Chapter 5 - Danny: Tantrums
It was weird how we had fallen so easily back to being friends. After our outing together last week, something had shifted between Gavin and me. That awkward tension was gone and this new relationship between us had been established. We were still strictly friendly, much to my sister-in-law’s dismay. I wasn’t ready to cross that line with anyone least of all Gavin.
My day always seemed to be better with him around. I felt lighter in my chest.
The sexual tension I felt toward him was still very much evident. I had tried to service myself a few times this week, but every time I would reach the edge, my mind would wander to his face. It would fill my head, and I would moan out his name as I tried to find release.
His green eyes tormented me in my dreams, and I yearned to feel his big hands all over my body. I wondered if his hands were calloused from all the work he did on the ranch or if his hands were smooth. They looked smooth. Dammit. There my mind went again. I wanted him badly, but I also knew what a bad idea it would be to cross that line.
How ironic it was that I had no trouble rejecting male after male but, as soon as he walked in, my mind was turned upside down, and my heart didn’t know how to behave. This was Gavin for crying out loud. It should have been easy to just place him in the friend zone—but the man had to go and get sexy with age.
I was still trying to grapple with these new emotions, seeing as Gavin had been my best friend and now my employee.
“Dan, are you listening?” Gavin’s voice called me out of my reverie.
“Sorry, what?”
He chuckled. “Where is your head at?”
You,I said in my head.
“Nowhere,” I muttered, trying to get the flustered feeling under control.
“I was saying that the vet said he would be in tomorrow to check on Lucy and Buck. And I also need to go organize the hay in the barn for the other horses. The cows need to be dipped, and Grayson came by to fix the ATVs, so they are all good to go.”
“Okay, great. And don’t forget we have to take six of the cows to the slaughterhouse. We have an order for Deacon in Sandlewood.”
“Okay, got it. I’m just going to go finish off the hay in the barn, then head to the field.”
“Do you want some help in the barn?” I didn’t want my time with him to end.
“I would love the company.”
When we got into the barn we got to work on the bales of hay. We talked about the most mundane things like movies we enjoyed and our post-high school lives. Well, for the most part, Gavin talked and I listened. I loved hearing about his life out of Riverroad. It did make me feel a little sad because he had this whole different life that hadn’t included me.
When he spoke of LA, with some reservation. He told me these great stories of the places he had gone to and the things he had experienced but the emotion you would expect with such memories wasn’t there. He seemed almost solemn when he spoke about the place.
I wondered if he had any plans to return to it anytime soon. I wanted to ask but then that would mean I would need to hear the answer and, in the off chance he did, I knew it would affect me in some way.
I wanted to be selfish with him and hoped he would stay. He left once already, so there would be nothing stopping him from leaving a second time. There was no reason for him to stay in Riverroad.
My phone buzzed in my pocket.
I patted my hands on my jeans and answered it without looking at who was calling.
“Hello?”
“Miss Anderson?”
“Yes, this is she.”
Gavin stopped what he was doing and looked at me.
“It’s Clara from daycare. I am calling because Axel got into a fight with one of the kids. We got it all sorted out, but he is a bit inconsolable right now and keeps asking for you. I think it would be best if you could please come and get him.”
“Oh.” I met Gavin’s gaze. “Sure. I will be right there. See you in a bit.”
I hung up the phone and pocketed it.