Cowboy Up (Lucas Brothers)

“Sure enough. I took him all the way down there. Had to sneak and take Green’s big fancy truck because my old Ford blew a hose.”

“Green’s truck? Ida Sue, Kage says he doesn’t even let Allen drink soda in that truck and that’s his own son.”

“Yeah. He got pissy with me when he found out.”

“How did he find out?”

Ida Sue gets a funny look on her face when I ask that. She looks down at her feet—which is very unlike her. When she looks up, she has a frown on her face and is clearly uncomfortable.

“Hamburger doesn’t like to ride where the wind hits him. It bothers him,” she practically mumbles.

“I don’t understand?”

She gives a sigh that sounds as if it is drug from the depths of her soul.

“He’s not a very big cow…”

“No,” I respond. “He’s not huge…” I trail off, not sure of what to say. I’m figuring things up in my head. I deal with dogs and cats all the time, and I know how deceptive weight can be. I’d say Hamburger probably goes at least five hundred pounds. There are definitely bigger cows out there, but that’s still pretty dang big.

“I honestly thought he might fit in the backseat,” she mutters.

“You didn’t!” I gasp, unable to keep myself from laughing.

“It’s not my fault! The manufacturer obviously lied. I mean, mega cab my granny’s fanny—which by the way might rival a mega cab.”

“Oh my. I bet Green was upset at having a cow ride in his backseat.”

“Well, he never would have known… if Hamburger hadn’t got stuck. Jansen had to unbolt the front passenger seat—which by the way he did but bitched the entire time.”

“Ida Sue,” I laugh.

“It would have been fine… but Hamburger gets the runs when he gets upset.”

“Uh oh…”

“Yeah. I used the pressure washer on his seats, but Green threw a fit. I don’t know why. It just needed to dry and air out for a bit.”

“I—”

“What’s taking so long, Meddie?” Mom asks, riding in on her motorized chair.

“I was just—”

“Ida Sue! How great of you to come visit.”

“You look like a different woman, Leddie Mae.”

“I’m feeling better, if I could just get off this stuff,” Mom says waving her oxygen tube. I sigh. She’s not going to get off of it. Her heart is way too weak, and her lungs aren’t working really great either. Before Mom’s heart attack, I never realized how everything works so closely together in our bodies. Everything has suffered with Mom. She can’t even use the bathroom without taking a ton of pills to help now.

“Meadow was just telling me how bad she felt. I thought you and I could fix some breakfast and then take over at the shelter for the day,” Ida Sue responds.

“Oh, that sounds like a sound plan indeed,” Mom answers.

“I’ll just go get dressed…” I mutter, but they aren’t listening.

I go wash my face and clean up, then slide on some comfy clothes. It takes me a bit, but I feel almost human. There’s no way to tame my hair so I grab a scrunchie, pulling it back on top of my head in a messy bun—a very messy bun. At least my stomach seems to be feeling a little better.

When I make it back to the kitchen, Mom and Ida Sue are laughing as Ida Sue is putting eggs and bacon on plates. The minute the smell of the eggs hit me, my stomach churns. I try to swallow down the bile…

“You’re looking better…” Ida Sue starts, but comes to a stop quickly.

Probably because my face is turning green.

I’m still trying to get control, but I’m losing the battle fast.

“I think you spoke too soon, Ida Sue,” Mom says, but I don’t stick around to listen any further. I cap my hand over my mouth and take off running to the bathroom.

I barely make it.

Chapter 6

Blue

I’ve lost my mind.

That’s the only explanation that I have as to why I’m standing outside of the shelter Doe is running. It’s been six weeks since I fucked her hard inside that playhouse. That was supposed to be the end of it. I was trying to get her out of my system once and for all.

It didn’t.

If anything, it’s made the hunger I have for her worsen. I can’t eat or sleep without thinking about her. I go to bed hard, and I wake up hard. Shit, even after I get myself off, I’m still hard. Being with her didn’t get her out of my system—it just made the ache worse.

Which both does and doesn’t explain why I’m here. Am I hoping to get between her legs again? Fuck, yeah. Do I want between them? It depends on which part of me you’re talking to. My head says run away. My cock is gravitating toward her like a divining rod, and she’s the only water around.