by Sierra Brave
“I know.” How could he not? She had only told him about a hundred-thousand times.
“You’ve grown up to be a fine young man.” She conceded with a nod.
Instead of puffing up with pride as one might expect, Davis exhaled as if he had taken a punch to the gut. Gram never talked to him this way. Oh God! She must be dying. “Are you feeling all right, Gram?”
“Oh hush.” She cinched her lips and nudged him playfully. “I need to say my piece without your interruption.”
She paused, throwing him a look he recognized well. When he was a kid, those lifted eyebrows and lowered lids where a warning to shape up or a switching was coming. Neither Gram nor Dad had come after his backside in over a decade but he wouldn’t push his luck.
“You’re a strong, virile stallion now. This is your time. I won’t have you bearing my burden when it’s time to cut loose, especially since it might be your last chance to run unencumbered.”
“Huh? No disrespect, Gram, but you aren’t making sense.”
She harrumphed, shooting him another deadly look. “I’m not making sense…since when has anyone around here but me seen things clearly enough to make sense…?”
Davis sat quietly, worrying. Could this be the first stages of Alzheimer’s? Maybe he needed to go get his dad or call a doctor.
The old woman folded her arms under her chest and looked him right in the eyes as she said, “You just make sure you wake up next to that pretty blonde filly tomorrow morning.”
Davis’s jaw dropped and he nearly jumped off the swing. “Gram!”
She shrugged. “I saw how you were swaggering around with her on your arm…you’ve already tasted the honey. Don’t mess up and let another busy bee capture the queen.”
Shaking his head from side-to-side, he gaped in disbelief. “Who are you?”
“I’m serious, boy. I’ve been stirring this pot way too long to let you miss your only opening. Right now, she’s reeling from a lying, cheating, no-good snake’s mistake. Don’t give another stallion a chance to get in there—or worse, let that snake slither his way back into her good graces.”
“Gram, you are scaring me. What exactly…?”
“Honestly, boy, how often do we rent out our property, especially to outsiders?” Gram rolled her eyes and sighed in exasperation.
Davis had a sick feeling in his stomach. Had Scarlett played him? She seemed so sincere. Maybe he had been too drawn to her to notice. “You and Scarlett already knew each other?”
“No…well yes, but she doesn’t know that.” Gram looked away from him. “We were both members of the same Facebook group and became friends. The only pictures I have on my page is of shifted love ones. To anyone else, they would look like regular horses. Anyway, I had been thinking she was perfect for you for a while and it was obvious her boyfriend didn’t deserve her. When she confided that she wanted to hide out over the holidays, I jumped in and offered up the cabin…practically gift wrapped her and dropped her in your lap.”
Davis palmed his face. “You’re Cheyanne! Ugh! You made me the rebound?”
“I can tell how much you like her. You just need to be a little more aggressive and parlay that rebound into more.”
He rolled his eyes up toward the ceiling. This can’t be happening. Since when did Gram mess around in his love life? “Melly’s a pain but she’s right—Scarlett isn’t one of us.”
“Equine shifter birthrates have been declining for some time. Your father and I have contacted all other known herds. There simply isn’t an unattached female anywhere close to your age aside from your first cousin in there.”
Scrunching his nose, Davis twisted his lips in horror. “That’s disgusting. Plus she’s Melly’s age—practically a child.”
Gram patted his knee. “I know. Even if there were a filly your age, there is no guarantee you would get along. We could use some new blood and Scarlett likes you too. I can tell.”
“Gram…I don’t know about this. I didn’t expect…and then I couldn’t resist. I don’t want to hurt her and I would have to lie.”
“Who says?” Gram asked without a pinch of irony.
Dumbfounded, he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. She and every other adult in his life had drilled the mantra—silence is essential to survival—into his head since he was old enough to talk.
“If she finds out, she will understand why you didn’t tell her and I’m certain she will accept you as you are. She’s not the type to shun others for being different. Plus it’s not like you’re going on Sixty Minutes. If she did freak out and tell, who is going to believe her?”
Davis chuckled, nodding. “True enough. I’ll give it some thought.”
Gram shot him another look he knew well. This one meant, don’t be a bonehead.
“Don’t think too long.”
* * * * *
“What the fuck?” Scarlett sat up in bed. Was a heard of elephants on the porch?
She left the lights off and creeped to the window facing Davis’s house. Moving the curtain and parting the blinds with her fingers, she looked outside, watching for the commotion. The bright starlight and the moon gave her just enough illumination to see. No elephants to be found but there was a horse. Had Davis’s quarter horse gotten loose? Whoa…there’s another…and another. The three had whipped around from the other side of the yard, prancing and rearing playfully at each other. Glued to that spot, she couldn’t take her eyes off them. Maybe she should tell…wait, there was one with a rider. Apparently, a piss-drunk cowboy had let out the team for a midnight run. She shook her head and was about to plop back into bed when the rider charged ahead, leading the others down the road. Right afterward, another small herd came charging around the house and racing behind them.
Where did they all come from? She hadn’t seen a barn big enough to hold them all. Her eyes widened as three more plowed around through the trodden path of snow and bolted past her window. She wasn’t sure what—but something amazing was happening. Rushing to the front door as fast as she could, she didn’t even bother to grab a coat to cover her tank top and flannel pajama pants. Flinging open the door, she stood, watching in awe as powerful legs propelled a parade of beautiful horses of many different colors and sizes right before her eyes. Their glossy coats shimmered in the moonlight and their manes and tails danced as they moved.
The cool air raised chill bumps on Scarlett’s bare arms and shoulders but she couldn’t tear her eyes away from the stampede of wild horses. Warm tears dripped down her face and her heart pounded as she stood breathless. Shivering, she wrapped her arms around her waist to hug herself, but she wouldn’t budge or look away from this amazing miracle unfolding before her. Without a doubt, this was a special occurrence—a secret was being shared with her. A few more of the horses had riders, all women. Their faces forward as they clung to their steeds, no one noticed Scarlett. Even in the fury of movement, Scarlett recognized the bright-red hair trailing out from under one woman’s hat. She couldn’t remember the redhead’s name, only that she was Davis’s aunt. As the sound of their clomping hooves grew faint with their distance, she stood trembling with a longing she had never expressed. She had never known what it was like to run so free. Peering out in the direction they went, she yearned to see them again.
Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks as a startling whinny drew her attention to a lone black stallion. Sure-footed, he trotted through Davis’s yard and stopped nearly parallel to where she stood. A sleek and beautiful giant, he reared up on his powerful back legs, nickering as if he was trying to attract her attention. She moved one freezing, bare foot to cover the other, trying to spark some heat between the two as she watched the stallion settle his front hooves back down. He clopped forward as if he might bolt in the direction of the others but turned in a circle a couple of times until he was facing her again. Wagging his head, he blew through his nose before nickering again.
Holy shit…I really am trapped in a magical snow globe. Is Black Beauty over there
trying to get my attention? Her hot breath swirling before her, she breached the threshold, exiting to the porch. As if he’d been given an invitation, the stallion trotted toward her, stopping about midway. Forcing her knocking knees to cooperate, she pressed forward, shuffling to the edge of the porch and standing right in front of the steps as she slowly extended her arm and lifted her fingers toward the sky. Her body trembled as her core temperature dropped but she didn’t budge. She waited with bated breath to see if he would bolt. He didn’t. Emboldened, she placed her icy cold foot down on the plank of the first step, pausing to see if her movement unnerved her enchanting visitor before placing her other foot down beside it. Oh, that did it…he wagged his head while lifting his upper legs from the ground. He was going to run.
Playfully, he jumped to the side, as if he was going to take off, before shifting his weight to land back in place. Scarlett giggled and in response he whinnied. She froze in place as he trotted closer. He came to a stop before her, his nose just inches from her extended hand. He stretched his neck as if asking for a little rub and she happily obliged, using two fingers to stroke the soft tissue between his nostrils. Her hand slid up his muzzle toward his forehead, caressing his silky coat before softly patting. She laughed as he nudged at her, demanding more attention.
“Sorry, boy, I don’t have any apples or carrots on me.” She laughed, bringing her free hand to his chin. His warmth provided her pitiful hands some relief as she continued to stroke his hair. She was so cold before but in that minute she could have stood there forever.
Startled by a loud neigh a few feet away, the horse’s body stiffened and he lifted his massive head, turning it in the direction of the noise. Three smaller horses, likely juveniles, stood nearby, prancing about and wagging their heads as they nickered, likely demanding he re-join the herd. Her gentle giant jumped back, swinging his neck over to look at Scarlett before looking back to the others. She couldn’t help but burst out in laughter. If she didn’t know better, she would swear he was embarrassed—as if he had been caught misbehaving. He reared up once more before turning and bolting toward the others. The younger horses parted, making a hole for him to gallop through as he built up to full speed and kept going. Quickly, they gave chase and just like that, her snow globe moment was over. Oh well, I need to get my icy-cold ass back inside anyway.
She made haste, hurrying through the door she had left wide open. The sudden temperature change back inside took her breath away with the discomfort of hundreds of pinpricks on her exposed skin. She rubbed her hands together, blowing on them as she hopped from foot to foot toward the fireplace and tossed on another log. She was grateful to whoever had stocked the wood rack before she got there. She scurried to her room, retrieving a pair of fuzzy, red-and-white-striped socks and getting them onto the two ice blocks that had once been her feet as quickly as she could. She ran toward the den, her socks making her slide across the hardwood floor. She nearly lost her balance, stumbling but quickly compensating by lunging toward the sofa and steadying herself with the arm. Grabbing the blanket she had draped over the back, she wrapped it around her shoulders like an oversized shawl. Even as her body temperature regulated, her hands remained so painfully cold, her fingers might as well have been icicles. There was only one God-given cure for such a predicament—hot coffee! She was already too wired to worry about the fragrant, ground beans keeping her up anyway.
She padded to the kitchen, opened the cabinet and retrieved the orange bag filled with natural, energy-enhancing ambrosia, opened it and held it up to her nose to breathe in the enticing scent of hazelnut-flavored deliciousness. Oh, Dunkin Donuts, how I love thee! Making use of the cabin’s tiny, four-cup coffee maker, she carefully measured out enough grounds and water to brew two cups and pressed the start button. Her poor knuckles and fingertips ached, but soon enough she was wrapping both hands around an oversized coffee mug filled with piping-hot java, double light, double sweet. Lovingly, her palms embraced the heat as she lifted the cup, taking a healthy whiff before putting the brim to her lips.
Mmmm, the first sip was heaven! Sweet warmth covered her tongue as the liquid drifted over her teeth and gums. She held a swallow in her mouth but nearly sputtered and spewed it when the memory of drinking down another kind of hot liquid flashed in her mind. Struggling, she choked down what was left in her mouth, grabbing a napkin to tidy up the rest. She sat down at the bar, smiling to herself as she relived the sensual kisses, relishing the memory of how Davis’s hands had felt against her bosoms. Oh and that body—she needed for her brain to hold on to the image of those rippling muscles and that fine ass, not to mention…oh what the hell, that cock was definitely worth mentioning. Its bulbous head had been so shiny, slick with her saliva, and the shaft had reached so deep. Whoa! She was warmed up now. Her face and neck were flushed and her pussy was tingling. Oh fuck! If only he was there to bend her over the barstool she had parked her ass on.
She closed her eyes, dwelling on every detail of that magical moment in time, especially the way he’d manhandled and maneuvered her body. Davis knew how to handle a curvy girl and damn could that cowboy ride! She couldn’t repress her grin. Her eyes shot open as a loud banging noise forcefully shoved those wonderful thoughts to the back of her mind. Now what the fuck?
The banging continued, frightening the hell out of her. She stood, slowly following the unrelenting noise. It was coming from the back porch that faced away from Davis’s house. She peeked out the window but couldn’t make out anything in the darkness. Flicking off the inside light, she took a deep breath and quickly flipped on the light to the back porch. Her hand grasped the doorknob, ensuring it was locked before she peered out through the blinds. Huh? No fucking way.
Reaching over to the sugar bowl on the counter, she took a couple of cubes before opening the door.
“What are you doing back here?” Her tone was scolding but she smiled.
Her beautiful visitor, who had been smacking his big, clomping foot down on the bottom step as if he was knocking on the damn door, lifted his head, blowing and nickering at her. She pointed her finger at him.
“It’s late. I’ve a good mind not to give you these.” She stepped forward, once again ignoring the cold to offer her bewitching guest the sugar cubes.
He stared at her but made no move toward the sugar.
“Don’t you want it? It’s okay. Take it.”
She blinked as her vision seemingly went blurry, morphing the horse’s steady shape and dark color. Gasping with a dropping jaw, she realized her eyesight was just fine and let out a startled scream, jumping back and dropping the sugar cubes on the back deck.
“It’s you… No, no, you can’t see me like this!” She pawed at the coffee stain on her tank top over a now engorged nipple. “And my hair…wait, no…what the fuck…horse. You were a great, big, gorgeous black stallion.” Beside herself, she hopped to and fro, mumbling more to herself than to Davis. “Naked…ohmigod, you are sooo naked!” Her eyes were nearly popping out of her head. “There’s not even any shrinkage.”
Davis strode up the steps, standing before her as naked as the day he was born with his hard cock swaying. “You must be cold. May I come in and help you get warmed up?”
Speechless and foggy-headed, she stepped to the side, extending her hand toward the door, salivating as his firm, muscular ass crossed the threshold. She followed behind him like a newborn duck. Closing the door, she lingered, observing him as he took a look around the kitchen. Spying her coffee cup, he topped it off with some from the pot and handed it to her. Holy hell…he had literally meant help her warm up. She gulped her first sip, nearly burning her tongue.
“Is there somewhere we can sit and talk?” he asked.
Hyperaware that she still had a blanket around her like an old woman’s shawl, she simply nodded and strode over to the couch, taking a seat and tapping the cushion beside her with a single finger. After taking another sip of coffee, she set the cup down on a coaster on a nearby end table as
buck-naked Davis took his place next to her.
“So…what did you need to talk about?” she asked him, nearly certain she was fast asleep and dreaming.
He reached over, fussing with the blanket until he had it tucked around her on one side before sliding right underneath next to her. “Come here. I’m actually pretty warm.”
Obediently, she lifted her legs, placing them over his and scooting closer. He put an arm around her, cuddling her close to his chest. I’ll just go with the flow. There is no way this is anything but a dream anyway. I’m still asleep. There was no horde of wild horses earlier and there is no shape-shifting cowboy snuggling up to me. His rock-hard, amazing cock isn’t resting on my thigh either. I’m dreaming or I’ve gone nuts. It’s a good thing all the best people are crazy anyway.
The soft lips brushing against her temple certainly seemed real, as did the strong but gentle hand smoothing her hair. Come on, imaginary cowboy…you might as well get this make-believe booty call started.
Davis’s arm tightened around her as he asked, “Are you okay?”
She laughed dryly. “Sure, why wouldn’t I be?”
Pulling back, he slid his hand under her chin and tilted her face toward his, looking her in the eyes. “Scarlett, be real with me here. This isn’t something I share with just anyone. Please say something.”
Be real, he says…really. Maybe I never left the city. I’m probably passed out on my bathroom floor after drinking myself into a stupor. That’s it…and maybe I tried some ecstasy-laced LSD to chase away my…heartbreak. Hmmm, I hadn’t even thought about that snake for hours.
“Scarlett?” Davis tapped the side of her face. “Are you in shock?”
“No, I’m dreaming.” She looked him right in the eyes.
“Sorry, but you’re not.” He shook his head.
“But… It’s the only thing that makes sense.” Her voice was low and timid.
Davis took her hand and placed it on his bulging cock, wrapping her fingers around the girth. “Does that feel real to you?”