Page 24 of Knox
"No. What woke you up?"
"Wasn't sleeping, either."
"I can't sleep because my bed is too big. What about you?"
Being honest might have been too much, and I waited for his response, which came in the form of arms around my waist and his chin resting on my shoulder while we waited for Ian, who sat at the table getting his boots on.
My uncle glanced at us and made no comment about our positions.
Jasper and I didn't do this much. Well, in the beginning, yeah, but later? We rarely touched each other in public.
We were silent as we left the house and headed to the barn in the golf cart.
My job was a little different now. I cleaned Stryder's stall while Ian rode him, and then took Roman out for a walk while Knox took care of his horse.
His. Damn. It struck me then that I either married him or sold him his horse back. Couldn't just give Foxy back. Horses were assets in the Tri-County.
Why couldn't things be simple? Why couldn't we just date and see where it took us?
No, things didn't work that way for us.
After cleaning Roman's stall, I headed up to the hayloft to drop bales down for the stalls and stopped short.
Resting on top of a bale was a guitar case with a large red bow. It was still warm, so it hadn't been up here long.
With a shaky hand, I removed the white envelope tucked under the ribbon, and opened it to read the card.
Happy birthday, Josh.
You can play piano, and you loved Wallace's guitar, so I thought you might like to learn to play your own.
—Finn
I was afraid to look at the instrument up here. It was too dirty, and I didn't want to break it, so I wrapped my hand around the handle and moved to the pulley system, taking the rope down instead of the stairs.
Billy and Barry were busy feeding and watering Wallace's horses when I made it down. Knox wasn't in the barn, and neither was Foxy.
I carried the guitar up to the office, and when I returned, I started cleaning Foxy's stall.
There wasn't anyone to share my excitement with, so I stayed busy, pretending it was just another day. I was happy, though. In my mind, it was a huge deal to be included—to be remembered.
I knew why I got most of my gifts early. It went along with moving into the guesthouse again. Getting the guitar today, on the actual day, changed the—oh, your birthday is sometime this month—to: I remember you.
The aroma of coffee greeted me when I returned to the barn from dumping the last wheelbarrow, and Billy came to take it as Adam walked down the aisle from the other side. There was one cup left on the tray, and it had my name on it.
Ian walked in behind him with Hellfire, and my uncle held his own cup.
Had I moved up in the ranks to get coffee in the mornings? This was new, and I felt strange about it.
Adam stopped in front of me, and I took the cup, thanking him quietly.
He inclined his head and walked around me.
The deliveries began arriving, and I went to meet the hay truck from Mason Farms. Lacey was more than congenial this morning. No flirting, no laughing, just friendly. Normal. I checked the bales and then signed off on the order as Barry and Billy hurried to unload.
"So," Lacey whispered as she hooked an arm through mine and shivered. "Adam is your guard?"
"He is, I think. Why?" I turned facing the barn, realizing everyone was watching us as they worked.
