Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 130255 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 651(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130255 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 651(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
How had that happened?
I hadn’t…
Oh.
Ohh.
I’d perched on the gate before I’d felt as though I’d had to help Max.
I rushed over to the gate that stopped the goats escaping their part of the barn and gasped. “How on Earth is there goat shit up there?”
Max’s lips twitched as he glanced between the gate and me. “They’re not exactly toilet trained.”
“No shit!”
“Oh, I think you’ll find there is.”
“Max!” I waved my arms as if I were about to throw something at him, but there was nothing within reach that I could throw to relieve my stress.
Well.
There was the fork I was using to move the poopy hay, but knowing my luck, I’d impale him in the stomach or something.
He laughed, stepping back.
Into a giant pile of goat shit.
It was my turn to laugh as it squelched all over his shoe, and he glared across the barn at me. “Stop it.”
“That’s karma,” I replied, bending over to pick up my fork. “At least it’s just your shoe. I love this dress.”
“I’ll have it dry cleaned,” Max drawled. “Problem solved.”
I stuck my tongue out at him like the mature adult I was and turned around to finish mucking out the area I was working on. This was really not on my bucket list for the day, but I was here now, so… “Don’t you have people to do this for you?”
Max chuckled. “Yes, but he was on holiday where he broke his leg.”
“And you couldn’t get anyone else to do it for a few weeks?”
“There didn’t seem to be much point. It’s only a few weeks.” He glanced at me. “Besides, you’re helping.”
“Oh, funny. That’s the last time I use your library.”
“No, it’s not.”
“You’re right. It’s not. It’s far too sexy for me to never step foot in there again.”
“Too sexy?” He stopped and raised his eyebrows. “Are you writing about me fucking you on the window seat again?”
I turned around and stared at him. “For the thousandth time, that wasn’t about you.”
“I can arrange it, you know.”
“Arrange it? What? Are you going to check your schedule and see if you can squeeze me in for twenty minutes?”
“We’ll need a lot longer than twenty minutes.”
“Yeah, okay.”
I was joking.
I knew that, of course.
But I was still going to tease him about it.
“If I were an insecure person, I’d come over there and prove it to you.”
“That would be a lot more appealing if I wasn’t knee-deep in animal excrement,” I replied, shooting him a quick look.
Max laughed and leaned his fork against the wall. “Are you not done yet?”
“No! How are you done? Why did I get the messiest area? Seven thousand goats live in this bit instead of your three!”
He walked over to where I was and looked at the crap I had still to clean up. “You’ve done basically nothing!”
“I am traumatised from getting goat poop on my dress, I’ll have you know.”
“I think the entire estate heard your shriek when you saw it there.” He rested his hand on the fork. “Go and sit down.”
“On goat poop? I think not.”
“Then take off your dress.”
“And sit here in my underwear? That seems an even worse idea.”
“Then take my t-shirt. It’s going to be a dress on you anyway.”
I scrunched my nose, still holding onto the fork. “I doubt that.”
“Don’t do that.”
“Do what?”
He gently took my chin in his hand and met my eyes. “You know what.”
“What? Point out that your t-shirt won’t be a dress on me?”
“Yes.”
“What? It’s the truth. It’s not going to swamp me like t-shirts do to cute girls on TV.”
“Ellie, I said it because your dress is covered in poop and my t-shirt isn’t.”
“And your t-shirt is probably the same size as the ones I bought at stupid, overpriced festivals and concerts when I was a teenager.”
He released my chin and grabbed the hem of his shirt then pulled it over his head. He slung it over my shoulder and took the fork from me with a look that said he wasn’t falling for my woe-is-me, I’m-a-little-too-chubby-for-this-to-be-cute routine.
That was weirdly refreshing.
Still, I huffed and stepped out of the goat’s area so no poop ended up on his t-shirt, and glanced back. “Don’t look.”
“Because I’ve never seen it before.”
“Shut up!”
Max laughed, and I slipped the sleeves of my dress down over my arms and pushed the fabric down to my waist, then pulled his t-shirt on. As soon as I put my arms through, it fell down my body, and I quickly shimmied my dress down my legs where it pooled on the floor at my feet.
His t-shirt was looser than I’d expected and not quite as long. It barely covered my bum, just skimming the top of my thighs, and I glanced down at my legs.
“Well, I hope nobody sees me in this or I might flash them.”
Max turned around and looked pointedly at my legs. “Don’t bend over, or you definitely will.”