Page 21 of Barn Burner (Love The Game #2)

Jesse

November rolls around, and with it comes the cold weather. The trail ride bookings have dwindled down, so I’ve been out in the fields working the cattle. The only good to come from the early hour wake-up calls is being able to speak to Brayden while he’s on the East Coast.

He left for a week-long road trip a few days ago, visiting Toronto, Ottawa, Philadelphia, Washington, and Nashville.

I have every one of his games written down on the calendar in my kitchen, something that my brothers like to tease me about, but I ignore them.

Knowing Brayden’s schedule helps me try to be as available as I can be for him.

I watch every one of his games, too, only now I watch them on my own at my house instead of with my family in the main house.

I don’t need them witnessing how emotionally charged I am when it comes to Brayden.

Every time he scores a goal and that damn song plays, I swear he looks at the camera and winks.

I know it’s probably just my mind imagining things because it’s not like Brayden knows what camera is on him, but it’s fun to watch him.

While I’d do anything to talk to him more, him being away has given me the opportunity to get a lot done without any distractions.

Like today, I’m not in the fields working the cattle as I need to try and fix the roof of the barn that I’ve been putting off for almost a month.

The weather forecast is predicting snow tonight, so it needs to be fixed to prevent the heat from escaping and the horses from getting too cold.

I’ve spent the morning gathering the materials and retrieving the ladder and tools from one of the utility sheds, but I need to find Cooper before I start, too, as he mentioned helping me out.

Deciding to stop for lunch first, I head back to the main house and find Angela in the kitchen.

She’s been cooking for us since I was a child, and she’s almost like a second mother to us.

Her husband used to work alongside my dad up until arthritis caused him to retire, and no matter how many times we tell Angela she doesn’t need to cook for us anymore and to retire herself, she swats the suggestion away like a fly.

“Hey, Angela,” I say quietly, heading straight for the coffee machine to pour myself a cup.

“Hello, Jesse, how are you doing?” She smiles over her shoulder as she continues to stir what smells like her signature chicken and vegetable soup.

“Good,” I reply. “Gettin’ cold out there now, though.”

“It is. I thought it was time to bring out the soup.” She lifts the ladle, and the sight of the steaming broth causes my stomach to rumble.

“It’s always the first sign of winter when your soup makes an appearance.”

She chuckles, then points over to the oven. “There’s some rolls in the oven, too. Could you be a darlin’ and get them out and put them on the rack for me?”

Nodding, I move to the sink to wash my hands, then retrieve the rolls from the oven.

I transfer them onto the cooling rack, and as I put the tray on top of the stove to cool down, my phone vibrates in my pocket.

Pulling it out, Brayden’s name and the selfie photo he assigned to his contact card flashes on the screen.

It’s him posing shirtless in my brown leather cowboy hat, sticking his tongue out between his teeth and winking at the camera.

It makes me smile every time I see it.

Sliding my thumb across the screen to answer, I bring my phone to my ear and smile as Brayden’s voice filters through.

“I miss you,” he says the second the call connects, and I chuckle under my breath.

“Hello to you, too.”

“Hey. What are you doing? Can I see you?”

I glance over at Angela to find her watching me with a soft smile on her face. “Yeah, I’ve just come in for some lunch. Let me move out the way.”

“Ohh, what has the lovely Angela made today?”

“Chicken and vegetable soup with rolls.”

“Damn, I miss those rolls. I miss all her cooking.” He sighs wistfully. “Do you think if I asked her to make me a batch, I could freeze them?”

“Uh, maybe? I can ask her.”

I head out of the kitchen and make my way up the stairs to my old room.

Closing the door behind me, I take a seat on the twin bed, then hit the button to switch to video call.

Moments later, Brayden’s sleepy face fills my screen.

He’s lying on his side in bed, a pillow crease lining his other cheek like he’s just woken up from his pre-game nap.

“Hey.” He smiles.

“Hey, you. How’s Nashville?”

“S’okay,” he says around a yawn. “We got in pretty late from Philly, and I haven’t left the hotel yet.”

“I don’t know how you do it. Playing games back-to-back.”

He shrugs, then yawns again. “Tell me what you’ve been doing today.”

Sitting back against the wall, I tell him about how I’m going to fix the barn roof and the snow that’s due to come later.

“When do you fly back?” I ask, my mind reeling at the thought of him driving through snow.

“We’re flying back straight after the game, so I probably won’t get home until the middle of the night.”

“Make sure you drive carefully, and text me as soon as you get home.”

The corner of his lips kicks up in a smirk as his eyes sparkle with mischief. “Yes, daddy.”

I cover my face with my hand and groan. “Brayden.”

“What?” He laughs. “You just went very daddy on me then.”

I try to give him my most menacing glare through the camera.

“God, don’t give me that look like you’re about to spank my ass because I’m in trouble. You’ll make me hard.”

“Jesus Christ,” I grumble, shaking my head before laughing at Brayden wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

He laughs, too, and then the sound trails off into a soft hum.

“I have a day off in two weeks before I head to Chicago. I was thinking about coming down for the night,” he says. He rolls onto his back and holds the phone above him. “If that’s alright.”

“You know you don’t need to ask. I can even give you a key so you can come whenever you want.”

His eyes widen slightly. “You’d cut me a key?”

I nod. “Mhm.”

“Damn,” he says barely above a whisper, running his hand over the center of his chest. “I… I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t need to say anythin’, Brayden. Just make sure you use it anytime you want.”

We talk for a little longer before hanging up when Brayden needs to head into the shower and my stomach audibly announces it’s time for some food. Heading back downstairs, I find Angela in the dining room, setting down bowls and spoons.

“Bein’ in love suits you, Jesse,” she says so casually I freeze on the spot.

“What?”

“Don’t what me, Jesse Huxley.” She shakes the dish towel at me. “That British boy. He’s your sunrise. You have this glow about you. It radiates from you whenever you walk into a room, and it’s been since he came along.”

I look down at my boots, unable to meet her eyes.

I’ve kind of been ignoring how big my feelings for Brayden are.

They’re bigger than anything I’ve ever experienced before.

They’re all-consuming. I’m pretty sure he feels the same, but both of us are too nervous to make that next step while we’re still learning how to navigate being together when our lives are so different.

When I don’t speak, she closes the distance and gives my elbow a gentle squeeze. “Don’t be scared of love, Jesse. I know you’ve had a rough time over the years, but you deserve to be happy, too. And that boy? I think he makes you happy.”

“He makes me so happy,” I confess.

Her bright smile causes the lines around her eyes to deepen. “I know. So tell him. I think you’ll find you make him very happy too.”

All throughout lunch, I watch out the window as the sky becomes more grey and gloomy. The forecast didn’t predict it would snow until later, but I have a feeling we’re going to see it much earlier.

“Are you ready to do this?” Cooper asks, zipping up his jacket as we step outside. The wind has picked up, too, bringing the bitter cold air down from the mountains.

“Yeah,” I grunt, pulling my gloves from my pockets. I’ve switched out my hat for a toque, tugging it low over my ears. “It shouldn’t take me long. I’ve just got to replace a few of the panels.”

We head over to the barn, and I get the ladder into position.

I climb up onto the roof, using my body weight to anchor myself on the slope.

I work on removing the cracked panels first before Cooper passes up the replacement.

Despite wearing my gloves, I begin to lose the sensation in my fingers as the gusts of frigid air get stronger.

“Jesse, I don’t wanna rush you, but you gotta hurry ’cause I don’t think we’ve got long,” Cooper tells me from his spot on the ladder.

I glance up at the sky, which has turned a blanket grey, and the feel of freezing cold moisture hitting my face causes me to grimace. This is just fucking great. The snow has come earlier than predicted.

Working as quickly as I can without cutting corners, I secure the panels, and once I’m happy, I pass everything over to Cooper.

I stay in my position, almost lying on my side on the roof, until I hear him call up that I’m good to go.

Carefully shifting my way down the sloped roof, I shiver as the snow settling on the metal panels seeps through my jeans.

I’m almost at the bottom of the steepest part when my foot slips, and I lose my grip.

My heart is in my throat as I struggle to find purchase, and I’m aware of Cooper’s panicked shout, but everything happens so fast. I fall off the edge of the roof and land on my side.

I cry out as pain radiates through my arm and shoulder.

“Fuck!” I bellow, carefully rolling onto my back to take the weight off my side.

Cooper appears over me, hands skimming over my head like he’s checking for blood. “Fuck, Jesse! Are you okay?”

“I think I’ve broken my arm or my shoulder,” I hiss, holding my injured arm to my chest. I move to sit up, and pain soars throughout my body, forcing me to lie back on the cold, hard ground.

“I don’t think you should move. I don’t know if you hit your head or your back. Fuck.” He curses again and pulls his phone from his coat pocket. “Mom, call for an ambulance. We’ve gotta get Jesse to the hospital.”