Page 139 of Rival

“Oh my Lord, how sweet is this? Aw, Austin. She can’t play just yet, but soon. It’ll feel like only a moment before she’ll be running around with you.”

I swallow hard at Edith’s words, realizing she’s right. Blakely is already two months old, and it feels like I’ve only blinked. Holding her a bit tighter, I bob my head toward the door. “Want to go see the cats? Maybe we’ll get lucky andyou know whowon’t be around. I’ll end the little…” I trail off, not wanting to swear.

Whispering her goodbyes to Austin, she kisses his nose, then holds her arms out for Blakely when she starts to whimper against me.

“I bet she’s ready for a nap, but I do want to go see them. I wish you’d let them in the house.”

It’s been the only cause for argument since moving here. “Girl, theycan’tcome in the house. They’ve been outside their entire lives. The barn is warm, dry, and comfortable for them. They are literalbarncats.”

“Kittens,” she argues, then sighs. “And I know. I just like to snuggle them.”

Smirking at her, I transfer a fussing Blakely into her arms, then lead us to the other barn with those nightmares, my hand low on her back.

As soon as we’re next door, Edith moves over to a hay bale and sits down, the cats already meowing and circling at her feet.Of fucking course, Billy is the first one to hop up next to her and I’m ready to throw him off if he even looks like he’s about to cause any sort of injury to my baby.

Placing my hand in front of his face to take the brunt, he bumps it, then rubs against my palm as if he’s marking his territory and dips his head lower to get a good sniff of her head.

“Are you kiddin’ me, Billy?Nowis when you’re fine with me?Now, when—”

He blinks at me as if I’m stupid and rubs his body against Edith, then sits next to her. Bonnie and Buck check Blakely out as well, but they both leave her be. They’re curious but none of them get in her face.

I pick up Bonnie and place her on my shoulder, then sit next to Edith, bracing an arm behind her so she can lean against me.

Blakely is fast on her way to passing out against her momma, so Edith lays her head against my chest, humming in contentment. I’ve noticed more and more lately that when I get these little moments with her, she always turns her ear against my chest to listen to my heartbeat.

“You doin’ the thing again?”

She nods her head, closing her eyes with a smile.

“Heartfelt love.”

“I love when you’re sweet like this,” she murmurs. “I love listening to how you love me. I love you too.”

Pressing my lips to her head softly, I lay my cheek against her hair. “Course you do, girl.”

With a snort, she stays silent, and we just sit with our little girl sleeping. I’m not sure how long we stay, but a commotion starts up outside and I realize Edith has zoned out against me as well. She’s not asleep since she still has a firm hold on our baby, but when a loud bang sounds outside, she sits up to adjust Blakely to a more comfortable position.

“What’s going on?”

“Don’t know. Let me help you two up.” We’re outside moments later and I swear to God, I’m going to fucking blow a gasket when I see what Jaxon and Griffin are doing.

“Darlin’!” Griffin calls to her, jogging over with a shit-eating grin on his face. “Mason, would you hold Blakely for a minute? We gotta show Edith somethin’.”

I can feel my face turning red, but Edith sets Blakely in my arms, then squeals as she runs toward the trailer where Jaxon is urging a motherfuckingdonkeyout the back and onto the grass.

They’ve set me up, those assholes.TheyknewI wasn’t going to be on board with this, so they worked against me and made me take the baby just so I wouldn’t lose my temper.

Gritting my teeth, I follow behind quickly. “Where did that thing come from? Are you guys kidding me right now?”

“Mason! He’s just so precious! Where did you guys find him?” She’s fucking cooing over him like he’s now the center of her world and I find myself actually jealous of a goddamndonkey!

“Isn’t he just precious?” Griffin teases, leaning in to whisper the words. “But seriously, he really needed to come here.”

Jaxon presses a kiss to her shoulder before handing over the lead. With his hands in his pockets, he struts, fuckingstrutsover to join Griffin and me with a gleam in his eye.

“Before you get your panties all twisted, let us explain. We were at the store and overheard a couple complaining about a donkey who keeps getting loose near their home. Then they mentioned being worried about its health and upkeep. It was really concerning when they mentioned he seemed to be losing weight every time they saw him.”

I glance over at the donkey again and actually notice the dip of his stomach now and clear ribs protruding from his side. Studying him, it’s clear he hasn’t been well cared for.