"Have you been internet shopping?" Hank teased as he stepped into the living room, where Richard was once again lounging in his chair with his book. The stools in the kitchen were fine for a while, but they hurt your ass after an hour or so. The chair in which he was currently lounging with his feet reclined was a much better choice. Lowering his book and squinting at the doorway, Richard immediately felt his cheeks heat as he saw the now opened box in Hank's hand.
"Of course not!" He sounded positively offended. "It's Allen's idea of a joke." Judging by the frown, Hank assumed Richard was less than amused. He chuckled softly as he looked at the colourful tail. It was good quality. Not the sort of money you'd throw away on a joke. At least, it's not money that he could afford to throw away. Maybe Allen and Richard were just that well off. "Don't even think about it," Richard grumbled from his place in his cosy chair as Hank pulled out the bag with the tail furled inside.
"What? This is good quality stuff!" Hank had never seen anything like it. As he pulled the thick tail out of the bag, it actually felt quite weighty, considering it was just a length of artificial hair. Rich, lusciously curled and bouncy rainbow hair. It was fixed to a small attachment that looked like it screwed into the accompanying plug. Richard clicked his tongue, the look on his face saying quite plainly that he would not be letting that thing anywhere near his ass. "I think you'd look pretty with your ass stuffed with a glossy tail," Hank teased as he swished the creamy strands back and forth. Although it was predominantly blonde, there were thick rainbow sections strewn throughout. It was really rather tasteful.
"If you like it so much, you wear it!" Hank snickered at the thought. It wouldn't look right on him at all, but Richard? He was pretty sure that little ass could pull anything off. He could just imagine how nicely it would sit over the pert little mound and swing between his thighs as he walked. Fuck, if he added those sock and shirt garters into the mix, it looked even better! Richard's scowl deepened as he noted the gleam in Hank's eyes. "Don't even think about it! I'm not a fucking animal!" Hank raised an eyebrow at that.
"I didn't say you were." Richard grumbled quietly and hid himself behind his book in response. That much was true, but then why would he want to put a pony tail in his ass otherwise? "I wouldn't treat you like one either." Not unless the situation warranted it. His cock twitched at the thought. It would be an interesting idea to play with. One he might not be averse to trying, though he wouldn't go too far. He drew the line at cute ears and tails. Going beyond that was a little too outlandish for his simple tastes. "Tell you what, you behave yourself and keep out of trouble, and the tail stays in the box." Richard scoffed.
"What? Are you going to bend me over and force it in if I don't?" He swallowed at the look he was getting and stiffened in his seat as Hank stalked over. His cock twitched as Hank leaned over him and gripped his chin, blue eyes filled with heat. Richard felt his cheeks colour, unable to resist dropping his gaze to look at his lips. Hank smirked, slowly teasing his thumb along Richard's bottom lip.
"Why don't you try me and find out?" It was a threat and a promise all in one. Richard swallowed, stuck between feeling indignant and lustful. Hank hummed softly as he plucked the black plug from the box and waved it in front of his nose. "I'll get this cleaned up and ready...just in case." Richard glared at him. No way was he taking that thing in his ass! The easiest way to avoid that, of course, was to do as Hank said and stay out of trouble. Hank chuckled as he left the room, calling back that he'd make something for lunch soon.
The smell of grilled cheese was soon wafting through from the kitchen, making Richard's mouth water as he lowered his recliner and padded through to the breakfast bar. Hank grinned over his shoulder, careless of the mess he'd left on the counter as he turned the sandwiches on the grill. Richard, however, was not so amused. Without hesitation, he circled the counter to put away the block of cheese and remaining slices of tomato. He only stopped when a metal spatula appeared right in front of his nose, threatening to bop him.
"You sit, unless you want me to bend you over the counter right now!" Richard pouted as he returned to his stool, silently glaring at the crumbs on his worktop. "Don't worry, your highness, I always clean up when I'm done." If it was his own kitchen, that wouldn't necessarily be the case, but he knew Richard was particular. The moment the sandwiches were browned on the outside, Hank took them off the grill and plated up, leaving them on the bar with Richard while he busied himself with cleaning up. True to his word, the cheese and tomato were packed away, the counters were wiped, and the grill was put in a sink of soapy water to soak off the burned cheese.
"Thank you," Richard murmured as he pried open his sandwich, much to Hank's horror. Steam billowed out as the tomato continued bubbling for a few more seconds. Hank wasn't sure he'd ever seen anyone dissect a grilled cheese before, but rather than eating it like a sandwich, Richard peeled the top barely cheesed layer and started nibbling like a hungry ferret. "What?" He seemed genuinely confused, like no one had ever questioned how he ate before. It was actually sort of cute, the way he was saving the bottom layer with most of the filling for later.
"Nothing," Hank murmured, leaning his chin on his hand to watch. Richard seemed more wary now he knew he was being watched, which made his nibbling bites even smaller. Cute.
"Do you have to watch me like that?" Hank relented with a chuckle and took a small bite of his own sandwich, gasping and sipping his water at how hot the middle was. Maybe that was why Richard had started eating that way. Opening the sandwich certainly let the heat escape faster, but Hank was content to wait. It wasn't like he was in a hurry to return to work, though he had plenty to do. The longer lunch took, the longer he could spend with Richard. He knew he was bored; how could he not be? Being holed up inside was the worst. It was a nice sunny day. There was no reason Richard couldn't go outside, only whenever he went out, he seemed determined to get himself in trouble.
"What will you do this afternoon?" Richard squirmed a little at the question, avoiding Hank's gaze.
"I might go to the stables...Allen's there." That sounded very much like an excuse, but Hank let it slide. If Allen was there, he'd be fine, and if he wasn't fine, Hank would hear about it. He'd hear about it, and Richard would pay the price. Hank smirked as he hid himself behind his glass, sipping slowly as Richard munched his way through the bottom layer of his sandwich. Fuck, he really is like a ferret. Maybe Allen chose the wrong tail. Still holding the toast to his lips, nibbling the edge of a piece of tomato, Richard blinked at him, confused about why he was being watched so intently.
"Just see that you stay out of trouble." Richard scowled at that, but didn't argue. Once they finished, Hank insisted on washing up, and then he was off. Richard followed him to the door and watched until he'd hopped the fence and set off with Connor running circles around him. They headed for the rear fields this time, on the opposite side of the house. True to his word, Richard slipped into his boots and set off towards the stables, keeping a quiet eye out for Allen. He was nowhere in sight. Richard frowned a little as he wandered around the yard. His car was still there.
"Al?" His call, both in the barn and the stables, went unanswered. Richard hummed as he looked around to see if there were any clues as to where he may have gone. A few of the stalls had been mucked out, but if he was still mucking out, he'd be able to hear the barrow. He found the barrow set by the open door of an empty stall. It seemed he'd taken a break. But if he didn't go into town, I would have seen him at the house...A set of riding gear was gone. Ah. He was exercising one of the horses. That left Richard at a loose end. He'd come looking to see if he could help, but without Allen there to give him instructions, he was left to his own devices.
Mucking out alone was out of the question. He'd need both hands to use the pitchfork. The tool was too long and heavy to use with just one hand. I can probably clean the water bowls though. Those just needed a wipe around with a cloth and a good rinse. They were like self-contained little sinks, so he wouldn't need to do anything strenuous. With that in mind, he grabbed a cloth and got started. Allen had already finished the ones in the clean stalls, so Richard did the rest. It was a pretty easy job, even with one hand, and barely took thirty minutes. Once again finding himself at a loose end, Richard looked at the hay racks.
Some of them were looking pretty empty. Surely he could carry some hay across. Not by hand, of course. That would be too heavy, but if he could get the barrow over to the barn, he could easily pull a bale off the stack. That wouldn't be too strenuous, right? If it was too hard, he could always stop. With that in mind, Richard tackled the barrow. It was made to be pushed with two hands, but if he went slowly, he could drag it backwards with one. It was a little awkward, but hardly difficult. He was feeling pretty accomplished by the time he reached the barn. With a satisfied sigh, he looked at the stacks of bales. All he had to do was pull one down so it fell into the barrow. Easy!
They were stacked taller than he was, but if he could find a step, that wouldn't be a problem. Leaving the barrow right next to the towering stack, Richard wandered around the barn looking for a stool. There wasn't a stool, but he did find a small stepladder, which was easy enough to drag over by himself. Opening it was a little fiddly, but once he kicked it open and shuffled it into place, it seemed sturdy enough to hold his weight without falling. Scooting it beside the stack, Richard carefully climbed up the first four rungs and leaned over to grab the blue string on the closest bale. It was a little awkward, pulling and keeping balance, but the bale gradually shuffled closer to the edge. That's it...Just a little more...
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Richard's head whipped round just as the bale toppled, wobbling precariously with the surprise. Allen looked thoroughly unimpressed as he rested his hands on his hips, standing in the doorway until Richard clicked his tongue and caught himself. "I thought I told you not to overdo it!" Richard really could have rolled his eyes. If not for the interruption, he probably wouldn't even have wobbled!
"I'm not overdoing it!"
"What are you even doing here?" Richard thought it was pretty obvious as he waved at the fallen bale, which had come a little loose in the fall. The large rectangle was broken and uneven, with smaller square sections sticking out, ready to be pulled loose.
"I was going to refill the hay racks." Dark eyes sharpened as Allen gave him a look. "Oh, don't look at me like that! It's not even that hard!" Sure, he had to drag the barrow backwards and struggle with the stepladder, and he had to balance carefully while pulling the hay down, but it wasn't that hard! And it wasn't dangerous! Seeing the lack of comprehension on Richard's face, Allen sighed and lifted him down, much to Richard's chagrin.
"It's not that I think you're incapable or incompetent, that's not why I don't want you in here." It sure seemed that way. The look on Richard's face told him so. Heaving a sigh, Allen waved at the metal barrow. "What would you have done if you'd fallen and hit your arm?" That was ridiculous! It wasn't even likely to happen! "It could happen! You could have fallen off the ladder, or been pulled down by the bale, or a bale might have fallen on you." That last one wasn't likely at all! Richard was really beginning to think that Allen was looking for problems on purpose.
"It's only one arm! I can still do stuff!"
"I'm not saying you can't, but you need to be more mindful! If your arm gets hurt again, it'll take even longer to heal!" Richard pouted at that. They were only minor fractures, and it wasn't even likely he'd fall! "Just don't...do anything too strenuous." It wasn't even that strenuous! Allen sighed as he took the barrow and walked it to the door. "And by strenuous I mean anything!" Richard was truly indignant as he hurried to catch up. Don't do anything? Anything at all? "I don't want to see you lifting a finger unless you have to."
"Oh, come on! It wasn't even that bad!"
"We'll see if Hank thinks it wasn't that bad." You wouldn't! The look on Allen's face told him he definitely would. They returned to the stables so that Allen could continue his work with the stalls, and since they had the hay, he grudgingly let Richard go around and refill some of the hay racks. Better that he was doing something in his sight than wandering off alone and getting himself in trouble. Once the stalls were done, Allen let Richard walk with him to the fields, but, as with Hank that morning, he wasn't allowed to lead any of the horses back. Not even Bramble, who almost skipped along at Allen's side, hopping and butting his ribs.
"Richie!" Hank's tone sounded far too accusing as they approached the stables, leading to Richard giving Allen a resentful look. "What did I say about keeping out of trouble?" Despite his words, he didn't seem angry. In fact, he looked downright pleased with himself. Allen smirked as he left Richard and Hank in the yard to lead Bramble and his mother back to their stall. Richard huffed, unimpressed as he stopped in front of Hank.
"I didn't even do anything!"
"Pulling down a bale on a rickety old stepladder? What if it fell on your head? What if it pulled you down with it?" Getting a sense of déjà vu, Richard pouted. Why do they both think I'm completely incompetent? He tried to ignore the little voice in his head that suggested he might be incompetent, and that's why they kept such a close eye on him. "Don't look at me like that. We're just trying to make sure you heal up properly before you do yourself a mischief." What makes you think I'd do myself a mischief? That thought was interrupted by the brush of rough whiskers on his lips and large hands settling on his waist.
"Fuck!" They parted as his sling arm was jostled between them, sending pain shooting through his elbow. "If I'm not careful, you'll do me a mischief!" Richard added as he cradled his sore arm, waving it off as Hank gave him a suitably remorseful look. "Don't worry, it's just a twinge." Annoying as they were, they were a constant hazard, and one he'd come to expect over the past few days. He couldn't even lie in bed without it hurting sometimes. "Come on, let's get dinner." That was surely why Hank had turned up to meet him, and it proved true as he carefully looped an arm around his waist and led him back towards the house.
"You realise you owe me a forfeit, right?" Hank teased in a low grumble as he leaned down right by his ear. Richard glared, almost daring him to say more. I'm not wearing that fucking tail! Not a chance in hell!