AllFreeNovel
Share Us
16
Amuffled yet familiarvoice roused my consciousness, albeit in a hazy, throbbing fog. Fingers stroked across my head, settling in my hair.
“Sophie? Sophie, wake up.” The tension and strain in the husky voice was unmistakable. “Sophie, come on. Please.”
The words carried a distinctive tremble in them, one that made me fight my way through the pain and open my eyes.
A pair of hazelnut eyes stared back at me, inches from my face, and full of concern. As my own eyes registered the bright sunlight, a searing pain drilled through my head making me gasp.
“Steady,” Brady said, cradling my head in his hands. “Don’t move.”
I stared up at my handsome cowboy, taking a moment to mentally check each limb for damage, and also revel in his undivided attention. I smiled up at him, grateful that I had such amazing scenery to wake up to.
“I think I’m ok,” I said, moving my hands to my head to check for gushing blood.
“I’m not taking any chances. Greg’s gone to fetch the truck so we can take you to hospital.”
I sat up, ignoring the drumming in my head and Brady’s protests. “I’ve seen enough of hospitals to last me a lifetime. I’m fine. Where’s that damn cow?”
He chuckled and brushed a thumb over my cheek. “You’ve been out for nearly ten minutes. I’d rather someone checked you over to make sure you’re ok.”
“Brady, honestly, I’m fine.”
His serious edge softened into something a little more sensual. “Say that again,” he said, his volume dropping several decibels.
I frowned. “Say what? That I’m fine?”
“No,” he said, a ghost of a smile playing at the edge of his mouth. “My name.”
Tingles rushed around me, butterflies fluttered in my stomach. A surreal feeling of a reeling mind began to take over my reality, sending everything on a slow, crooked spin around me.
I grabbed a hold of his arms, gripping his solid muscles for all I was worth. “Brady,” I said, whispering. Goosebumps popped up underneath my hands, giving me all the satisfaction I needed to know on how I affected him. “Honestly, I’m fine.”
He laughed and inched towards me, those delicious lips of his looking as soft and sensuous as ever. I couldn’t take my eyes off them. Just the thought of them on me had me in a trance only he could break.
The shrill ringing of his phone cut through our moment. He frowned as he looked at the caller display but answered anyway.
“Right ok. I’ll lead her back. Come back out and carry on with the move.”
He stuffed his phone back in his pocket and took my hands, helping me up. “Think you can sit on Cody?”
“I told you, I’m fine.”
“John has taken the truck into town so I’m going to have to lead you back. By the time we get back, he should be back, too. You ok with that?”
I sighed and rolled my eyes. “I’m fine. I don’t need a hospital.”
“Head injuries are very serious, Sophie. You need to be checked over.”
I said nothing, already formulating a plan of escape. I allowed him to lift me into Cody’s saddle and followed him over to his mare who was stood a few feet away. As he occupied himself checking her cinch, I took my opportunity.
Digging my heels into Cody’s sides, I spurred him on to catch up with the others. He squealed in delight as he tore across the sandy ground. Covering the ground quicker than a racehorse, the air whipped at my face, streaming water from my eyes.
But I didn’t care.
The balloon of liberation swelling inside my chest consumed every last part of me. Happiness burst inside me like fireworks, coursing through me like an intoxicating drug. This moment of sheer elation and freedom was incomparable to anything on earth. The bond between human and horse, a true partnership both physically and spiritually, was just something else. Feeling overwhelmed, tears sprung to the surface when I thought of my own horses, my best friends, and the fact I’d given them up, failed them, for Ben—the one person who had done the one thing to me I never thought possible.
As we neared the cattle, Cody slowed himself to a walk. Rumbling hooves behind us told me of Brady’s presence. I knew he’d be livid so kept my attention focused forwards.
