His denim button-up hugged him tighter than I’d originally thought, giving dimension to his biceps that lay hidden underneath. His jeans, however, were just as tight as I remembered; the bottoms of them fitting snug over his brown boots.
In this light, his body was thicker. Not in a bad way, but in the way that looked like he could protect you, give really good hugs, or maybe push you up against a wall. If you were into that kind of thing, of course.
Let’s just say he was built.
Like a cowboy.
“Couldn’t the same be said about you? You’re also alone, and we’re at the same party,” I rebutted with a smirk, raising an eyebrow in his direction.
“That’s fair.” He nodded, uncrossing his arms and shuffling his boots in my direction, little clouds of dust following behind him. “Although, technically I haven’t been alone yet, considering you’re always here.”
The right side of his mouth curved up as he stepped his body to the left of mine. We both moved our attention to the red paint that had found her way back over to us. A waft of his cologne infiltrated my nose; the scent was a rich leather tied neatly together with a lingering, woodsy musk. The cozy kind of scent that you could wrap yourself in.
“So, it was you,” I confirmed, doing my best to appear unbothered by how close he’d gotten to me even though my heartbeat had migrated from my chest to my ears.
“Yeah, that was me.”
He extended his hand, nearly grazing mine. I abruptly pulled back while anxiously wondering what it would’ve felt like had I let them accidentally touch me.
“You sound surprised?” he questioned, clearly unfazed.
I glanced in his direction, those icy blue eyes of his already awaiting mine.
“Oh, you mean that I was having a heart to heart with Stetson Walker at a party that I probably shouldn’t have come to in the first place?” I laughed nervously. The waves of doubt splashed against my insides. After my conversation with Delilah, I was ready to exit stage left. “No.” I paused. “It’s just—”
“It’s just that someone like me could never have a decent conversation with a stranger because I’m always too busy partying or doing stupid shit to have any actual thoughts running through my head?” His voice was softer this time, quieter, and his eyes shifted back to the horse.
“That’s not what I meant,” I insisted. Although, truthfully, that’s exactly what I’d meant. Maybe not to that extent, but pretty damn close.
Hell, on more than one occasion the man had been filmed doing irresponsible, stupid shit with what appeared to be no concept of real life. The number of videos running rampant on the internet of him wasted, making out with girls, saying cockyshit, and acting like he was untouchable was absurd. If you’d told me I would be standing inches away from Stetson Walker andnotgiving him a piece of my mind, I would’ve called you a liar.
But yet, here I was, staring at the man who looked softer, more aware, and even a little defeated compared to the one I’d seen in the videos. There was no way I could’ve been that harsh now.
“I just mean that I assumed you were another lost cowboy looking for some answers in the stars. We get a lot of those around here. Never did it cross my mind that Stetson Walker would be playing a set at our small-town get together, let alone wandering out under the stars by himself, instead of, you know, signing autographs somewhere.” I chuckled, hoping he’d pick up on my sarcasm.
I twirled the ruby ring on my finger, shifting my weight to the left, but in doing so, my leg just barely brushed his. The denim of his jeans on my bare thigh sent a chill racing down my back.
The feeling caught me off guard.
“Did you want one? An autograph, I mean,” he asked, his own sarcasm almost as thick as his Southern drawl, giving me a bit of relief from the tension in my chest.
“Hilarious,” I mocked. “No, I don’t want your autograph. I’m just saying you weren’t who I expected to be talking to, that’s all.”
The silence was so comfortable that I hadn’t even realized how long we’d been standing there until Stetson’s voice, low and calmer than before, spoke up.
“Ever cross your mind that maybe that’s all I am…”
We didn’t look at each other, both of us keeping our gaze on the massive animal in front of us. Horses were always my calm, they were soft despite their size, and just being around them felt like coming home after being away for months.
“Maybe that’s all you are what?” I paused, running back through what I’d said. “A lost cowboy?” I questioned, peering inhis direction with wide eyes. “Ha. Says the man who just finished a world tour and has landed countless awards in the last few years. You’re definitely not giving”—I raised my hands for air quotes—“lost cowboy vibes.”
Thunder clouds invaded the blue in his eyes, forcing them to fall a shade darker as he crossed his arms over his chest, almost like he was trying to stop something inside of him from escaping. I tried to grasp what it was, but before I could, his demeanor shifted.
His tongue traced his bottom lip, and I couldn’t help but watch. “You’re not really givin’ me a chance here, now are ya? I thought you Southern girls were supposed to be sweet as peaches or something like that.”
“That’s Georgia; we’re in Tennessee. Very different,” I confirmed. “Wait a minute, aren’t you from Tennessee?” I questioned with a raised eyebrow.
“And here I thought you didn’t know anything about me.” He grinned, rotating his body around until his back rested on the metal bars of the stall.
