Horse Play (Horse Play #1) (23 page)

I stopped by the bathroom and brushed my hair, getting rid of that messy, bed-head thing I had going on. It was a good thing Jensen shooed me away when he did, because when I arrived in the kitchen, Dad was sitting at the table with Willow, sipping his coffee.

“Hey, Dad,” I greeted as Jensen turned from the counter and handed me my own coffee and my pain meds. I smiled appreciatively at him. “Thanks.”

“Good morning, Madi. You excited to go into the city today?” Dad asked as I took my seat.

It had been about six months since my last trip to Memphis, and even longer since I had done any major shopping for myself that didn’t involve groceries. “Actually, yeah.”

“There’s this great shop I want to take you to, Madi. They have the most amazing dresses,” Willow announced.

Raising an eyebrow, I turned to look at her. “Will, what on earth do I need a dress for? Now, if you wanted to force me into more of those jeans you bought me last time, sure. But a dress?”

Willow smirked, and I really wished I knew what was going through that head of hers. “You never know when you’ll need a good party dress, Madi.” I was about to protest when she spoke again. “Okay, okay. I saw a dress there I just have to have. And maybe you’ll find something, too. You never know. Besides, it’s fun to just dress up sometimes.”

I conceded, knowing it was a losing battle—especially since Willow would be doing the driving—and we all ate breakfast together. The pancakes were amazing, but every bite I took had me thinking back to Jensen feeding me that one small piece and what it inevitably led to. I smiled. I couldn’t help it.

I felt a nudge beneath the table and looked over at Jensen. “Penny for your thoughts?”

My cheeks warmed as both Dad and Willow watched me. “Oh, um. I was just thinking about when I can ride again?” Willow and Dad seemed to buy it, but Jensen looked skeptical. I kicked his shin lightly with my socked foot to thank him for the unwanted attention, but he only chuckled under his breath.

We all helped clean up the kitchen before Dad headed out to start in the barn. Jensen promised he was right behind him.

“Have fun today, girls,” Dad said before closing the door behind him.

“Okay! You ready to go, Madi?” Willow asked excitedly.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I joked before turning to Jensen. “You’re sure I can’t stay home?”

He pondered my request for a moment. “Sorry. I think you’ll be okay. Have fun. I’ll see you tonight.”

“Fine. Maybe I’ll get Willow to stop somewhere and I’ll bring something home for dinner. Any preferences?” I asked as I slipped on my shoes.

“I’ll go wait in the car,” Willow announced. “You know, give you two a moment alone. Just a moment, though. Don’t make me come back in here.” She may have been small, but not even I would mess with her when she used that tone.

“So, any dinner preferences?” I asked again once Willow was outside and climbing behind the wheel of her new Charger.

Shaking his head, Jensen wrapped his arms around my waist. “Surprise me. I’m pretty easy.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Oh, really?”

Chuckling, he shrugged and moved his face to mine to kiss me softly. “Your twisted little mind
would
go there, wouldn’t it?”

“Don’t even try to pretend that’s not what you meant,” I challenged, and he just feigned shock and continued to claim he had no idea what I was talking about.

Willow was clearly growing annoyed because she began honking her horn. “Okay, you should go before the half-pint rips us both to shreds. I don’t think I would want to go up against her,” Jensen joked, before placing one last chaste kiss on my lips. “Have fun. You have your painkillers in case you’re gone too long?”

I nodded. “Yup. I’ll see you tonight.”

Jensen and I left the house together, and he opened my door for me, closing it once I was inside. “Hot car, Willow,” he praised as he checked out the interior.

She beamed as she always did when someone complimented her baby. “Thanks! Brandon got it for me when he got promoted.”

From across the yard, I heard Jensen’s name being called, and we both turned to see my dad walking toward us. “Well,” he said, looking back at me with a smile before pushing himself back up. “I guess I should get going before I lose my job.”

“I’m pretty sure he’s not going to fire you. He pretty much owes you for taking care of me,” I reminded him, reaching out and placing my hand on his.

Saying one final good-bye, Willow backed out of her spot and we were on our way to the city for a day of trying on clothes and, I hoped, a day at her spa. After moving to Memphis two years ago, Willow opened up her own salon and spa called
Visions of You
. It was very successful and something she really enjoyed doing. Because she owned the place, a trip to the city was never complete without the two of us going in for facials and full body massages.

“So,” Willow said as we drove on the highway. “I think we should do a little bit of shopping then stop for lunch before heading over for massages. What do you think?”

I frowned. “With my ribs, I don’t think I can have a massage.”

“Oh, pish! We’ll figure something out! Beth is amazing and will take excellent care of you,” she promised.

The two-hour drive to Memphis flew by as Willow mapped out all the shops she wanted us to hit. The first store we went into upon arriving was a little dress shop called JJ’s House. Willow ran through the store grabbing dress after dress off the racks for me to try on before handing them off to an associate to start me a fitting room.

“Will, I thought we were here for
you
?” I inquired.

She lifted the tiered skirt of a royal blue strapless dress and smirked at me. “Oh, we are. But I know what I want. We need to find you a dress, too.”

“Why do I need a dress?” I asked, repeating my question from earlier.

With her hands on her hips, she turned to me. “Madison, please. Just stop being so damn difficult. We’re here to have fun. Indulge me. Please?” It was hard to tell her no when she batted those big, blue peepers at me, so I huffed in exasperation and stepped behind the curtain to change, leaving her clapping in my wake.

The first dress I put on was a light pink, lace-covered dress with a really short skirt. The sleeves on it were long and puffy at the shoulder, doing absolutely nothing for my collarbones, and the color completely washed me out. I stepped out from behind the curtain, and Willow scrunched her nose.

“Seriously? Why did you pick this? It can’t look good on anyone.” As the words left my mouth, a girl two rooms down looked over at me, a bright smile on her face until she heard what I had said—and saw what dress I was talking about.

Smiling sheepishly, I retreated back behind my curtain. “Pay no attention to the lunatic behind the curtain,” I said, trying my best attempt at humor. Willow thought it was hilarious as she cackled from her seat outside my room.

The next two dresses were okay. The first was a basic black strapless dress with pockets. I thought I looked great in it, but Willow hemmed and hawed saying she didn’t think it was quite right.

“Quite right for what? I have nowhere to wear a dress like this. How can it not be right for hanging in my closet?” I demanded, folding my arms across my chest and glaring at her. She was being awfully cryptic and I didn’t like it.

“Next!” was all she said, physically turning me and pushed me back into the room.

Next in line was a purple organza dress with a jeweled collar. It looked pretty frightening, but I trusted Willow when she said it would look better on. It did, which was good. There was a peek-a-boo slit down the chest before it was belted around the waist and then flowed out into an A-Line skirt. It was cute. Not little black dress-cute, but still cute.

I stepped out and Willow vetoed it again within seconds. “You know,” I said, making sure the irritation was audible. “You’re about to choke on this dress.” I was only
half
kidding.

“Come on. Just one more. Try the cobalt one. I think it’ll look spectacular with your eyes and skin tone!”

Growing more and more frustrated with her insane need for me to find a dress, I changed out of the purple one and into the blue satin one that was left. The neckline was a plunging V that showed just enough cleavage to not be considered trashy and the back had a zipper that ran all the way from the bottom of the skirt to the top of the mid-rise back. It fit like a glove and I loved how it made me feel. Willow was right (which shouldn’t have shocked me, but did), and when I stepped out she nodded emphatically.

“Yes! Yes! Yes!” she cheered. “Madison, you have to get that one.”

The smile that I wore gave away just how much I wanted to buy the dress, too. However, when I looked at the tag that was positioned just below my arm, I choked a little. “Willow! It’s two hundred dollars!”

Willow got up to inspect the tag herself. “Yeah, marked down from five. Madison, just get it. You look sensational.” I couldn’t argue with her there. What I could argue with was that she wanted me to pay two
hundred
dollars for a dress I would likely never even wear.

“Where would I wear it?” I asked.

There was an impish grin on her face as she shrugged. I started to think she maybe knew something I didn’t. “I don’t know. But can you really pass up a deal like that? Come on. Hell, if in a month’s time, you still haven’t worn it, you can come visit and we’ll go out on the town. Okay? Please?” She was begging now—as in literally down-on-her-knees, hands-folded-in-front-of-her begging.

“Fine,” I told her, pretending to be annoyed, even though the smile I wore said otherwise.

While I paid for my new dress, Willow had the associate run to the back for the one that she had put on hold the other day. Willow had all the dresses in the world, so I wasn’t sure why she needed to add yet
another
one to her insane collection.

“Brandon has a work party. I can’t wear something I’ve already worn.” Willow’s logic did not resemble that of a sane person. The girl was kooky.

After paying for our purchases, we walked out of the boutique with our white garment bags, laying them flat in Willow’s immaculately clean trunk before walking down the sidewalk to browse in a few more shops. I bought three more pairs of jeans, paying more for them than I normally would have—especially since I could have bought three pairs of Levi’s for the price of one. Willow assured me that they were great quality and would last a long time. She helped me pick out a few dressier tops that were still casual enough that I could wear them whenever and not just to the clubs I never went to.

We shopped for two hours, and I had to admit, I was having a blast. It was nice to hang out with her and talk about life and guys. We were just leaving the lingerie store when my stomach started rumbling and my side started to ache a little, so Willow decided it was time for lunch. She led the way to a near-by diner where she assured me they had the best vegetarian menu in all of Memphis.

Each of us ordered a veggie burger and a side salad, then talked some more. Whenever I talked about Jensen, Willow donned a grin so wide I knew it had to hurt her cheeks.

“What?” I inquired.

“It’s really nothing,” she tried to tell me. “I just realized that in the year and a half that you and Dane were together, you never talked about him like this. I mean, you talked about him, but it wasn’t with this much emotion. Usually you’d complain about how he didn’t clean up after himself, or how much of a dick he was being.” She paused. “But, with Jensen. I don’t know, you just light up.”

I shook my head. “He’s a good guy, but we’re just fooling around.” I paused. “Or, we would be if it weren’t for my stupid ribs.”

“I still can’t believe you haven’t slept with him.”

I scoffed. “Believe me. It isn’t for lack of trying or wanting to.”

“Still,” Willow said. “You like him.”

“Sure. What’s not to like?” She held eye contact, her eyebrows arched as though to challenge me. “It’s just casual. Neither of us is ready for more. I want to let myself fall for him … I do,” I said, still trying to convince that one miniscule part of myself that he
could
be the right one for me. “I’m just afraid that we’d be moving too fast and that the attraction he feels will eventually fizzle out completely.”

“Madison, I’ve spent a little time with the guy, and I’d like to think I’m a pretty good judge of character.” Reaching across the table, she rested her hand over mine. “The way he talks about you, how his eyes shine every time I tell him something about you—no matter how silly or embarrassing…” I wanted to smack her for that one “I can tell he’s falling for you, but something is holding him back. While I know you guys want to keep things casual, I think the two of you coming together when you did was kismet.”

Our lunch arrived just then, giving me a few minutes to reflect on everything we’d talked about. Willow had said that something was holding Jensen back. I already knew about what he’d been through these last few years, but would that effect his outlook on relationships?

Or was he holding something else back?

Chapter 16. More to the Story