Page 66 of Kicking Up Dust

“Down, boy. You’ve still got the whole afternoon ahead of you.”

“Nah, he can head home for the afternoon,” Maddox says from where he’s sitting on the floor between Austin’s knees with his head leaned back on her thigh.

Jameson scoffs. “What the hell? I never get an afternoon off.”

Austin’s nails scratch across Maddox’s head, pulling his hair back with them and making him groan.

“You can all have the afternoon off,” he says, standing suddenly and jerking Austin up off the couch. She squeals and laughs as he tosses her up over his shoulder and heads for the front door.

I look over to Blair with a raised brow. “Reaping the benefits?”

She grins. “Fine, cowboy. Let’s go.”

“I fucking hate all of you,” Jamie grumbles, plopping down on the sofa next to Tyler.

“Aw, Jamie, don’t worry. There’s gotta be a dating app for men like you somewhere. Daddies ’R’ Us? Dating Daddy?” I joke as Blair and I head toward the door, barely missing the throw pillow he throws at my head.

We pass by Tate on the way to my pickup.

“Hey, that horse of yours needs more training,” I tell her as I open the door for Blair.

“Jasper? Why were you even by him? You know he doesn’t like anyone but me.”

“No, I wouldn’t touch your wild-ass mustang with a thousand-foot pole,” I say as Blair climbs in the cab of the truck. “Jane.”

“Calamity,” Tate corrects me, but I roll my eyes.

“I’ll call her Glue if she doesn’t stop trying to buck me off.”

“You’re pulling on her reins too hard. How about I shove a bit between your teeth and yank?” she asks, crossing her arms.

I put my hands up in defense. I know how Tate feels about bits and I know I’d lose my balls if she ever saw me yanking a horse’s reins like that.

“I’m not, I swear. Ask Tyler. She just fucking hates me.”

Tate eyes me suspiciously. “Fine. I’ll ask Tyler what’s going on and then work with her a bit more, but if I find out you’ve been getting heavy-handed with her, I’ll have Blair fit you with a bit and see how you like it.”

Blair giggles, making Tate grin at her, like two conspirators. That’s… mildly terrifying.

“I ain’t getting heavy-handed,” I tell her again, a bit peeved that she thinks I’d purposefully hurt a horse. I wasn’t fucking Snow White like my sister was, but I also wasn’t an asshole. Well… not to horses.

She turns on her heel and marches up to the Big House and I close Blair’s door to round the front of the truck and slip behind the steering wheel, letting go of the argument with Tate.

I’ve got benefits to reap.

THIRTY-FIVE

BLAIR

29 Weeks

Baby is the length of Kenny’s teacher pointer

Colt’s hands wander the entire truck ride. His pinky slides down my thigh and hooks around the leg of my shorts, seeking out my panties, but I slap him away.

“You can wait the two minutes it’s going to take to get home,” I chastise him with no real firmness in my tone.

“It’s gonna take longer than two minutes for me to get inside you because I’ve got to shower first,” he whines, and my mouth falls open like I’ve just had a bag of gummy bears snatched from my hands.