Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 36960 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 185(@200wpm)___ 148(@250wpm)___ 123(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36960 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 185(@200wpm)___ 148(@250wpm)___ 123(@300wpm)
Every time I see her singing along to the radio and shimmying her hips, I want to break down the door and grab her. I’d push her down onto that threadbare couch of hers and kiss my way down her body. I’d make her perfect body squirm beneath me.
The second rule is that I only allow myself to watch the video feed in her living room and kitchen. There’s one in her bedroom, but I only use it for a quick glimpse. I’m looking for things out of place or other signs someone may have been in her space. So far, so good.
If I didn’t have these cameras inside of her house, I’d be a bear. As it is, it takes every ounce of my self-control not to sweep into the rental and demand she pack her bags so she and Daisy can come live with me. It’d be a tight fit in the tiny hunting cabin on the edge of Aunt Dorothy’s property, but Missy would be under my roof where I can spoil her day and night.
The night passes uneventfully. Well, uneventfully in that no trouble showed up on Missy’s doorstep. But I got an eyeful when she came home. She stripped down to her panties and tank top while fiddling with the AC unit.
I feel like an idiot for not realizing that it was giving her problems. That’s why she wanders around the place half-dressed. I make a mental note to get that fixed even if it means I miss seeing so much of her beautiful skin.
She goes through the house like a tornado, cleaning everything in sight. She talks to Daisy the entire time she does, pausing sometimes to play a baby brainiac soundtrack that’s supposed to be good for little ones to listen to.
I watch her work, marveling that the woman is never still. If she were at my cabin, I’d tie her to the bed and lick her until she was a quivering mess. Then I’d crawl under the sheets and cuddle her until she fell into a peaceful sleep.
When she and Daisy do manage some shuteye, I relax. I won’t sleep. I’ve taken to grabbing shut-eye when she’s at the diner. I’ve already talked to Ernie and Lorna. I paid them a visit and told them that trouble was following my girl. They’re keeping an eye on her, and they’ll call if anyone shady shows up.
The next morning, I follow Missy to work. I wait until she and Daisy are safely inside before I drive to Aunt Dorothy’s farm so I can grab a change of clothes from the hunting cabin where my stuff is. I haven’t told her about Missy yet, but she probably knows already.
I stop in at the barn, hoping I can catch my aunt in the middle of her chores. The woman works this farm from sun-up to sundown. I’ve never heard her complain about the back-breaking work.
The familiar scent of hay, manure, and horse hits my nostrils. Up until I met Missy, I’d say that smell was home. Now, it’s coconut body wash and pink rose shampoo with a hint of baby formula underneath.
I follow the sound of Russell’s voice to the tack room. He’s the foreman. He’s been with Dorothy for years. Probably decades at this point.
Russell is talking, frustration bleeding into his tone. It makes his thick Southern accent more pronounced. “Take it easy. Just for one day.”
“What’s going on?” I ask as I step into the tiny room. Aunt Dorothy turns to me, and my knees threaten to buckle. She’s got a black eye. For a moment, I’m six years old and listening as Mom tells me that if anyone asks, she tripped down the stairs.
Dorothy must read the alarm on my face because she pats her leg that’s encased in a black walker boot, the kind the doctor gives you after you’ve sprained something. “Met the business end of a horse.”
I glance at Russell, amazement overtaking my concern for a moment. “And you got her medical attention?”
She shoots him a dirty look as he says, “She was knocked unconscious. I loaded her into my truck before she came back to.”
“And I’m docking your pay for it, you old coot.”
He looks unconcerned. “Then I’m taking back the world’s best boss pen I got you.”
She frowns. “You never got me one of those.”
“Well, I definitely won’t now,” he answers. The familiar bickering between them makes me feel warm inside. I grew up listening to these two argue. It wouldn’t surprise me if Russell arranged for them to get matching burial plots so he could spend his afterlife annoying my gruff aunt.
She grunts. “Go, get that fence fixed. Griffin will help me with the chicken coop.”
I steel myself against my nerves as I climb into the utility vehicle. I’ve been on a few high-speed chases, but there’s nothing quite like Aunt Dorothy. She’s the type of driver that they make traffic laws for. She shouts to be heard over the sound of the whipping wind. “Don’t you have a class or something today?”