KEEGAN

The mornings at home in Bramville were something I hadn't realized I had missed. There was no big city noise around me to interrupt my sleep. The Ranch was all peace and quiet. Even when everyone was an early bird, there was still enough silence to allow me to sleep without problems. Surprisingly, the scent of animals was also something I had missed. It sounded crazy that the smell of manure would bring so much melancholy to me. But it did. I had grown up like this and had left all behind for New York. Did I regret leaving? No. But I regretted not coming back sooner. I had been an idiot. After having breakfast, I decided to once again help my family around the ranch. I helped to feed the animals, tend to the horses, and even helped Dad mend a fence that was worn out. 

“So, how do you like the ranch so far?” Dad asked while we worked on the fence.

“It has changed a lot since I left. There are a bunch of people every day.” I mentioned with a smile.

“Yeah. Business is great. Especially since we started the teaching programs.” Dad explained.

“That was a great idea. Who came up with that?” I asked with curiosity.

“Bunny. He is the one who teaches the kids to ride.” Dad said, looking my way to see my reaction. 

“Oh. I didn’t know that. I thought it was Emil.” I said. No wonder my family had such a soft heart for Meadow. 

“Emil helped too, but with competitions, he wasn’t able to do it full-time.” He explained.

“There’s one coming soon, right?” I asked. I remembered reading about it.

“Yes. In a month, and we are hosting it here.” He said proudly. “The hotel is all booked for that week.”

“I can’t wait. It’s been a while since I’ve seen Emil compete in person.” I said with a smile.

“He is good, but there is this kid, Samir Li. He always gets on your brother’s nerves.” Dad said with a sigh.

“Like Papa used to be with you?” I asked with a smirk. My parents' love story was one that all of us loved. Both were equestrian competitors, rivals that hated each other, but they were fated together, and the bond was so strong that they saw past their rivalry and became mates. A true enemies-to-lovers story.

“That’s different. We had a bond in between, and we were rivals. Samir and Emil are just rivals.” Dad said, rolling his eyes, and then let out a deep huff. “And Samir is always trying to snatch Bunny from us.”

“What? Why?” Anger rose in my chest at the thought of another man trying to get with Bunny.

“A crush, probably. But also, Bunny is talented too. He wants Bunny to go pro and compete.” Dad explained, and I frowned. How dare that man have a crush on my Bunny? 

‘My Bunny, huh?’ Keith said mischievously in my mind. Just then, I realized what I had thought. But I didn’t have the strength to fight Keith now.

“But Bunbun doesn’t want that.” I answered my dad, still frowning at the revelation.

“Bunbun? Already using pet names?” Dad said with a smirk. 

“No. What? You all call him Bunny. What’s the problem with me calling him Bunbun?” I tried to defend myself. I knew he would get a weird idea.

“No problem at all. Just cute, knowing that you are fated.” He said with a chuckle.

“I’m not talking about this, Dad.” I said, rolling my eyes, and looking back at the fence.

“Okay. Okay.” Dad said with a chuckle, and we continued to work on the fence until it was fixed. Footsteps came from behind us, and I saw Papa approaching us.

“Here you are! I was looking for you, honey.” He said with a smile.

“Me or Dad?” I asked, confused about who he was looking for.

“You.” Papa said with an arched brow, and then added. “I have never called your dad like that.” 

“You should hear how Keegan calls Bunny.” Dad said with a smirk, and Papa looked at me with curiosity.

“Nope. No need to hear anything.” I said, shaking my head, and then asked. “So what is it, Papa?”

“I need you to go to town with Bunny and buy some things we ran out of.” Papa mentioned with a smile. Something about the smile gave me it was more than just a task.

“Why me? What about the others?” I asked, confused. “And why with Bunny?”

“Everyone else is busy, and since you don’t know your way around town, you should take Bunny.” He explained, and he was right. I didn’t know how much Bramville had changed over the years. 

“Okay. I’ll do it.” I said with a nod.

With the fence work done, I went back to the main house to take a shower and get ready to go to the town with Bunny. Without realizing it, I wore my best clothes. Maybe I wanted to impress Bunny. Keith had made me admit that. Now I was waiting outside next to Owen’s car, because Dad was not letting me use his for obvious reasons. 

“Hey, did you wait long?” Bunny’s voice broke me away from my thoughts. 

“No. I just got here.” I said, smiling at him. “You ready to go?”

“Yes. Let’s go.” He said with a smile.

As a gentleman, I opened the door for the omega, then got into the driver's seat. On the drive to town, we talked for a bit. Talking with Bunny was fun, and neither of us brought up the subject of our fated bond. Just when we were in the middle of the way to Bramville, my phone started ringing. Since I was behind the wheel, I asked Bunny to accept the call and put it on speaker.

“Hey, honey. Are you guys almost there?” Papa asked on the other side of the phone.

“Halfway. Why?” I answered. 

“Well. I’m so sorry to both of you. Turns out Conner bought what we had run out of, but forgot to take it out of his car.” Papa said, apologetic for making us go all the way to town.

“So what should we do now? Do we go back?” I asked. Perhaps they needed us, and that’s why they had called too.

“You can if you want.” Papa said, but then added. “Actually, since you are halfway there, why don’t you still go to town and spend some time there. Bunny can be your guide.” 

“Huh? Wait—” I started saying, but before I could complain, Papa hung up on me. “Damn. Why did Papa do that?”

“It seems to me like they want us to be alone together.” Bunny mentioned, and I gave him a confused look.

“You think? But why?” I asked.

“Well…Because of that.” He said. It took me a moment to realize what it was, and then everything fell into place.

“Oh. Oh…” I said and then added. “Yeah, you are right. Do you still want to go to the town?”

“For sure. I would love to get some pastries from Piper’s.” He mentioned with a smile.

“Piper’s?” I asked, confused.

“Piper’s Delights. The best bakery in town.” He explained and then remembered. “Right, you don’t know about it since you left before it opened.”

“Seems like I missed out on a lot.” I let out a deep sigh. 

“Don’t worry. I’ll be your guide.” He said, giving me a pat on my shoulder. The touch alone made me shiver. “Bramville tour, we go.” 

‘Sounds like a date.’ Keith said, but I didn’t mind him. This was a great opportunity to see how much Bramville had changed over the years and also get to know Meadow even better.

BUNNY

When Gary first asked me to go shopping in town with Keegan, I found it strange. I thought I had heard Conner saying he had bought those things yesterday, but turns out in the end, he hadn’t. It wasn’t until I heard what Gary said in the call that I realized there was something fishy happening. I connected things fast; the Beackmans were setting us up. I appreciated their gesture, and I was going to take advantage of it. Keegan was handsome, gentle, and friendly. Did I already say handsome?

‘Yes. You did. Now date time.’ Mir said with excitement. I smiled to myself, and I looked at Keegan after stepping out of the car. I had asked him to park outside of Piper’s Delights. It was the best place to start. 

“So this is Piper’s, huh?” Keegan asked, looking at the store from outside. As usual, it was full of customers inside and out. 

“Yes. Do you want to go inside now or go look around first?” I asked, and he looked back at me.

“Whatever you want, Bunbun. You are the guide here.” He said with a wink. I felt my cheeks get hot.

“Let’s walk around first and then come back here. I want to take some treats home for your family.” I said with a soft smile.

“Sounds like a good plan.” Keegan said with a nod. “Lead the way.”

I took Keegan to different places in Bramville; the alpha recognized some, but others were completely new to him. I couldn't help but tell him fun facts about some of the places and other things about the people of Bramville. Keegan praised me for my knowledge, and I felt proud that I was being a good tour guide. After a few hours, we had covered most of the town and ended up at the park.

“Wow. Bramville really has changed a lot.” Keegan mentioned. From his tone, I could tell he was genuinely impressed at how much Bramville had grown in the past 10 years.

“Yes. We are getting a lot more people to come. It’s becoming a tourist site thanks to the ranch, and I heard there’s also a band doing an official debut with the entertainment company in town too.” I said with a proud smile. “But even with all of that, Bramville keeps being calm and a refuge for many.”

“Is it a refuge for you?” He asked with curiosity.

“Yes, it is. I came here when I was kicked out of an orphanage in the city. I managed to get a bus ticket to no place in particular, and I ended up in this lovely town.” I mentioned. It had been a difficult decision to make at first, but I’m glad I did it. Bramville was one of the best things I had in my life. 

“I’m glad you did. You’ve helped my family a lot more than I have.” Keegan said with a sigh. I sense guilt and regret coming from him. 

“Don’t say that. You were busy enough with your job and stuff.” I tried to reassure him.

“But at what cost? I should’ve come back sooner. I missed out on a lot of things.” He said with a sigh. I stood in front of him, stopping him from walking and placed my hand on his shoulder.

“There is no point in regretting it now. That’s all in the past, and we are in the present. You have to make use of the time you have now.” I said, reassuring him that he had done nothing wrong.

“You are right…” He said with a grin and let out a sigh. “Seems like I ruined the mood.”

“No, you didn’t. Now let’s get something to eat at Piper’s and then we can go back home, okay?” I said, taking my hand away from his shoulder. 

“Sure.” He nodded. “And Meadow?”

“Yes?” I asked.

“Thank you for doing this. I appreciate it.” Keegan said, grabbing my hand in his and softly squeezing it. The feeling of his warm hand against mine made me blush, and when he let go, I missed that warmth. 

We went back to Piper's Delights and bought some things to eat at the shop. Keegan had been fascinated by Piper's pastries, even mentioning that they were better than the ones he bought in New York. I clearly didn't believe him, but he assured me it wasn't a lie. When we finished eating, we bought some to take home. After we finished eating, we bought some more goodies to take home, and then drove the way back to the ranch. Although today hadn't been planned by us, I believe we had a great outing, and I had to thank the Beackmans for making it happen.