Page 31 of Most Likely to Fear Love

What the fuck? “Your room?”

“It’s a one-bedroom cabin and like I said, I’ll be outside the whole time. I understand if it makes you uncomfortable though, so no hard feelings if you’d rather head off.”

That was all perfectly reasonable, and he was so calm that my momentary freak out fizzled away. “No, it’s okay. I’m happy to go ahead with it.”

“Okay then. You take as long as you need and come out when you’re done.”

Annnd now we had more awkwardness. “I usually lay there for at least an hour, to uh, you know.”

“As I said, take as long as you need.”

“Honestly, I have no idea how you do this without making it sleazy.”

He shrugged and maybe he didn’t know how to reply, because all he said was, “The sample is twenty minutes old, so how about we get a move on.”

“Good idea.”

He pushed away from the counter. “This way.”

I followed him down a short hallway and at the end of it, he pushed open a door and stepped aside, allowing me to enter first.

“Oh wow, your room is great.”Way to go, Cass, not weird at all.

“Yeah, it’s not bad.” He moved to the big picture window that faced out onto the lake, and drew the heavy curtains closed, plunging the room into a soft, muted light. “Sample’s on the nightstand. I hadn’t bagged it up yet.”

I nodded, not really sure what to say. Harle gave me a reassuring smile before stepping out, closing the door behind him with a soft click.

Alone in his bedroom, I sat on the edge of the bed. Harle’s bed, where he slept every night. Where he… Okay, enough of that. I fished the insemination kit from my purse, my hands shaking just a little as I reached for the cup.

HARLE

Igrabbed my work gloves and headed outside, desperate for a distraction. Because this was a bad idea. An incredibly bad fucking idea.

I don’t know how you do this without making it sleazy.

Yeah, me either, because right now, the idea of Cassidy lying inmybed, doing what she was doing, had me rock hard. I’d one hundred percent brought it on myself, of course. But there was just something about that sad stoicism of hers that made me want to go the extra mile for her. Every fucking time. Now here I was, adjusting my jeans as I grabbed the hammer and nails and headed towards the paddock.

As always, the fence needed mending, so I set to it with way too much energy, hammering nails and replacing rotted boards. Sweat trickled down my back as I worked, the physical exertion helping to clear my head.

It worked so well that time slipped by unnoticed, until I stopped to grab a drink of water. Glancing at my watch, I realized with surprise that over an hour had passed since I’d left Cassidy in my room. She’d said she usually waited an hour, so why hadn’t she come out yet?

It was a small house, she couldn’t have gotten lost. She also wouldn’t have just left without coming to say goodbye. So what the fuck was going on? I took another swig from the water bottle, debating what to do. I let a few more minutes pass, but when there was no movement from inside the house, I started to get really concerned.

I could at least go to the door, make sure she wasn’t crying or something. Yeah, that would be okay.

Moments later, I approached the bedroom door, frowning when I realized it was open slightly. What the fuck? I’d definitely pulled it all the way closed behind me. I stood still, listening for any sound from inside. Nothing. I knocked softly. “Cassidy? You alright in there?”

No response. My heart rate picked up as I slowly pushed the door wide and peeked inside.

The sight that greeted me robbed the breath from my lungs. Cassidy lay curled on her side, fast asleep in my bed. Her face was peaceful, lips slightly parted. Buddy was snuggled up against her back, his head resting protectively on her hip.

I stood frozen, unable to look away. She looked so small, so vulnerable, that a fierce wave of protectiveness washed over me. It was so strong that I had to take a few moments to catch my breath.

Buddy’s tail thumped softly against the bed as he gazed up at me, clearly pleased with himself for keeping her company.

“Good boy,” I whispered, careful not to wake Cassidy.

Maybe leaving her sleeping wasn’t the best idea, but I couldn’t bring myself to wake her. Instead, I backed away, quietly closed the door and retreated to the living room, my emotions a tangled mess.

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