“They aren’t my type.” Zoe laughed. But, she remembered Max, and how heavenly hot he looked. And that she wanted to run her hands down his toned chest muscles, and squeeze his arse.
Could a country boy be for me?She pushed the thought away.No way.
Unlike the other two girls, she didn’t feel at home at the show. She was only there to have fun with them, it was one of the ways they could meet up easily. She was a city girl through and through, and the most time she’d spent in the country was the odd week during school holidays at Zoe’s farm. That was a long time ago.
“Watch where you’re going…” Billie reached out to grab Zoe’s arm. Too late. Zoe stepped right in the middle of a very big pile of cow shit.
“Bloody hell.” Zoe lifted her foot, screwing up her face at the sight of shit covering her new sandals. She gasped as her mind caught up with the cause of the wet feeling on her skin.
Ellie and Billie laughed.
“It’s not funny.” She wasn’t annoyed, it was just that she didn’t have their sense of humour—it was lost in the crap covering most of her right foot.
“You gotta look where you’re going.”
“No shit.” She tentatively placed her shoe on the ground and tried to wipe off the brown mess. It didn’t make a difference. Her friends burst out in laughter.
“You need to do more than that.”
Zoe looked at Billie. “I know.” She put her hands over her face. The shoes were new, leather, with a little heel. Totally ruined. She could afford it. A legal secretary, she worked long hours and could easily go out and buy another pair, but that wasn’t the point. She didn’t much like her friends laughing at her.
“Come on, we’ll go find a tap.” Ellie put her hand over Zoe’s shoulder.
“Maybe we should buy you work boots for your birthday,” suggested Billie.
“Good idea, but they aren’t my style.” Zoe pouted, allowing herself to be guided from the alleyway into the shed where there were hundreds of cattle tied up in rows. She glanced down at the work boots her friends were wearing.They just wouldn’t go with any of my outfits.
It unnerved Zoe being so close to such large animals. Though it did help her to forget about how uncomfortable each step was to make, with a fresh feeling of moisture pushed deeper between the straps of her shoes.
She froze at the sight of cows tied up against a wooden wall, their backsides pointing out to the aisle on each side. She wasn’t sure she could walk the gauntlet of cattle bums, without getting more shit on her. Even though her foot was a dirty mess, she wasn’t keen to get her spring dress dirty—full skirt, tight bodice, light green. She’d chosen this outfit because she wasn’t completely stupid and knew not to wear white to the Royal Adelaide Show.
“Come on, down here.” Billie tugged on Zoe’s arm.
“I don’t think so.” Zoe pulled back, stopping Billie from taking her past all those cattle.
“Well, you can walk around with shit on your foot then.”
Zoe groaned as if in pain. “I’d rather not.” She took a breath against the earthy smell that was becoming overpowering the longer they lingered.
“Don’t be such a girl.” Ellie laughed as she grabbed Zoe’s other arm. “You don’t want this crap on your foot all day.”
“No, but I don’t see how we’re going to get it all off.”
“Don’t worry, we’re good at cleaning up.”
Zoe gave in and allowed her friends to drag her past the backsides of the cows, along the aisle to the back of the shed, where there was a low tap coming out of the side of the galvanised wall over a trough.
Everything looked dirty. If it didn’t look dirty it looked old, which gave Zoe the impression it was dirty. She didn’t want to touch anything.
Ellie patted the side of the trough with her hand. “Up here.”
“I’m not one of your Alpacas.” Zoe complied with the gesture and rested her dirty foot on the side of the trough. She nearly cried at the sight of her ruined sandals.
“You’re dirtier than my girls.”
“Thanks.” Zoe pouted, pretending to be upset. She couldn’t stay grumpy for long when she was with Ellie and Billie.
Billie turned on the tap and a rush of water tumbled out with force, hitting the metal and splashing back up, spraying them all.
