Country Love

iv

  Even though I've lived with the Sloanes for a whole week, I'd never had the chance to go to the famous 'Sloane and Son Manure Company'. I scurry downstairs to where Chad and Brad are waiting. I notice there is some hostility between the two handsome boys, probably because of me.

Chad says, "We're taking my Benz."

Surprised, I reply, "Wow, I didn't know you had a car."

"Our manure store does well," he replies, with a smug look on his face.

Chad says to Brad, "Hey man, do us a favour and sit in the back."

Brad is about to open his mouth to protest when Chad shoots him a warning look. He is Brad's boss, after all.

Begrudgingly, Brad sits in the back. I sit in the passenger seat and Chad perfectly backs the car out of the garage. I try not to stare at his brow, furrowed in concentration, as he backs the car using only the rear view mirrors.

Chad places his hand on my thigh and smirks when he hears Brad's soft gasp of indignation. I feel a blush creeping up my face, hoping Chad can't hear the erratic thumping of my heart. Trying to lighten the situation, I turn on the radio and to my delight, Kerri Smith's, 'Lovesick Hooligan' is playing. I sing along, not caring that Chad and Brad can hear me.

I don't wanna forget about this night,

But baby, you're leaving 'cause of our fight,

Don't you care about my lovesick heart?

Oh baby, I don't even know where to start.

I hate you, I need you to listen,

You've turned me into a lovesick hooligan

Chad looks amused as I pour my heart and soul into singing the bridge, but I'm looking into Brad's eyes in the rear view mirror when I sing these words,

Don't you know how much your leaving stung?

I've tried to leave you at the bottom of a bottle of rum,

But you left me first, never gave me a second thought,

I see now, you never cared, just left me to rot

I see a wave of embarrassment pass over Brad's beautiful face. But that's all he is, a pretty face. Chad notices this silent fight Brad and I are having and frowns, his chiseled face looking like a crumpled plastic bag.

"We're here," he says, his voice rough.

Feigning normalcy, I say, "Great! I'm so excited."

He gives me a sad smile, which turns into a cold glare when he looks at Brad. He puts his arm around my waist and leads me into the manure store. I'm impressed, by the smell alone, I can tell that this is some top notch manure. He tells Brad, "You can help Randy unload the manure." Brad grunts with displeasure but does as he's told.

As soon as Brad leaves, Chad says, "I want to show you a secret place." He leads me to the back of the store into something that looks like an extra storage room which has been converted into a leisure room. There are photos of farm animals all over the orange walls. He tells me, "This is my own room, I pay my dad rent for it. I stay here some nights when things at home are..."

Now I know why he always smells so delicious. I feel the urge to be closer to him, and lean into his broad, muscular shoulder. I inhale the smell of fresh manure that clings to him in the way I want to cling to him. This room, seeing it, I finally understand so much about Chad.