56 "how many lies?"

The barn is quiet in a way that feels almost sacred. Early light slips through the wooden slats, dust hanging in the air like it doesn't want to settle yet. I move slowly, careful not to startle anything. My boots barely make a sound on the dirt floor. I've got a bucket in one hand and my old vet bag in the other—the one that's held together by habit more than stitching.I'm not certified. Never have been.Johnny Cash lies curled in the straw, black hide still soft and shin , his breathing deep and steady. He lifts his head the second he hears me, eyes sharp, legs kicking like he's already testing the world. Strong. Too strong for something only hours old."Easy," I whisper, crouching beside him.I run my hands over his legs, his ribs, check his mouth, listen to his lungs. My movements are gentle but sure. I've done this more times than I can count but mostly to calf's. I trust my hands. I trust my instincts Johnny Cash snorts and kicks again, stubborn already."You're gonna be something," I murmur. "I can feel it."He's powerful. Solid. The kind of colt that survives winters and bad men and bad luck. The kind that makes you believe things can be okay if you catch them early enough.I stand slowly, pressing a hand to my lower belly without thinking. There's a dull ache there—constant, familiar. I ignore it. I always do. That's when I see movement at the far end of the barn. A boy shoveling stalls. Awkward. Determined. His clothes hang off him like they belong to someone else. He's all elbows and effort. And suddenly I'm not here anymore.I'm back at the hospital. Cold floors. Bright lights. My father dying behind closed doors. A boy standing outside with too much anger and nowhere to put it. He'd thought I was his age. He'd flirted—clumsy, inappropriate, desperate.I remember laughing then too. "Carter right?" I say. He looks up a bit taken aback, grinning like he's been waiting for me to notice him. "Uh yeah! That's right!" He's younger than I remember. Fourteen, maybe. Still trying to be tough enough to survive his own grief."Watcha doin here?," I say.

"Rip gave me a job. Beth too," he replies, leaning on the shovel. "Guess I live here now."That explains everything. "Oh really? Hm.. just Be careful," I tell him. "Beth's not exactly easy."He laughs. "She's been good to me. Real good."I nod, swallowing something bitter. I've seen that side of Beth before—protective, fierce, almost maternal. It hurts more than it should knowing she can be that way. Just not with me."She can love hard I'm sure," I say quietly. "Just don't forget she can hurt hard too."

"She ain't all bad. She took me in after all" he nodded. "Right.." I was suspicious. "Where are they making you stay?" I asked with my arms crossed. "A shed" he said. "Go figure" I scoffed. "Well.. good luck Carter. I'll see you around"

——After yesterday I've felt nothing but sick. It almost seemed walker was avoiding me a bit. I wasn't going to push him. It was a lot of news to take in at once. So I let him be. I'll let him come to me.. if he ever would want to again that is.. The bunkhouse is too loud.It's the kind of loud that rattles in your chest and makes your head throb. Music blaring. Boots stomping. Bottles clinking. Laughter that's a little too sharp, a little too drunk. Travis and his crew are still at it, like the night owes them something. I knew they leave in the morning. I just couldn't wait till then. Rip sat at the table with Travis. Rip hasn't spoken to be since the other day too. I think he felt guilty or maybe embarrassed for Beth's behavior. I knew he'd take her side. He always did. She could stab me in the gut and kill me,and he would still find a way to make it seem like it was an accident.

I stand near the door, arms crossed over my stomach, trying not to sway from exhaustion. Every part of me hurts. My back. My feet. That deep, pulling ache low in my belly that makes me hyper-aware of how badly I need sleep.Lord I wanted to go to bed. I couldn't sleep in this place. Maybe it's time I go back to my dad's. I turn to leave when Travis steps into my space—too close. Way too close. I can smell the alcohol on him, feel the heat of his body like he thinks proximity is permission."C'mon, Willie," he slurs. "Don't be like that. Stay a little longer.""No thanks I'm tired," I reply, keeping my voice flat. Calm and a bit shy. He reaches out—hand along my waist, close enough to make my skin crawls. "Don't touch me," I warn.He laughs, hands up like I'm the one making a scene. "Relax. You're always so tense."Something in me snaps—not loud, not dramatic. Just cold. "Tense and sexy. And teeny tiny too. I questioned how tight you are" he slurs. I take a step back, heart pounding harder than it should. I'm acutely aware of my body, of how vulnerable I feel right now, of how badly I want to disappear into my bed. That's when the room shifts.The noise dips—not silent, but different. Charged.Walker's standing across the room, beer forgotten in his hand, eyes locked on Travis. I hadn't even noticed him before. I don't know how long he's been watching, but I know instantly—he's seen enough."Back off," Walker says.Travis scoffs. "This got anything to do with you?"Walker steps closer. Calm. Dangerous in that quiet way. "It does now."My throat tightens. I hate how relieved I feel. I hate that I need it. "She said back off," Walker continues. "That should've been the end of it."Travis sneers, puffing his chest like a man who's never been told no enough times. "You her keeper now? Texas?"Walker doesn't flinch. "No. But I'm not gonna watch you cross lines either."The room is watching now. Someone mutters something. Someone else laughs nervously. Travis looks around, realizing he doesn't have the audience he thought he did.

"You fuck her?" he mutters,  "that isn't your fuckin business" walker points out. Travis smirks "ohhh fuck yeah you do. You fuck her good?" He drunkenly snarks. "Just get away from her" walker repeats. "Is it tight? Like I'd imagine? Where y'all fuck anyhow? In the barn? Bathroom? I want the details. Does the carpets match the drapes!" Travis cackled loudly, so obnoxiously. Walkers lip is tucked into his teeth he was ready to strike I don't wait for more. I pull walkers arm. "Okay.. okay walk" I push between him, shoving walker closer to the door. "Whatcha gonna do pretty boy?" Travis licked his lip like a lion. "Enough Travis. Come back over here" rip called out as he was watching walker and I closely. "Fine. I was just fucking around walk. We're cool" he smirked. Walker was tense. Like he was ready to kill, ready to strike "come.." I peeled him outside as I was very scared to leave him there alone. "Willie," he says quietly.I'm exhausted. My body feels hollowed out, like the night scraped something raw inside me. I don't trust my voice, so I just look at him.He closes the door behind him, shutting out the noise, the laughter, the chaos of the bunkhouse. Suddenly it's just us. The air feels different—calmer."You're okay" he says. That's when my chest tightens. I don't realize I'm shaking until his hands are on my arms, warm and steady. He doesn't rush me. Doesn't crowd me. He just pulls me in slowly, like he's giving me time to decide. I let myself fall into him.Walker wraps his arms around me, solid and grounding. He smells like dust and soap and something familiar that makes my shoulders finally drop. I press my face into his chest, breathing him in like oxygen."I got you," he murmurs.His lips brush my hair first—soft, careful. Then my temple. My cheek. Each kiss is slow, deliberate, like he's stitching something back together that came undone.I close my eyes. He cups my face, thumbs warm against my skin, and kisses my forehead like it's something sacred. Like I am. The kind of kiss that doesn't ask for anything in return. "I didn't think you wanted anything to do with me anymore.." I said very quietlyHis lips trail gently along my jaw, my cheek again—never lingering too long, never crossing into anything that feels unsafe. Just reassurance. Just love.I rest my hands against his chest, feeling his heartbeat—steady, real. Protective."I was scared," I admit softly."I know," he replies. "And I just... needed time to think is all..."He kisses me again, slower this time, a little firmer—still careful, still kind. It makes my eyes burn, the way he touches me like I matter. Like I'm worth protecting. I tilt my forehead against his. "You.. you wanna come stay with me?" I whisper. "Stay with you? ""A bunkhouse is no place for a pregnant chick" I laughed very slightly. He holds me for a long moment, rocking just slightly, until my breathing evens out. Until the shaking fades. Until the world feels manageable again. "At your old man's?" He asked. When he finally pulls back, his hands stay on my waist, grounding me. "Yeah. Just for the night..." I was hoping. Walker smiled soft "sure mama. Your pops won't mind?" He questioned. I laughed aloud "it's not like he can warn me not to get pregnant" I smirked. Walker held my cheeks again leaving a large smooch. "Okay" he looked back at the bunkhouse door "alright blondie.. let's get you to bed"

Walker and I stepped into the room. I flick on the retired lights as we look around the abandoned bedroom. He smirked at the teenage artifacts. He squints as he stared at a toy chest, It's tucked against the wall near the window, old and scuffed, the paint chipped at the corners. The letters on the front are uneven and childish—pink polka dots spelling out a name that was never mine.Beth.Walker snickers, brow furrowing slightly. "What's with that?" he asks gently, like he's afraid the question might hurt.I follow his gaze and feel that familiar, dull ache settle in my chest I hated her name, her face, her memory. "That was hers," I say quietly. "Why's it in your room?"

I shrug, slipping my fingers into my pony tail to let down my long blonde hair. Walker sat on the bed to look around. "Because everything I had growing up was a hand-me-down. Clothes. Shoes. Toys. Furniture. If Beth didn't want it anymore, it ended up with me." I let out a small, humorless breath. "Even her name stayed on it."Walker doesn't say anything at first. He just watches me as I shimmied my clothing off "That ain't right," he murmurs.I give a small smile that doesn't quite reach my eyes. "It was normal. At least, it felt like it back then." He shifts his attention around the room, really looking now. His eyes land on the shelves lining the far wall, stacked tight with vinyl records—hundreds of them, carefully kept, their spines worn but loved.He sits up straighter. "No shit," he breathes before walking over. His fingers grazing the paper backs. "You've got damn near everything I love." I chuckle softly. " they're the only things that were ever really mine."He looks at me, confused. "Watcha mean baby?" "My grandpa," I explain. "Every birthday. Every Christmas. One record. Just one. Didn't matter if money was tight or things were bad—he always found one for me." My throat tightens, but I keep going. "We'd sit on the floor together and listen to them. He'd tell me why the music mattered. Why the words did."Walker's expression softens, something deep and protective flickering behind his eyes."He was the only one who was ever kind to me," I admit. "The only one who loved me without conditions. When my dad and my siblings were... rough... he was the one who made sure I survived it."Silence stretches between us, thick and heavy."I miss him every day."Walker reaches out, pulling me gently into his chest. He doesn't rush me, doesn't try to fix it. He just holds me like he understands exactly how much weight those memories carry."I'm real glad you had him," he says softly. "And I'm real sorry you didn't have more."I press my face into his shoulder, breathing him in. "Me too. But he's the reason I love animals too. He once got me a chicken coop. Those damn chickens were my world. Honestly my only friends" I laughed aloud. Walker smiled down at my face After a moment, I pull away padding toward the bathroom connected to my room. "I'm gonna shower real quick," I tell him. "Don't go anywhere.""Wasn't planning on it," he replies, watching me like he's afraid I might disappear.The water is warm, grounding. I don't take long—just enough to wash the day off me, to let the steam calm my racing thoughts. From the bathroom, I can hear him shifting on the bed, flipping through one of the records with careful hands. When I step back into the bedroom, wrapped in nothing but a towel, he looks up at me like I'm something sacred. He had a record playing. Sweet and simple Johnny cash 'It'll be her'

"Ahh. You found mr cash huh?" I, still nude, crawl back into bed, and he pulls me close without hesitation. We fit together easily, like we've always known how. "Well of course. Just for you" His lips find mine, slow and reverent, one kiss turning into another, and another.His hands roam gently, never rushed, never demanding. Every touch feels intentional, full of care and want and something deeper that makes my chest ache in the best way.I kiss him back harder, needing him, needing the way he makes the world feel quieter and safer. The night folds in around us, the house still and sleeping, and we lose ourselves in each other—soft touches, shared breaths, love felt more than said. His hands groped around my bare breasts as he kissed me. His lips pulled me in like a rope. His hand slid down. Far down. My chilly washed legs inched open as his hands touch me. Gently it rubbed. My lips never leaving his mouth, my body easing into his. His free hand gently tickled my back as he held me. Soft like a kitten I creep a yelp in his mouth. His large meaty fingers pushed inbetween my hips. They were beefy, his fingers. They were big enough in me to feel like the real thing. He was gentle. So slow and so gentle. I turned my head to escape his mouth. I moaned a bit rougher and his finger flicked inside, up and down, in and out. My legs trembled open even more than before. Walkers lips suckled my nipples like it was what he was paid to do. I gasped quietly. My fingers running through his thick head of hair. My innocent being reached down, grabbing what was throbbing in his boxers. He fingered harder. With gasping and moaning in the air I ripped down his boxers. Lord he was thick. I always forgot. I stroked him gently. Slowly enough to drive him nuts. From under the sheets he laid me down, gently placing himself between my legs as comfortable as we could possibly be. My hips bucked, begging for him to come inside. His rock hard shoved inside, slow and eagerly. I let out a whimpering moan, his girth was tearing me apart. His arms wrapped around my teeny waist as the other held him up beside my head. "I got you baby girl" he whispered deep in my ear. His hips thrusted slow. Slow and deep. My toes curled. My legs wrapped around his waist. I've never felt safer. Not with anyone. His thrusting became more prominent, less gentle. My legs widened even more. My hands reached down to claw at his bare skin being hidden under the blanket. His moans rubles in my ear. "Walk" I moaned "oh god walker" I whimpered in a needy way. Walker growled "mmmhmm... so fuckin tight" his teeth sunk into my shoulder as if he was holding himself back. I knew he wanted to. I can hear it in his breathing and in his moans. "Do it.." he looked me in the eyes. His mouth was open his eyes could probably be thrown in the back of his skull. He repeated how good I felt. How tight I was. "Fuck baby" he moaned. I wrapped my legs around him tighter. He moaned again I love when he made sounds. His hips were rougher. Almost in a circle motion. I grasped the skin on his rear like it was a reigns in a wild horse. I couldn't take it. His hardness was hitting every spot I had. He was gonna come. I knew it. His sexy moans let me know. made him look at me again his sloppy mouth smothered me. Smothered me so rough it made me even wetter. I couldn't stand it anymore, I moaned into his mouth Only this time I said my magic words "fuck me..." I begged into his mouth "fuck me walker" I whimpered, pleading to his name "fucking fuck me" I gasped a loud moan as he was faster, more rough, less gentle and sweet. "Holy fuck" he growled "oh fuck" deep in me he came. His voice trembling with the sexiest moans I've ever heard. "Holy shit" he panted into my neck. "Oh god yes" I moaned into his ear. I continued to whimper as my core was still throbbing and sore. My legs were weak, shaking even. Walkers hands were so gentle, pulling me against him, lovingly squeezing the skin on my hips and rear. He continued to kiss me so passionately I lost all feeling in everything. "Say you love you walker" I whimpered. "Say it please" I planted into his mouth. He whispered against my lips "I love you. I love you baby" his hands gripped my cheek to stop me. I looked down at him with a slight frown. "I love you... and only you.." liar,.. he lied again.. "I.. I want you to be with me walker" I gulped. Walker nodded his hand as we both attempted to catch our breaths. "Okay.. okay baby.. you've got me. You've got me darlin.." ....was that a lie too?