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She’d spent a bit of time with Sierra yesterday, and of course, she’d been out on double dates with Todd and Laura.
She didn’t know Blake’s wife very well at all, nor Kyle’s cousin who lived here. Becks was married to a cowboy at the ranch too, and she handled all of their cybersecurity and online needs. She’d seen Nash from across the room several times, and that was about the extent of her friendship with Kyle’s youngest brother.
He took her up a set of steps to the raised area. She hadn’t been up here before, and the rows of cornhole came into view. “Wow,” she said.
“Someone rakes it every day,” he said. “Twice in the summer.”
The gravel lay almost smooth, and it sure did look like the raking had just happened. She swallowed, her dry throat sticking to itself. “I’m really good at cornhole,” she said.
He stepped in front of her, a playful smile on his face. He didn’t seem to be sweating at all, which was wholly unfair. Maddy felt one breath away from melting into a puddle of goo, right there all over the pristine rocks. “You are?”
“Yes, sir,” she said. Her chest puffed out a little, despite herself. “I have actual ribbons and medals.”
Kyle searched her face, his light brown eyes twinkling like amber gems. “You do not.”
“I most certainly do.” She gave him a little push against his chest. As solid as he was, he went nowhere. “I played on a team in college, in fact. We won the collegiate cornhole tournament sponsored by the American Cornhole League.”
He tipped his head back and sent laughter into the sky. “I can’t believe it,” he said through chuckles.
“Believe it, mister.” She gave him another nudge and went to examine the lanes. “It’s been a while,” she admitted as his voice quieted. “I mean, I’ve been out of college for ten years.” She could almost feel the weight of the bag in her hand, and she definitely still had the movement memorized.
“I don’t know if we should play,” he said. “Blake’s wife is super competitive. She wants to win badly.” He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, making her feel safe an loved at the same time.
She smiled and clasped her hands over his wrists. “I can throw a game or two.”
“I would never allow that,” he murmured. “We’re not throwing a friendly family game of cornhole so my brother’s wife feels good about herself.”
“I might kill them,” she said.
“We’ve all been playing for years,” he said. “You haven’t been. It might be equal.”
“Let’s you and I play right now,” she said, turning in his arms. Her mind felt lit from within, especially when Kyle didn’t respond before lowering his head and kissing her.
She kissed him back, trying to keep up with the passion she felt in his touch. He pulled away far too soon, and Maddy suddenly felt cold from head to toe without his mouth against hers. “It’s too hot to play right now,” he said.
“When is it not hot here?” she asked.
“We run all of our cornhole tournaments in the morning,” he said.
Her eyebrows went up. “Tomorrow, then? What time?”
He grinned at her. “I like this competitive side of you, Mads.” He grabbed onto her, and she yelped as he swung her around. “Very sexy.” He kissed her again, and Maddy went along for a moment before she started to laugh.
“I don’t think anyone has ever said that cornhole is sexy.”
They laughed together, and then he said, “I have to get over to the stage and clean out the private rooms there. Want to come?”
“I can’t,” she said. “I have a class in forty-five minutes.”
“Mm, okay.” He tucked her hand in his, but Maddy wanted to kiss him again.
So she did, and when she broke the connection this time, she asked, “Six-thirty, baby? You and me, right here. Cornhole. Then you can see if I’m good enough to play in the family tournament.”
“We have to sign up by tomorrow,” he said. “I suppose I can meet you here to assess your skills.” He grinned, and Maddy wondered how she’d attracted the attention of this handsome, sexy, very kissable cowboy.
* * *
The following morning,Maddy drove over to the lodge, as her cabin sat about a half-mile from it. The guests were on a different lane, and some of the staff made the walk from their private residences to the lodge or barns or wherever they were working.
