Page 24 of Thaw My Heart

He stares at me for a moment, darting from my eyes to my lips, sending my pulse racing. “I would never hurt you the way that he hurts women.”

My heart stumbles. A rush of warmth fills me, rushing to my cheeks.

“And besides, we had a deal. Remember?”

I nod, unable to speak, replaying his words in my head.

I would never hurt you the way that he hurts women.

There’s some part of me that believes him, although I’m not entirely convinced, or ready to trust that this man standing in front of me wouldn’t hurt me. Men normally started out nice, but after a while, they turned into something mean. The only man I could ever count on is my brother, Jaxson.

“Why’d you move to Aspen Hollow?” he asks softly, pulling me from my thoughts.

I move my hands down, resting them on his chest. “To start a new life.” To escape my past and leave all the horror behind. “I needed a fresh start,” I admit after a breath.

His face softens at my truth.

“I heard that you moved back here two years ago from California. Why?”

“Who told you that?” he asks with an edge to his voice.

“People talk on the ranch,” I shrug, not wanting to sell out Blake’s honesty with me. He’s the only friend I have here. “Why’d you come back?” I ask, pushing him to answer.

Kit sighs with a pause, drifting his steady gaze along my face. “To start a new life,” he murmurs, but that sad look in his eyes tells me there’s more to it.

“Well, it looks like we have something in common after all, Cowboy,” I smile.

“About the only thing it seems,” he frowns at me.

“Besides our mutual disdain towards one another.”

“There is that,” he agrees.

I glance at the sleeve on his left forearm. “And the fact that we both have tattoos.”

“That doesn’t surprise me,” he says dryly. “Barbed wire? A tramp stamp that says rockstar?”

“That’s cute,” I glare at him. “But no.”

He stares at me for a moment, darting his gaze to my chest. “How many do you have?”

“How many do you have?” I turn the question back.

He rolls his tongue. “Three,” he says to my surprise. “Including my sleeve, which I’m counting as one.”

I smile. “One.”

“Only one?” He seems surprised.

I shrug. “Yup.” But he doesn’t seem convinced. “Do you want to know where it is, Cowboy?” I slyly smile at him.

Hot blush creeps into his cheeks. “No, I do not,” his voice catches in his throat.

“Yes, you do,” I challenge.

He sighs, looking annoyed. “Fine. Where?”

Well, he gave in easily. I’m starting to think that he can’t resist a challenge. It seems to be a soft point woven into the threads of his personality. I smirk at him, but I have no intention of answering his question. That’s a secret he’d be lucky to figure out.