39. Chapter 39

Chapter 39

Ethan

I try very hard to smother my chuckle but fail miserably. Kayla's jealousy is surprising, irrational, and completely unnecessary. After seeing her, I haven't looked at another woman with interest, and I never will. However, it's sweet, and I love how she's ready to catfight this absolutely innocent woman.

"This is Annalise Dalton, the owner of this place," I explain to Kayla and wrap my arms around her, both to reassure her she's mine and to stop her from lunging at poor Annalise.

"That I am!" Annalise chirps, gracing us with a wide smile. "And you must be the very persistent Ethan Bennett."

Holding Kayla to my chest with one arm, I extend the other one for Annalise to shake, the corners of my mouth twitching when Kayla growls. I know I'm a possessive bastard, but I never thought anyone would be possessive of me. I can't say I don't like it. "Nice to meet you, Annalise. This is my girlfriend, Kayla Reynolds."

Kayla inhales sharply, the word 'girlfriend' distracting her just enough to shake Annalise's offered hand instead of clawing her eyes out.

Annalise beams at us again. "So, are you guys ready?" Her eyes rove over Kayla, and she cocks her brow when she notices Kayla's bright white sneakers. "Um, I'm not sure if—"

"Just a second." I place a kiss on top of Kayla's head before heading to the car trunk. I return with Kayla's hiking boots. "Kayla will just change her shoes, and we're ready to go."

Annalise looks genuinely relieved. "Oh, that's great! I mean, of course you could wear those around here," she gestures to the sneakers, "but they'd probably be ruined after today. Just join me when you're ready!"

I pointedly don't look at her tight ass as she sashays to one of the larger buildings. Kayla casts me an accusing look. "You told me to dress ‘sportsy,'" she says, air-quoting the word. "I wouldn't have worn my cutest sneakers if you'd told me we were going to a farm." She grabs the boots and sits sideways in the passenger seat to change. "So, what exactly are we doing here?"

Her voice has a tinge of unease to it. I shouldn't find that exciting, but I guess I'm a mean motherfucker because I do. "What do you think we're doing here?" I inquire, curious about her thoughts. The way she acts suggests she thinks we're here to do something illegal.

"Well…" Kayla bends down to tie her laces and avoid my look. "I don't know. Are we…feeding Ann—Feeding someone to the pigs?"

I don't even try to smother my laugh this time. "To the pigs? What are we, the mafia?"

"Well, I don't know!" Scowling, Kayla shoves at my chest. "Stop laughing at me, idiot, or I will really feed you to the pigs. They do eat people, right? It's not just a myth?"

"I think so," I reply, doing my best to smooth out my expression. "So, you'd like to kill sweet Annalise and feed her to her own pigs just for looking at me? Tsk, tsk. My sweet little bunny has a mean, jealous streak, it seems."

"Oh, shut up." Kayla slams the car door shut and rests her hands on her hips. "Why can't you just tell me what we're doing here?"

I give her a lopsided grin. "Because I enjoy you all flustered. Come on," I hold out my hand, butterflies fluttering in my stomach when she takes it without hesitation. "We can't keep Annalise waiting."

Kayla elbows my side. "You're an evil person, Ethan Bennett."

"Duh. You're just noticing that now?"

Grinning like lovesick idiots, we walk across the farmyard toward the large door Annalise disappeared through. At the soft neighing sound from inside, Kayla freezes, her eyes widening as she looks at me. "Is that…?"

"A barn?" I tease. "Yes, it is."

I tug on her hand, but she doesn't move, her eyes filling with tears. "A horse?" Her voice is but a whisper, and a single tear rolls down her cheek when a horse snorts loudly inside the barn. "There are horses here? I love horses!"

"I know." I remember how passionately she spoke about them with little Aaron Adams. At first, I thought she was just saying random things to get through to the non-verbal kid, but I quickly realized that it was much more than that. "We're going to spend the day here today taking care of the horses and then take them out for a ride."

"Oh, my god." Sniffling, Kayla throws her arms around me, her tears dampening my shirt. I sincerely hope those are happy tears and that I didn't fuck this up.

She squeezes me tighter. "Thank you. Thank you so much, Ethan! How did you even know?"

"I'm a stalker, bunny. I know everything," I joke, ruffling her curls.

She looks up at me, her eyes still watery. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me," she says seriously. "I love you, Ethan Bennett. I don't care that I've only known you for two days and that you kidnapped me and that you have all this serial killer baggage and…" More tears spill as she shakes her head. "I just love you."

I gape at her, unable to form a thought, let alone a sentence. She loves me? How can she love me?

I never expected her to love me. I hoped that maybe, if I was lucky, I'd get her to tolerate me. To like me. But love? This woman just keeps exceeding my wildest expectations. I don't deserve her, but I'll die before letting her go.

"I've loved you from the moment you bumped into me in that hallway, Kayla," I admit, holding her close to my racing heart. "And every day I watched you, I loved you even more."

Cupping her face, I gently wipe the tears from her cheeks with my thumbs. "Don't cry, bunny," I tell her. My own eyes are getting a little misty. "This is not a good thing. That just means you'll never be rid of me."

Kayla smiles. "I don't want to be rid of you, dummy. I want to be with you forever and ever. That's what love means. Now," she sniffs and wipes her eyes, "let's go see the horse!"

She slips from my arms and rushes into the barn. I follow her in a daze, the stupid smile stuck to my face.

My bunny loves me!

Kayla

There are horses. So many horses!

Also, I told Ethan I love him less than two days after he kidnapped me.

I wonder if the Guinness World Records keeps the "fastest Stockholm syndrome progression" record. I feel like I'd win that one. But anyway, horses!

There are at least eight of them, each in their own little stall, their heads peeking into the central aisle as we walk by. I want to touch every single one, but I'm not sure if it's allowed, so I keep my hands to myself as I walk toward the back entrance where Annalise is waiting.

I guess I don't hate her anymore. She owns horses, so she can't be a bad person, right? Unless she's mean to them. Then it's pig time for her, for sure.

This time, I smile back when she beams at us. She seems to be constantly smiling, which is hardly surprising since she gets to be around horses every day. Still, I don't take any chances and wrap Ethan's arm around my waist to claim ownership.

"This is Bella," Annalise explains, pointing at a black mare in the nearest stall.

"Hi, Bella," I squeal, fully aware that I sound like a kindergartener on her first trip to the petting zoo, but unable to help myself. "You're such a beauty."

Annalise pats the horse's neck. "She is. She's also very calm and great with people. She's yours for the day."

"M-mine?" I stammer even as I run my fingers through Bella's mane. "But I don't know what to do."

"Don't worry, I'll show you everything. Ethan, you have the chestnut gelding across the aisle. His name is Spirit. You said you had some experience?"

Ethan runs his hand through his hair, avoiding my look. "I was ten the last time I was around horses, but I think I remember the basics. They don't seem as big now as they did back then," he jokes.

Annalise laughs, oblivious to the pain that's behind his forced smile. I get the feeling the event that made him stop visiting horses as a kid was the same one that made it his life's purpose to hunt child rapists, but now is hardly the moment to ask about it.

"Perfect!" Annalise says. "We'll start with grooming, then we'll take them out to the pasture and clean the stalls."

Two men in overalls and rubber shoes enter the barn, talking quietly to each other. Annalise waves at them. "Hey guys! You can take care of everyone today except Bella and Spirit. I have some visitors who'll take over those two."

A man laughs heartily, shaking his head. "Really, Annalise? I thought you swore you wouldn't allow those uptight city folk near your babies? No offense, guys," he adds, inclining his head in my direction.

City folk? I barely stop myself from rolling my eyes. What universe is this that the citizens of a tiny town like Bluebell Springs are considered "city folk"?

"Well, someone"—Annalise faux-glares at Ethan—"was very, very persuasive. Persistent even, I might say."

Now it's my turn to laugh. "Oh yes, persistent is Ethan's middle name. Thank you for having us here. So, what do we do?" I ask, eager to start.

Giggling at my eagerness, Annalise points me to a satchel hanging by the rear door, well out of the reach of the horses. "Grab a carrot or two and offer them to Bella to get on her good side."

I take three because I want the beautiful mare to really love me. She eats them out of my palm, slobbering all over it as she searches for more. "Later," I promise her as I retrieve a set of brushes.

Under Annalise's guidance, I brush every square inch of Bella's coat and her mane, often pausing to simply place my hand on her. She's so soft and warm and amazing that I want to pack her in the trunk of Ethan's car and bring her back home with us.

Ethan is done faster than I am and watches me with tender eyes. He must be reading my mind, though, because when I point at Bella and then in the direction of the car, he shakes his head.

Buzzkill.

A few hours later, after we've mucked the stalls and everyone present has had their fair share of whooping laughter at my inability to hold a pitchfork properly, we have a quick lunch on a picnic bench by the pastures. Annalise, the two men from the stables, and several more workers join us, and we all share a meal under the clear blue sky, watching the horses move around the enclosure and munch on grass.

The lunch is a hearty affair filled with half-hearted jabs at the "city folk" present and Annalise's excited answers to the questions Ethan and I sometimes don't even get to finish before she jumps in with an answer.

After lunch, the men and women disperse to continue with their duties while Annalise leads us to the horse enclosure. "Ready for that ride?"

"Absolutely!" I'm still excited, but it's impossible not to feel a tingle of trepidation. Bella is a kind and patient soul, but she's huge compared to my short stature. She could easily hurt me even without meaning to. And what if I fall? What if I suck at riding? What if I try it, and it's terrible, and my childhood dream is shattered?

Ethan wraps an arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer. "It's going to be alright, bunny. You'll love it, I promise."

"Thank you." I peck his cheek, bewildered by how he can read me so easily. It's like he has a camera inside my head, watching and listening to all the crazy stuff that goes on there. And if that's the case, it's a wonder he still loves me.