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FORTY-FIVE

FARRON

FIGHT

Day 541

It’s been a few days since the chaos with Trevor, and while I’m relieved it’s over, the anger still simmers beneath the surface. I can’t stop replaying everything in my mind, trying to understand how someone I’ve known my whole life could betray us all. Hurt so many people. Hurt his own brother.

I’m sitting alone in my office, the quiet pressing in around me. Daisy was just here for her checkup, and she’s probably going into labor in the next few weeks. I’ve been doing everything I can to prepare, but the truth is, I’m nervous as hell. Delivering baby animals is one thing—this is a whole other level. I keep trying to convince myself that it can’t be that different …right?

CRACK.

The sharp snap of the pencil in my hand startles me. I exhale sharply, tossing the broken pieces onto the desk in frustration. Before I can fully collect myself, the door creaks open.

Kenji steps in, his expression unreadable as he leans against the doorframe. He just stares for a moment, taking me in and making me shift in my seat as I grow more frustrated in the silence. “What’s wrong with you?” he asks, his tone almost too casual for the tension hanging in the air.

“What’s wrong with me ?” I snap, my voice rising, full of frustration and exhaustion. “Let’s see. My grandma is gone. I’m expected to deliver a human baby in the next few weeks—something I’ve never done before. Someone I knew my entire life turned his back on everything we know, betraying everyone, and now he’s gone, doing who knows what. And did I mention? I have to deliver a human baby! ”

My chest is heaving by the time I finish, the words spilling out faster than I can process them. Kenji doesn’t flinch. He stays exactly where he is, arms crossed, one foot propped against the doorframe like he’s got all the time in the world.

“And you,” I add, my voice sharper now, “just standing there in that goddamn black henley and those stupid cowboy boots.” Kenji just raises an eyebrow at me, the corners of his mouth slightly turned up.

What am I even saying? My anger isn’t with him—hell, it’s not really with anyone. It’s everything. The grief. The betrayal. The overwhelming weight of responsibility. And now, snapping a pencil has apparently become the final straw. Kenji stepping in at the exact moment he did has just made him the target of my little meltdown.

Kenji tilts his head, his gaze steady. He nods his chin towards the door and crooks a finger at me. “Let’s go, Princess,” he says, his tone firm and unyielding.

“No.” The word leaves my mouth before I can think better of it. I lean back in my chair, arms crossed, challenging him silently to try and make me move. His gaze sharpens as he studies me, unflinching.

“So you’re going to be a brat?” He asks. His voice is steady, almost unnervingly calm. Before I can respond, he strides forward, grabs me, and hoists me out of the chair like I weigh nothing.

“Kenji!” I yell, my fists pounding against his back as he throws me over his shoulder. “Put me down! Now!”

He doesn’t even flinch. Instead, he smacks my ass—hard enough to sting—before ducking through the doorway and carrying me outside. The cold air hits me instantly, slicing through my thin sweater and making me shiver. “Kenji! I swear to God—” My words cut off as I glare at the ground beneath us. My view consists of dirt and… Kenji’s ass.

Well, I guess there are worse things to look at.

We’re headed toward the barn, and I grit my teeth, frustrated and humiliated. As soon as we’re inside, he strides to the space's center and carefully sets me down. My feet barely touch the floor before I lunge at him, ready to make him regret his entire life’s choices. But Kenji’s faster. He grabs my wrists, twists me around, and pulls me firmly against his chest. My back is flush against him, his arms locking me in place with unyielding strength.

His breath brushes my ear, his voice low and steady. “Now, I know you’re angry—at the world, at him—but I’m not your punching bag.”

His lips graze my earlobe, a fleeting touch that causes an involuntary shiver to rack my body. Heat flares through me, unbidden but not necessarily unwelcome, my body betraying me even as my mind screams at him to let go. “If you need to let that anger out,” he murmurs, his voice gravelly and charged, “I can think of a few ways to do it.”

The thought flashes in my mind—his hands on me, the two of us in the shower, his lips exploring my skin. I shake my head, furious with myself. Kenji releases me suddenly, spinning me around and pointing toward a corner of the barn where a pile of hay sits untouched.

“What the hell are you doing?” I demand, glaring at him as I cross my arms over my chest.

“If you need to let your anger out,” he says, calm as ever, “punch some hay.”

“Punch some hay?” I echo, incredulous.

He raises his eyebrows, challenging me. “You were ready to lunge at me. Why not take it out on something that won’t hit back?”

“You think this is funny?” I snap, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

“No, Princess,” he replies, his tone steady and serious. “I don’t. But I’m not letting you take it out on me or anyone else.”

My chest rises and falls, anger clawing at my insides like a caged animal. He’s right, damn him. I wasn’t actually going to hit him—not really. Maybe a shove, something to push back against the mess of emotions drowning me. I need a release, anything to chip away at the suffocating weight of grief, anger, and guilt coiled in my chest like a living thing. I need a fight.

“I’m not punching hay like some sort of caveman,” I snap, stepping closer. “That’s the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard.”

Kenji sighs, the faintest crack of impatience slipping through his calm facade. “Why do you have to make everything so difficult?”

“Me?” I bark out a bitter laugh. “You think I make things difficult? Have you met yourself?” I jab a finger at his chest. “From day one, you’ve been nothing but a stubborn, infuriating pain in my ass.”

A smirk pulls at his lips, slow and deliberate, as if I’ve just walked into a trap. “Funny,” he murmurs, leaning down until his face is inches from mine. “You don’t seem to mind when I’m on my knees for you.”

Heat pools low in my belly, memories flashing unbidden—his hands, his mouth, the way he’d looked at me that night like I was his whole world. The way he took me in this very barn and made me feel like I was on fire. The reminder leaves me breathless and furious all at once.

“I guess that’s the only time I can get you to agree with me,” I fire back, unable to stop the words before they tumble out. “When your mouth is otherwise occupied.”

Kenji’s eyes darken, amusement now replaced with something sharper, hungrier. He takes a step closer, crowding me, his voice dropping to a low, commanding rumble. “Why don’t you stop being difficult for once and punch the goddamn hay?”

“No.” My refusal is immediate, defiant.

He pinches the bridge of his nose, muttering something under his breath before his gaze snaps back to mine, frustration blazing. “Damn it, Farron! Just let it out! Whatever it is, let it go. Why do you keep fighting me?”

The bubble I’ve been holding inside—grief, anger, and fear threatens to burst, the fire burning hotter by the second. But instead of releasing all the hurt and rage, something else surfaces. Something I’ve known was there for a long time but have been too scared to admit. Not anymore. Not after everything that’s happened.

This fire isn’t destructive. It’s alive, consuming, and it’s pulling me straight toward him.

“Because I can!” The words rip out of me, my arms flying out to the side. Kenji freezes, his eyes wide for just a moment before narrowing. “You…You let me fight you. I know I’m not perfect and that I bottle everything up and eventually just explode. And you always take it,” I say, my tone softening, my shoulders slumping. “You take what I give, and you give it back just as hard, sometimes. You push me, which I don’t always want but sometimes need. You let me be who I am, and you don’t try to change me or make me something else. You accept me the way I am. So I fight you because I can. And it’s because of all of this that—that I love you.”

He steps back slightly as if my confession hit him like a physical blow. My breath catches, the weight of what I’ve just said crashing over me. I said it. I love him. And now, there’s no taking it back.

Of all the ways I’d imagined telling Kenji I loved him, this wasn’t it. Not in the barn. Not in the middle of an argument over hay. But those three words seem to trigger something in him. The tension between us snaps. In one swift move, Kenji closes the distance, his hand wrapping gently but firmly around my throat. It’s not tight—he’s not holding me there, just keeping me in place. He pushes me back until my back is against one of the barn walls, and his other hand braces against the wall beside my head, boxing me in.

He leans in, his breath brushing against my lips as he whispers, “What did you just say?” His voice is low, rough, vibrating with something I can’t quite place.

I lick my lips, the tip of my tongue accidentally grazing his mouth. Kenji lets out a low, primal growl that makes the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. Goosebumps race down my arms, but I’m too overwhelmed to care.

“You heard me,” I manage to say, though my voice trembles under his intense gaze.

Kenji leans back just enough to smirk, the corner of his mouth tilting in that infuriatingly cocky way. “No, Princess,” he says, his tone challenging. “I don’t think I did.”

I swallow hard, the motion shifting his hand against my neck. My heartbeat pounds in my ears, but I summon the courage to steady my voice. “I said I love you,” I repeat, locking eyes with him. “Did you hear me that time?”

His growl deepens, and before I can blink, his hands are on my thighs. With effortless strength, he lifts me, and my breath catches as he carries me across the barn, laying me down on the hay. His weight settles over me, and for a moment, all I can do is stare up at him, my heart pounding in my chest.

“I wanted to say that first,” he admits, his voice raw.

“Well, I beat you to it,” I reply, a small, shaky smile breaking across my face.

Kenji leans closer, his forehead brushing mine. “Fuck, Princess. I love you,” he whispers, his voice rough with emotion. Before I can fully process his words, his lips crash against mine with a ferocity that steals the air from my lungs. The kiss is wild, consuming, like he’s trying to pour every ounce of himself into me, to fuse us together in this moment. His tongue brushes against mine in a slow, deliberate tease. A moan escapes my lips, but he captures it, owning it, owning me . It’s not just a kiss—it’s a declaration. A dismantling of every wall I’ve built, every defense I thought was unshakable. In his arms, I’m not just seen; I’m known.

Before I realize it, Kenji has stripped me bare beneath him, the scratch of hay biting into my back. But I don’t care. Not about the discomfort, not about anything beyond the two of us in this moment. He only pauses for a moment to pull a condom out of one of his pockets, quickly ripping the foil open and putting it on.

When he enters me in one swift motion, my breath catches, a gasp escaping me as my body adjusts to him. His piercing is hitting the perfect spots with every shift of his hips, and my eyes roll back into my head. His movements are urgent, almost frantic, and his breathing is heavy. My moan breaks the stillness of the barn, loud and unrestrained, but there’s no room for embarrassment here. Nothing matters but this; the heat, the tension, the weight of him grounding me as those words finally hang between us like an unbreakable thread.

This is us: rough, combative, difficult at times but utterly consuming. A wildfire that refuses to be tamed. And I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

Kenji’s pace grows erratic, his breath ragged against my skin, his body trembling with the strain of holding back. One of his hands grips my hip, grounding me, while the other slips between us, his thumb finding that sensitive bundle of nerves with precision. The jolt of pleasure that follows is electric, making my vision blur and my mind spin.

A gasp tears from my throat, my hands clutching at him as the pressure builds to an almost unbearable peak. “I’m not going to last,” I manage to choke out, my voice cracking.

“Good,” he rasps, his voice low and sinful. “Me either, Princess.” His cock grazes that sweet spot inside me, sending a white-hot wave of pleasure coursing through me. “Now, come on my cock like a good girl.”

His words push me over the edge, a wave of euphoria crashing over me as stars burst behind my eyes. I shatter beneath him, my body trembling and convulsing as I cry out. The intensity leaves me breathless, my grip tightening on him as the aftershocks ripple through me. Moments later, Kenji follows, a low groan rumbling from deep within him as he finds his own release, warm and grounding against my skin.

For a long moment, we stay like that, unmoving, the barn falling silent except for the sound of our mingled breaths. The cold air brushes against my skin, but it’s the heat of him, the solid weight of him, that anchors me. He leans down, brushing a soft kiss against my lips, sweet and unhurried. As he pulls back, his dark eyes lock with mine, his voice low and full of conviction.

“I love you so much,” he murmurs.

A smile overtakes my face, warmth flooding through me despite the chill. “I love you too,” I reply, my voice steady and full of truth.