Esperanza (Brides Dock On Portum Island!) #1

Untitled Part 8

Chapter 7

Asher led Esperanza to the barn, her warm hand in his. She frowned at Shadow's home.

"Why are we going to a barn?" his wife hesitantly asked.

"Because we're riding my horse instead of walking," he reasoned.

"No way," she squeaked. "I'm not getting on a horse."

"Esperanza, are you afraid of horses?" Asher asked, trying to hide his amusement.

"Damn straight," she pronounced.

"Have you ever touched a horse?" Asher gently asked.

"No," she said.

"So then how do you know that you're afraid of horses?" His words seemed to rile her up. She glared at him, her dark eyes filling with fire. He chuckled before placing a tender kiss on her nose. Then he opened the barn door and led her to his horse. Asher dug a sugar cube from his pocket before opening the first stall. A black stallion was there, his friendly nature a relief. Asher had already brushed him for the day. He saddled the horse, and led it by the reins out into the warm sun.

Five minutes later and his bride still wasn't cooperating. She glared at him.

"Why can't we buy bikes?" she argued. "I at least have control of a bike."

"So it's about control," Asher realized as he kissed her cheek. "Can you try this for me? If you hate it, then we can go buy bikes." Of course Asher knew that once his bride gave Shadow a chance, she would love it.

"Fine," Esperanza huffed. Asher smiled and helped her onto the horse. Then he leaped up into the saddle in front of her. She immediately wrapped her arms around him, which warmed him. He steered the horse down the drive and onto the street. Luckily there was no one on the street in his neighborhood. He guessed that seeing other people on horses would make Esperanza nervous.

"So, where is the bike shop?" Esperanza teased.

"Very funny," Asher called. "By the way, if you want groceries, you have to put in an order on the town's website. Then you will pick up the order at a processing center."

"What if I want clothes?" Esperanza wanted to know.

"We have tailors," he responded.

"Interesting. Do you think you can take me to see one? How much do they cost?"

"You don't have to worry about prices. I'm not a rich man, but the council pays all right."

"I have some money. I just need a job," she said as the horse led them up a hill.

"What kind of work did you do back in New Jersey?" he asked.

"I worked in a hair salon."

"Did you like what you did?" Asher wanted to know.

"It fed me. To be honest, I aimed to learn a trade that took the least amount of schooling, in order to pay bills. As soon as I graduated high school, my aunt hightailed it to Canada to marry her online boyfriend. I had to fend for myself."

"How did you meet Nancy?" he asked his wife.

"That was my biggest mistake. For a while, I was on my own. My parents died in a crash, when I was a baby. I didn't receive the money from their life insurance policy until I turned eighteen. I didn't want to rely on that money, so I went to beauty school. After I was licensed, I got a job at a beauty salon. I also had a license to do nails, so worked at a nail salon as well. Nancy was one of my customers. We struck up a friendship. It started gradually. First, she began following me on Instagram, then, I friended her on Facebook, and it went on from there. Then she started dating Joseph. He was a tall, thin man with a bad temper. One time, he broke a few ribs, and she needed a place to stay. I took her in. It was supposed to be temporary. But one thing led to another, and we were sharing a place."