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The softness that was once there was now gone, darkness filled his eyes momentarily before a glint of softness returned. “Pen,” he breathes out and I can hear the exasperation in his voice.
“Whatever,” I drop my eyes to the floor and I can feel Austin and Conrad’s eyes burning into me.
Inhaling deeply, I ignore the silence that is screaming around us and walk towards the main doors of the stables. My cheeks burn as humiliation slaps herself across them and my throat burns from trying to push down the lump that’s lodged itself there, growing thicker and larger as the seconds pass.
I have no idea what I ever saw in Riggs Rivera, but whatever it was, it’s long gone. He is an entitled ass who holds grudges over childish, stupid shit that happenedyearsago.
“Hey, Pen is it?” I hear Conrad’s voice echo through the stalls, footsteps falling behind me and I spin quickly, angrily swiping away the stray tear that escapes.
“Aspen, actually,” my voice quivers and I ignore the way my heart weeps in my chest. Ignoring the urge to knot my fingers, I slip them into the back of my jeans.
“Aspen,” he smiles back at me, his lips widening, and I focus on just how beautiful he is. Conrad is clean beautiful. Tidy, clean shaved and most likely a well-dressed man, hard to tell with his dirty jeans and old leather chaps. Not like Riggs who is dirty, burly and scruffy… but not even in a bad way. In an absolute delicious way.
In a way that makes me want to spend hours undressing him, to have him ruin me in a way no other man has then piece me back together between the bedsheets. Tangled deep within them, losing ourselves in each other.
“Sorry,” I blink, knowing full well I have missed everything Conrad has just said to me.
“Drinks? Tonight? Are you free?” he smiles, a glint in his eye. “The Old Dusty Boot and maybe a little stargazing?” he chimes, stepping closer to me.
I smile. A real, genuine smile. My eyes crease and my stomach flips with anticipation.
“Sounds perfect, I would really like that.” I break eye contact for just a moment because it feels a littletoointimate. Inhaling a breath and calming my erratic heart, I lift my face, my eyes on his. A piece of loose hair falls in front of my eyes and my hand reaches up, my nails pushing it back into place and I see his eyes widen at my engagement ring.
Shit.
My stomach drops.
“I didn’t realize you were spoken for, I’m sorry, please…” he stammers, slowly stepping back but I hold my hand up to stop him. My eyes frantic. I am so used to wearing the ring I forget I have it on.
“I’m not, I mean, I am… maybe? I was. I don’t really know,” I whisper, confusion and guilt consume me and I feel the shameless tears pricking at my eyes. I refuse to blink because I don’t want a single tear to fall over what Luke did to me.
“Right…” he cocks his head as he stares at me, he thinks I am lying. He doesn’t believe me.
“It’s complicated,” I admit, because it is complicated. My tongue feels too big for my mouth suddenly, my throat dry.
After a beat of silence, a slow, crooked smile creeps onto his lips, his eyes narrowing and I watch his throat bob up and down. “Isn’t everything?”
“I’ve not handled this very well,” a nervous laugh escapes and I drop my head for a moment as my brain whizzes a hundred words at me. Tilting my face up, I catch him staring at me. “I’m not with him, but I’m not quite ready to…” I pause and suck in a deep breath.
“It’s okay,” he moves closer to me, one large step and he is in front of me, his neck craned and his wide-eyed gaze on mine. “I’ll pick you up at seven?”
“That sounds perfect,” I purse my lips.
“Cool,” he gives a slow, sexy wink and turns from me to head back to where Sapphire is stalled, my eyes roaming over his back and it’s not till he steps back inside the stables that I see Riggs.
Eyes ablaze with rage, jaw locked and ticking, fists balled by his side. He takes a slow step towards me and I back away by two.
“Aspen.” And I don’t miss the warning tone to his deep voice.
“I don’t owe you anything,” my voice vibrates as I raise it a little louder and the smile that once sat on my face at accepting a date with Conrad soon slips and fades. My hands tremble and my heart thrums in my chest. “I owe you nothing,” an evident crack taints my voice before I turn and walk away.
* * *
“Maybe I should cancel,”I twist my wrist to face me, my watch ticking. Six-thirty.
“Absolutely not!” my mom tuts, shaking her head. “I have no idea what has happened between you and Luke but I think you need this. Just go, have fun, let your hair down, but don’t let that man in them pretty panties of yours,” her brows wiggle and I stand, lips parted and eyes wide at her words.
“Mom!”
