Page 39 of Taming I Do
Noises came from behind a couple of the doors, but the one at the end of the hall sat wide open.
“Hey, Abby. Delilah’s here. Can you show her where she’s sleeping tonight?”
“Sure.” Abby got up and wrapped me in a hug. “You have no idea how nice it is to have a girl around for a change.”
“She’s been praying for this her whole life.” Jasper laughed and gave me an apologetic smile. “Abby, go easy on her. You’re going to scare her away.”
“I don’t scare that easily.” I gave the girl a squeeze before stepping back. “I’ve never shared a room before. You’ll have to fill me in on the rules.”
“I’ve got a trundle.” Abby pointed to a set of drawers under her bed. “Mom told me to put clean sheets on earlier. Are you staying for dinner?”
“Oh”—I glanced to Jasper—“I don’t know.”
“Yes, she’s staying for dinner.” Jasper nodded toward his sister. “I’m going to take a look at the trailer and make sure it’s hooked up right. Can you entertain Delilah until it’s time to eat?”
“Of course.” Abby pointed to where my bag sat on the floor. “If you want to change clothes, I can introduce you to Tie Dye.”
“Tie Dye? That’s the goat, right?” I glanced to Jasper, but he just stood there with his lips quirked up.
“Yep. Jasper found him tangled up in some barbed wire and brought him home. Nobody claimed him so he stayed,” Abby said.
“Why do you call him Tie Dye?” I asked. Seemed like a strange name for a pet, especially a goat.
“I’m sure she’ll tell you all about it on the way down to the pasture. You all right here?” Jasper leaned against the doorframe.
“We’ll be fine.” I gave him a smile that held a lot more confidence than I felt. Spending time around a large family hadn’t been part of my plans. I was used to being on my own, although the amount of time I spent around Stella made it seem like we lived together sometimes.
“All right then. I’ll see you later.” Jasper disappeared down the hall, and for a moment I wished I were going with him.
“Want to see my lizard?” Abby asked.
“I’m sorry, your what?” I turned around to find the girl holding out a scaly critter that took up the majority of her forearm. Instinctively, I jumped back a couple of feet, bumping my arm against a dresser.
“Are you okay?” Abby came close, the lizard still on her arm.
“I’m fine. You caught me off guard, that’s all.” I’d never seen a creature like that so close up before. “Who do you have there?”
“This is Sly. He actually likes crickets. We should have let him loose in your trailer. I bet he’d eat them all.” Abby stretched her arm out. “You want to hold him?”
“Um, maybe later. Right now, I’d love to change if you can show me where the bathroom is.” I skirted around Abby and Sly, my eye on my bag.
“Second door on the right. Do you want me to show you?”
“I think I can manage finding it on my own.” I rummaged through my bag, locating a pair of jeans and a long-sleeve shirt. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
Abby nodded, her attention focused on her pet. I left the bedroom and turned to the right. I entered the bathroom and shut the door behind me, breathing in a sigh of relief as the lock clicked into place. Finally, I could let my guard down for a few minutes and figure out what I needed to do next. Ever since I’d stepped foot in Ido, things had veered off course. My time in Hartwood and East had gone strictly by the book. They’d paraded me around local events and left me to myself for the most part in between.
But being in Ido, I felt totally immersed in the day-to-day life of the town. I’d never intended on staying at someone’s home, much less the one of the man who was responsible for my welfare while I was in town. Not to mention pulling his entire family in on it. I was totally out of my element. No amount of pageant training had prepared me for joining the family of my hospitality host. They all seemed nice enough, but I’d never had much in the way of family. Just me and Stella and sometimes my mother’s latest boyfriend or husband. They never lasted long.
I took my time changing my clothes, taking advantage of the solitary space for as long as I could. I’d asked Stella once about why she never seemed able to settle down. My mom answered me with a sadness in her eyes I had never seen before and said something about having lost her chance at happiness when she chose to walk away.
When I was younger, I would have given just about anything to have a sister. When that didn’t work out, I opened up to being okay with a brother instead, figuring maybe I’d been too picky with my request. But Stella kept moving between men, and no siblings ever showed up. Spending time with Jasper’s familywould be good for me. I’d figure out what I’d been missing by being an only child.
As I nodded to myself, doing my best to convince myself to get back out there, someone pounded on the bathroom door.
“Get out of there, asswipe. You know I’ve got to clean up before dinner.”
I gasped and grabbed onto the counter. “I’ll be out in a second.”
