Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 40206 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 201(@200wpm)___ 161(@250wpm)___ 134(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 40206 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 201(@200wpm)___ 161(@250wpm)___ 134(@300wpm)
“I said they’ll be ready to take out in a few more days. Are you hard of hearing in your old age?” He’s still bending and trying to deal with them himself. I slap my hand over his, knocking the tweezers out of his hand. He isn’t even using sterile instruments. I’m about to kick his ass and call his mother.
“I’ll be fine. I’m not sitting behind a desk or staying stuck at home anymore.”
“Huh, imagine that. The pot is calling the kettle black now, isn’t it..” He finally puts the damn scissors down. Maybe I’m getting it through his thick head, though I highly doubt it.
“This is different. You passed out, couldn’t stop getting sick, all while growing our child,” he says, prowling toward me. My back meets the wall, and he cups my stomach with both of his hands. Yeah, I didn’t think he’d see things my way. This man is going to make me lose my mind.
“Considering you lost consciousness, my handy work is in your side, and the bruising is only now starting to fade.” The deep purple and reds are turning into yellow and are slowly fading. Still, it’s a shock to my system every time I see it, a reminder of what could have happened. If Lawson was by himself. If Renegade did more damage. There were so many variables, and right now, he’s playing it off like it’s no big deal.
“I’m right here. I’ll leave the stitches alone, but I can’t make any guarantees on not getting back on Ghost while I heal.” He dips his head, lips grazing mine for a fleeting moment.
“Okay, fine. I’m grasping that you’re not going to see things my way. I’m going to tell you the reason I’m damn near afraid to let you out of my sight. Mainly your child. I do not want to navigate this part of our life alone. I do not want our daughter to only know her father from retellings, pictures, or be introduced as somewhere above the sky or in the ground six feet under.” He remains quiet, stoic, and I see the way he clenches his jaw, the bobbing of his Adams apple, so maybe he’s seeing a different point of view.
“You get that I saw you in a worse way. It tore me up, and I had no idea about the life you were growing inside of you. Let alone the love I already had for you. I’m not going anywhere, not ever.” Freaking finally, he gets it.
“Good, and you’ll stay off Ghost and any other horses or animals?” I tack on the animal part because I know these Johnson men. The second a fair or rodeo comes into town, they think it’s fair game to enter an event.
“I’ll keep my ass off Ghost and any other animals until I’m completely healed.” Holding out hope for him to stay off of a bucking bronc or bull forever was little to no use.
“Good, because I can’t lose you, and I won’t lose you. I’m not above kidnapping you, even if that means putting some antihistamine in your coffee, getting help from the girls, and kidnapping you to the cabin.” His head tips back, laughter exploding from deep in his chest, and I relish watching the show. In the rare moments Lawson lets loose, I want nothing more than to hold it close to me and never let it go. He’s the oldest Johnson brother. With the name and age comes a lot of responsibility. Now that we’re together and a baby is on the way, he holds back even more. I’ve yet to see him pick up a bottle of beer or liquor. There isn’t even any at his place or mine. I’m not sure if he’s punishing himself for the last time he let go and had too many or what, but I do know we’ll eventually need to have a conversation about it.
“Anytime you want to kidnap me to the cabin, I’m game. No drugging needed.”
“And another thing.” I hold my hand up in front of him so he can’t use his wily ways on me and make me forget everything I was going to tell him when I first walked into the bathroom.
“What’s that, babe? You going to threaten me with something else that’ll no doubt make my dick hard, have me pulling your pretty little dress up, and fucking the attitude out of you?” My legs start to wobble when a whole-body shiver takes ahold of me. I’m already envisioning Lawson unzipping his jeans. The top button is already undone in what I’ve come to know as his signature whenever he wears only denim in the house. My panties are freaking useless, and my pussy is begging for him to take me exactly how he describes, except it’ll pull at his stitches, which means I need to do some quick thinking or be fast on my feet. “Fuck, I can see it in your eyes. Just had me this morning, and now you need me again.” He moves closer, dipping his hips and caging me in with his forearms pressed against the wall.