Page 61 of The Virgin Playboy

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“The compound’s a long drive,” Graham announced from the driver's seat of his SUV. “That's why I offered to let you do something fun. I'm sure my sister Winnie would have loved to get to know you better,” he lamented. As fine as that would have been, I just wanted more time with him. Plus, as much as he talked about working on a farm, I had to see this shit in action.

“You act like you're afraid for me to see you work or something,” I playfully accused.

“Babe. It's just, I grew up doing this. I'm kind of built for this labor. I love and adore you, so I say this with delicacy, but you're a little on the pampered side. I couldn't see you lasting a day in this kind of work,” he smirked.

“Wowwwwwww, so the multi billionaire thinks I'm pampered,” I said, with a point to myself confused.

“See! I knew you’d be in your feelings. I didn't mean pampered in a spoiled way. It's just you…well, you know you're a city girl. Have you ever even driven past a farm?” he asked jokingly as I rolled my eyes.

“Okay, but what does it take to grab a cow by the udders and just go to work?” I asked, even more annoyed that his laugh could be heard from Japan.

“Jaq, no one milks cows by hand anymore. They're herded up and hooked to a machine. The hardest part is just getting them all where you need them to go, but you're thinking small scale, and the work involved on a farm as big as ours, I can't even dream of how to prepare you for the work involved.”

“Okay, so give me a little light job. Something you could pick up easily in an hour or two. A cow motivator. Someone needs to cheer them up after they get milked through. Or maybe a flower picker, garnish their little pastures with a nice little presentation on my top-chef flow,” I joked as he took my hand in his and kissed it.

“Jaq, I'll make sure to assign you a nice little office job, customer service at the retail shop,” Graham teased.

“Good, because I'm trying to be outside, but not manual labor outside,” I corrected.

“Well, let's just get you there, and you can decide for yourself what you are and aren't equipped for,” he asserted, my hand in his, the long scenic ride there. It was so much land, just acres upon acres of open green pastures, something that differed greatly from the farms I had seen in the US. He'd given me a tour of a good percentage of the facility, greeting all the workers that made up the team that cared for the farm, as well as introducing me to everyone.

He took a good portion of the morning infodumping about how their goal was to do things ethically, because despite their purpose, they were still living creatures, and it affected the animal’s mental health to be caged up. Seeing him herd up so many cows made me understand why he was so good with animals.

For someone who had been away so long, he had gone back into the swing of things like he had never left. Following him around with his little clipboard as he examined the animals, noting their changes in health and checking for injuries, he looked so damn fine in the zone. But seeing him repair a fence, treat a hoof infection, and feed baby cows with bottles, I had formed a new-found appreciation for my man. Who knew the same hands that made beautiful music and took me to heaven was capable of all this skilled work.

I took a break and found refuge in the retail shop, since the next task he had was tending to the bull they had on their premises. To be on the safe side, he didn't want me anywhere near that, since even experienced farm hands had to be careful tending to them. I helped myself to some yogurt and a drinkable smoothie until Graham collected me to take a drive around the pasture on a tractor.

“What's wrong, Jaq? You're awfully quiet,” he smiled, placing his arm around me, as he steered with one hand.

“I'm just taking this all in. Just when I think I know you, I get hit with all these fun facts I don't know about you. It's like, who the fuck are you?”

“To be fair, I've never shied away from telling you that I grew up on a farm.”

Yeah, but you never told me how extensive it was, like you out here herding and caring for bulls⁠—”

“One bull!” I corrected. “It’s why I didn't want you with me, because even dealing with one is really dangerous. You can't turn your back to them, and you always have to have an escape plan. They're, like, really aggressive.”

“But see, it's like the fact that you even know that is crazy. I thought you'd be this trust fund kid handing out responsibilities, but you out here getting your hands dirty, running the whole damn farm.” He kissed me on the cheek, letting go of my hand occasionally to switch gears.

“I mean, I'm still a trust fund kid. I've just been working on this farm since I was a boy. This farm has been in my family for generations. Maybe it didn't start with indigenous people being the face of it, but now that we are, my family takes pride in being able to employ so many of Aotearoa’s original people. What?” he smiled when he saw me just staring at him, all starry eyed and dazed.

“It's just a beautiful thing to be able to give back to your people. If we weren't on a farm full of thirty people, I'd totally be mounting your hips right now. I didn't realize how hot it'd be to witness you doing manual labor.”

“Yeah, nah, I'd rather you not, because I'm really dirty. But maybe when we get home and get cleaned up, we can go on another little drive,” he suggested. Personally, the one thing I actually missed about New York was being able to fuck in a bed. Don't get me wrong, the car sex was hot, but your girl was starting to cramp up and shit. It was torture laying in the same bed next to this god of a man and all we could do was sleep.

“Oh, that reminds me. Is it a yes or a no to the opera tonight? I got a text from Wilhelmina that she and Ka’imi were going and wanted to do the whole double date thing. It's totally fine if you don't want to, but I know my dad would love pictures,” he beamed, and after seeing that smile, I couldn't say no.

“Of course, I'm totally down. It's just I kept my clothes pretty summery and light, so I don't have anything fancy to just go out in.” He shrugged, adjusting his glasses at the corner of the frames.

“That's an easy fix. We can go shopping once we're done here.” I dramatically tucked my hair behind my ear.

“You know, up until a few days ago I would have been uncomfortable thinking you were some broke student spending your last getting me a dress. But knowing you got money, I'm gonna let you Pretty Woman me. Only if I can go as myself, though. None of that no makeup look. I could do the glam thing, but I want it to be me,” I challenged, having been part of a conventional world and knowing it was less kind to those who existed outside the margins. The last time I wore anything remotely fancy and goth was probably prom. That was like a hundred years ago. He pursed his lips.

“Jaq, I would never dream of returning you to a box. As long as it's black tie worthy, you can wear whatever you like.” Excitedly, I clapped.

“Wait, does this mean I get to see you in a tux?” He smiled.