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He finally did break their kiss, and she drew in a deep breath through her nose, her eyes still closed. She wanted to hold this moment without any visuals in her mind forever, and she let it embed there before she let her eyelids flutter open.
Kyle smiled at her and tucked her short hair behind her ear. It wouldn’t stay, Maddy knew, and he tucked it again. He dipped his head lower, as he stood at least a food taller than her, and she turned her face up toward him again.
“Your lips are like honey,” he murmured just before he claimed them again. Part of her wanted to protest. She’d remembered why she’d stopped by her house in the few seconds he’d given her to breathe, and she just needed to find a box and get a few things packed.
The very idea scampered as he slid his lips along her jaw to her neck. Her heart pounded, fast and irregular, the way the beat did in a hip hop song. She clung to his biceps, all of her attention moving there and noting how strong and hard his muscles were.
Then her focus shifted to the skin along her neck, pure pleasure filling her as he continued to kiss her. “Kyle,” she managed to say, his name throaty and barely decipherable.
He lifted his head, and this time, a hint of embarrassment shot through Maddy. She didn’t say anything else, but he seemed to pick up on her feelings. He dropped his chin to his chest, and said, “Sorry. You just…” He didn’t finish the sentence, but he did step away from her and survey the kitchen.
No one would be here to see them, but Maddy didn’t think they should lose their heads so easily. For whatever reason, it sure was easy to get kissing Kyle and go too far. She wasn’t entirely sure where “too far” sat, but the way her skin tingled told her they’d neared the line.
In that moment, she realized the strap on her dress wasn’t up over her shoulder either, and she tugged it back into place. “I just need a box,” she said. “Then you can help me pick with pictures to bring.”
“From these over here?” Kyle stepped away from her recycling box, where she’d been looking for a box. She ordered a great many things online, and she broke down the boxes and kept them here until recycling day. She’d already used quite a few to take things up to the Texas Longhorn Ranch, but she pulled out one that should do the trick.
“Yep,” she said. “I’m going to go grab some curtains from my hall closet.”
Kyle didn’t acknowledge her, and she watched him arrive in front of her mantle and start examining the pictures. He’d find some with her and her students. Her and her parents. Family photos. Girls trips. She turned away from him, wondering if she could snap a pic of the two of them, figure out how to print it from her phone, and stick that in a frame she’d keep on her nightstand in the cabin she’d been given.
Some tension and awkwardness hung in the air now, and Maddy quickly filled the box with recipes she wanted, the curtains, and any pictures Kyle brought her. “Ready?” she asked, really for Brewster than for Kyle.
The human said, “Yep, let’s go,” not knowing those were the magic words for the border collie.
Brewster jumped to his feet from his position at the sliding glass door, where he liked to watch the grass wave and grow in his downtime, and trotted toward them.
She smiled at the dog. “Yep, time to go, Brewster. You need to see where we’re going to live for the summer.”
* * *
A couple of hours later,she laughed along with Kyle, Todd, Laura, and Sierra. The five of them stood with their backs against the last fence that marked the working hub of the ranch. Fields spread before them, the alfalfa rustling in the breeze. Maddy could come here and enjoy this serenity and tranquility every day, and she told herself she would.
The cause of the laughter ran in the fields in the form of canines. Brewster barked and led the pack, because he was an incredibly fast runner. He could get so low to the ground, Maddy thought he might trip over his own belly. He never had, though.
“Azure loves him,” Todd said. “Blake will be thrilled.”
“I thought Gina was taking him for walks in the morning,” Sierra said.
“Yeah, and she wants Blake to go with her.” Todd grinned and leaned into his fiancée. He planted a kiss against her forehead and turned back to the ranch. “He’ll be fine out here.” He gave Maddy another smile. “I can’t wait to see him on the cattle round-up.”
Everyone acted like border collies were rare, or hard to get. Todd could get one if he wanted one. Miles too. She knew why they didn’t, though. Border collies could literally run and run and then run some more. They were herding, working dogs, and they loved nothing more than to round up other animals and drive them home.
Over and over, Brewster would do it, and he’d never get tired of it. It was hardwired in his DNA.
Maddy squeezed Kyle’s hand as he pressed his palm to hers. “You wanna go see what they’re having for dinner at the lodge?” he asked.
“You shoulda been here when Starla was the kitchen manager,” Todd said from in front of them. “The food was better.”
“The food is still great.” Kyle trained his eyes on his brother’s back.
“I was here when Starla was here,” Maddy said. She looked over to Kyle. “She didn’t leave until a few weeks ago.”
He didn’t say anything, and Todd and Laura walked fast and he likely hadn’t heard. Maddy said, “Ashley does a good job as the kitchen manager.”
“For the most part,” Kyle said, finally tearing his gaze from his brother’s retreating back. “Yes.”
“There’s not as much bread,” Sierra complained from Kyle’s other side. “That’s my only issue. I want carbs after being out here in the heat for hours.”
