PART TWO- the ride

True to his word, Gator had become your friend. The first couple days of the week passed with the two of you holed up in the house together, pretending to work on the wedding planning even though neither of you knew what the hell you were doing. You kept to the upstairs living room, wanting to stay as far away from Boyd as you possibly could, still angry at him for the whole situation and not wanting to cross paths with him again for as long as you could, your stomach still hurting under the fabric of your shirt from the lashing you had been given from Boyd's belt as soon as the Tillman's had left the morning of their first visit. Three times he had hit you, the leather of the belt welting your skin through the thin fabric of the dress you had been wearing. That was typical Boyd, always harsh and quick, and always on parts of your body that were easily hidden by clothes. It had been that way since your mother had married him, though you had kept it a secret from her due to the fear he had built in your brain about what he would do to her if you told her. You didn't dare tell Gator either, not sure if you really trusted him with that secret quite yet, and definitely not sure of what would happen if Boyd found out. You didn't want anymore drama than there already was in this god forsaken house.

You liked Gator well enough, he was easy conversation, a little dense in some areas but what he lacked in that he made up for in humor and the willingness to at least listen to you explain. The two of you talked about plenty of things but mostly school and whether or not either of you had been seeing anyone before you had been forced into your godawful situation. You weren't sure if you were reading his face right, but for some reason you thought that he looked rather pleased when you said that you hadn't ever exclusively dated anyone, strictly forbidden by Boyd. You learned that he had only ever had one serious girlfriend in his life, in the last years of highschool, though she had taken off to some fancy school on the east coast when they had graduated and he never heard from her again. You could see the swirl of emotions in his big brown eyes, and the way his mouth tensed as he spoke. He shook his head and changed the topic a moment later, picking up one of the magazines laid out on the ornate coffee table in front of the two you and asking what the hell the difference between Ivory and White was and why did it matter so much which shade your dress was.

Those first two days were rather pleasant, you found yourself awfully comfortable in his presence, relaxed even, and the next day when he didn't show up just after breakfast, you had to admit you were a little disappointed, but you got about your business none the less, trying not to dwell on it. He's a Sheriff's Deputy, you reminded yourself, he wont have time to talk to you twenty four seven..and then you kicked yourself for even feeling upset about not having his attention for the day. You'd known him for four whole days, what the hell was wrong with you?

He texted you around lunch time.

Gator: sorry for not being able to help today, even though i know im not much help to begin with..i'm on duty for 24hrs

You were slightly giddy and that made you slightly disgusted with yourself, you barely knew this dude and you were being essentially coerced into marrying him, what the hell is wrong with you?

You: you wont miss much, promise! Be safe out there..

You felt like that was the stupidest response you could have possibly sent, but oh well. You weren't wrong though, he wouldn't miss much. The day was mostly spent in the upstairs living room, sprawled on the couch as you called the bakery in town to schedule a tasting for next weekend, and the local bridal boutique to schedule a showing for this weekend..afterwards you spent the next few hours sorting through different styles of wedding dresses you thought you would like, sparing no expense on designers because if you were being forced to do this damn thing, then Boyd was certainly going to pay the fucking price one way or another. And then after you had spent as long as you could doing that, you begrudgingly made your way down the stairs, you had dragged your feet long enough on the girls' dresses for the wedding, and if you picked them out without their fathers input, you feared you would face another lashing.

You hesitated outside of his office door, taking a deep breath before raising your fist, knocking once, twice, before he gave you the okay to come in. He's seated at his annoyingly large desk and just barely glances up at you from whatever paperwork he's doing as you step into the room, closing the door behind you like he liked. "Ah, i was just about to send for you," He says, setting down his pen as you step closer and closer to his desk, your magazines heavy in your hands. "Sheriff Tillman has requested that the ride with you be moved up to tomorrow morning, his wife has to go out of town this weekend and he's decided to go with her." You hum in acknowledgement and he notices your laden arms. "Whatever do you have there?"

How could he speak to you so calmly? As if you weren't sporting the markings of his rage on your skin? "I'm going to the bridal boutique this weekend, and I want to get the girls' dresses while I'm there, I thought maybe you'd like to help pick them out.." You say gingerly, he seemed to be in a good mood but you could never be too sure with him.

He nods once, pushing whatever he was working on to the side. "Alright, let's see it."

You give a small smile, slightly relieved as you start setting some of the magazines in front of him. "These are some that I liked, but there's a few more that I wasn't sure about. Gator and I decided on a purple and green theme, pastel, summer colors.." You prattel nervously, leaning over to show him the styles that you particularly thought were pretty. He hums, glancing up at you over the rim of his glasses as you settle the magazines in front of them.

"And how are things going with the boy?" He asks, inspecting the pages you had dog eared.

You were rather taken aback by the question, you hadn't really known him long enough to know how things were going, let alone marry the poor dude, but yet, here you were, planning a wedding. "They're okay..he's funny.." You shrug, not quite sure how to proceed. "He's working today, but he was here the past couple of days to help.." You weren't sure why you were telling the man, it's not like he didn't already know who came and went in his house.

Boyd hums and the office falls silent for nearly an hour. You're about to excuse yourself, let him look at them alone so you can get the hell out of there and go eat some lunch or tack up Bubbles for a ride when he speaks up. "I like these ones best, i'm sure the girls will look lovely.." He says, handing you one of the first magazines you had handed him. You have a quiet breath of relief, but roll your eyes subconsciously, annoyed that he had taken that long. You start grabbing things as quickly as you can, itching to get away from him. "I'll open up the limit on your credit card, spare no expense." Are the last words he says, you hum in response and walk out of the office quickly, leaning against the door as you close it behind you.

You're up before the sun the following morning, your alarm clock bleating around four. You were awake well before it though, your thoughts on a never ending loop. You honestly weren't even sure if you slept and sighed in annoyance when you trudged your way to your bathroom and noticed the dark bags under your eyes. How were you supposed to sleep? Your life was about to be tethered to someone else's in a few short weeks, two months wasn't that much time and you didn't know this boy for shit. Sure, you guys were on friendly terms at the very least but..marriage? Why had you signed those damned papers? Why did you let him talk you into it?

Shaking the thought from your head you turn the handle on your sink, letting the water run as you went about your skincare business. You're dressed in less than half an hour, spending a few minutes at your vanity table to swipe some makeup under your eyes, an old habit you had picked up when you lived here full time before boarding school. You figured it wouldn't take long before the sleepless nights would start again, and you couldn't help but to wonder if they would be any better when you were with Gator.

Gator..

He had never texted you again yesterday, though you had sent him a few messages throughout the day, and even late in the night just to keep your own sanity. Telling him how much Boyd irritated you, telling him that he needed the next weekend free for cake tasting because you didn't want to choose something he didn't like, telling him you were bored..sending him a pouty faced selfie when you noticed he had opened but not responded to any of your messages (that he had also opened and never responded to).

You realized your fiance was a horrible texter and you were going to have to fix that, if you were going to be friends then he needed to at least respond to one of your messages, even if they were annoying.

By four-forty-five you've pulled out of the driveway and are off down the main entrance of Boyd's ranch, your jeep pulling the horse trailer with Bubbles inside of it with ease. Thankfully one of the ranch hands had woken up earlier than you (he had always been friendly towards you, and it was deeply appreciated because most of Boyds employees treated you like shit too) and attached the trailer to your car and loaded up your horde for you. You even found your saddle and other things in the back of the Jeep when you peeked in to look, surprised that your horse had even been loaded for you.

You made a mental note to thank the man when you got home.

The drive to the Tillman Ranch isn't too long, hell, they were practically your fucking neighbors. You were so focused on survival when you were on the ranch that you had never paid attention to lands that surrounded you. When you arrive at the gate, your headlights shining on the metal and the dirt beyond it, two ranch hands are already there, pulling open the heavy iron for you.

"Thank you!" You half shout, rolling down your window. The one on your drivers side nods once, tipping his hat at you and proceeds to tell you to follow the road towards the house and barn, he would be right behind you to help you unload. You're surprised when the Sheriff is already waiting for you when you pull up near the barn. You see him on the porch of his house, arms crossed over his chest and hat perched low on his head and your stomach tightens, your hands shake. If you're late and he tells Boyd, you're done for, is all you can think as you slide your key out of the ignition and hop down from your seat, your boots kicking up dust.

"Mornin' Miss Augastine!" His voice carries out from the porch, the sun is only just now starting to rise, a dark glow low in the horizon. You breathe in and walk around your car, up to the porch. "Wasn't expecting you for another hour or so.." You breathe out. "Interest you in some coffee? Breakfast? Karen just put away my breakfast but I'm sure she'd be more than happy to get something going for you."

You paint the smile on your face, your morning having been ruined by your brief panic attack. "No, Sir..thank you for the offer, but I was thinking I would go get breakfast with Gator this morning, or an early lunch.." You knew he was probably on his way home by now, and you had the sense that he would probably only sleep for a few hours.

He hums as he meets you at the foot of the porch, staring down at you from the bottom step. Your cheeks flush and you look anywhere but at him as his eyes rake over your body. You hear him mutter something akin to 'pretty little thing' under his breath, but you knew you weren't supposed to hear it so you pretend not to. You were dressed for a casual ride, blue jeans that fit tight in all the right places but loose on your legs, draped over your brown and pink leather boots, and you wore a pink short sleeved polo shirt, the buttons undone enough to show just the hint of cleavage that was sexy enough to keep men entertained but innocent enough to not get you in trouble. You had your own cowboy hat pulled down over your hair, resting comfortably on your head.

"He's not home yet." Is all he says when you mention his son, his tone cool and slightly unfriendly. You furrow your brow, wondering why there was the sudden change in demeanor when it came to his boy. "That your show horse?" He steps down off the porch, and you look up to him still, the man being much taller than you even on even ground.

"She's for more than just show, Sir.." You say playfully, a smile on your face as you happily lead him over to the trailer. He helps you lead her out of the trailer, admiring her with you and then leads you on a slow walk to the barn.

He seems kind, but you know its more for show than anything. You soak it up though, letting him open the barn doors for you even though you're more than capable of doing it yourself, and you let him lead you into a stall near the back of the barn so you can leave Bubbles and go get the rest of your stuff to tack up. After a few more minutes of talking the two of you separate, you going off to your jeep, and he going off towards his horse to tack up.

As you step out of the barn the sun has risen just a little bit more, and you hear a car pulling up next to yours. "What are you doin' here?" His voice holds a tinge of familiar nervousness to it, and you can't help but to soften up for it. He'd gotten out of his squad car before he'd even turned the damn thing off, the radio still on. Your breath caught as your eyes took in his uniform, he sure is somethin to fuckin' look at, you said to yourself, swallowing back wicked thoughts. "Thought you weren't doin' this til the weekend?"

"Plans changed." You shrug, not really sure what else to say. You figured he of all people would have known that his dad was going out of town this weekend. "He's in the barn." Brown eyes dart behind you and then back to you, looking you over. "Want to go get lunch or somethin' later?"

He sighs, running a hand down his face, shoulders relaxing. "Yeah..yeah lets get lunch later.."He says, turning on his heel. You shake your head, going to grab your saddle out of your car, just as you're stepping around the front of it you hear him again. "I got it, Pearlie.." You sigh, but not from annoyance as he lifts it out of your grasp. You liked the way your name sounded when he said it, like it meant something and nothing all at the same time. You shake your head, feeling silly for the thought and follow him.

Roy is headed out of the other side of the barn just as you follow Gator in. "Mornin' dad." He says, voice a hard and cold tone.

The older man already mounted in his saddle merely tips his hat at his son, but gives you a friendly smile. "Miss Pearl, I'll be outside when you're ready." He says as if there's no rush, but you know from his sons body language that there most likely is.

Gator's shoulders are tense and you know it's not from the weight of the heavy leather saddle he's carrying. You rush in front of him to open the stall door, trying to be helpful, and you can see the pinched look on his face, the coldness in his big brown eyes. He lifts the saddle up and sets over Bubbles, who stands perfectly for him. He turns his hat backwards and you just about melt into the hay strewn floor, who knew that stupid things like a man you're engaged to turning his hat backwards could be so damn hot? He doesn't say a word as he starts fastening the gear in place, like he's done it a thousand times before.

It only hits you just then that he probably has done it a thousand times before, his father clearly loved the animals, why wouldn't he teach his son how to tack up and mount?

"You didn't have to do that for me, Gator.." You say softly as he finishes. He only shrugs and straightens up, patting Bubbles on the belly gently as he does. "Thank you.." You whisper as you walk past him, grabbing the horn of her saddle so you could pull yourself up.

Just as you're about to put a boot in the stirrups you feel his chest against your back, the smell of whatever it is he smokes encompassing you as he grabs your hips firmly and lifts with ease. "Good?" He asks, watching you settle into the saddle. You nod once, hoping your hair and hat are doing a good enough job of hiding the flush on your cheeks and neck, not having expected such a display of obvious strength. "Good..off you go then.." He holds the stall open for you and you ease Bubbles out of it, just as you start to walk past him you feel his hand on your calf. He's looking up at you with an expression you're not familiar with on his face, and it makes you worry. "Be careful with him." It comes out as more of a statement, but you can hear the pleading behind it, and it makes you worry even more, a slurry of questions forming in your mind. "..please?"

"Okay.." You say. He lets you go and you don't question farther, spurring Bubbles to follow out the way you had seen Roy going with his own horse. "Hey Gator?" You look over your shoulder at him, he has his hands on his hips. "Go take a nap the bags under your eyes are bigger than the ones in my closet!" You laugh as you leave him behind you, and you swear you can hear him chuckling too.

The ride starts off in silence, you and Roy side by side as he took you on the scenic route through the ranch. You had to say that you really didn't know much about the Tillman's, you wouldn't know how to start off the conversation even if you had wanted to, and you truly didn't want to, not with Gator's pleading words lingering in the back of your mind.

The ranch really is beautiful, especially in the early starts of the summer, the rolling hills are green, and you can see where they have more cattle off in the distance. It's a calming atmosphere, more relaxed than life was on the Augastine ranch.

"How's my son been?" His voice is deep and rough, startles you for a moment. You turn to look at him, adjusting your hat in the glare of the sun. "He bein' nice?" Nice didn't sound like a word that was normally in Sheriff Tillman's vocabulary, you wanted to point it out, the smart mouthed bitch in you raring at the thought but you thought of what Gator had said, and then you thought of Boyd and your still aching ribs and thought better of it.

"He's been sweet." You say, offering a small smile, the warmth of the sun hitting the skin of your face. "Real helpful with the wedding plans..he's taking me to lunch after this too.." You say, rambling nervously. "Oh, before I forget, did he ever ask you about the twins being in the wedding?"

Roy shakes his head at you, pursing his lips. "I don't recall a conversation..Karen would have mentioned it to me i'm sure.." You notice his hands tighten on his reins and you furrow your brows at it.

"Oh, he probably just forgot is all." You chuckle, wanting it to stay light hearted. Truly, you had never even asked him to ask anything about the girls and you hoped you weren't about to get him in trouble because of your small fib..you just wanted to change the topic to something more neutral. "I'm going to the bridal shop this weekend to look for my dress, and I already have dresses picked out for my sisters but I was wondering if you'd like me to pick out dresses for the twins as well? I would absolutely love to have them in the ceremony..they could be my flower girls, or hold my train..." Your sisters were already taking the spots as your bridesmaids, you didn't have a choice in that matter. Gator had three of his best friends stepping in as groomsmen and you only had one friend coming to the wedding, and she was going to be your maid of honor.

"I think that's a lovely idea, Miss Pearl." He says and for a moment, everything is silent again as he hums a tune you're not familiar. "Matter of fact.." You glance over at him again. "Karen and I are leaving to go out of town tonight, we'll be gone through the weekend..we were planning to take the girls with us, but I'm wondering if you want to take them with to the Bridal shop if you want them fitted for dresses? Karen and I would love the alone time, of course if you wouldn't mind keeping an eye on them with Gator for the weekend?" You wanted to protest, but, you realized that it was probably a good excuse to get yourself out of Boyd's house for a few days, and just the thought sounded heavenly, even if it meant carting around your fiance's sisters and playing house with him.

"You know what, Sheriff Tillman," You say, giving him your dazzling, people pleasing smile, the kind that had man many a guy weak in the knees back at boarding school. "That sounds like a fantastic weekend, i'd love to get to know my new little sisters better, you and Karen go have fun on your little trip! Me and Gator can handle things!"

He gives you an easy smile in return. "Well alright then." He says, and then nudges you with his knee from his horse. "And please, little lady, call me Roy." He gives you a wink that sends unpleasant shivers down your spine and you giggle politely in return.

xxo