“Killer?” My brows rose.
He bit his lip, dragging his eyes down my chest. Fuck. I wasn’t wearing a bra, either, and my stiff nipples were visible through my white tank top.
He scraped his teeth across his full lip, making my breath hitch. “You’re a cowboy killer, Lina Larsen.”
I laughed softly at his ridiculousness. “Oh, and you think you’re immune?” I nodded at him, my nose almost brushing his. I could feel heat rushing to my center, making my clit throb.
“No. I know you’d kill me—maybe even break me—if I let you in. But … maybe, just maybe, I could rope you and take that ass for a ride while the others are already six feet under. The difference is, killer, I don’t want to tame you.”
He reached for his coffee, his thumb gently tracing over my skin at my waist, as if he were branding it, burning it, where he touched me so faintly. He brought the mug to his mouth, and I couldn’t help watching his lips mold around the rim as he sipped. He moaned as the hot liquid hit his tongue, his throat bobbing as he swallowed. My heart was pounding out of my chest. I may be a cowboy killer, but he may very well be the only one who could kill me. And I might just let him.
He pushed off the counter with a smirk as he took his coffee with him. I watched him leave, all hulking muscles andman. His jeans hung low, revealing the waistband of his boxer briefs.Fuck me.
Frozen, I let the towel fall to my feet. My knees wobbled, and I gripped the ceramic tile to keep myself from sliding to the floor. I released a long breath I hadn’t realized I was holding in as goose bumps pimpled my flesh where the heat of his body had emanated from him.
I wished it wasn’t five in the morning so I could pour something stronger than black coffee.
9
reed
“Keep brushing him while I go talk with Chuck and Jude,” I told Penn, who stood on a stool beside Warrior. Her little tongue stuck out between her teeth in concentration as she brushed the dust from his coat.
Chuck and Jude were tacking up their horses for the day before heading out to check on the herd, then they’d lead trail rides with the tourists who came into town.
From the look of Jude, Chuck had already filled him in on the situation with Junior. His body was practically vibrating.
“So he’s dating your ex-wife?” Jude asked, scratching his forehead beneath the brim of his hat.
It made me itch, too, and I couldn’t help my own head scratch before adjusting my cowboy hat.
“They’re engaged,” I corrected. Although I wasn’t sure their relationship truly mattered at this point.
“Well, fuck. Of course your daughter can’t stay there.” He leaned over to tighten the cinch. He wrenched it tighter, causing his horse to shift on its feet.
“I can’t take her with me on the circuit, either,” I told him.
“You have such a big house, Jude,” Chuck chimed in. “Would you and Romy be able to have her stay with you while Reed’s with Lina?”
I knew Romy used to be a schoolteacher, so I had no doubt she was good with children. Watching her be a mother to their own baby the last couple months also made me feel better about leaving her with them.
“I have to talk with Romy, but it’s a no-brainer that she should stay on the ranch while you’re away,” Jude agreed.
“I need to make sure she’s safe and taken care of,” I said, rubbing my chest, because it fucking hurt to leave her right now.
Chuck came around the horses to grip my shoulder. “We all have daughters, and I think we all know what we’d do to keep them safe. I’m trusting you, Reed. You have to trust us, too.”
I glanced down at my boots to think. There was no other option, at this point, and this had to be the best thing for us both to move forward. Peering over at Penn in her little Carhartt overalls and boots, she looked like the little cowgirl she was going to grow up to be. I wanted her to have the life I didn’t. I wanted her to be surrounded by people who loved and cared for her, on land that she would be able to call home. Whether it was here or somewhere else, I wanted that for her, for us. And if this was the first step in getting us there, I already knew the choice I had to make.
Looking at both Larsen men, I nodded. “I trust you.”
“Go faster, Daddy,”Penelope called from where she sat in front of me in the saddle.
I pressed my heels into Warrior’s side, urging him to a canter as we approached Jude and Romy’s place.
Romy invited us over for dinner so I could help Penn get settled before Lina and I left early in the morning. As we approached, I saw Chuck’s UTV parked at the front door. Chuck said he was taking my night shift tonight, so I was surprised he was here. We slowed and sidled up to the hitching post.
“Whoa!” I pulled up on Warrior’s reins, dismounted, and tied him up before helping Penn down.
