“Sorry to disappoint,” he laughs. “What kind of wine do you like? I’ll find something that pairs with dinner.”
“Ohhh, look at you, Mr. Fancy Pants,” I say with a laugh. “And Pinot Grigio is always good. Though a sweeter red is never a bad choice. I’m not picky or snooty when it comes to wine, really, and as long as the bottle has a cool looking label, I’m good.”
“That doesn’t help this non-wine drinker narrow it down, Anora.”
“Fine. Get a red blend. It’s usually sort of sweet. I think.”
He laughs again. “How about I surprise you?”
“Okay, I like the sound of that. See you later then?”
“See you later. Can you let me know when you’re home so I don’t have to worry?”
“Of course,” I say, finding his protectiveness to be a turn-on. “I’ll even redraw the salt lines.”
“A girl after my own heart,” he chides and we both laugh. “Be careful, Anora. I really want to fuck you again tonight, so don’t let the demons get you.”
“I care about you too, Ethan.” We end the call and I’m still smiling when Laney texts a few minutes later. I check it when I’m at a stoplight, and call her instead of texting back.
“I’m driving,” I start, “so you’re going to have to listen to my beautiful voice.”
“Darn,” she chuckles. “Where are you driving?”
“The barn,” I reply.
“Is Ethan with you?”
“No, just Hunter. What’s going on? Is everything okay?”
“Yeah,” she says quickly. “I got to thinking last night…you said weird stuff started happening the same day you met Ethan, right?”
“Well, weird stuff always happens, but the really weird stuff did start that day.”
Laney hesitates, and I can imagine her twisting her shoulder-length black hair around her fingers. “I love you, Anora. You’re my bestest friend in the whole fucking world, and I know sometimes you try to see the best in people you shouldn’t.”
“What are you getting at?” I ask as I flick the turn signal on.
“I like Ethan, and it seems like he really cares about you. But I…I wanted to be sure his story checked out, so I tried to find him on social media and there’s nothing. Not under the name he gave you at least.”
“He’s a hunter. I don’t think he’s allowed to have any sort of social media.”
“Right, and that makes sense. But I found something on my internet deep-dive, and well…check your text when you get a chance.”
“Give me a sec.” I slow to another stop at a light and look at the text Laney sent. It’s a screen shot of an article about an armed assault, complete with a mug shot of the suspect accused of kidnapping and battery.
And the suspect is Ethan.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
“Do you have plans tonight?” Leslie asks as we trot our horses around the outside area. Both of our horses spook when Bob steps out of the woods, back to his usual routine. It’s comforting in a really messed-up way, I know.
“Ethan is going to make me dinner.”
“Ohhh.” She wiggles her eyebrows. “That sounds romantic. Are you going to finally hook up?”
“We have and let me tell you, he’s good at what he does.”
“A man like that just screams big-dick energy.”
I bite my lip and nod. “He’s very well endowed. Like I didn’t think it would fit.”
“Lucky.”
I laugh. “Aren’t you happily married?”
“You know I am, but a girl can dream.”
Laughing again, I push Mystery into a canter, glancing down for a second to make sure he got the right lead. Leslie urges her horse, Sundance, to go faster, staying a pace behind us. We ride—and continue gossiping about our sex lives—for nearly an hour, and for that hour, I almost forget about all the chaos around me. Hunter lounged in the grass near the arena while we rode, chewing on a bone I brought for him, and his presence was comforting.
“Hunter,” I call, patting my thigh as I make a kissing nose. I get off Mystery, pull the reins over his head, and lead him to the gate. Leslie and Sundance follow behind us, and another half an hour later, I’m ready to go.
“Go home and enjoy that big dick with a side of dinner,” Leslie says a little too loudly.
Stifling a laugh, I purse my lips and wiggle my hips. “You know I’m going to. And you should do the same.”
“I plan to.” Smiling, she goes to the front of Sundance’s stall and waves me to come over. “We decided to start trying for a baby…and I know…I was just saying