun, to her they seemed pretty intense. She couldn’t imagine taking a harsher spanking.

Sandy was waiting in her car outside the house. Josie hurried over to her, feeling guilty; she’d completely forgotten their arrangement to shop in Denver.

“Hiya, I am so sorry! Max came home earlier than expected and I didn’t have your cell number to change our plans. Can we swap numbers now so I can call you?” Josie noticed a flash of annoyance cross Sandy’s face. She didn’t blame her one bit for feeling put out. She would have been too had she been the one stood up.

“It’s okay, I get it, ‘he’ comes home and all else flies out the window. No worries, we can go another time. How about a quick run together though? Do you have time for one?” Sandy asked.

Josie nodded. “Yeah, actually I do. Come on in while I change.”

Josie unlocked the door and they went inside. Immediately her foot skidded out from beneath her. She fell on her ass with a thump and a shriek. The floor was wet and she was drenched. The noise of the faucet gushing had her scrambling to her feet. Sandy pushed past her, moving quickly into the kitchen where she turned off the water.

“Looks like someone was so excited by their man being home she forgot to turn off the faucet!” she teased.

Josie arrived, rubbing her hip. She pulled the mop and bucket from the utility cupboard and began to clean up. “Nah, I just decided we needed an indoor pool!” she quipped, certain neither of them had left the faucet on.

“Great plan but really, at the expense of the kitchen?” Sandy asked playfully.

“I hoped to start a new trend like those tropical hotel bars that are actually in the pool. Only this would be a ‘kitchen pool.’”

“I’m liking the concept, but the practicalities, not so much!”

They both fell into a fit of giggles and Josie felt better. “I’m done.”

“Actually, we can go for a run but if we’re not shopping I’ll grab a shift. Since I pigged out on a whole tub of Ben and Jerry’s last night, a run would be good.”

“Yeah, okay, give me a sec to change.”

“Lucky I wore jeans and sneakers, I can run dressed as I am,” Sandy said cheerfully.

Josie ran behind Sandy, who seemed to have run out of conversation—either that or she was seriously intent on getting some exercise. As she turned down a track off the main pathway and into the forest, Josie called out to her but Sandy didn’t turn and continued to pound away. Josie shrugged and followed her. The track was reasonably flat for about half a mile but then it became rutted and difficult to traverse. Josie became concerned that she’d trip and turn an ankle. She slowed up and yelled to Sandy, asking her to stop, but she didn’t hear and kept going. Josie hesitated to carry on, but then maybe she was being a wimp? Surely Sandy knew her way around these paths? This was obviously a run she’d taken before, so reassured, she set off again at a jog. However fast she ran, she couldn’t seem to catch up with Sandy who must have run a long way ahead. She needed to speed up her pace.

Panting hard she raced along the uneven ground. Suddenly she felt a sickening lurch, a wrench and thencrash! She lay face down on the ground, her ankle throbbing with pain.

“Shit!Shit! Shit!”

Rolling onto her side she drew her leg up to her chest and clutched her aching ankle. “Sandy!” she screamed but there was no response, nothing other than a sudden fluttering of startled birds lifting into flight.

Josie patted her pocket for her phone. Pulling it free she scrolled down to Max’s contact icon. He answered immediately.

“You are in so much trouble! Where the hell are you?” he growled.

She burst into tears. Hiccupping, she barely managed to explain what had happened.

“Stay where you are, even if your friend comes back, don’t move. I’ll fetch the truck.” He clicked off without so much as a goodbye and despite her relief that he was coming to rescue her she felt hurt by his attitude.

* * *

“Sit!”

“I’m not abloodydog!”

“You’re not English either, so drop the pretentious ‘bloody’!”

“I have English blood! Grandma is English, so that makesmepart English!”

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