“It’s so cute.” She cuddled in up to her chest. “And soft.”
“You should see all the critters we have in these barns. I’d be happy to show you.”
He could hope.
She smiled. It was slight but unmistakable. Annalise shrugged, which he took as a yes.
“This lot is heading out to the town’s birthday celebration. It’ll take me quite a while to get them all loaded.”
Annalise peered into the pens. “They don’t look like too much trouble.”
“Mostly the piglets. They’re slippery little buggers. Why do you think Gabe and Vinny disappeared after breakfast?”
“They stuck you with the workload?”
He leaned against the split-rail fence, taking off his cowboy hat to wipe his brow. “I’m not complaining anymore.” Archie stared at her, hoping she could sense his emotions. He had this connection with her and couldn’t explain it himself. For the past few weeks, he kept wondering if she’d disappear one day. He wished he knew how she felt about everything.
She looked to the ground. Was she shy, insecure, or brushing him off? Damn, he couldn’t read her at all.
“If you’re free for a while, I could use some help.”
“From me?” She still had the bunny cuddled up between her cleavage. “I don’t know much about farming or animals, just cooking.”
“Don’t sell yourself short. You have a knack with animals. I’ve seen you work wonders with the dogs, and that baby bunny looks quite at home.”
He was jealous of the bunny right now. Annalise had the most luscious tits he’d ever seen on a real woman. He could imagine what she’d look like naked in vivid detail.
“I’ll help if I can,” she said.
“Excellent.” He took the bunny from her, returning it to the secure pen. “Let’s start with the worst of them, in case you decide to change your mind later.” He winked.
“The piglets?”
“That’s right.”
“No changing your mind now,” he said. He walked around the back of the barn, the shadows providing a brief reprieve from the heat. Her footsteps were close behind. Before he rounded the corner, he stopped abruptly. Her hands briefly pressed against his back to keep from crashing into him. That simple touch felt like the most intimate thing in the world.
Archie turned around, leaning against the barn wall. “I’ve missed talking to you, Annalise.”
She nibbled on her lower lip.
“Things have been … uncomfortable. It’s our fault, not yours. I wish we could start over. Can we start over?”
This time, she looked him in the eyes rather than the ground.
She shrugged. “We just made something out of nothing. I want to work here, but I hope you all won’t keep avoiding me like the plague.”
“We just kind of thought you hated us.”
“I don’t hate you. I have no reason to.”
“Gabe said some things…”
“I know he didn’t mean anything he said. People make mistakes.”
Gabe hadn’t made a mistake. They all wanted to have a ménage relationship with Annalise, but it wasn’t worth losing her completely. Maybe she’d never be on board with their twisted desires or maybe it would just take time. He was willing to wait.
He ran a hand along his jawline, realizing he hadn’t bothered to shave the past few days. It was hard to give a shit when his emotions were all over the place. “You’ll really forgive us? Forgive me?”
“I’m helping you with the piglets, aren’t I?” Her smile was sweeter than sunshine.
“Right.” He pushed off from the barn wall and continued to the pigpen around back. “Okay. There they are. You get four and I’ll get four. Fair?”
“Sounds fair.”
****
Annalise felt like a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She hated the silent treatment. It reminded her of life back home when she was younger. Everyone loved to pretend she didn’t exist. Or to ignore what was happening under their noses.
It was one of her triggers as an adult, so hearing Archie talk to her beyond the required pleasantries was refreshing and healing. This all started weeks ago because of a misunderstanding—or so they wanted her to believe. Gabe had said outright that they all wanted her, wanted to keep and share her between the three of them. It was too much to process and next to impossible for her to believe.
Being alone with Archie brought back her deep-seated feelings. His brilliant blue eyes stared down at her in the sunlight, and the scruff on his face made him even more masculine. Part of her wanted him to blurt out it was all true, to demand she agree to their foursome. But it felt like more a fantasy now that they were talking civilly again.
He opened the gate for her, quickly closing it behind her. She was already wearing her rubber boots.
“Sneak up behind them and grab them around the middle. They’re squirmy little things, so make sure you don’t let go once you get a grip,” he said.