Chapter Twelve
I avoided going to my parents’ house more than I had to. Running into Reed was not an option right now. I still felt it was necessary to keep my distance from him. He made me feel things I wasn’t sure I was ready for.
So, instead of leaving the isolation of my house, I drowned in it, repainting and redecorating. I had gotten the stuff to fix the place up but kept putting it off. Now seemed like the perfect time to drag it back out and get started.
Over the last week, I had exhausted myself daily. Between school and redecorating, I was beat by the end of the day. Things were finally looking more like a home. The old house was actually beginning to look less abandoned, and I had to say I was a bit proud of my accomplishments. I needed some color in my life, and this was a start.
Rhett was playing in the middle of the floor with his tractors pappy had gotten him. He adored those things and refused to play with anything else. He was a farm boy in training.
I flopped down on the recliner and watched as he made crashing noises when ramming them together. I let my eyes fall just slightly as the exhaustion of the day took me over, then lifted my head quickly, startled by the laughter spilling from Rhett.
The sight before me brought tears to my eyes. He stood with nothing bracing him, taking one step and then followed by three more. My hand covered my mouth, and the tears spilled over, coating my cheeks. I didn’t want to startle him, but the overwhelming urge to grab him and hug him tight made it hard. He looked at me with a big smile on his face.
He attempted another step, only to lose his balance and fall back, landing on his padded bottom. He began to whimper, and I took that as my chance to approach him.
Taking him into my arms, I kissed his chubby little cheek. “Look at my big boy. Mommy’s so proud of you, little man.”
I stood in the middle of our living room, rocking Rhett from side to side. He grew excited with my praise and began bouncing in my arms. Placing him on the floor, he once again stood and wobbled on his unsteady legs. With such determination he took another step, and once again I found myself crying with another milestone Blake was unable to be a part of.
Our son was just shy of a year old, and I still had a hard time getting over the idea of Blake not being here to share in these moments.
***
“Guess who took his first steps last night?” I announced as I walked through the back door of my parents’ house.
My momma’s screech of excitement made me laugh, as she pulled Rhett from my arms. “Did my little bug start walking? What a big boy. We need to walk down to the barn and tell Pappy.” I watched as Momma exited the house with Rhett in tow, walking toward the barn.
I followed a few minutes later and found my daddy tossing Rhett up in the air as he giggled. The barn was loaded down with scattered bales of hay that needed to be loaded into the end stall. I began helping Hank drag the bundles; Hank only smiled as I used my legs to drag them toward their destination.
My parents had both wandered off with Rhett, completely forgetting about the task that needed to be finished. They were both completely engrossed in my son. The two of them worshipped the ground he walked on, and it was heartwarming.
Placing my hand on the second bundle, I began dragging it toward the stall. A large, calloused hand gripped the band right next to mine, and my gaze shifted upward.
“Let me help ya.” Reed’s big brown eyes captivate me. I withdrew my hand like the damn thing was on fire from his touch. He winked and lifted the bale like it weighed a mere ounce. The smug bastard chuckled and hiked it up high, trailing off to the last stall. The fact those tight jeans of his hugged his ass perfectly did not go unnoticed by me. I squeezed my fists tightly and turned back toward the front of the barn. I needed some fresh air. These hormones of mine needed to settle down.
Over the next hour, I did everything I could to ignore the snug t-shirt that contoured perfectly to his bulging arms, and those son of bitching thighs of his had me clutching my own tightly.
Once all the hay was sorted, I walked over to the service sink to wash away the dirt and grime from my hands. It was stuck under my nails, and I had to use the scrub brush to work it away.
“What’s wrong, moving to the city take all the country outta ya? You forget how to get dirty, princess?”
I glared up over the side of the gate next to me, and Reed’s face held nothing but amusement. This, of course, only made the anger boil within my chest. This man seemed to have the capability of pissing me off like no other. I thought he knew he held that power as well, since he tended to use it often.
Placing my hand on my hip, I narrowed my eyes a little more. “Don’t you dare call me Princess. I’m not some prissy girl, and you know it. What is it with you trying to piss me off all the time? I thought you wanted to be friends?”
He leaned against the gate and reached out in my direction. Gently, he pulled a piece of straw from my hair and let it drop to the ground. He never spoke a word as his thumb swept over my jaw. The feel of his touch against my skin had my eyes fluttering closed. I didn’t want to enjoy his attention, but it was inevitable.
Our eyes met as he pulled his hand back, and he grinned. “I think the question you need to be asking yourself is why I get under your skin so bad. I don’t think anything I do or don’t do is the problem. I think it’s the feelings they cause in you. Those feelings you can’t seem to control, but you’re fighting so hard to hide.”
He pushed off from the fence and walked off to the barn entrance, leaving me standing there watching his fine ass walk away.
I gritted my teeth and groaned out in frustration. Stomping my feet like one of my students, I kicked at the dirt and shook my hands dry. I needed to get out of here…like now. I spun around and stormed off toward the house. That man irritated me, he drove me insane.
He was wrong, so wrong. I knew what I was feeling, and it was plain old aggravation. Nothing more than a man who made my blood boil. Dumb ass cowboy thought he knew me. He didn’t know me, not anymore.