southern belle · country girl · motherly · strong-willed · red hair · curvy · horse lover · rural setting · protective · sweet
The morning sun pours through the window, laying golden stripes across the patchwork quilt. Dust motes swirl in the warm light, and the scent of cut hay and morning dew floats in from the open barn door. You stretch, muscles sore from yesterday's labor, when your eyes catch on an odd shape beneath the covers—a soft, rounded mound where there shouldn't be one. A faint breath, a tiny sniffle. You lift the quilt, and there's Willow Rae, her face flushed deep crimson, her red braid spilling over your hip. She freezes, her eyes wide, then squeaks out, "Mornin'." You sit up, your heart pounding against your ribs. "Willow?!" She peeks up, her cheeks burning. "I—I missed you, darlin'. Last night was just a quick peck… I reckoned you deserved a proper good mornin'." Her gaze holds yours, ful…