“Why not?” he retorts. “The horses don’t care where they’re groomed, sweetheart.”
“Okay then,” I reply.
It doesn’t take him long to come back with the brushes, although he’s followed by two of the ranch hands who remove the saddles, leaving the horses with their bridles. Then, he teaches me how to brush them down and I find myself giggling a lot because the horse I rode is a bit sassy and flirty. She keeps nuzzling my neck then whinnying, as though she’s waiting for a treat.
“She’s a big flirt,” I say, glancing at Abyss.
The strength I can see in his arms as he works on the stallion has my mouth going dry while a part of me I thought was long dead starts throbbing with need. I must make a noise because he’s suddenly there, holding me and kissing me breathless.
“Fuck, Shelly, this isn’t the place, but I’ve never wanted someone the way I want you,” he growls in my ear.
“But where?” I mewl, my libido roaring and raring to go.
“Not gonna lie, if you wouldn’t blow up like a puffer fish, I’d take you up to the hayloft,” he murmurs.
His words have me giggling because that would be just my luck. “The joys of an allergy, huh?” I query.
“Not taking you to my room in the clubhouse for our first time, either,” he says.
“My house,” I state. “I know Uncle Mack lives there, but it’s not like our rooms are right next to each other, we’re on opposite sides of the house.”
“Don’t wanna disrespect him in his home, Shell,” he whispers. “We’ll figure it out, sweetheart.”
I get what he’s saying, but it’s my house too. I don’t voice that, however, because something else comes to mind.
“I’m kind of scared,” I admit. “Can you promise there won’t be any lights on?”
“Can’t promise that, but I will say this, I don’t give a fuck if you’ve got scars. I’ve fallen foryouand while I think you’re beautiful as fuck, it’s the inner you that I want.”
“But… I mean, they’re pretty ugly,” I confess, looking up at him.
“And?” he retorts. “Trust me when I say, we’ve all got scars. Some are just more visible than others.”
His words have my eyes going wide. It’s not something I’ve thought about before, but what he said makes perfect senseand it’s like everything that I’ve discussed with Beth, along with my talks with Marge, come full circle and I finallyseeit—I’m perfectly imperfect and the only opinion that matters as far as how I look is Abyss’s and mine. Everyone else can kick rocks.
“You’re right. So, are we gonna plan this or let it just happen?” I ask, now eager to get to the good stuff.
CHAPTER
TWENTY
Abyss
I burstout laughing and at her hurt look, I lean in and kiss her nose. “It’s okay, babe, I was laughing about the situation, not at you, I promise. We’ll let it just happen, Shelly, because you’re not gonna have an allergic reaction on my watch if I can help it.”
“Since the last time wasn’t a lot of fun, I appreciate that, Abyss,” she teases. “Because blowing up like some kind of cartoon isn’t on my bucket list.”
Before I know what’s happening, she’s laughing in my arms, looking up at me and with the sun shining down, she’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. “Won’t let that happen,” I reply. “Let’s finish up the horses and then we can go over to the clubhouse for a couple of beers.” She makes a face and I smirk. She’s not a big fan of beer, but unbeknownst to her, I had the prospects stock some of the Mike’s Hard lemonades she likes, so while I have one or two, she can enjoy those. It doesn’t take long to finish grooming the horses and as I lead them back into thebarn, I can feel her eyes on me, causing me to walk a little taller with a bit of a swagger in my step.
It may be the weekend, but a lot of the brothers are hanging around, and soon, we’ve got BamBam and Livy sitting with us as we talk about everything and nothing. Both women are slightly tipsy, so I’m happy when the prospects walk in carrying the food that Constance and Maria have made that’ll dry up some of the alcohol. She’s still not driving home in her state, but I don’t want her to have a hangover, either.
“Gonna grab you some food,” I say, interrupting her and Livy.
“I can get it, Abyss,” she replies.
“Nope, I’ve got you, sweetheart.”
BamBam and I pile several plates of food high enough that there’s bound to be something the women will eat. “She’s definitely a lot more relaxed these days,” he says as we walk back to our table.
