Page 56 of Sunrise & Serenity

I move without thinking, one hand shooting out to grab the reins and the other landing on Sage’s hip.

My shoulder twinges—sharp, quick, gone just as fast.

Cozy slows, and I release the reins, stepping back like it didn’t happen. “Sit deeper in the saddle.”

Sage doesn’t respond straight away. When she does, her voice is quieter. “Does it still hurt?”

I have no idea what she saw on my face that made her ask, but I keep my eyes on Cozy. “Sometimes.”

It’s been a week since we talked on my porch in the middle of the night. Seven days without either of us mentioning that I’d been one breath away from kissing her. I’ve kept myself busy with ranch work, but apparently not enough to stop thinking about it. I keep remembering the way the moonlight reflected in her eyes and how she’d trusted me enough to tell me about her parents and her ex.

Then my brain goes and remembers the way her lips parted. The way her nipples pressed against the material of her top.

The way my cock hardened so fast it almost hurt.

It took every ounce of my self-control not to thread my fingers through her hair and tug her head back so I could taste her mouth. Hell, if I were back on the circuit and a buckle bunny looked at me the way Sage did, I wouldn’t have hesitated to give us what we both wanted. Not that I’ve ever felt that kind of draw toward any woman before.

But there’s no fucking way giving in to temptation with her wouldn’t end badly.

She knew it too. The realization hit her about the same time it smacked me upside the head. So we did the smart thing and backed away. But a minute after her cabin door closed behind her, I was under the hot water in my shower. For the first time since she started disrupting my life, I allowed myself to wrap my hand around my dick and picture her while I stroked.

Better an imaginary Sage than the real one, because what I pictured doing to her was dirty as hell.

Now it’s a struggle to keep myself in check around her, to stop myself inventing excuses to touch her. And at times like this, when I have reason to? My palm on her back to correct her posture, her fingers in mine when I adjust the way she’s holding the reins, my hand sliding down her leg to show her how to position it. Fuck. Riding lessons are becoming a damn minefield. The more time I spend with her, the harder it is to remember why keeping my distance is the smart move.

I force myself to refocus on the lesson. “Now, walk her forward. Don’t overthink it.”

Like I can talk.

Sage and Cozy move forward, but I can sense the question still hovering in the way Sage’s attention flicks between what she’s doing and me. “Quit looking at me and keep your eyes where you want her to go.”

She quickly focuses between Cozy’s ears again, her expression going blank.

I shouldn’t have been so brusque. But the last thing I need, on top of fighting this physical attraction, is any pity Sage might suddenly feel for me.

“Heels down,” I tell her.

“They are.”

“I’m looking right at them, and they’re not.” I reach forward and tap her ankle.

With a frustrated groan, she adjusts. That sound coming from her shouldn’t affect me the way it does. I shouldn’t be wondering what it would take to make her groan in pleasure instead. Or what other sounds I could draw out of her.

I scrub a hand over my face. “Want to try trotting again?”

“Yep.”

“This time, do it like I showed you.”

She shoots me a glare, which, at this stage, is probably for the best. Then, with a click of her tongue, she urges Cozy forward. As the pace shifts from a smooth walk to a bouncy trot, her balance wavers, but before I can step in, she corrects herself and finds the rhythm.

“You feel that?” I ask.

She nods, her breath a little uneven. “Yeah. It’s… faster than it looks.”

I chuckle. “Just wait until I get you galloping.”

A smile ghosts her lips, but then she wobbles and snaps her attention back ahead.