Page 28 of If I Didn’t Have You

My sons were all idiots, but then again, I wasn’t exactly winning the Husband of the Year award.

“If you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay the hell away from her.”

“She’s just a friend,” he said slowly.

Shaking my head, I stalked away from my sons, heading toward the barn. Hell, I’d go just about anywhere right now to escape their stupidity. Maybe even my own.

Not even a throbbing thumb could erase the argument from my mind, and as I stormed into the barn and grabbed the pitchfork, I knew that no matter how hard I tried, shoveling shit wasn’t going to help either.

But I headed into the first stall and led Susie out into the pasture for a little exercise while I mucked out the stalls. Not that the damn horse would actually gallop or even trot. No, this horse strolled over to the first tree she found and plopped down underneath it to fall asleep.

Sighing, I walked over to her, sliding my hand along her withers. “So, this is what you’re gonna do all day? Lounge around without a care in the world?”

She neighed, resting her head back on the ground.

I laid my head back, tipping my hat to cover my eyes. “Yeah, must be the good life, huh? No one to tell you what to do or where to go. No one to yell at you when you try to pay them a compliment.”

Again, Susie agreed with me.

“Yeah, well, just wait until you find someone. He’ll compliment your hindquarters, and because you’re a woman, you’ll probably get mad at him, too. But let me tell you, a man can only take so much rejection before he’ll walk away.”

She didn’t have anything to say to that.

“Oh, you don’t believe me?” I sighed, tipping my hat up to look at her. “I see how you are. Just like all the other damn women, strutting around like a man won’t see your ass and want to take you. You’re a horse, so you probably don’t understand this, but men love a shapely ass.”

She snorted in what I could only imagine was disgust.

“Hey, don’t take that attitude with me. I’m just like all the other men out there.”

She pushed up on her front end, then propelled herself to her feet, taking off at a gallop.

“Yeah, you go ahead and run away from the truth! Just you wait! I’ll get a stud over here, and then we’ll see how long you last!”

The wind blew softly over my face, swaying the branches above me in the breeze. Huffing out a laugh, I shoved to my feet and brushed the grass clippings off my legs.

“I’m talking to a fucking horse. Good job, Ben.”

9

CLARA

The brush slid over the canvas like silk over skin. I could feel the colors coming alive beneath my fingertips; vibrant blues, bright yellows, and greens so vivid, you could get lost in their depths.

I sighed in contentment as I looked at the image before me. I’d never been at peace like this in all the years I lived on the ranch. After days of setting up a small studio for myself on the opposite side of my new office, I finally had the time to sit down and be at one with nature.

And it was magical.

“What in the hell is that?” Krista asked as she walked into the room, grimacing at my attempt to be an artist.

“It’s the mountains.”

She came closer, cocking her head to the side as she studied the landscape. “That is most definitely not the mountains. Maybe a woman laying down with her nipples sticking up. Is she orgasming?”

I smacked my daughter before dipping my brush in the jar of water. “It was supposed to be my attempt at a masterpiece.”

“Oh, it’s a piece of something, alright,” she snorted, striding over to my desk where she plopped down, kicking her feet up on my desk. “So, what’s with the painting?”

“I always wanted to do it. I thought it would be peaceful.”