Page 36 of His Wilde Little (Saddle Up #2)

Seeing the way Jace flocked to the alpacas was sweet, I wanted to surprise him immediately with the news, but I was still going through all the information, making sure I had a good deal and trying to figure out if it would eat through all the food budget if we added two new alpacas to the ranch.

As a ranch, we’d been mostly together, looking at horses, spreading news about the horse riding school and how Vermont was such a great place, and I absolutely agreed, it was magical, especially the winter I’d spent there, but I had been warned that was a milder winter, some other winters were a whole lot more cruel.

There were a whole lot of people here, and I wasn’t here with animals, so it was a new experience for me.

I was able to sit around and watch the rodeo, and we were able to try out all the different chilis and pies that were being offered out for the competition.

Jace had taken one of the small stalls right by the people offering out chili from large pots.

It was right then when I tried one of the best chilis of my entire life. A guy named Cam was serving it up. I had to get a second bowl of it for Jace, even if he wasn’t too much of a chili guy.

“Try this,” I said, looking down at the empty pie containers on his table. “All that pecan pie gone already.”

“Is there a bathroom close?” Jace asked, peering into the pot. “Because I don’t want anything too spicy. It will just come right out the other way.”

“Just try it.” I took a spoon full of it and did the airplane method to get him to suck it down.

He finished the pot off, which was a shame because I hoped I was going to get a second serving from his. It was surely going to be the winner, we weren’t judges, but even we knew that it was going to sweep the win.

“This is why I could never do the chili comp,” Jace said. “Plus, mine would be far too sweet.”

“Just like you,” I said. “Can I get a little serving of the pie?”

“Depends.”

“On what?”

“On how much you want it.”

If we weren’t surrounded by people, I might have shown him just how much I wanted it. Instead, I pulled my hat away, placing it to block view of our faces and gave him a little smooch. “Does that tell you how much I want it?”

I was glad he’d decided to go for the pecan pie as opposed to the cherry pie since there were two others submitting their cherry pies. The pecan stood out a whole lot more, and just like him, I could eat it all day.

Jace stayed close to me after all the pies were eaten and he was filled with worry about what he would place. I told him they’d love it, and even if they didn’t, I would make him his own certificate with a ribbon if it came down to it.

We occupied ourselves with the animals, trying not to let the man I was buying the alpacas see us. I didn’t want him ruining the surprise before I could tell Jace the news. All I had to do was confirm with Olivia and Tom, his father, on the food costs.

Then everything happened all at once.

The ribbons were called, the winners announced, and Jace didn’t win. He came in second place, which he was ecstatic about. He was given a ribbon and a small slip of paper to congratulate him.

“I basically won,” he said, all giddy showing off the ribbon.

The winner had been someone who’d been going there for most of her life, an older lady.

And as predicted, the chili won. The guy was over the moon, being congratulated by a someone who I could’ve sworn pinched his ass and kissed his cheek.

I guess there were more out gay people here than I’d given it credit for.

And that didn’t count for the guy who was taking thirst traps near all the animals with guys fawned over him.

I heard from someone he had a bit of a secret identity in the adult entertainment industry.

All I could think about from that was about how many alpacas he could buy with the money I’d seen some of those people make.

Granted, that figure was probably inflated for clicks and views, but I bet Jace would’ve been a very happy boy with all the alpacas I’d buy him.

Saddle Up in the end was a very successful trip, and on the last day, cutting it close, I got the call. We were in the bedroom, packing up the suitcase we shared. Jace had gone to the bathroom to collect our toothbrushes.

“ It’s all gone through, ” the man on the other line said. “ The three alpacas you picked out have been earmarked, tagged, and ready to be hand delivered to Vermont next week. I’ll send over all the details via email, and their paperwork will follow. ”

“Three? I only—”

“Who’s that?” Jace asked.

“ Three, I know you paid for two, but she’s an older one and the story you told me about your friend, I wanted to make sure I could give you a little extra ,” he said.

My friend aka Jace. “Right, well, thanks for letting me know.”

Jace stood by me, trying to get me to answer. Almost like he knew there was something in it for him on the other end of the call.

“ Don’t be afraid to call about any future purchases, alpacas are social animals, the more the merrier ,” he said.

They were also expensive, but looking at the wide gaze on Jace’s face continue to stare at me of an answer. It was worth every single cent. “So to recap,” I said in front of him. “That’s three alpacas to Wilde Ranch, end of March.”

“ Yes sir! ”

“Perfect.”

Jace squealed, tackling me with a hug, his arms around my waist, squeezing me.

Tears in his eyes, almost like I’d just asked him to spend the rest of his life with me.

I suppose buying animals for him was akin to that, if not the next best thing.

I was going to be too broke to think about that other potential… of marriage.

“Is it real?” he asked.

“Yes, three, originally, only supposed to be two,” I told him. “They were taking their time with the paperwork. I think they were hoping to have sold the lot at auction but they didn’t, so they probably took pity on me.”

Olivia appeared in the doorway. “Oh my god, I thought someone was dying in here. You know, you two need to make less noise.”

“I’m getting new alpacas,” he said. Although this wasn’t exactly new information to Olivia, but she smiled nonetheless.

All the way through packing and on the flight, Jace hugged his alpaca stuffy tight and spoke at end in little whispers to me about all the fun he was going to have with his new alpaca friends.

It was like his little side had come out so publicly and it wasn’t going back in, but that was ok, because I was there to give a scowl and cocked brow at anyone who dared look at him weird or funny.

The alpacas weren’t arriving immediately, and neither was all the business Olivia and Tom had gathered from all the networking they’d been doing.

It turned out, there was a whole lot of interest for either stabling their horses under what I could only assume was my care, or the novelty of those rich folk getting riding lessons from a cowboy.

Half of them were only at the event to look at the horses and cosplay anyway.

Jace told everyone who would listen about the alpacas, especially when they engaged first about the stuffy. If that had been my first impression of Jace, I wouldn’t have known what to do. But it was safe to say we would’ve still been right here, together.

After that first kiss, I was certain that it wasn’t going to be the only kiss we would share—and I was right. I should’ve put a bet on it, but I rarely gambled, even on a sure thing.

Once we were back at the ranch, Jace was proactively preparing space for the new animals coming in.

I was far too busy with the construction of the stables and making sure the horses were getting their exercise.

All four of them seemed to follow my lead now, it was nice, even Coal let me lead, but only when I was riding him.

And I was the only one he allowed to ride.

Each day, he was up early, and each night, he was exhausted.

The petting zoo trips had been back on the ranch schedule, and he was squeezing everyone for tips to support the new animals coming in.

I caught Jace drawing in the bedroom all of his crayons and paper on the bed. I stood in the doorway waiting for him to see me. In a beige alpaca onesie with the fluffy tufts on the head and around the mid section like he was going to turn into one of them.

“I thought I said no pens on the bed.”

He jumped, gasping. “I—I—” He collected all his crayons into the large pouch. “These weren’t pens though. They were pencils, so I think it’s ok.”

“Mhm, well, I’ll let you off this one time,” I said. “But if I see those gel pens, I might have to—” I gnashed my teeth together a couple times. “Bite that little ass.”

He giggled, shuffling everything together into a pile. “I think the punishment is fine, you can go ahead and give me my bite now, Daddy.”

“Well, rules are rules.”

“There’s also another rule, remember?”

I shook my head. The rules were to be on his best behavior, not pens on the bed, and the added rule of no food. There was no greater pain than getting into bed and finding crumbs itching at your back. Jace didn’t get that pain since he was snug in his onesies or practically laid on me.

“I always get kisses and cuddles,” he said, turning off on the bed and raising his ass.

“That’s called aftercare, and I will always give you those,” I told him. “You’re not getting those bites just yet. We’ve got eat first. Unless you ate without me.”

“Nope, I waited for you like a good boy.”

“Yes, you are.”

On all the ranches I’d worked at, this was the closest I’d ever gotten to anyone else, and it was freeing to be completely me, and have someone see the love I had to give.

I almost thought it wouldn’t be possible for me.

I thought my love would only come from the dreams I had about the books I read and how they’d linger in my brain for days after.

“I do love you, you know,” I said as he scooted off the bed, dragging the duvet with him.

“I love you more.”

“I said it first. Which means I love you more, in fact, the most .”

Sitting on the edge of the bed, he spread his legs in an attempt to wrap them around me and pull me in. With his feet hitting the back of his knees, I allowed him to pull me in and drop in front of him. “Thank you,” he said.

“Since I’m on my knees, I—”

“What?” He almost backed away. “Now?”

I knew exactly where his brain was at. “I told you I move fast, but not that fast.” But I was going to. I wanted to make it a year first of being together. “I was gonna say, now that I’m on my knees, I can give you that bite for disobeying the rules.”

Jace’s face went a deep pink as he pulled the hood of his onesie over it. “Oh, ok.”

Pushing his legs up, he rolled onto his back, and I got a mouthful of the little fluffy coating covering his ass. It was safe to say, I’d be giving him his real one later, alongside some kisses to make sure he knew this was just a reward for all the play we were doing.

“Plus, you think I’d propose here?” I asked him, letting his legs fall around my shoulders, with my face in his crotch. “I thought I was a bit more of a romantic than that.”

He bit his lip, staring at me. “I just know I want to spend forever with you, and I guess the inevitability of that means, we’ll eventually have our big day together.”

I rested my face on the inside of his thigh. “Our big day together looks like it’ll have a lot more alpacas in attendance than people.”

“Promise?” He held out a pinky finger.

“To which part? The alpacas? Or that we will spend forever together?” I asked, but I didn’t care for the answer, I would pinky promise to all of it. And as everyone knows, a pinky promise can’t be broken, otherwise the breaker has to give their pinky finger away.

We stared at each other for a moment longer. He was my present and future, and all it took was a past where I believed this wasn’t in the cards for me. Life had a funny way of switching up on you when you decided to leave the State for a job across the country. That was it.

“Love you,” I whispered, kissing his hand still linked to my pinky. “The most, forever.” I got to it before him this time. “And ever.”

Jace nodded shyly, looking at me from under the edge of his onesie hood. “Does that mean I’m forgiven for pens on the bed?”

I kissed him again. “Rules are rules, now let’s go make dinner together. I’m thinking we have mac and cheese, from the box, I know that’s a guilty pleasure.” In fact, it was just a pleasure now, I had nothing to feel guilty for anymore.

Jace’s love inspired me, possessed me to feel pride. I was one step away from those enamel pins he touted on his denim jackets. All that stood in the way was getting them off his clothes… and I never had an issue getting him out of his clothes before.

He was my little cowboy.

And I was his cowboy Daddy.