Me: The cat never touched me.
Riley: Good. I would have hunted it and made it into a coat if it had.
Me: Not necessary Cruella De Vil.
Riley: You have got jokes.
Me: You have no idea.
Riley: Good night, Emma. Have sweet dreams.
Me: You too, Riley. But for the love of God, next time you come to the rescue, at least put some pants on.
Riley: No promises ;)
?
The next morning, true to his word, William brought me a shotgun and a box of shells.
“Don’t ever put yourself in harm’s way for those horses without a gun. Do you understand me?” he said sternly.
“Yes, sir,” I said, a little intimidated by where this came from.
He lectured me like a father would a daughter, and that realization almost brought me to tears, but I swallowed it back.
“You wouldn’t believe how long it took me to get Riley to go back to his room. He would not stop talking about moving you into the main house. He was ready to go pack up your things and drag you to the house, still in his drawers,” William said.
At the mental image of Riley in last night’s lack of attire, my face heated.
“I’d prefer my trailer,” I said simply.
I didn’t want to live in the main house, where my every move would be watched, like Riley. Not to mention, what kind of message would that send? Moving into my fake boyfriend’s house would really send a message to the world, one that I would never be ready to send.
“That’s what I told him. Your folks made that place special, and I know you aren’t in any hurry to leave it. If you ever do leave this farm, Emma, the trailer is yours. We will move it wherever you go.”
I stood there with tears in my eyes while holding my new shotgun. Why did William have to be so kind? Why did I have to cry every time my parents were brought up or he did something nice?
I hated crying.
I choked back the tears and said, “Thank you.”
“Any time,” he said as he walked away.
The farrier had come by this morning, and Rodrigo was assisting him in the stable. William had ordered a removable metal shutter for each window of the main stable. If that cat came back without us knowing, the horses would still be safe. We could open them during the daytime and close them once night fell.
I would help install those, whenever they came.
“Is today the day?” Riley called out to me as he crossed the lawn.
“The day for what?” I asked, turning around.
He was fully dressed this time, thank god.
“The day you go out with me,” he said.
“Let’s see how the day goes,” I said.
“Not an outright rejection. I will take it.”
