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I nodded back, finding it hard to catch my breath.
“Go,” he said again, and I did.
The drive out of Hot Springs was beautiful, all rolling hills and bright green grass. It was a four-hour drive from Hot Springs to Bozeman, and I found myself zoning out for the last half of the trip. I had to pull over to look up the directions to the bed and breakfast Grant had booked, which turned out to be within walking distance of campus and situated in a quiet historical neighborhood, the property itself lined with old trees.
Wisteria climbed up the white columns holding up the covered porch as I walked up the steps of the two-story Georgian-style house. The porch was covered in potted plants, everything in full bloom. Inside, the house was immaculately clean and decorated tastefully, and an older woman named Elizabeth checked me in and showed me to my room.
I set my duffle bag on the white quilt covering the king-sized mattress Grant was so excited about and sighed deeply.
I’d made it, and I was alone.
I pulled out my phone and called Grant, pacing back and forth across the room.
“We’re fine,” he said in greeting. In the background I could hear George yelling commands, hooting and hollering as the thundering steps of a horse passing by filled my ears.
“What are you doing?”
“Working. What are you doing?”
I scowled at myself in the gold-framed vanity mirror, still pacing.
“What do you mean by working?”
“I’m out in the paddock with George and Day. Day is learning how to ride a horse—”
“Oh, God,” I groaned before he could finish. I ran my hand over my face, sitting down on the vanity stool.
“He’s having a great time,” Grant tried to assure me, sighing deeply. “Are you having a good time?”
“I just got here,” I sighed, taking off my sneakers. “I’m gonna go meet with that professor soon.”
“And then the spa—”
“I’ll go to the spa, I promise.”
“Get a massage or something.”
“You get a massage or something,” I bit back.
He laughed, a rich, hearty sound that sent a rush of heat down my spine.
“I doubt anyone here knows how to do that, Moira. Maybe take some notes during your massage and you can thank me for it later.”
He was flirting with me again. I doubted he realized he was doing it. There’d been times over the last month when this had happened; he’d say something flirty, I’d flirt back, and then… nothing. It would just end.
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
“I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t,” he replied a little breathless, which made me feel like I was suddenly suspended mid-air.
“I—” I said, then stopped myself before I could say anything I’d regret. “Thank you, Grant.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll call you if there’s an emergency, okay? Just try to enjoy yourself.”
I hung up and looked at myself in the mirror, noticing the blush now staining my cheeks.
* * *
Professor Robert Forsyth knew his stuff, and he was more than happy to tell me about the history of Montana. He would have started his long lecture at the very beginning, the dawn of time, had I not stopped him and reined the conversation back in.
