Not Fake for Long by Weston Parker

5

HARRISON

Dottie and I watched the sunrise from the porch. The mountains in the distance were bathed in oranges and reds as the sky above slowly turned from black to blue.

Ashton appeared on the dirt road leading up to the house, his shotgun on his hip and his feet kicking up tiny puffs of dust behind him. His house wasn’t far from mine. It was one of the original staff housing places just on the other side of the hill. He had a truck, but he didn’t use it often. He preferred to walk, claiming that God had given him two good feet for a reason.

“You enjoy sleeping in?” he called when he was close enough that I could hear him. “It’s good to see you’re finally awake.”

“It’s five o’clock in the morning, Ash.” I waited until he climbed the steps to the porch before rolling my eyes at him. “It’s not like I slept in.”

“Have you set up for the guests?” he asked, walking past me to head for the pot of coffee in the kitchen.

A minute later, he was back and holding a steaming mug between his fingers. He sat down on the chair beside me, his gaze also turned toward the view.

“I haven’t set up, but they’re getting here in three hours,” I said. “I’ve got time to get their horses ready. Mariana’s got the rooms in the main house made up. She’s going to be preparing snacks for breakfast for when they get in, just in case they didn’t eat on their way over. I might have to go into town later to get some supplies, but other than that, I think we’re ready.”

“Why the hell did I drag my ass all the way over here at this time of the morning then?” he grumbled as he lifted his mug. “I thought we had work to do.”

“We do, but we’ve got time for coffee first.” My gaze drifted back to my fields and the lightening sky above them. “I’ll split the profits from the weekend with you. It’s only fair, but then you’ve got to help me out with these women.”

“I don’t want the money. I just don’t want you fucking anything up. That’s why I’m here.” He blew a stream of steam from the surface of his drink, turning his head when he was done to smirk at me. “And for the entertainment value. Are you actually going to teach these girls to ride? Or are you going to try saving the horses and encouraging them to ride the cowboy instead?”

“I’m not a cowboy,” I replied.

“Damn straight you’re not.” He shrugged. “But it worked for the point I was trying to make. Two city girls. You’re a city boy. Isn’t there a song about that?”

“The song’s about a small-town girl and a city boy,” I said. “Sitting in a smoky room or something like that.”

“Oh, yeah. You’re right.” A rare grin lit his face and he lifted a hand to snap his fingers. “Anyway, you and two city girls? Maybe we’ll meet the future Mrs. Boss this weekend.”

“Doubt it.” I ran my fingers along Dottie’s back, toying with the dark hair as her tail wagged slowly back and forth. “We’re not saving the horses this weekend, and if they want to ride cowboys, they’re going to have to go looking for them in town. Which trail do you think we should start them on?”

He held his chin between his fingers, stroking his beard while he thought. “You said they’re beginners?”

“Yep. According to the form they filled in, neither of them have ever been on a horse.”

“You don’t want to take them anywhere dangerous then,” he said slowly, like he was telling me something vitally important that I didn’t know. “Maybe stick to the flats this morning. Just ride around here. It’ll be thrilling enough for them, even if you don’t go on any of the actual trails. Just keep them on the back of the horse and you’ll be the hero.”

“Whatever you say, oh wise one.” I chuckled. “I don’t care much for being a hero, though. Between this place and the bank, I have more than enough on my plate.”

“Well, I don’t know how you’re doing at the bank but you could’ve been doing a lot worse around here.”

“Are you actually complimenting me?” I sat forward, but Ashton shook his head.

“Never. I’m just saying you could’ve been doing worse than you are. That’s not really a compliment. It’s just a fact. When you bought this place, I thought it was going to tank within a year.”

“Thank you for your confidence.”

He shrugged. “What can I say? You stopped here in that ridiculous car of yours, wearing a suit that looked like you’d stopped on the way to have it pressed, and then decided you didn’t want to stay in the main house.”

“I like this house,” I protested, gesturing around the porch while I spoke. “What do I need the seven bedrooms in the main house for? It works better as guest accommodations.”

“That it does, but it was still an odd decision for a fellow like you to have made.” He took a long swig of his coffee. “I thought you were going to be teaching us all how to do your nails within a week.”

I flipped him off. “It was my plan to teach you in a month, not a week. Besides, with these women coming here this weekend, maybe we could’ve used someone skilled at doing nails. They might have enjoyed having the extra service as an option.”

Ashton tipped his mug back and drained the last coffee out of it. “I’m going to muck the stalls and get the horses ready. You stay here at your small house and keep trying to convince yourself that you didn’t actually want the big one.”

“I’d have taken the big house if I wanted it, but it didn’t make sense to move in there when I don’t need all that space.” I set my empty mug down beside me. “When we’re done with the stalls, can you help me with the chicken coop? It needs rewiring.”

“Fucking chickens,” he muttered before he nodded.

We took our mugs back to the kitchen, where I washed them and left them to dry while I checked Dottie’s food and water. She trotted behind us when we headed to the barn, tongue lolling out as she kept her eyes peeled for something to chase.

Eight horses greeted us with their heads hanging over their stall doors when we walked in. Ashton and I worked together to turn them out, then cleaned their living spaces and gave them fresh food and water as well.

While we worked, I rolled up my sleeves and made a mental list of the other things I needed to get done while I was out here this weekend. The sun rose fully while we were busy, the light streaming into the barn telling us when it was almost time to go greet the guests.

Although it was still early, it was already getting hot. The sky outside was a light blue, and there wasn’t a cloud in sight. Wiping my brow with the back of my arm, I checked my watch and saw that it was time for us to get to the main house.

Ashton, being the grump that he was, rolled his eyes at me and jammed his hat back on his head when I told him it was time to go. “Why don’t you go greet your tourists and I’ll stay here with the horse shit?”

“No can do, old man,” I said. “What, are you afraid of two big-city girls?”

He let out a bark of laughter. “I don’t need to be afraid of ‘em not to want to spend time with them. I know opening the place up for guests was a business decision, but there’s actual work to be done.”

“Yep, and part of that work today is coming with me to meet the guests.” I jerked my head toward the house. “Come on, we might even have time for another cup of coffee.”

Sighing as he stowed his equipment away, he nodded and followed me out of the barn. We talked about all the things that needed to be done the next week while we sipped on our coffee, and were just rinsing out the mugs when we saw the cloud of dust signaling the arrival of our guests.

Their car came to a stop in front of the main house just as Ashton and I rounded the corner to it. With our hands in our pockets, we waited for them to emerge. Neither of us had ever perfected the huge, welcoming smile, but at least we managed not to scowl at them.

A woman climbed out of the passenger seat, and I had to work at keeping my brows from shooting up. Did she not get the recommended packing email?

If she had, she’d obviously decided against following the advice it gave. She wore skin-tight white pants, which wouldn’t be staying white for very long, heels she was going to break her ankles in around here, and a delicate shirt that tied behind her neck.

Sunglasses covered her eyes, but as she got out of the car and her head turned toward the house, the downward tilt of her mouth told me all I needed to know. Ah, shit. We have a Barbie doll in residence this weekend.

My gaze shifted back to the car, and all other thoughts flew out of my head when I watched as the second woman got out. Unlike the other one, she seemed to have taken our advice. With a pair of flat black ankle boots on her feet, light blue jeans, and a black tank top, she would definitely be a lot more comfortable than the other one.

There was a black ball-cap on her head, but with nothing else covering her face, I could make out enough of her features to know that she was beautiful. A thick, dark-brown ponytail had been threaded through the hole in the back of the cap. Even up, her hair hung to her mid back.

She had a heart-shaped face with full pink lips and the biggest brown eyes I’d ever seen. The shirt she had on was fitted enough that the swells of her hips and breasts were visible, and I swore the sight of them sent blood rushing straight to my cock.

It had been a long time since a woman had physically affected me, but this one sure did. She was stunning in a curvy, understated way I really liked. There were none of the airs or graces about her that the other one possessed, and I appreciated that.

When she turned toward us and smiled, there was a vibrancy to her that made my feet kick into action. Before I knew it, I was moving toward her with Ashton shuffling along behind me.

“You’re doing the talking,” he grumbled. “I’ll help you with them, but I’m not dealing with rich bratty women who don’t know the first thing about being outdoors.”

“You’ve got yourself a deal, old man,” I murmured, then stuck my hand out as I approached the beautiful woman. “Welcome to Airedale Farm. I’m Harrison, and this is Ashton. It’s very nice to have you with us this weekend.”