Gone Country

Chapter 12 (Decisions)

You would think I would be use to waking up in a muscly embrace after four days in a row. I guess after almost getting caught by Jives when Brant helped me sneak out was why it seemed like a dream. Brant had easily crept into the house without disturbing him, I was the idiot who decided to almost fall down the steps, nearly knocked off a picture from one of the end tables, and of course I did the classic stump my toe on something hard. Somehow we made it through the chaos.

I was bored waiting for him to wake up. For entertainment, I drew on his abs as if it was perfectly natural for me to do so. I bet he was proud of these things. My fingertip traced each muscle down his toned stomach, admiring how hard he worked. I've got a feeling ever since I've arrived, that Jack has cut back Brant's work so we could hang out and reconnect as friends. I'm sure Brant had more responsibilities than taking care of the animals. He probably helped mend fences, went with Stella to the grocery store to carry the bags, and work more in the garden than he does now. That's how he got these muscles.

It was slightly awkward to think that his v-lines showing were actually quite tempting, but they were. Shakily, I reached over and just innocently touched where it started on his right hip. His body tensed, his throat vibrating a hum in response to my touch. "Charlotte," he murmured in my hair. "I know you're curious about the male body..."

I hit him before he could even finish what he was saying. Yes I was curious, but not about male bodies. I still couldn't understand why Caroline would give him up. Not to sound crazy, but Brant was definitely attractive, even more than Clay in my opinion. His personality was different. He was caring until you set him off, then he goes back to caring when he apologizes for going off. There was really nothing wrong with Brant, so why?

Did she really fall in love with Clay? It had to be true in order to leave Brant. Like Brant and I, maybe she lost contact with him because she got caught up in her dreams or every day city life? All I knew was that she was insane to have left him.

"What's going on in that pretty little head of yours, Char?" Brant asked, his head lowering so his eyes could study mine.

"I'm trying to figure out why Caroline left you," I quietly explained. "All I can conclude to is that she is an idiot."

He gave a sleepy smile, his cheeks showing his flattery by slowly turning a light pink. "Thanks, Charlotte." His lips met my forehead for a second before we fell into our normal morning routine. He talked his way out of making the bed and I gave in to his wishes while he went to go change out of his pajama pants.

Every time I looked at the bed, I felt uneasy about the nights I've spent lying next to him. We were friends, and friends like us don't normally do this kind of thing. It was so wrong, but felt so right during the night. Maybe it's because we're lonely and only have the companionship between one another to get us through this rough time. One of us will find someone, most likely Brant, and the other will just have to cope with sleeping alone, most likely me. It would be fine as long as Brant was happy.

"Bathroom is free," Brant announced, coming into the room fully dressed in his t-shirt and jeans that both perfectly clung to him. "I was a little disappointed to see that there wasn't anything special in the bag this time. Given up have we?"

I didn't respond to his taunting, just hurried off to the bathroom before I killed him. After I doubled checked the door to make sure it was locked, I started pulling off my clothes, only to look in the small black duffle bag to see my clothes were missing.

"If you want your clothes you're either going to have to come and get them, or agree to move here."

I should've been angry, it was just that this was twice he has confessed he didn't want me to leave Motown. My forehead rested against the door, the possibilities of losing and gaining running through my mind again. What about Niona, my father, Jives, the store? I know that the boutique was never my complete dream. It had been my dream to do what my mother had planned to do, I've never thought of dreaming myself.

"Brant?" I softly wondered, hoping he could hear my small tone. I pressed my ear up against the door, trying to hear anything that would tell me he was there.

"Yeah, Char?" he replied in his own soft tone.

"I don't know what to do," I explained from my side of the door. "I would love to stay here, but my dad, Jives, and Niona. Brant, I don't know if I can leave them."

Things were more complicated than he made it seem. I love my dad, Jives, and Niona. They were extremely special to me. I grabbed Brant's sleep shirt he didn't bother putting on last night, from the bag, slipping it over me and allowing it to fall down into place where it stopped mid thigh. I didn't hesitate to open the door, not even while being half dress. He pulled me in, lifting me off the ground in a warm comfortable hug.

"Don't get me wrong, Brant" I whispered. "I miss this place, I miss you..."

He smiled against my neck at my confession, his arms tightening even more around me. "Stay, Charlotte, things won't be the same if you leave me again. Do something for you, and a little bit for me and my family, by staying here and being happy."

My fingertips gripped the hair on the back of his head as I nuzzled my nose against his cheek. Obviously Brant meant a lot to me. We don't always get along, and sometimes he uses his knowledge of knowing exactly what to say in order to really hurt me for his advantage, I just knew that I didn't want to leave him again.

The last time we were separated, I had no power over whether or not I wanted to stay. Now I could make my own decision and had no clue as to which one to make. "Take your time, Charlotte. You have until the day you're father tells you to go back to New York to decide."

Bringing up my father reminded me that I had to talk to him about Austin. I would bring up this subject to him as well and hear what he had to say about me staying here.







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I got him back in the saddle. I have no clue how I persuaded my father to climb up on a horse again, but he was riding along on Spirit right beside Ranger and I.

That's right, Brant allowed me to take Ranger out on this special occasion. I was more than happy that he trusted me with his horse, then again I was scared something was going to happen and Brant was going to kill me for hurting his pride and joy. Other than that, I was having the time of my life sitting on the gorgeous black and white paint below as he slowly walked down the pathway.

"Alright, Charlotte," my dad spoke. "It's been ten minutes into this ride and you haven't said a word..." He reached over from his horse to grab my chin and force me to look his way. "What's wrong, princess?"

Well dad besides the fact that your engaged to a woman who doesn't even love you, everything is wrong. "I just want to ask for something, but it's not for me, it's for Austin."

My dad snorted in response. I knew he wasn't happy about Austin and I, but I didn't know it was this bad. "Why should I give him anything? He's stealing my baby's innocence...."

"Austin and I aren't dating!" I blurted. "We sort of made it up so you would see that sometimes relationships can hurt a loved one."

His brows furrowed in confusion, still not getting the point. I looked to the horn of my saddle, drawing on top of it while I tried to figure out what to say next. "To me, Chanel is your Austin. She's clearly no good, but you don't give a flying monkey's uncle whether it hurts me to see this happen. I don't even want to talk about this..."

"Then don't!" he boomed at me. "You don't know her like I do, Charlotte, you've never taken the time out to get to know her. Every time I try to set up some day between you two, you back out!"

My eyes widened at how red his face had gotten and how angry his tone was toward me. When I glanced to see all of this, my head dropped again. "How do you not see the problem in that?" I whispered. "You just pointed out a sign and didn't even bother to examine it." I looked to the sky, blinking back the tears that my aching heart was demanding to drop.

"Charlotte, I'm..I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled..."

"Why can't you see it!" I screamed with all my might to the heavens. Not even the clear blue sky or the calming rustle of the trees as a gentle summer breeze blew by could clear my head of all the weariness and frustration. "You just said that you had to make the plans for Chanel and I to spend time together. That wasn't your job, it was hers, but she doesn't want to spend time with me, she doesn't want to be there for me. She wants Prada purses, Louis Vuitton heels, and Gucci sunglasses!!"

I ruffled my hair in frustration, wondering why I let myself get on this stupid subject anyway. He wasn't going to listen to me. "Charlotte, I know it seems that way, but she is nothing like that."

Now he was covering it up to make himself feel good. If I didn't love him so much, I could about kill him. "Forget it dad," I huffed. "Can you pay for one more year of Austin's college?" I bluntly asked.

My father gave me an odd look on the sudden topic change and surprised me by nodding his head. He must feel guilty for everything that just happened in order to go down that easy, especially since I had technically lied to him. "I'll do it, but I don't want to hear any of this bad mouthing Chanel again."

I said last night I was going to be nicer to her. I would simply do that by not saying a word toward her, after all, if you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all. "Fine," I muttered under my breath. I'd accept this circumstances as long as he let me write the check.

We continued most of the ride in silence. I could sense that he was still angry with me, that's why I didn't bring up the whole wanting to live in Motown subject. Brant would be disappointed, but he would just have to understand.

Even though he was still angry with me, he tried making conversation toward the end of the trail which circled back around to the gate. "I heard you visited the old house."

I managed a smile toward him, giving a nod to confirm it. "Brant redone my room..."

"He's also been sneaking off with you in the middle of the night to go there, hasn't he?" I was Busted?? "Jives told me."

I was going to have a butler's head hung over my fireplace real soon. "Yes, we do sneak away to the house at night, but I swear it isn't what you think."

He gave me a skeptical look. "Charlotte, you need to tell me if you're sexually active.."

My hand moved on its on to smack myself on the forehead. I couldn't believe this right now and almost willed Ranger to buck me off into the bushes near by. "I'm not sexually active, especially not with Brant. We just go there. I feel at home there and he makes sure I'm safe throughout the night."

Okay, the truth was actually we have gotten use to sleeping next to someone and would lose valuable rest if we didn't sleep next to one another, but this is a lie I had to tell. "Well I don't approve, and I will be telling Jack and Stella."

Crap! I couldn't fight or whine about it. If I tried to talk him out of it, he might get angry and take back Austin's money. Brant was going to be angry with me, but not as angry as I will be when it came to Jives. When I got my hands on that butler, I was going to strangle him nearly to death. He would be seeing angels for months.

I did managed to have a little fun with my father. When we entered the gate to the fence, I mounted Ranger again and raced my dad back to the barn. Ranger easily took the lead over Spirit during the race. My heart coursed adrenaline though my veins, making me want more, to continue to feel free from everything. No Chanel problems, no being in trouble or upset. Everything just blew away in the wind for a little while.

A loud whistle made me smile and Ranger headed straight for the shirtless Brant who came out of the barn to greet us back home. "Looking good, Charlotte," he told me when I made Ranger me slow down to a trot.

When Ranger stopped, Brant helped me down from the horse by my waist and pulled me into his bare chest. "Want to come and help me in the hay field today?" he asked, removing his cowboy hat and resting it on my head.

His smile was so bright that it made me nervously fiddle with the hem of my loose pink tank top I had paired with light blue jean shorts and a pair of black ankle boots. Here's a tip I should've taken myself, if you're going to ride a horse, don't wear shorts, it will kill you afterwards.

I had to say something quick before my dad reached us, so I summarized when he asked how things went. "Got the money, he knows about Austin, and Jives tattled."

He pieced it together when I started tugging Ranger into the barn's back doors. "Charlotte! What did he say?" he worriedly asked.

I bit down on my lower lip, starting to undress Ranger from the saddle I had put on him earlier before my dad and I went out for a ride. "He said he's going to tell your parents, I'm sorry."

Brant heaved a sigh. Not only was my father mad, but I could tell that Brant wasn't to pleased right now either. "It's not your fault, Charlotte." He stopped me from removing the saddle to give me a quick hug. "Wait for me at the truck, I wanna talk to your dad."

That was definitely a scary thought. He turned me around, a squeak escaping me when his hand connected with my rear. "Hurry up!" he rushed.

I picked up my speed, pretty much jogging to the truck to please his pushy attitude. When I glanced back, I saw my father pulling Spirit into the back doors of the barn with a sour expression on his face directed towards Brant. My dad was going to kill him! I stopped jogging, nervously turning around to go back to him.

"Charlotte!" I stopped, giving Brant a weak smile when he caught me in the act. "Truck," he grinned. "Quit being a stubborn mule and listen for once."

With an immature stomp, I twirled back around to obey his orders. He could be such a bossy girl sometimes. This time, even though I was worried, I stayed by the truck like he wanted. Just because I stayed didn't mean I stayed still. My nerves forced me to pace up and down alongside of the truck. It was hard not to worry right now. Anything could be being said between them, absolutely anything!

A million unanswered questions ran through my head. What if my dad kills him? What if Brant hates me because everything came out? Why was I so upset about this? Why did I have continue on with the sneaking away, knowing we would be in trouble if we got caught? The worst one was a question that I didn't even want to think about. What if my dad drags me back to New York with him?

I bit at my nails, spitting on the ground when I tasted the dirt underneath them. Why do people bite their nails when they're nervous? This truly was a disgusting habit. I switch that out with my usual hair ruffling. If anyone saw me they would think a spider or some kind of bug landed on my head with how I was fiercely tossing my hair about. My hair was probably going to look like I spent all day head banging at a heavy metal concert when this intense moment was over with, I just couldn't help it at the moment.

Back and forth, I walked on, fluffing and tossing my hair everywhere to try and relieve my anxiety. You know when you get so nervous that you get those weird body twitches? I was almost having a seizure, that's how much I was freaking out. What was taking so long?!?

"Charlotte Anne Jackson!!"

I looked to the house when my name was aggressively yelled by Stella. In fear, I spoke up with a hesitant, "Y-Yes?"

She crossed her arms, giving me an accusing look. "You get your butt in here and do your laundry young lady."

I gave a pout. "Stella.." I began to whined.

She wasn't having it. In a completely serious way, she pointed into the house, telling me to get going before she had to come get me herself. I dragged my feet, slowly walking to the house to her. "Move it missy," she ordered. "You and Brant are heading to the hay field." I spluttered out a sigh, slightly smiling when she bumped her hip against mine. "I love you Charlotte" she sang.

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered while my smile widened. I ran to the laundry room full blast. I have my own special hamper that is a hot pink color, Stella made sure that I had it. As quickly as possible, I separated my darks and lights, deciding to wash the lights first since it had a couple of things I might need in the pile. I dumped my darks back into my special hamper to keep certain things from male's eyes.

Like a pro, I started the washer, going through the usual routine that I knew absolutely nothing about when I first had to do laundry in the middle of the week. Luckily, Stella was extremely talented in the clothes washing art. She taught me everything I needed to know, including the dangers of darks and bleach.

"Someone grab a video camera, Charlotte Jackson is doing laundry."

My head slowly turned to see Jives leaning against the door frame like he hadn't done a single thing wrong. "I should kill you!" I snapped at him. Startled, he pushed away from the doorway with a concerned look on his face. "Why did you tell my father about Brant and I sneaking out last night?" I poked him in the chest, making sure my hurt and disappointment was clear on my face during my strong glare up at him. "You sir are a traitor."

His brows shot up at my hostility, but so did a smile that made me lowly growl at him having the nerve to do such a thing. "You can't be angry with me for wanting you all to myself, now can you Charlotte?" he told me in that charming tone he has used on his last two wives. He leaned forward, placing a kiss on my forehead to calm me even though I didn't want to be calm. "You know I find you irresistible," he went on with his fake interest act.

"Cut the crap Wilkerson," I snapped. He smirked at me, knowing that he was an extremely good actor. He's been acting like he actually works hard around the condo for years when instead he's watching Spanish soap operas on television. Nothing is funnier than him yelling at a television in Spanish, a language that he's not even fluent in. I'm pretty sure half the things he yells is gibberish.

"I'm sorry, Charlotte, but I've covered for you every time you needed me to when you wanted to work late at your boutique. There was nothing wrong with that. This, Charlotte, is you sneaking off with boys in the middle of the night and not returning until morning. Do you know how worried I was? I stayed up all night waiting for you to come back!"

I slammed the washer door shut, making sure to bump him on the way out the laundry room. "Oh no!" he yelled, grabbing me by the crook of my elbow. I shoved him when he whipped me around, letting him know that I wasn't in the mood. "Charlotte," he said in a soft tone while pulling me into his chest. "I'm sorry that you're angry with me, I just refuse to be sorry for protecting you. You know that you're like my little girlfriend I never had..."

I slightly laughed. "You've had plenty of girlfriends in the past."

He hugged me tighter, quietly chuckling into my hair. "Don't tell them, but you're my favorite." I squirmed when he poked a ticklish spot on my side to cheer me up. "You can be mad all you want, but I know you still love me."

Darn him. I rested my chin on his chest, gazing up into his caring brown eyes. "Whatever Jives," I sighed. "I still hate you for ratting me out. If I have to go back to New York, I will make sure your life is prison."

He threw his head back and laughed. "Your father has beat you to it," he chuckled. "And we both know who the real warden is."

Chanel. I shivered at just thinking her name. With a quick reminder that I was suppose to be nice, I forced a smile onto my lips. It fell when I heard someone else yelling for me. "Go on," he urged. "Your cowboy awaits."

I didn't even bother to fight with his words, I needed to know what happened between Brant and my father, and I needed to know now! Swiftly I ran through the house which was harder in cowboy boots than I realized. When I turned the hall corner, we clipped each other because we were both running to see one another. I slipped backwards, he slipped backwards, and we both tumbled to the ground. My first reaction was to keep my head lifted to avoid banging it on the floor. It was definitely a smart move.

For a moment I stared up at the ceiling in shock, that was until I heard Brant laughing. My own laughs began to roll at our circumstance. I wasn't looking at him, but I knew he probably looked just as ridiculous as I did laid out on the floor. Somewhere in between our roaring laughter, Brant slid himself across the floor to me.

"Are you okay?" he asked with a grin once his face was hovered over mine.

"I'm fine," I softly laughed. He helped me sit up, only to go wide eyed when he saw my hair. Jives didn't say anything earlier about what a mess my hair was, of course he's seen my bed hair for over eleven years. "I was worried," I explained when he began to run his fingers through my hair like a comb to calm the disaster on my head.

"Well you shouldn't have been," he softly told me. "Would you like to stay the night with me tonight in my room for a change?" I looked at him as if he had gone insane. "I talked to your dad, and as long as my parents and I keep our bedroom doors open, you can stay in my room."

He was lying, he had to be lying. There was no way my father freely agreed to this. "That's impossible," I breathed. "My dad..."

"I explained our sleep difficulties, Charlotte." Brant pulled me in close, resting his chin on top of my head when he wrapped me up in a hug. "It took a while, but I convinced him that I see you nothing more than a friend. To me, it's just like having Austin over only you're a girl and you smell a heck of a lot better than Austin."

I giggled, even if my heart twisted in agony for some reason. Brant stood to his feet, reaching down and pulling me up as well. "I can't believe your dad actually thought something was going on," he laughed. "How could he possibly think I would be sneaking around with you Charlotte? Does your father slip whiskey in his coffee? If there is something that I'm one hundred percent about it's that something like that is never gonna happen between us."

I gave a lighthearted laugh, shoving him away from me to go along with it. Sure, I knew we were friends and everything, but he didn't have to rub it in my face that I probably would never have someone who gets me like he does. I ruffled my hair and swallowed down my insecurities. I couldn't think that way, it would just make the empty, lonely hole in my chest deepen.

"Hey," Brant nudged me in the side. "What's with that look?" he asked when we stepped outside. "Did I say something?"

I shook my head, pulling on my best smile to convince him I was alright. "No," I replied. "I was just thinking."

"Well stop before you hurt yourself," he teased. I punched him in the arm and raced off to the truck before he could catch me. I watched him from the truck window as he shook his head at me and hurried to the driver's side. We can't all have beautiful men like Brant, that's why we befriend them so we can still have eye candy until we fall in love.

I kicked back in the truck, and when I say kicked back, I mean I was turned sideways in the long bench seat, my feet propped up on Brant's lap while my back rested against the truck door. I had pulled off my boots and socks, not caring if my feet reeked of sweat or not. That was Brant's problem, not mine.

I studied Brant from my comfortable position, watching as he mouthed the words to a country song on a radio and how he hit his palms on the steering wheel to the beat. There was no way I couldn't smile while observing him. I was one of the lucky few who got to see him like this. His happy side was probably the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. He was just happy to be riding around in the truck jammin' to some country hits on the way to the hay field to pick up some hay bales. I wanted to think that the reason he was so happy was because I was tagging along, but I knew better. He was happy to be enjoying the sights of Motown, even if he's seen them a million times already.

Behind the farms, miles of deserted land, and cattle, there was a quiet beauty. Just cruising around in the country was relaxing, even with the trembling truck we were riding in that sounded like a congested lion roaring. It hardly phased you when you stopped to look at the beauty around you.

Someone would pass by in a truck, we would wave regardless whether we knew them or not. Brant probably actually knew them, I on the other hand was just a friendly stranger greeting another stranger hello. Around here, you really get in the spirit of being neighborly to everyone, despite them not actually being your neighbors.

Brant drove over a set of railroad tracks, instinctively reaching over and grabbing my legs so I wouldn't bounce off the seat. I'll never understand what made me do it, but I rested my hand on top of his.

He glanced at me, my hand slowly retreating from his when I made myself aware that this was stupid of me to do. "Is something wrong Charlotte?" he asked, grabbing my hand before I could fully pull it away from his. "You're acting strange."

I turned my head to look out the from windshield that was slightly cracked from who knows what. "I'm fine, just thinking again."

His hand carefully tightened around mine. I really did get lost in thought this time, but mostly it was me questioning why it felt so good to hold his hand or why was my heart beating faster than the fastest sports car money could ever buy. It wasn't fair having questions that you didn't know the answer to stuck in your mind. I felt stupid for even feeling this way about him.

He drove on without a word, only he wasn't as happy as he was before. It was my fault he wasn't smiling like he was before. I didn't like his serious worried face, there was nothing for him to worry about anyhow. "Can we stop and get something to drink first?" I spoke up.

He glanced at me again. "Yeah," he agreed. "I guess I should've thought of that. Are you hot?"

I gave a nod. My window didn't roll down for some reason, making it impossible for me to get any breeze of any kind. "Come here," he urged, pulling me up and sliding me closer to him. My legs were completely over his where they fit in between the door and seat. He rolled his window down, the air blasting us in the face when it was down far enough. It was definitely a refreshing breeze from the humid weather.

I couldn't help myself, I involuntarily fell forward where my face found its way to his neck. "You never gave me an answer on whether or not you were going to stay with me tonight."

I pulled back, smirking in reply. "I'm not telling you a thing. I may or may not be there."

He immediately started complaining about it. I just laughed at the fact he was acting like a whiney little boy and refused to tell him my plans for tonight. "That's not fair Charlotte!" he cried out.

I kept my lips zipped on it, resisting to utter a word about it. I'm sure we both knew that I would be lying next to him tonight. He didn't lighten up on begging to know whether or not if I would be there, no he asked me over and over again. We made a pit stop at a gas station to grab a couple of waters, but once we were in the truck on our way again, he had to ask fifty more times.

Thankfully the farm we were heading to was only a minute away from that gas station or I would've went insane. It wasn't until we pulled into the driveway did I learn that we were actually picking up hay at Austin's. No one ever bothers to tell me anything. I saw Austin outside in the front hay field, baling up the hay on a old John Deere tractor that was still baling after all his time.

He was shirtless, it didn't really surprise me. Almost every time I see Austin he was half dressed. Brant parked the truck in front of a small log cabin type home. It was extremely beautiful and classy. I've never actually been to Austin's house before. You could tell it had been there for a while, yet it was still exquisitely standing.

I hurried out the truck with Brant, not caring if Austin could hear me or not when I started calling for him. Repeatedly I yelled his name while running across the yard. I hopped the fence that separated the lawn from the field. As if my life depended on it, I desperately leaped over the perfectly raked hay, screaming Austin's name. After about the tenth time he finally heard me.

He gave a attractive smile, it was pretty much impossible for one of his smiles to be unattractive. I waved like an idiot, but I couldn't help it, he was a good friend. Not only did I have Brant for eye candy, but Austin was also an attractive lollipop of mine.

Austin stopped the tractor at the end of the hay line and quickly hopped off to come see me. He sprinted across the foot ball field sized piece of land, meeting me halfway across just to squish me in a bear hug.

"Hey there, gorgeous!" he excitedly greeted. "Give your ex-man a kiss!"

I laughed when he quickly leaned in without a second thought and kissed my lips. He grabbed my face, pulling me deeper into the kiss. Why fight it? He was gorgeous and I was single, besides, the kisses he gave me never held anything about them. It was like when you were little and your mom made you give another toddler a kiss because you hurt their feelings or something. It was pretty much just two pairs of lips making contact.

He pulled away with a sly smile, knowing that I've pretty much stop resisting his impulsive acts. "What are you doing here?" he quietly asked while pulling my arms around his neck.

"Brant and I came for hay," I explained. "Can I ride on the tractor?" I poked my lip out, giving him my innocent look. He picked me up in his arms carrying me away to fulfill my wishes.

I'm sure it was hard work baling hay, but to me at the moment it was a blast. I got to sit on Austin's lap and actually drive. Austin kept his hands on mine, making sure I didn't mess up and ruin everything. I waved at Brant who was leaning against the white fence with his arms resting on the wood, smiling in amusement at how happy I was to be driving a tractor. He may not have thought it was amazing, but I sure did!

I helped Austin bale the rest of the field. It was probably lonely when you did it by yourself so time most likely slowed. This whole job went by quick as lightning because we were having fun. "I'm sorry about yesterday, Charlotte," Austin brought up on the last row of hay that needed to be baled. "I had to come home and help my dad out with some extra work he picked up."

I looked over my shoulder at him, quickly kissing his forehead in reassurance. "It's okay, I understand." I went on to explain everything that came out in the open and how I cleared it up with him. My dad of course didn't take heed to the motive, but Austin tried and I loved him for it.

"Alright, beautiful, this is where you get off. Tell Brant I'll help him load up at the barn after I put the tractor up."

I nodded in understand and carefully climbed down from the tractor. He waited until I crossed in front of the tractor, then headed off to do as planned. I hurried to Brant who was still smiling at me like I was some clueless child who just experienced something everyone had already been through before.

"Austin is going to help you at the barn," I told Brant when I tossed my arms around his neck. "Lift me up."

He didn't protest, he reached down to my waist and lifted me off the ground. Once I was over the fence, I ran to the truck and hopped onto the back since the barn was clearly in the back yard. "Please don't fall off, Charlotte," Brant said with playful eyes.

If I could have, I would've punched him for treating me like a little girl. I knew how to avoid falling off of a truck, I wasn't that country deprived. He started the truck up and drove on down to the hay barn where hundreds of hay bales were stacked up for the taking. "Here Char, you need to stay hydrated."

Brant tossed me my bottle of water, watching me to make sure I drank a decent amount of the fluid. After drinking nearly half the bottle, Brant put it in the truck only to look at me again. "Was it earlier?" he suddenly brought up. "Charlotte, did I hurt your feelings or something? You've barely said a word to me."

I groaned in annoyance, wishing he would let it go. "I'm fine Brant! I've just been thinking about if I'm going to move here or not," I lied.

At the mention of the subject his eyes sparkled. He pulled himself onto the truck and took my hands in his. "Let me do your thinking for you. Yes, you're staying!"

I laughed at him, continuing to laugh when he pulled me into a bear hug. He wanted me to stay, I wanted to stay, but my father had no clue yet about these plans. Knowing my dad he was probably going to have a cow, possibly a bull with this big of news. I was scared to tell him, I just knew I had to let him know about my adult decision. If I did move here, I wanted Niona to take over my boutique as her own but actually get paid from it. If anyone knew style better than me, it was definitely her.

The only main problem was leaving everyone behind for this. Then I look into Brant's deep blue eyes and my heart shatters at the thought of leaving him again, or leaving Motown again. Brant gave a small smile at me when he rested his forehead against mine. "You're not leaving, Charlotte, I won't allow it."

It was then that the small sparks I had felt all day ignited into a beautiful firework display in my heart. The one guy who understood me didn't want us to part, that was a huge deal to me because I didn't want us to part either. I needed him more than he could ever possibly comprehend.

"Charlotte, it's time to watch a real man work, " Austin proclaimed, walking up to me with a puffed out chest. His brows waggled suggestively when he leaned in close and stole a kiss like always.

"You two are gross" Brant complained. "What kind of friends do this kind of stuff?"

Austin raised a brow in challenge. "The same kind that sleeps in the same bed as their opposite sex friend." Brant grumbled a couple of things about Austin always having to be right and that it was ridiculous, while Austin gave me another kiss. "Beside, we're not friends, we're lovers who just haven't made love yet."

Brant and I simultaneously punched Austin, but one of us hit him harder that the other. "Quit kissing Charlotte, it's not fair to her," Brant seriously ordered.

Austin whined about it, but Brant just tossed off his shirt and ordered him to start to get to work. "Be a buddy, Charlotte, and back the truck up please," Brant said when he helped me off the back of it. "Thanks, Char."

He gave my cheek a quick kiss then raced after Austin who was inside the hay barn already throwing out bales for Brant. I got into the truck and started her up. It was my first time driving the truck so it took me a moment with the unfamiliar situation, but I managed to get the old truck to circle around and slowly back up to the boys. I put it in park then skipped off to help Brant.

I did what I always do when men are doing manual labor and need encouragement, I took a seat on the grass and watched their hot sweaty torsos. Yep, they were definitely my kind of eye candy. I whistled in approval, laughing when they both playfully winked at me. "This is my kind of job!" I hooted. I bit my lip at how the gorgeous cowboys before me went out of their way to give me a good show. Heck, all they had to do was stand there and I would've been satisfied, but no, they showed off by tossing and stacking those bales like pros. Nothing was sexier than two sweaty guys smiling gorgeous smiles at me whenever I would compliment them on their looks.

Once the bales were loaded, they both headed over to me where I was relaxing on the grass so they could take a seat next to me. "You crack me up," Brant whispered in my ear.

"I'm more turned on than anything" Austin said when he kissed my cheek. "A beautiful girl like you calling me sexy must mean something."

I elbowed him in the side, giving him a look. Austin knew he looked good, he wouldn't be so forward if he didn't. He never bragged on himself about it despite his cocky attitude sometimes, he never points out that he has the looks to charm any girl. "Austin, you are extremely handsome, sexy, and one of the most amazing guys I know." He gave a soft smile, then turn my head completely to him so he could plant his lips on mine. Instead of all those other meaningless kisses he has given me in the past, this time he kissed me with a meaning behind it.

"Thank you" he grinned.

"And you..." I looked to Brant who was glaring at Austin. I gripped his chin, his beautiful blue eyes instantly finding mine. "Brant, you know I think you're beautiful, and I'm not trying to put you in some girlie position or anything, you're just a beautiful person who means a lot to me. You're going to make a girl extremely happy one day. The same goes for Austin."

Brant stared at me for a moment, his eyes gazing into mine like I was the first person to ever tell him that. "Thanks." He leaned over, his wonderfully rough lips caressing my cheek in a way they have never have before. "I think your pretty beautiful too."

He's told me so many times and every time my cheeks flame with an unbearable heat that makes me hide behind my hair. I hated him over the way he could easily make me blush. "If you want her, take her, Brant," Austin ordered. "Kiss her."

Brant scoffed and pulled me into a head lock. "If I wanted to kiss her you idiot, I would've done it already. Unlike you, I actually know what being friends mean."

Apparently being friends meant that he was allowed to give me a noogie. I squeaked, smacking at his hands away to make him stop. "I told you Brant! Charlotte and I are lovers!"

As they started bickering over what I really am to Austin Price, I laid out across the grass to enjoy the view of the soft blue clouds that had plenty of fluffy clouds slowly floating on by. None of the clouds I saw made funny shapes. To me, they just looked like white, puffy, clouds. Then my eyes landed on a dark grey one that was slowly coming to cover Motown.

"Brant!" I interrupted, quickly sitting up in between them. I turned his face so he was looking at the storm cloud slowly coming in.

"Crap! We've gotta get home!"

We scrambled up to our feet, darting for the truck. The last thing we needed was for this hay to get wet. I waved at Austin, blowing him a playful kiss when he waved back at me. Brant forced my face to the front windshield. "Don't egg him on," he grumbled. I smugly smiled, even more so when he grabbed my legs and pulled me over to him.

"You're just jealous," I muttered. He gave a laugh at my words, seeming to find my accusations hilarious. "You want all of my attention, Mr. Brant Young." I leaned over and kissed his cheek when he started up the truck and hit the gas. "Don't worry, you're still my favorite."

I hugged on him so he wouldn't feel left out, and it put a decent smile on his face. Sure, Austin and I were close, but he was no Brant Young. Brant and I were pretty much inseparable. I'd have a fit if something came between us, like, I don't know, over seven hundred miles. I really needed to talk to my dad about the move.






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I was showered and ready for dinner. Thankfully I was clued in that the evil Wicked Witch of New York flew back to her home town this afternoon on her broomstick express, also known as my father's private jet.

Like a model, I strutted downstairs in my comfortable bunny pajamas. When I followed my nose into the kitchen, my stomach clenched in hunger when the delightful scent turned out to be a beautifully cooked ham. "I love you, Stella," I groaned, quickly giving her a hug before fixing myself a plate.

"Don't say I love you just yet," she warned. "You're grounded for sneaking out at night with Brant. Tomorrow you're in charge of everyone's laundry and you're doing the dishes for the rest of the week, including tonight. No lake, no riding, no leaving this property for the rest of the week."

I groaned in annoyance, but I guess it was my own fault. There was just one problem that I needed to fix. "None of this is Brant's fault, he only went along with it so I wouldn't be there defenseless. I'm begging you not to ground him."

She gave me a soft smile, then nodded. I took my plate to the kitchen table. I was the first one down, so I made myself comfortable and started eating. I was relieved that Brant wasn't getting into trouble, it hadn't been his fault anyhow. I'm the one who asked him to stay with me. I'm the one who risked it, not Brant. He had just been doing what he's been known to do, and that was protecting me. We both liked sleeping next to each other so it was a win for us both, but I started it. I was the bad child, not Brant.

"Alright mom..." I looked up from my plate at his voice. "Dad said you were reading off the ruling this time. What's my sentence?" Brant asked her.

She glanced at me and I pleaded her to let him off with my eyes. "You don't have one," his mother finally told him, making me breathe a sigh of relief.

"But..."

"Shut up Brant!" I ordered. He looked to me, his brows furrowing at my strange behavior. This time he let it go and just retrieved his plate of food. Like always when we eat at the table, he sat next to me. I could feel his eyes curiously boring into the side of my face, I just ignored it while I continued to eat.

By the time everyone had come down and took a seat at the table, including my father, I had taken a vow of silence. Since I wasn't talking, everyone seemed to have found it alarming. They talked on about what happened today, while I zoned out and listened more to the soft patter of the rain pouring onto the roof than their chattering. I hate the rain, it always reminded me of my mother's accident.

Jives, who was sitting on the other side of me, he gave my back a comforting rub that turned my attention to him. "It's alright," he quietly comforted. Then a hand rested upon my right thigh, making me look to Brant who was gently grazing his thumb over my skin to soothe away everything as well. He didn't even know what was wrong, but he knew something was going on.

"So what's the jail birds have to do for tonight?" my father asked. "What's the punishment for them sneaking out?"

Avery suddenly dropped her fork on her plate. "Who snuck out?" Brant and I raised our hands. She shook her head at us, silently laughing at how brave we have been.

"Well Charlotte has the dishes tonight and everyone's laundry tomorrow. She can't go to the lake, or go riding. She's pretty much on property arrest." My dad gave me a stern look, telling me that this is what happens when you're reckless. "She has requested that Brant not be charged," Stella concluded.

Brant sat up straight, whispering a, "What?" in surprise. "Charlotte, that isn't fair! I'm just as guilty as you are!"

I slapped my hand over his mouth, shooting him a serious glare to shut him up. "You were just there to protect me, that's it." His eyes lowered, knowing that I would kill him if he said anything otherwise. When I removed my hand, I urged him to finish eating while I carried my empty plate to the kitchen and filled the sink up with soapy dish water.

Brant got up with his plate and joined me by sitting on the counter top. "Why would you do that?" he whispered. "We snuck out together."

I shushed him by forcing a piece of ham on his plate into his mouth. We could talk about this later, just not right now. He sighed through his nose, fetching himself a bottled water from the fridge to wash his food down with. "You are so hard headed," he grumbled when he gave my cheek a discreet kiss. He stayed by me, even when everyone's dishes started piling up and we shared goodnights with everyone.

"Don't forget you're crashing in Avery and Charlotte's room," Stella told Brant with a pat to his back. He gave a nod, telling her goodnight afterwards. Everyone left, leaving us in the kitchen alone. I started scrubbing dishes and Brant bumped me out the way.

I glared at him, but he just took the scrubby away from me and scrubbed the dishes himself. No matter how many times I told him that I had the dishes, he refused to let me scrub them. "Just rinse them," he would order.

I finally caved when the dishes started piling up in the empty sink. I washed them off and placed them in the drying rack, unless it was a plate then I dried it off and set it aside to be put in the cabinet. In no time the dishes were clean and put away. "It would've taken you all night if I wouldn't have helped you," he said almost in a bragging kind of tone.

"Shut up," I muttered.

He pulled me into his side, guiding me up the stairwell and into Avery's room. Avery was already stretched out in bed, ready for a good nights rest. Brant and I were going to be having a little trouble even getting a minute in. Avery had made him an uncomfortable bed on the floor with quilts, throw blankets, and extra pillows. He lowered himself onto homemade bed, stretching in weariness once he settled. I crawled into my comfortable bed, grabbing ahold of his hand before I turned out the lamp. He didn't questioned it, just laced his fingers with mine.

I felt like a little girl again when I held his hand. It was just so foreign that the big bad Brant would hold a girl's hand as if it was the most fragile thing in the world. With my hand in his, I couldn't help but realize what a strong guy he was. His hand was bigger than mine, but made me feel safe instead of intimidated. I might be able to go to sleep this way, just as long as I knew he was there.

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AN:)

Hello Loves! I was suppose to upload yesterday, but honestly the chapter would've been way shorter if I would have and I prefer them to be longer

Photo on the side is the emails I got today from Wattpad! I didn't know that they sent these out! I feel the love! :) Thanks to everyone who supported His Mistakes! Thanks to everyone of my followers! You all are awesome. I think I'll print this off and have them laminated. (haha)  But, seriously, seeing this made me extremely happy. I've had a crazy week and this made everything ten times brighter! Has anyone else been sent one of these?

Randome Trivia Winner is: @shyswaggg because she has embraced the fact that I love surprising people! Thanks for participating!

Next Trivia Question: Why does Charlotte hate the rain?