Ryder came up beside me, gripping my shoulders and giving a reassuring squeeze. “She may not need savin’, but that don’t mean she don’t want it. Go get her, before you lose her.”
I inhaled slowly, drawing in every scared, negative, worrisome emotion inside me, and blowing it out. Resolve welled up as I nodded. “Alright. I got this.”
With newfound confidence—however misplaced—I pushed off from my spot at the table and made my way toward her. My slow, sure footsteps were in direct opposition of my wildly thumping heart. It all but galloped out of my damn chest.
And then she stood up, flashed the cowboy a smile, and waltzed toward the exit without a backward glance.
Fuck. Chasing her sure wasn’t going to be easy.
Chapter six
Pretty Little Poison
Cheyenne
Ileaned back againstthe stucco-sided building and sucked in a lungful of fresh air…and all but choked on the humidity. Summer in Texas already in full swing and June wasn’t even completely over yet. It felt like I was wading through hot sauce. But at least I’d escaped wannabe Morgan Wallen’s unrelenting advances. If I had to listen to him try any more of his shitty pickup lines on me, I might’ve keeled over and died of disappointment.
Maybe I should just go home…Except the whole reason for coming out tonight was so that I didn’t have to be stuck in my trailer feeling sorry for myself. Yet, here I was, feeling sorry for myself. Maybe I should just forget about Maverick. Maybe there was a reason it hadn’t worked out with him yet. Maybe it never would.
Some things just weren’t meant to be.
“There you are.”
My body seized up, a spark of excitement igniting in my chest at the sound of that familiar voice—deep, smooth as velvet. It made my stomach do little somersaults.
I turned to take him in—from his black cowboy hat down to his black boots. Dear Lord, he was hot. He wore the same usual scowl, the same hooded, closed-off gaze. He always seemed so mysterious. So grumpy.
“Maverick,” I said with a nod, looking forward once more and settling back against the wall. I let my eyes flutter closed as I feigned disinterest, even as my heart fluttered like it was full of a swarm of butterflies waiting to be released. The air moved beside me as he settled on my left—close, but not quite touching. A ripple of desire coursed through me. I didn’t open my eyes though. Not yet. I was still being petty.
The scent of him—tobacco and leather—filled my nose, reminding me of home. My heart panged at that.
“So, I uh…I got a few babies I’m workin’... There’s this one…Blue Zeus, he’s uh, he’s this little blue roan. Cason named him. But uh…”
Why was he talking about horses? I’d hoped that if he ever worked up the nerve to talk to me it would be to flirt…not talk about the babies he was breaking.
I sucked in a deep, sharp breath through my nose, preparing a flippant response, but the moment I glanced over at him, I paused, mouth half open, the words dying on my lips. His usually guarded gaze was open, earnest, his face holding none of the usual dourness he almost always possessed. Vulnerability lingered throughout every inch of him.
I blew out the breath I’d been holding, all of the anger leaving me as my heart all but melted. A smile toyed on my lips as I turned to face him, angling myself closer so that my body brushed against his.
He fumbled over his words, his gaze widening—in fear or nervousness, I wasn’t quite sure—for a moment as he noticed my movements, but still he continued on. Something shifted in him the longer he spoke. I wouldn’t necessarily call it confidence, but maybe…certainty. He spoke about the babies he was breaking with a surety and knowledge I could only dream of possessing…and I’d grown up with horses. But the way he spoke about them…I’d never seen him talk so much. So animatedly or passionately.
It was cute and innocent and sweet, and it melted me even more. I hadn’t expected that. Maverick didn’t seem the type to melt your heart. He was broody and grumpy and closed off, more the kind of guy to break a heart than melt it, but beneath that, I realized, was the sweetest soul. He reminded me of Ferdinand the bull, who only wanted to sit and smell the flowers.
Only all this cowboy wanted was to talk about horses.
A full-fledged smile spread across my mouth, and I don’t know how or what possessed me, but one minute I stood there, the next, I was leaning up on tiptoe, pressing a quick kiss to his lips.
He all but jumped back, a look of pure bewilderment on his face, those jade eyes flashing with disbelief. “Wh–what’d you do that for?”
I shrugged and smirked, raising a tentative hand and placing it against his chest. His heart thumped beneath my touch—a fast, erratic beat. “You’re cute when you talk so much.”
Something ignited in his gaze, which was sharp and intense as it pegged me in place, but still he made no move toward me.
I bit my lip, my voice dipping low as I asked, “Can I kiss you again, cowboy?”
I almost thought he wouldn’t react. That he’d just stand there and let me flounder again.
Oh no. A rush of disappointment washed over me. Had I gone too far? Scared him off completely?
