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I burst into laughter. “Physical cleansing? Now who sounds like a hippy.” When Wade wasn’t being an asshole, he had a sense of humor that was actually...funny.
“I’m no hippy.” He playfully nudged my side, making me laugh even harder. “Though I’m not sure that you are one either.”
Before I could say anything, the sound of voices drifted through the winds, causing us both to freeze. “Is someone...” my voice trailed off as the sight of two cowboys burst from the woods on the far side of the field.
“Blake! Ryder!” Wade jumped up and down, his voice full of excitement as he waved his arms like a total goober. Nerves filled my chest as they got closer, the rain beginning to fall a little harder. Before Takoda could take off toward the horses, I scooped him up, cradling him in my arms. I wasn’t great at first impressions...
“Wade, you look likeshit, man,” the trim, dark-headed cowboy said as he brought his palomino horse to a halt in front of us. He lookedverysimilar to Wade, though his face was more square and his cheekbones a little more pronounced—but they had the same eyes. The other one was blonde with a handlebar mustache and didn’t look like the two at all.
“You always look like shit, Blake,” Wade shot back at him. “Now give me your horse. You can ride double with Ryder.”
“Nah, I think I’ll take your pretty friend and her dog,” Blake chuckled, shooting me a wink. “What’s your name, darlin’?”
Ah, so he’s the charmer of the two. Makes sense.
“Cheyenne.” I clutched Takoda as his eyes landed on me, seeming to study me for a few moments.
“Has my brother been nice to you?”
“I don’t know if I’d saynice,” I joked, giving Wade a look.
He rolled his eyes before grabbing me and giving me a boost onto the horse in front of his brother. “Guess you’ll ride with him then.”
I raised my eyebrows at the move. “Okay then.”
ChapterTen
Wade
“It’s so nice to meet you, Cheyenne,” my mom said, pulling her into a tight embrace. “I hope that you can get comfortable here. We don’t have power—the tornado got our generator, but we can still make you a hot bath.”
“That would be amazing.” Cheyenne leaned away, Takoda staying close by her side. I had to appreciate the little dog, and how much he watched over Cheyenne.
“Why don’t you go help her get a bath started, Wade?” Mom turned to me, her hazel eyes and tone of voice nudging me to be a gentleman.
“Of course.” I forced a smile, Cheyenne’s bag still slung over my shoulder. “I’ll show you to the guest room and make a bath for you.”
“The west wing.” Mom pointed. “It’s got the gas kitchenette on the second floor.”
I nodded, though I immediately knew that Mom was playing matchmaker. Every floor had a kitchenette, and normally, we put guests up in the east wing—not the west wing. The west wing meant she would be stayingrightnext door to me.
“Lead the way.” Cheyenne smiled at me, gesturing toward the exit of the kitchen. “I havenoidea where I’m going.”
Mom giggled at the joke, and I shot her a look. Everyone else had congregated in the living room, and I was glad for it. Cheyenne challenged me in ways that got under my skin, but I wouldn’t be throwing any snarky remarks at her in front of Mom. I wasnotin the mood for that lecture.
“I’ll show you,” I grumbled, stepping in front of her and heading out toward my end of the house. She followed me, padding quietly across the white marble floors. Takoda’s little feet pattered along as well, his panting echoing through the empty hallways. We lived in ahugehouse, somewhere around eleven thousand square feet, and as we walked along the wall of windows, I saw the rain pouring outside.
Fuckingstorms.
“It’s really coming down out there, isn’t it?” Cheyenne’s voice carried through the silence as I started up the stairs.
“Yeah, appears so.”
“Your family is really nice,” she added, her voice a little more timid than I expected. “I wasn’t expecting them all to be so welcoming.”
“They’ll take in any stray.”
She raised her eyebrows at me as we hit the top of the stairs. “So I’m astray? Really?”
