Burning Barriers (Barriers Series Book 3) (18 page)

Figuring I should do something today besides being a lazy butt, I throw the covers off me. The cool air from the open windows hits me, and goose bumps instantly prickle my bare skin. I decide to forego throwing on anything besides what I’m already wearing. In just my bra and panties, I make the trek down the hall to the kitchen.

The sun filters in from the living room windows and beams off the stainless steel fixtures, nearly blinding me. Soft footsteps sound along with a jingle, and I know I have company. Summit appears from behind the sofa in the living room and makes her way over to where I’m standing in the open kitchen, wondering what I want to eat or drink. Jake’s mom must have dropped her off earlier while I was still sleeping.

The big ball of fur parks her ass in front of me, lifting her paw onto my thigh. The pressure of her trimmed nails pierces my skin. I grimace as I bend over to pull her heavy paw away from my leg and back to the floor.

“You want a treat, Summit?” I ask in a sweet baby voice. “Let’s see where Daddy keeps your treats.” Once I open and close almost every cabinet in the kitchen, I finally find the box of dog bones and toss one over to her. Summit rises onto her back legs a bit before grabbing the bone in her mouth and heading back into the living room to eat it on her fleece dog bed.

As I look around the kitchen, my eyes trail to the coffee maker. I see the clock on the machine reads one in the afternoon. It’s way too late for coffee, so I make my way to the refrigerator and open both the doors but find nothing. Milk, juice, and water bottles line the inside, so I close the doors and begin walking back around the kitchen island. My eyes focus on a shiny surface built into the island, and as I bend down, I know I’ve found the jackpot.

So many bottles of wine from which to choose, but I grab a cheaper white wine. Well, I hope it’s cheaper since it’s a screw top. Nonetheless, if Sam has taught me anything about wine, it’s never to judge by the bottle. But, damn, if this one isn’t pretty. A light sea foam green glass with sea glass stones embossed all over the label calls my name. It’s colorful, like me.

I gently place the cool bottle onto the granite counter as I grab a glass from the hanging rack under the island. Twisting off the cap, I pour a more than generous amount of Chardonnay into my glass. And by ‘more than generous,’ I mean to the brim. Waste not, want not, or however that saying goes. Standing here looking across the open living room, I hear nothing but peaceful sounds. A few random cars drive down the road out front, and I begin to wonder what time Jake planned on coming home. He never mentioned how long things at the ranch would take, so I guess I’ll just hang out until I hear otherwise.

The remote on the counter catches my eye, and I know it goes to the surround sound stereo since Jake has used it many times. I’ve got nothing better to do at the moment besides hang out here, drink my wine, and maybe grab my e-reader and sit out on the patio to read a little bit.

I probably should try to do some reading while I’m here; it might be therapeutic. But for now, I hit the
Power
button on the remote, and the music surrounds me instantly. The beat and voice echo through the ceiling, and my hips start swaying as I walk and sip my wine into the living room.

Standing in the middle of the living room, I stare at Summit with my glass to my lips. Suddenly, the chorus to “Clumsy” cuts in, and I belt out the lyrics with Fergie while I receive strange looks from the dog. Screw it! I’m finally happy and letting loose enough to have my old self back. Sam and I used to have crazy lip-synch contests all the time, and we’d stupid dance all over the house. The only difference this time is Sam’s not here to laugh at my half-naked ass in Jake’s living room. I wonder if she does our crazy things in front of Josh now, and I can only hope that fine ass cop is laughing at her as I would.

Giggle.

I know he is. She’s in good hands now, which is why after Jake asked me to stay with him last night, I realize I have a tough decision ahead of me. My mind keeps brooding over every option, and there are pros and cons to every one. What’s even worse is after two hours and an entire bottle of wine later, I’m no closer to coming to a decision than I was last night after having some of the most incredible sex I’ve ever had.

I grab Jake’s hooded sweatshirt from the back of the sofa and shove my arms and head through until it hangs on me. The hem of the sweatshirt hits my thighs. I pull my hair out from the neck of the sweatshirt and toss it up into a messy bun with the band from my wrist. Shrugging my shoulders, I make my way to the French doors that lead to the back deck, my disheveled reflection staring back at me in the glass. Summit is right on my heels as I open the doors and head outside to the chaise lounge. The sun is shining brightly against the bluebird sky.

Before I step outside, I turn around and head back into the house to grab my cell phone from the counter and switch the music to something a little mellower. Not that I don’t love a good chart-topping tune once in a while, it’s not exactly my style. Just like my authors, I prefer the Indie music scene and classics.

As I switch the playlist on the device, I grab a bottle of water from the fridge. A smile spreads across my face before I shut the door and head back outside. Sarah McLachlan’s voice softly graces the speakers with her version of “Blackbird,” and I instantly sing along. A classic song from way back reminds me of my dad sitting in the backyard on summer nights with Ellen and me. With just his guitar in hand, he played some of the greatest songs of his era while Mom invited us to sing and dance along.

Those were the days. We didn’t have a care in the world. We were just a bunch of kids laughing and enjoying summers off from school where we’d swim in the creeks, hike through the trails, and head out to the ranch where I would meet the one man whom I could never say no to.

But, can I still say that? When the time comes, can I tell him no if I decide to go back to my other life? God, this is so complicated.

I plop my ass onto the chaise lounge as Summit walks over and jumps on the end of the cushion near my feet. She lets out a big yawn as I lean back and twist off the cap to the water before sucking back half the bottle. My phone vibrates on the cushion where I dropped it as I sat down. Ellen’s name appears above the text message.

Hey, Luce! Wondering how everything went last night. Stop by Oliver’s on your way home, and we can chat while I’m working. TTYL

As I reply that I’ll be by shortly to tell her all about the night, I know I’ll have to bounce off the idea about me staying here to her. She’ll be the only other voice in my head to offer me the truth I need to hear right now. After a quick text to Jake telling him where I’m heading, I make my way back into the house to grab my things. Just as I’m about to make my way to the en suite bathroom, I see a note taped to the mantle of the fireplace. I pull it off and notice right away that it’s from Jake. His handwriting has always been atrocious. I begin to read it as I lean my back against the doorway to the bathroom.

LUCE,

I KNOW WHAT I ASKED YOU TO DO LAST NIGHT. I KNOW IT WAS OUT OF THE BLUE AND ABRUPT. I DON’T EXPECT AN ANSWER TODAY, THIS WEEK, OR MAYBE EVEN THIS MONTH. ALL I KNOW IS YOU AREN’T THE ONLY ONE WHO NEEDED SOMEONE TO HEAL THEM. SINCE YOU’VE COME BACK INTO MY LIFE, YOU HAVE BEEN THAT BREATH OF FRESH AIR AND CHANGE THAT I NEEDED TO FIND AGAIN. I LOVE YOU, LUCY WYATT. YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE WHO MAKES ME FEEL ALIVE LIKE I HAVE THE PAST COUPLE OF WEEKS. YOU. THAT CRAZY BEETLE DRIVING CHICK WITH CRAZY ASS PANTIES THAT SCREAMS LIKE AN OPERA SINGER WHEN SHE COMES… YEAH, THAT CHICK. SHE’S THE ONE WHO DRIVES ME WILD EVERY SECOND OF THE DAY. I DON’T WANT THAT TO EVER GO AWAY AGAIN, BUT I KNOW IT’S A LOT TO ASK OF YOU TO DECIDE RIGHT THIS SECOND. SO, PLEASE THINK ABOUT IT AND KNOW I WON’T LET YOU GO WITHOUT A FIGHT THIS TIME.

LOVE YOU.

-J

My back slides down the wall with my clothes and the letter in hand, and I instantly feel as though no matter what I choose, someone is going to get hurt in ways I can’t prevent.

Even though I’m spending the day at the ranch, I really just want to go home and see Lucy. See her smiling face, and after last night, have her body below me all night long again. What I wouldn’t give to hear her soft moans that turn into roars as she trembles through her many orgasms every night.

Yeah, I’m that fuckin’ good.

Walking into the barn, I feel a sense of uneasiness wash over me. Something about Laurel’s phone call this morning just didn’t add up. But, who am I to doubt her if there really is an issue with Juicy Fruit like she said? It wasn’t as though I could pick up the phone and call my mom. She plans to be on the road all day today seeing about opening a new satellite branch to expand the ranch outside of Breckenridge.

As I slide open the heavy barn door and step inside, the birds making their home in the rafters flurry about. I brush my fingers over the brown leather cowboy hat hanging on the hook outside the first stall.

Dad would have been so excited about the idea of the ranch expanding.

Unfortunately, he’s not here to see how even after his passing we’ve continued to carry on all that he worked so hard to build. My eyes narrow as my hand drops from the hat and I see that Juicy Fruit isn’t in the stall. If there is usually anything wrong with the horses, they typically stay in their stalls until either SJ or I take them out to see what their ailments are.

The familiar sounds of hoofs stomping on rocks and a loud snort have me moving down the slender corridor to the other end of the barn. As I stand beneath the arch of the doorway, I see SJ out in the training pen behind the barn with Juicy Fruit working on some basic circle runs. Juicy Fruit is new to the barrel racing circuit, and if anyone can break in a novice horse for the teenagers, it’s SJ.

Suddenly, I feel hands running along my back. My head snaps to look behind me just as Laurel comes into view and is clearly not dressed for a day of work at the ranch. My eyes harden when I see a
haughty grin grow on her lips. Her eyebrows rise as she smugly folds her arms across her barely covered chest and stares at SJ training off in the distance.

“It’s funny how quickly you realized what’s more important in life. Doesn’t seem you love her like she said you did if you came running out here so quickly.” Laurel smirks as I watch her cock her head in my direction.

Somehow SJ must have spilled the beans that I was leaving the ranch early because I had other ‘arrangements’ with Lucy at my house last night. He covered for me during the last session of riding lessons with the kids, so I could get everything ready for Lucy.

Laurel must have caught wind of how quickly Lucy and I were connecting again and clearly is still hung up on some stupid vendetta to get me back. Apparently, there wasn’t any emergency with any of the horses unlike what she had initially said when she called from the office this morning. She knew Lucy would be there with me, and it gave her an incentive to try to cause drama. She also knew I’d answer the phone if she didn’t call from her cell phone, and if it had anything to do with the ranch, that crafty bitch knew I’d leave instantly.

I laugh in her perfectly sculpted face at that one. It took almost all my strength not to push her up against the barn walls and shove her designer boots up her ass to show her who the jealous bitch really is. I have had enough of all this shit. I turn around and begin walking back the way I came in. Fuck this shit! I have a beautiful blonde lying in my bed at home, and I’m not about to spend another minute away from her to deal with Laurel’s petty shit. Laurel continues to expel every unfathomable excuse for us to be together from her lips until I’m at the end of the aisle. I flail my body around to face her as she runs into my chest, coming to a hasty stop. I push her hard up against the barn wall, causing all the hanging horse equipment to clank and knock against the metal grates.

“You get this through your fuckin’ head, Laurel. We are never going to be
together
! Ever!”

Tears well in her eyes behind the fear of knowing she can’t win this battle. She can’t have me.