Page 19 of Nut Grabber
"As much as I enjoyed lusting over men in their suits back in the city," Regina starts, stretching out on her lawn chair, "hard work glistening on well-muscled arms is seriously a gift from the gods."
"Don't let Josh hear you talk like that," Mariah says with a throaty laugh.
"He knows he's the only hero worthy of being in my story. This is just in the name of research."
I shake my head at both of them. "I swear you two are a terrible influence. I should be doing some admin work or something. Not out here ogling the men."
"You think they wouldn't do it if a bunch of women were shearing with their bodies on show?" Mariah counters, making me laugh.
"I'm sure they would. I just feel...It feels wrong looking now that Hayes isn't up there." The shift change saw him moving to a different area of the operation that’s currently out of sight. He’ll be back shearing in about thirty minutes, though. But this ogling thing isn’t so fun when the one I want to see isn’t in my sights.
"Ohhhh," Mariah sits up and turns in her chair to face me. "Sounds like things are back on between you two."
"They are," I say, a goofy smile taking over my face as I explain to her about the mix-up in names.
"Why do guys do that?" she asks, teasing her auburn curls between her fingers. "Can't they just use first names like normal people?"
"That would be too easy," Regina says. "But I am glad we were right about Hayes in the beginning—he's one of the good ones."
"Yes, he is," I say, unable to control my smile as I sit back in my chair and tip my chin up to the warm, sunny sky. When I close my eyes, I'm instantly transported back to last night and the way it felt to have his hands and mouth all over my body. The experience was transcendent, and I can't wait to invite him back into my bed after work again tonight.
He wants to spend his life with me...
"Oh my," Mariah says with a chuckle. "Please explain that dreamy look, Miss Kym. I want details." She drags each syllable of the last word out and I open my eyes on a laugh, shaking my head.
"Nuh-ah. I don't want to jinx anything, so I'm keeping my lips sealed." I mime using a key to lock my lips and throwing it away. Regina laughs.
"Why don't you tell us about your date last night, Mariah?" Regina asks. "You sounded so sure you'd nab yourself a shearer, but you ended up going home with a local farmhand."
"A beautiful farmhand, I'll have you know," Mariah says, dipping her head back to bask in the sun. "And he was..." She sighs then quickly sits up. "We didn't sleep together."
"What?" both Reggie and I blurt in unison.
"We talked instead," she says, standing up with a giggle. "It was nice. He said he didn't want to do anything when I'd been drinking, so he took me back to the cottage, walked me to the door and kissed me goodnight. It was pretty dreamy, and we're going out again Friday night. He's buying me dinner."
"And you're blushing!" Regina says, her mouth open in surprise. "Oh my gosh, Mariah Peterson. Do you...likehim?"
"Oh, would you look at the time," Mariah says, looking at her bare wrist and picking up her purse. "I should be getting back to the cottage. Work to catch up on and all that."
"You're here on vacation," Regina counters, and Mariah laughs, waving over her shoulder.
"Thanks for letting me use your old cottage," she calls out, referring to the little house on the adjoining property that belongs to Regina. She bought it when she moved here, and it's been standing vacant ever since she came to live with Josh. We'd spoken about me moving there if I wanted a little more space to myself, but I kind of like being close to the animals since there are times when you need to offer around the clock care.
"That woman is up to something," Regina says as Mariah walks away. "What's a bet she's got that farmhand tied to the bed with a ball gag in his mouth waiting for her?"
I let out an uneasy laugh. "That isnotwhere my mind went, but hey, if that's what she's into, who am I to judge?"
"I wouldn't put it past her." Regina chuckles and turns back to me and smiles brightly. "So you and Hayes, huh? Do you think it's the real thing?"
I roll my lips together and nod. "I do, Reggie. I think he might be the one."
HAYES
After a long day of dealing with sheep and cramped quarters, I shower and head over to Kym's place, picking wildflowers along the way. A few of the guys gave me a hard time for getting all nice and clean to go meet 'some girl' but all I did was laugh since I know it's a nice cup of jealousy that's making them react that way. Any man worth his salt would fall over himself for a chance with a woman as amazing as Kym. And that’s even before tasting her pie.
I can't believe I'm picturing myself marrying her and spending the rest of my life on the road with her. It's awfully soon, but the more I spend time with her, the less I want to let her out of my sight.
Finding her in the yard running some training drills with Miffy, there's a sudden feeling that washes over me the moment my eyes meet hers. Kind of like a mix of relief and joy. "There's trouble," I say on approach.
