Only With Me (Sugarland Creek #4)

Chapter 22

Chapter Twenty-Two

Waylon

K nowing I’ll get to spend time with Harlow and Bentley today had me waking up in the best mood. We texted briefly last night to confirm what time I’d be at her house but otherwise we haven’t spoken much since I saw her in town.

I might’ve stretched the truth a smidge when I told Harlow I broke my phone.

After she texted me as Poison Ivy Girl, I knew I had to get a new number. I feel awful that she’s going to lose access to “him” from the group chat, but it’d only be a matter of time before she asked to exchange numbers and then realized she already had it.

Then I’d have to explain everything.

At this point, maybe I should rip off the Band-Aid and tell her.

But she’s opened up to me so much and she’s the first person in years I’ve felt comfortable being vulnerable around, so maybe I’m being selfish now because I don’t want to ruin that.

Plus, I don’t want to keep messaging her through that stupid dating app, but I couldn’t randomly change my number without my siblings questioning it.

When I told Wilder I was getting my own plan and that it included a free phone, he asked if we could test my current phone’s durability. For fun .

That’s where the tractor came in.

And if I’m being completely honest, I knew she was meeting her date at the cafe at noon, so I purposely went into town and parked close by during my lunch break.

But…she doesn’t need to know that.

I’m no expert in dating but even I could see how uncomfortable she was from across the street. Her body was tense, she hardly smiled or laughed, and she looked like she’d rather be anywhere else. The guy was leaning on the table toward her, meanwhile, she had her back pressed against the chair so she was further away.

If you didn’t know they were on a date, you’d assume she was on a job interview.

But I couldn’t help kissing her knuckles the way he had because the look on her face while he did it was priceless—like she was taken so aback, she didn’t know how to react. I didn’t want her to leave with a bad taste in her mouth, so I mimicked what he’d done and then moved to her cheek—even though I wanted to kiss her lips, I knew I couldn’t without consequences.

I could feel the tension between us, and I think she did too, so it’s probably a good thing Bentley will be with us for a few hours this afternoon.

Waylon: I’m leaving now, be there in 15.

Harlow: Okay…my father would like to talk to you first.

Oh fuck.

Waylon: Should I come armed?

Harlow: Only if you think you can’t outrun a man in a wheelchair.

Waylon: Nah, I think I’m good then.

Harlow: He just wants to give you the “If you hurt my daughter, I’ll hurt you” talk.

Waylon: Oh…how fun.

It’s been years since I’ve seen or talked to Mr. Fanning. His work accident had happened shortly after Delilah and I started dating, so we never got to know each other. But I don’t blame him for wanting to speak to the guy who’s picking up his daughter. Considering what she went through, I’m glad he’s overprotective.

Harlow: You’ll be fine. Just don’t stare at my chest in front of him.

Waylon: I don’t do that when he’s not around.

Do I?

By the time I park in front of her house, I’m more nervous than I thought I’d be. We’re friends so this shouldn’t be a big deal, but maybe he doesn’t like that his oldest daughter’s ex is friendly with his youngest daughter.

I wouldn’t blame him either.

From the outside, it looks bad.

Walking up the wheelchair ramp, I clear my throat and then knock on the door.

I hear barking and then moments later, Harlow appears.

“Hey, c’mon in. Don’t mind the dogs. They sound scarier than they look.”

I nervously chuckle as I try to make my way through the entryway and into the kitchen.

“Dad’s in the livin’ room.” She walks away before I can say anything, so I follow until I see him.

“Waylon, hello. Long time no see.”

“Mr. Fanning, nice to see you. How’re you?” I ask, standing next to Harlow.

“I’m alive. How about you?”

“Same, good. Thanks.”

“Harlow tells me you’re a Big Brother?”

“Yes, sir. To a fifteen-year-old boy named Bentley. He lives in the town over, so I pick him up and bring him to the ranch to hang out a couple times a month.”

“Fifteen, huh? He’s closer in age to Harlow than you are.”

And there it is.

“Yeah, I guess so. He enjoys watchin’ her jump with Piper.”

“That’s what she says. What’re you plannin’ for today?”

“I told you, Daddy. We’re gonna horseback ride up the mountains,” Harlow chimes in.

“That sounds dangerous,” Mr. Fanning says.

“It’s not. I give ridin’ tours twice a day. I know those mountains in my sleep.”

“You know she’s not legal to drink, so I expect you won’t either.”

“Of course not.”

“Daddy, he’s responsible,” Harlow tells him. “As am I.”

“I know you are, sweetheart, but I just wanna make sure you’re safe.”

She hugs him in his recliner and he wraps an arm around her gently. “I’ll be fine, I promise. I’ll be home later, okay?”

“Drive safe.” He shifts his gaze to me.

“Yes, sir. I’ll bring her back in the same condition I took her.”

“Love you, Daddy.”

“Love you, too.”

I say a quick goodbye and then she leads me out to the kitchen where the dogs are waiting.

“This is Moose. He’s my little snuggle buddy at night.” She holds him up and I give him some pets.

“He’s a cutie.”

“My little protector.” She chuckles, then kisses him before setting him down. “Okay, we can go now.”

I hold open the door while she locks up and then we walk to my truck, except I go to the passenger side to help her in.

“Thanks,” she says with a little blush across her cheeks.

I smirk. “You’re welcome.”

Once we’re buckled up and driving on the road, I point to my radio and tell her she can pick the music.

“So, did my dad scare you away?” she asks, shuffling through the stations.

“Nah. I can tell he worries about you.”

“I worry about him, too. His mental health is not in a good place right now. It’s bad enough he’s stuck inside most of the day but the gloomy weather doesn’t help either.”

“Doesn’t he use his power wheelchair when he’s out?”

“Yeah, but it can be a hassle for mom to get it lifted onto the lift at the back of the truck. He suffers with so much social anxiety, he doesn’t like being around a lot of people out of the house.” She turns and looks at me. “There’s times he won’t leave the house for three months straight.”

“Damn, that’s tough. Do you think he’d feel more comfortable if someone stronger was there to bring his chair with him?”

“Stronger, like you?” she muses.

“Yeah. Give your mom a break from doing it. Even if it were to go to the store, he could do short trips to get used to being out, and then gradually do longer ones.”

“You’d do that?”

“Well, sure. I get one day off a week where I could come and help out with anything or anywhere he wanted to go. Maybe he feels like a burden because he knows how much work it is on your mom, but if it’s someone like me who could lift his chair with one arm, he wouldn’t feel so guilty about acceptin’ help.”

“With one arm, huh?” She laugh-snorts, and it’s fucking adorable. “You’re pretty sure of yourself.”

“I work on a ranch, Harlow…since I was like in middle school. I’ve had to carry bales of hay and straw up and down stairs for two hours straight. I’ve had to push thousand-pound horses to get into trailers while they try kickin’ me. Lifting a power chair onto a lift wouldn’t even register as heavy.”

“Okay, Mr. Big Shot. Return me back in one piece and he might trust ya.”

Amused, I chuckle. “As long as you don’t fall in poison ivy, I think you’ll be fine.”

“What?” she asks.

I realize my slip-up when she looks at me with furrowed brows. Fuck, this is where I should come clean, but it feels wrong to do it now when we have a full afternoon planned with Bentley.

“I was jokin’. It’s dormant this time of year.”

“Yeah, I know. I got poison ivy in November.”

“Oh.” I stay focused on the road but glance quickly at her. “I bet that wasn’t fun.”

She frowns, looking down in her lap, and I wonder if she’s thinking about “him.”

“No, it wasn’t. But a guy I met in a group chat helped me with ideas on how to deal with the itch. I stayed in bed for like two or three weeks because it was all over my arms and chest.”

“Wilder and I got it once. It sucked big time.”

“Really? It must be quite normal out here.”

I wonder if she’s thinking about the conversations we had and if they’re feeling similar. I can’t remember how much I told her about when Wilder and I had it in high school, but now that I brought it up, I have to find a way to change topics.

“That was the same summer I got a tick in my neck.”

“Oh shit, that sounds painful.”

“Well, I’ve gotten lots of ticks over the years, but it was extra brutal being in my neck. I had to go to the ER to have ‘em take it out.”

She visibly shivers. “I would cry if that happened to me. I hate ‘em so much.”

“When we went back to school that fall, there was a lice outbreak.”

“Oh my gosh! What in the world happened to y’all that year?”

“It was madness. My mom was inspectin’ everyone’s heads and pickin’ out lice.”

“Gross,” she laughs. “Your poor mother.”

“She’s been through it with havin’ five kids.”

“And with four boys? I don’t envy that.”

“Do you think you want kids when you settle down?”

“Yeah, I think a couple. When I’m old, like thirty.”

“ Old , really?” I glower at her, and she laughs again.

“You’re just too easy to tease. But in all seriousness, I’d love to have a family, but it’s hard thinkin’ that far ahead with my dad’s health issues. I don’t wanna leave my mom responsible for him all by herself and she’ll never put him in an assisted living home unless it’s her last resort.”

“I told Wilder somethin’ similar…” I admit.

“What’s that?”

“That I couldn’t settle down because of how much his mental health affected me and with his reluctance to get help, I had to be the one to stick around and watch him.”

“What did he say to that?”

“Recently, he told me to stop using him as an excuse not to be happy.” I lick my lips, glancing over at her staring at me. “And I’m startin’ to think he’s right.”

Before she can respond, I’m pulling up to Bentley’s apartment complex.

The afternoon riding with Bentley and Harlow turned out to be a huge success. Bentley had a blast and even tried to race us down one of the trails. Considering we have years of experience on him, Harlow and I crushed him. But he had fun trying.

Once we make it back to the barn, we head to The Lodge for an early dinner. I told my siblings we’d be there if any of them wanted to come and eat with us. None of them besides my twin have questioned why Harlow and I are hanging out, which I appreciate. I’m not ready to fully explain how all of this happened.

Wilder, Landen, and Ellie showed up, which was a nice treat for Bentley. He lost his mind when he found out Ellie just won at the NFR last month and got so excited to ask her all kinds of questions about being a pro barrel racer.

I almost felt bad because now Harlow didn’t look as cool in his eyes. But to be fair, Ellie has years of competition experience.

Either way, Harlow is great with him and even if she is close in age to him, she’s a great role model. We had a great time and shared a lot of laughs.

It was the most fun I’ve had in a long time.

It’s so effortless making conversation and finding things to talk about with Harlow. One of the things that intrigues me so much is that she doesn’t try to impress me. She’s just herself, all the time, and is never afraid to ask me anything.

Some of her questions can be a little jarring, but I’ve come to love the randomness that spills out of her mouth. Hell, I look forward to it now.

“Did you wanna hang out at my house after I take Bentley home?” I ask Harlow when we walk out of The Lodge.

Her brows pinch together and she narrows her eyes in confusion.

“I wasn’t sure if you wanted to go home right away since it’s still kinda early,” I clarify.

And I’m not done spending time with her.

“Oh, sure. I just assumed you probably had to get up early tomorrow.”

“I’m off.”

Actually, I told Wilder he owed me one so I didn’t have to wake up early.

“Okay, cool. Could we try something?”

“Name it.”

She glances behind us at Bentley and then leans in closer.

“Dry humping…you mentioned it once, and I’ve been wantin’ to know what it feels like ever since,” she whispers.

“Harlow…” I lower my voice. “That’s…pretty intimate.”

“Oh.” She shrugs casually like she didn’t just ask to grind against my cock. “Okay.”

Except it’s not okay because it’s all I can think about on the drive to Bentley’s house. The two of them talk while I’m having a mental crisis between right and wrong.

One minute I’m trying my damndest to be a gentleman and keep my hands off her.

And then the next, she’s snapping my last ounce of restraint.

“I’ll be right back, I’m gonna walk him to his door,” I tell Harlow once I’m parked.

“Bye, Bentley! Hope to see you again soon!” She waves at him out the window.

“Bye, Harlow!” He waves in return, and I smile at how cute they are.

“Did ya have fun today?” I ask, wrapping my arm around his shoulders as we approach his apartment.

“One of the best days ever.”

My heart swells with happiness. “Good, I’m glad.”

“Is she gonna be around for a while?”

I tilt my head. “Whaddaya mean?”

He shrugs dismissively. “I don’t wanna get attached if y’all break up or something.”

I don’t bother correcting him because it doesn’t matter for what he’s asking. He’s had so many people come and go in his life, so it’s no wonder he’d worry about that.

“If I have it my way, she’ll be around for a very, very long time.”

“Good, because I’ve never seen you this happy.”

Chuckling, I playfully nudge him. “Yeah, it feels nice.”

He punches me in the arm. “Don’t screw it up.”

I bark out a laugh but that’s exactly what I’m worried about.