Finding Us

by Allie Juliette Mousseau

  We cuddled up on the couch, and Nate turned on the TV. After our snack of Stouffer’s pizza, I fell asleep on his shoulder.

  “Come on, baby, let’s go to bed,” Nate said.

  I loved the sound of his voice when he said that.

  We woke early the next morning with the sun.

  “Work week begins—but now we have a whole new life,” Nate said, a golden glow reflecting on his face from the sun streaming through the windows.

  “I really like this new life,” I agreed.

  He rolled out of bed and pulled some clothes from his closet. “So what do you have to do today?”

  I blushed. “I need to write.”

  “After I get home this evening, I’ll give you something to write about,” he promised. “Now I’m going to be thinking about you all day.”

  “You would have done that anyway.”

  We both got ready and I made some coffee.

  “When are you going to tell your mom?”

  I knew he was talking about my writing and the fact that I’d quit school. “When the time is right.”

  “Careful, the right timing sometimes never comes. You just need to carve it out.”

  I nodded. He was right about that. “I’ll start feeling her out.”

  “I’ll be at the stables and ranch office through the afternoon. Come visit me,” he flirted.

  “I could bring lunch?” I suggested.

  “Sounds perfect. Are you ready to head to the house?”

  “Yeah.”

  Nate dropped me off at the house with a kiss then continued on up through the property.

  I found my mom sipping coffee and reading the morning paper.

  “Hi, Mom.”

  “Hey you. I had expected you in last night.” She set her paper on the table.

  “I stayed over at Nate’s. Seems like I simultaneously lost and won a bet.”

  “How’s he doing?” she asked in a serious tone of voice.

  “He’s great. We had an amazing week.” I sat next to her and set my head on her shoulder. I held my ring into the light. “I’m happy I listened to you.”

  “Me too. Have the two of you picked a date yet?”

  “Nope. Haven’t talked about dates.”

  My mom started laughing so hard I pulled away to look at her. Her blue eyes sparkled. “I thought for sure the two of you were going to come back from Vegas hitched!”

  I laughed with her. “Can’t say the thought didn’t cross my mind, especially in the Bellagio, but no … no way. I’m not a marry-in-Vegas kind of girl. I’ll need the open prairie, tall grass and big skies for my wedding. Pretty sure my cowboy would feel the same way.”

  “Where’s Nate now?”

  “He’s at the ranch. You know, I’ve got a lot of work to catch up on too since my extended vacation.”

  “Sure, don’t let me keep you. Hey, maybe you could both come to dinner with Dad and me tomorrow? We could go for Mexican. Dad and I leave Wednesday morning for our cruise around Europe and we won’t be back for three weeks.”

  I gave my mom a kiss on the cheek. “Count us in.”

  I pulled out my laptop and found myself buried under emails, Facebook messages and the latest manuscript corrections from my editor until about one in the afternoon, when my stomach reminded me it was time for lunch. I grabbed something special from my bookshelf, made some turkey and provolone sandwiches, packed them with apple slices, a few beers and chips and took the farm truck over the green rolling hills to the ranch. I parked next to Nate’s truck. It was the only other vehicle here and I wondered if my hottie rancher was all alone.

  I grabbed the lunch basket and snuck around to the side of the barn. No sign of life. So I snuck through barn and found Nate outside in the back, hoeing hay. His shirt was tossed onto a bale of hay, and he had worked up a sheen of sweat. He was so fine! No way was I keeping my hands to myself. I climbed the wall of stacked bales that were set up behind him and stealthily closed the distance between us. When I was above his head I just folded my arms underneath me and waited for him to notice me.

  Suddenly I was whisked away to another time, a date somewhere in the future where I could see a beautiful young boy who was the carbon copy image of his daddy, holding a rake and helping his daddy with the horses. It was perfect and carried with it the warmth of home.

  I couldn’t help it. “Hey, baby.”

  Nate froze and turned, looking for the source of my voice. He was tall, though, and only had to crane his neck slightly to spy me.

  “Hello, beautiful,” he crooned as he walked toward me.

  “I brought lunch and me.”

  “That second part’s my favorite thing in the world.” He stretched up, and I leaned down as we met for a kiss that was infused with the afternoon sun and tasted like love.

  “Where is everybody?”

  “Gone till sunset. They’re surveying and tagging cattle.”

  “Good. Then take a break with me.”

  “I’d love to.”

  Nate lowered me down from the bales and pulled me into his strong arms. I grinned, thinking about the proverbial “roll in the hay” and, before I knew it, Nate had me up against the bales, and his hands were all over me. So was his mouth and, good God, I loved the feeling.

  He whipped off his gloves and tossed them to the ground before quickly sliding a hand up my bare leg under my sun dress.

  “I’ve never told you, but I love this dress.”

  “I know.” I was breathless because he was wasting no time. He’d hiked up my dress completely and his hand was playing along the silk strip of my panties. “I’ve seen the way you look at me when I wear it.”

  “I want you more than life,” Nate said huskily as he pulled the strap of my sundress off my shoulder, uncovered my breast and roughly sucked on the waiting nipple. “We could have a quickie right here.”

  “I think I’d like to try that,” I gasped.

  He grunted, unbuckled his pants and dropped them around his boots then tugged off my panties before hoisting me against the bales. I swathed my legs around his waist as he positioned his flesh covered iron against my opening. He held me up with one arm and used his other hand to slide himself along my supersensitive flesh.

  “You’re so wet, Jules. And it’s all for me.” He growled and took my neck in his mouth, licking, sucking and kissing. His beard stubble was rough against my soft skin, and I loved how it stirred my blood.

  “Do it and don’t be gentle,” I urged.

  He speared himself inside of me, hot and hard, to the hilt. His name burst from my lips with the force, which only made him more aroused. He found a strong rhythmic motion and drove into me.

  It was so fucking amazing.

  “Do you like it, baby?”

  I moaned and whimpered, “Oh, yeah.”

  He groaned with me and hovered his sweet lips just above mine. Our mouths were open as neither of us could get enough air, but when they touched it was like fire.

  Oh God! He smelled of man and hay and sun. I was so one with him here in this place, in our element. There was no pain between my thighs, only pure, unrestricted, unbridled pleasure.

  His eyes stayed on mine while his hot breath danced over and into my open mouth. Oh , dear sweet heaven, the pressure was building.

  Nate cried, “Come with me.”

  “I’m there.”

  He gripped my hips, bearing me down over him as he bucked faster, assaulting places I didn’t know could feel like this. I cried out in euphoria and sunk my fingers into the muscles of his back.

  Nate pushed into me and stilled for just a moment, before gently pulling back out and thrusting back in again. He rested his head on my shoulder and, after he caught his breath, carried me over to a soft bed of hay and laid me down.

  He went over and grabbed his shirt then set it under me and gently helped wipe some of the wetness away.

  “God, I love you.” His eyes were positively on fire. “You’ve made me the happies
t man alive.” He pressed over me in a soul dealing kiss.

  I was overcome. I loved him so wholly. I knew what it meant when singers crooned about being one with the person they loved. That was me and Nate.

  Once I fixed my dress, we set up lunch and ate.

  “Look what I brought. I thought maybe we could read it together.” I showed him my dog-eared copy of Neil Gaiman’s Stardust.

  “Gaiman’s great,” Nate exclaimed between bites.

  I read a couple chapters when, out of the blue Nate stated, “You need to choose a date.”

  “A date?” I clarified.

  “For the wedding.”

  “Don’t you mean we need to choose a date?”

  “I chose yesterday.”

  I laughed. “Okay … where do you want to have it?”

  “Anywhere you want, sweetheart.” He closed the novel and held my hands to his lips.

  “How about here in the barn or down at the gazebo by the pond. It’s beautiful there in late summer.” I thought of the gold sun on the grasses and wildflowers as they swayed in a warm breeze. Yeah, I could totally see it.

  “Late summer, huh? You’re thinking next month?” he asked.

  “We could have things ready by the beginning of September. Is that too soon for you?”

  “Remember, I said yesterday.” He smiled and kissed me. “My mission is to change your name and your address.”

  “Julia Grace Morrisey.” I tasted it around my tongue. “I like the sound of that.”

  “Mmm … me too.” Nate began rubbing his hands up and down my back seductively as he kissed me again, then again, each kiss more urgent than the last. “Girl, I’m never going to be able to get any work done with you bringing me lunch.”

  “You already ate lunch,” I reminded him, veering toward cloud nine again.

  “You’re right. Then I guess that makes you dessert.” He rolled over on top of me in the bed of hay and we started loving each other all over again.

  Chapter 18

  “Inside Your Heaven”

  Carrie Underwood

  It had been a brilliantly beautiful afternoon. After “lunch” I found my mom and dad and talked to them about a September date and what they thought about holding the wedding in the barn or at the gazebo. They loved the idea and we even discussed having the ceremony in the barn and the reception down by the pond at the gazebo. When I told them I was going to stay at Nate’s apartment they reminded me that Piper would be heading back up north in another week or two and then we could move into the guest house, which I was happy about. Everything was perfect.

  I hopped into my little white Toyota Corolla and drove into town to surprise Nate with dinner at his place. Williston used to be a quaint hometown kind of place, but now there were like 19,000 people from all over who had settled in to be a part of the oil boom. It was good, definitely a power boost to the economy, but unfortunately not everyone saw the town as their home like we did. They were just passing through. We’d hardly had any crime here at all when I was growing up; now a day didn’t go by without hearing about how someone had been stabbed in a bar fight or shot on the street. There were man camps, seas of RVs and people sleeping on the side of the road in their cars or trucks. There was no available housing. In fact, people paid upward of $3,000 a month for a hotel room with a double burner! Nate’s place was in an old, run down building in a rough section of town. Nate had choices with the kind of money he made, but I remembered that this was how he saw himself inside, even with all his accomplishments. I already hated his parents, but somehow it made me hate them even more.

  After I stopped at the store to find something nice I could make for dinner for the two of us and to pick up a Bridal Magazine, I found a place to park a couple blocks from Nate’s building and grabbed the bags.

  Partway up the street, I heard a terrible howl. The sound sent chills running through me.

  I stopped, held my breath and listened. A moment later, there was another.

  It was coming from down an alley that trailed out behind an old, decrepit brick building that was probably really close to being condemned.

  “Shit.” Nate would kill me if I went back there without him.

  I set the grocery bags down and considered my options. He’d be following behind in about a half hour. Could I wait until then?

  I walked quietly to the edge of the broken concrete sidewalk and tried to peer around the side of the building; I couldn’t see anything except for strewn trash and junk, like pieces of decaying furniture and rusted up car parts.

  Whatever it was that had howled did it again. It sounded ghostly and tormented. I wasn’t waiting.

  Turning my head I looked every which way, grabbed my mace from my bag and positioned it in my hand as I carefully walked out back.

  Carefully, I treaded through broken glass, dirty diapers, a smashed out television set, filthy mattresses, the list went on. With the surrounding buildings being so close, they created an enclosed courtyard. It was miserably hot, and there was no relief from the stench because there was no fresh, flowing air. I was almost in the center of the courtyard when I realized that if someone was back here creating the howl to lure an idiot like me, I’d be trapped.

  My intelligent side screamed at me to get the hell out of there. I turned fast and took a step. The howl was loud this time. I froze in my tracks. I was obviously almost on top of whatever it was, and it sounded like a pained animal. Before I could make a decision it whimpered low, breaking my heart. I gathered all my resolve and quickly pushed towards the sound.

  Right on top of it now, I could tell the sound was coming from beneath some overturned furniture that was thrown into a cluster. I was deathly terrified of rats, but I bit my lip and righted an overturned couch anyway.

  I gasped. Four small wooden crates with wire meshing had been hidden underneath. The heat was stifling, and I had to quickly hold my breath as the odor nearly made me vomit. Fearful brown eyes looked at me and a young black and white border collie whimpered from the crate that she was barely able to fit into.

  “Oh God!” I cried.

  She looked barely alive. The animals in the other three crates were surely dead. They were laying in piles of their own excrement and—my heart broke even more at the sight, if that were possible—one of the dogs had had a litter of three pups. All four appeared to be dead. The tiny cages had no food or water bowls. I wondered how long these poor dogs they’d been left here to suffer in the heat. It looked like they’d been held prisoner by someone running a puppy mill and then utterly abandoned.

  “Hey, girl, how about we get you out of there?” She wasn’t much more than a puppy herself. I pulled my shirt up over my mouth and nose to take in some air as I knelt in the crud and opened her cage. The poor little thing cowered against the back of the wire mesh. I noticed immediately that the cage was too small for her to even stand or turn a circle in. Her coat was filthy and she was bare bones.

  “I’m not going to hurt you, doll. Come on out.” I swung the door wide open and sat back to give her room. “Come on,” I encouraged softly.

  She whimpered and tried moving, but her attempt was feeble. She let out a whine that was heartrending.

  “Oh, baby, you can’t even walk, can you?” I knew I should probably call animal control, but I couldn’t leave her in there for one more second. What was the worst that could happen? I’d need a rabies shot? Or maybe a tetanus shot if I cut myself on the nasty wire.

  I reached in slowly and carefully and gently got a grip on her. She was too sick and injured to put up any kind of fight. As I pulled her onto my knees she whimpered softly. Her fur was matted and I almost screamed when I saw the pile of maggots underneath where she’d been laying.

  “JULIA!?”

  I startled at the sound of my name.

  “I’M OKAY! NATE, I’M BACK HERE!”

  I heard his footfalls then saw him running towards me. He looked ready to kill as he scanned our surroundings. When he realized
no one else was here all of his attention fell onto me.

  “Are you okay? Are you hurt?” He was nothing short of crazed.

  “Nate, I’m totally fine. No one is back here,” I reassured him.

  “The grocery bags were down the street from the car and I saw the Bridal magazine and … oh my God, don’t do that ever again! What the hell are you doing back here?” He finally took a good look at me and saw the half dead dog on my lap. “What is that?” A look of confusion crossed his expression.

  “I heard her crying and came back to see what it was. Some asshole buried the cages under that old couch.” With Nate here I instantly felt safe, and I started to cry. “Those other crates are cages too. I think they’re all dead except for this one. How could someone do this?”

  Nate didn’t move. He stood frozen, staring at the dead dogs.

  “We still might be able to save this one,” I pleaded. “She’s only a pup, she can’t be much older than six months. I’m scared to pick her up. I don’t want to hurt her more. Will you help me?” When he didn’t say anything, I looked back up at him. “Nate.”

  He was terror-stricken. His eyes were glued to the animal on my lap.

  “Nate!” I tried again.

  But Nate slowly shook his head and began backing away. “I can’t … help.” He narrowed his eyes as if trying to get a better grip on the situation in front of him.

  “What’s wrong, Nate? Are you okay?” His demeanor frightened me.

  He took another step back, and his foot caught on a broken pallet. He just barely regained his balance as he continued to stare at me and the dogs without checking his footing.