Keeping Him

by Kennedy Fox

  Before I get lost in my thoughts, I feel strong hands around my waist and smell Trent. He leans in and whispers the word ‘wedding’ in my ear. I know he has a few plastic rings, so my face lights up, and when I turn on my heels with a big smile, he drops to one knee. It’s the sign I was begging for.

  Then it all happens so fast.

  “Kiera, my love. I’ve waited my whole life to find a woman like you. You make the bad times good and the good times better. You’re beautiful, caring, and my other half—my true soul mate. You make me want to be a better man, and being loved by you is my greatest accomplishment. I can’t imagine my life without you in it, and I want to spend the rest of my days with you. Kiera Young, will you marry me?”

  I feel as if I’m living a dream as Trent looks up at me, smiling, holding the black box open in his hand. I go to him as tears of happiness run down my cheeks. I drop down to kiss him with everything I have in me, and I basically fall on top of him. I hear laughter and applause behind me. As soon as I stand and he places the ring on my finger, Emily comes to me and hugs me tightly. I’m shocked and surprised, and I hope Trent had enough sense to ask Emily if this was okay. I’d never ever want to take away from her special moments.

  “Were you in on this?” I ask her, searching her face.

  “The whole time.” Emily smiles, understanding my question and the meaning, and looks over at Trent, who thanks her for helping again.

  He gives her a side hug. “I couldn’t have done it without Evan’s and your help.”

  “You’re both so sneaky!” I look back and forth between them and give Emily another hug, thanking her for everything, for being my best friend and for loving me. I’m over emotional, and I try to reel it all in.

  The ring feels foreign on my finger, but as I glance over at Trent, I know this is meant to be—how it was always meant to be. Trent interlocks his fingers with mine and presses a kiss to my knuckles so damn sweetly. His parents walk up and give me huge hugs, and then my parents do the same. I knew they were acting weird earlier, and it all makes perfect sense now.

  The rest of the afternoon flies by. All the Bishops come over to look at the ring and congratulate us. We all exchange love and hugs, and before the party wraps up, I find myself looking around the room for Jackson as Trent wanders off. I go to Emily and take her off to the side.

  “Have you seen Jackson?” I whisper.

  She gives me sad eyes. “He left, apparently.”

  My heart drops. “Why?”

  She just shakes her head. “I think he was just as shocked as you.”

  “Well, what did he expect me to do? Wait another fifteen years for him?” I let out a sarcastic laugh and force my emotions down, so they don’t bubble over.

  “And that’s exactly why I gave Trent permission to propose.” She grabs my hands and squeezes.

  Eventually, Trent pulls me away from Emily, and I ask Mama if I can help clean up, but I already know the answer is no.

  “Super happy for you, honey.” She gives me another tight squeeze before we leave. “I know you’ve wanted this for a long time.”

  “Yes ma’am,” I tell her with a smile.

  By the time Trent and I make it home, we can barely keep our hands off each other. I need him like I need water, and apparently, he’s just as parched as I am. Soon, we’re undressing one another and making love. I feel complete in every sense, and love knowing that Trent and I will be spending our lives together forever.

  After dinner, we drink a glass of wine and watch a movie. Halfway through, Trent’s phone rings, and he excuses himself to answer it. I try to get lost in the movie, but I’m too busy thinking about my life and how it’s the way I’ve always wanted it to be. I let out a sigh and take a sip of wine.

  Mila texted me earlier and told me that they haven’t heard from Jackson since the party, and I’m beginning to get worried. I’d text him, but I’m sure I’m the last person he wants to hear from right now.

  Trent comes back in and runs his fingers through his hair.

  “Who was that, babe?”

  He fidgets for a minute before responding. “Oh, it was Mrs. Miller. She’s concerned about her pregnant mare who’s not eating, and I might need to drive out there in the morning to check on her.” He sits next to me and pulls me into his arms. “Nothing you need to worry about, babe.” Trent kisses my temple, and I snuggle closer. I love that he cares about horses just as much as I do. It’s a passion we share, and even though emergency calls sometimes take him away from home in the early hours, I know it’s because he wants to help and give the owners peace of mind.

  Eventually, we go to bed, and I fall asleep wrapped in his strong arms. Though I instantly fall asleep, hours later I’m woken up by my cell phone buzzing on the nightstand. I glance at the home screen and see it’s just past one. I get up to pee and take my phone with me and unlock it as soon as I step into the bathroom.

  Mila: Jackson got arrested. John just went to bail him out of jail.

  I close my eyes and shake my head, hoping he’s, at least, okay.

  Chapter Eight

  Jackson

  “You dumbass.” Colton laughs at my expense when I slip and fall in a pile of horse shit.

  “Takes one to know one, fucker. Gonna help me up or what?”

  “You think I was born yesterday? The minute I grab your hand to pull you up, you’re gonna pull me down with you.” He crosses his arms over his chest and smirks at me. Dammit. He’s right.

  “Fine, but the second I’m on my feet, your ass is grass,” I threaten, managing to get up without getting more shit on me.

  “What the hell did I do?”

  “You shoved me!” I chase after him as soon as he runs toward the barn. I spot Evan and Alex in the distance, working in the pasture, and I hear one of them shouting to knock it off. My guess is it’s Evan, but I ignore him. Since he has a few days off from the hospital, Dad put him to work.

  “Don’t you dare,” Colton says, turning around with a pitchfork aimed at me. He must’ve grabbed it from the side of the shed.

  “Pussy,” I tease.

  “You can come back when you change your damn clothes.” Colton’s laughing, and just when I turn around, I see Evan and Alex riding up on four-wheelers.

  “You two gonna get your work done today or continue messin’ around?” Evan glares, wrinkling his nose. “What the hell? Who reeks?”

  “Asshole over here,” I say, pointing at Colton, “pushed me in horse shit.”

  Alex bursts out laughing, and when I shoot him a death stare, he clamps his mouth shut. “You’ve pushed me in shit more times than I can count, so I don’t pity you one bit.”

  “Yeah, whatever.” I wave them all off. “I’m heading home to change. I have a horse delivery coming soon.”

  Thoughts of Kiera surface. I haven’t seen her since she got engaged two weeks ago when I ended up getting into a bar fight. Mama reamed me a new asshole when she found out. Of course, it took all of twelve hours for the news to spread around town. Today will be the first time Kiera and I have seen each other since then. Thankfully, my busted lip is no more, and my black eye is almost gone.

  Once I drive home, I peel off my jeans and shirt, searching for clean clothes in the dryer. Unfortunately, it’s empty, so I sniff some dirty clothes in the hamper and decide they’ll do for now. Just as I get my jeans and boots on, I hear Kiera’s truck pulling the trailer down the gravel road in the distance. Deciding to leave my shirt off, I grab my cowboy hat and wrap my shirt around my neck as I drive toward the horse barn.

  Kiera’s unloading the horse when I arrive, and as soon as I’m within hearing distance, I whistle loudly to get her attention. The big rock on her left ring finger doesn’t go unnoticed, but I continue to pretend it doesn’t bother me.

  “Did ya forget to do laundry again?” She arches a brow, holding the horse’s lead rope as she waits for me.

  “I was changing when I heard you pulling in.”

  “S
o you rushed out?” She noticeably glances at my chest and tattoos before her eyes meet mine.

  “Well that, and yeah, I need to do laundry,” I admit, chuckling. “If my six-pack offends you, I can put my shirt on.” I wink, and as usual, she rolls her eyes at me.

  “When are you gonna grow up?”

  I follow her into the barn and open the stall door. “What’re you talkin’ about now?”

  Kiera walks Daisy into the stall, unclips the rope before walking out, and I shut the gate behind her.

  “I heard you got thrown in jail a couple of weeks ago,” she finally says, and my face drops. I didn’t think she’d bring it up, but I guess I really shouldn’t be that surprised. Kiera lives to bust my balls.

  “The dickwad hit me first,” I say slowly, emphasizing my words for her. I don’t know what she’s heard, but I’m sure it’s all bullshit. “What’d you like me to do? Stand there and be a punching bag?”

  “So what’d you do to antagonize him in the first place?” She crosses her arms, giving me a look like she already knows the answer.

  “I guess I just have a face guys like to punch,” I say, annoyed at her accusations.

  “Well, I heard you hit on his girl and kissed her in front of him, so if that’s the case, you deserved it.”

  I scoff, barking out a laugh. “If that’s what the rumor mill is saying, then I guess it’s true.” I walk away, pissed off.

  “Jackson!” Kiera yells, but I ignore her and walk back to my truck. I start it and drive off, not wanting to discuss it because I feel like she wouldn’t believe me anyway. There used to be a time when she’d ask for my side of the story instead of placing blame or believing the town gossip. She’s changed—we both have—and I wish the days of us being close friends weren’t a distant memory.

  Being together was an essential part of our younger years. Kiera and I were always hanging out, even after she started dating Tanner. It’s hard to think of my childhood without Kiera. Between my two closest friends, I have a crap load of memories, including the one of Kiera’s and my first and only kiss.

  * * *

  “You get any closer, your hair’s gonna catch on fire or you’re going to fall in,” I warn her, but as usual, Kiera’s too stubborn to listen to me. We’ve been drinking out here for hours, but I can hold my alcohol much better than she can, which is why she’s way more blitzed than I am.

  “Stop being such a funsucker,” she teases, walking along the firepit ledge we made a couple years ago.

  “Okay, we’ll see how much fun you’re having when you’re burnt and bald.” I roll my eyes, though I love this free-spirited side of her. When we drink together, it’s just her and me. All our worries fade away and nothing else in the world matters. It’s fast become a tradition of ours every Friday night; though she’s dating my best friend, she never makes plans with him on our nights.

  “Fine.” She groans, but instead of hopping off like I expect her to, she lifts a knee and balances on one foot.

  “What the hell are you doin’ now?” I step closer, ready to catch her clumsy ass. “Kiera, you’re going to fall in the damn pit.”

  “You worried ’bout me, Cowboy?” she taunts, holding out her arms to steady herself.

  “Well, I’d rather not have to explain to your father why your ashes are the only remaining parts of you.” She starts laughing as if this is the funniest thing in the world. “You’re so drunk.”

  “I am not that drunk,” she denies. “I only had a couple sips.”

  I burst out laughing. “Yeah, and I’m a virgin. Get your ass down.”

  Reaching for her arm, she jerks it away quickly before I can grab her, and she loses her balance. In one swift movement, I wrap my arms around her waist and pull her toward me. We both fall to the ground with her body on top of mine.

  “What’re you doing?” she squeals, laughing as we collapse. She wrapped her arms around me as soon as I grabbed her, but when we fell, she tightened her hold.

  “You’re so trashed,” I say, loving the way she feels in my arms. “You better not vomit on me,” I tease, embracing the moment and wrapping strands of her gorgeous strawberry blonde hair behind her ear.

  “Can you keep a secret?” she asks, slurring her words.

  I roll us over to the side, but we don’t break contact. “Do you even have to ask that?”

  She giggles and brings herself impossibly closer to me. “I think I drank too much whiskey.” She laughs again, resting her forehead on my chest.

  “That’s it?” I chuckle. “Pretty lame, if you ask me.”

  “No!” She laughs again, and it’s the most perfect sound I’ve ever heard. Looking up at me, I watch as she moves her gaze down to my lips. I’ve dreamt of kissing her for as long as I can remember but have never crossed that line.

  “What’s your secret, Kiera?” I whisper softly, watching her eyes lingering at my lips and then moving to my eyes as if she’s contemplating something.

  “You’re my best friend, Jackson,” she finally says.

  “I already know that.” I smirk. “Was that it?”

  “No, not quite.” She bites down on her lower lip, which always drives me crazy. Then she leans in as if someone is around to overhear us. “I’m not wearing any panties.”

  My cock immediately twitches, and my eyes widen in shock. That’s definitely a new one.

  I hold back a chuckle, hoping she can’t feel the way my body is reacting to her right now. “Why is that, Kiera?”

  “Because I wanted to be able to have a secret…a dirty one.”

  “You’re not very good at keeping your own secrets,” I tell her, laughing. “But that is a very dirty secret. Making it a bit hard for me to think about anything else now,” I admit with a grin so she can’t see the real truth behind those words.

  “I have another one I haven’t told anyone. Not even you.”

  Attempting to angle my lower body away from hers since my cock is now awake and well aware of her going commando under her shorts.

  “Is that so? I bet it’s a juicy one,” I tease, hoping she’ll tell me.

  “Oh, it’s sooooo juicy. Not even Courtney knows.”

  Well if it happens to be about me, I sure as fuck hope she hasn’t told Courtney anything. That’s the last thing I’d need. My sister has a loud mouth.

  Before I can respond, Kiera tilts her head and angles our mouths inches from one another. She’s never been this brave before, and I can’t help but think it’s due to the excessive amounts of whiskey she’s had, but I can’t seem to push her away.

  Her throat moves as she swallows hard, and it’s then when all my resolve crumbles. Wrapping a hand around the back of her neck, I pull her the rest of the way until her mouth lands on mine. Within seconds, her arms and legs are mingling with me, and I pull her body up until she’s straddling my lap.

  Sitting up, I hold her in place as her knees fold around my legs and our hips are grinding against one another. Kiera is the most gorgeous girl I’ve ever laid eyes on, and we’ve been friends for as long as I can remember, but we’ve always kept our distance—until now it seems.

  Just when I’m about to loop my fingers in her shirt and pull it up, Tanner’s face pops into my head, and the realization of what we’re doing hits me hard in the gut.

  “Kiera, wait…” I reluctantly push us apart. “You’ve been drinking. We shouldn’t be doing this.”

  She looks at me, and I see the hurt in her eyes. “Why? Am I not easy enough for you like all the other girls at school?”

  Her words are a smack in the face, and I nearly stumble to reply. “What? No!” She’s completely wrong if that’s what she really thinks.

  Kiera climbs off and starts walking away. I quickly jump up and chase after her. “Kiera, wait!” I plead, grabbing her arm and spinning her around to face me. When I see her, I want to punch myself in the junk because tears are falling down her cheeks.

  “Just leave me alone, Jackson!” She tries to pull away, but
I’m bigger and stronger. I tighten my hold on her and make her look at me.

  “Not until you listen to me,” I demand. “I didn’t stop because I wanted to. I stopped because you’re dating Tanner, and he’s my best friend, and it’s not fair to him. I don’t have many real friends, but the ones I do have, I want to keep. You can’t date him and kiss me, Kiera. That’s not fair.”

  She pauses for a moment, listening to my words. Her anger crumbles before my eyes, and her shoulders relax. “You’re right, it’s not. I don’t know what I was thinking.” Her words are true, but they still sting. Her tone is harsh and filled with regret, and I hate that we’ve crossed this line, and we can never undo it.

  “You’ve been drinking. We weren’t thinking clearly.” I try to comfort her because the last thing I want is for her to beat herself up over it.

  “Yeah, that’s clear to me now more than ever.” She yanks her arm out of my grip. “Let’s just pretend this never happened, okay? Better for us both if we just erase it from our minds forever.”

  And with that, Kiera walks away.

  * * *

  That memory has haunted me since the night it happened. Kiera walked away, and we never talked about it again. We had a silent agreement that we wouldn’t bring it up or discuss it. Neither of us wanted Tanner—or anyone for that matter—to find out. Being from a small town, rumors would fly in no time, and at school, Kiera would be called a slut or worse, which is something I’d never want.

  Tanner never did find out. Or if he did, he never mentioned it. It’s a secret we’ve kept for years.

  I drive across the property, back to where Evan and Alex were working. I somehow push the thoughts of Kiera away and park.

  “Colton…” I shout after jumping out of my truck and walking toward him.

  “You missed me already?” He flashes a cocky grin.