Chapter 4 #2
“Doll, your words are saying ‘Fine,’ but your face is saying ‘Oh, no.’ ” He tilts his head, studying me like I’m a new toy he’s already decided to keep. “And I’ve gotta tell you, watching a pretty girl lose her composure over me? That’s the kind of thing that makes a man sleep well at night.”
“I did not lose my composure.”
“You sure?” His eyes flick to my mouth, then back up like he’s testing how easy it is to rattle me. “Because you looked like you forgot what your own name was for a second.”
“In your dreams.”
“Mm.” That grin deepens. “Whatever. I’m still counting it.”
“I wasn’t swooning.”
“You were.”
“I was tripping. There’s a difference.”
“Sure there is.” He leans in a fraction, like he can’t help it, like he’s testing what I’ll let him get away with. “Whatever story you need to tell yourself so you can look me in the eye again.”
I open my mouth to fire back something clever…
“June! Get over here! We’re about to start!”
Kai’s eyebrows rise. “June, huh? Gorgeous name.”
“Don’t wear it out.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” He picks up the saddle he dropped earlier and hoists it back onto his shoulder like it weighs nothing. “Looks like it’s our turn to shine. See you in there, June.”
He saunters toward the corral, and I watch him go, trying to remember how breathing works.
What the hell was that?
My body is still buzzing, and my hands are shaking. His scent is lingering in my nose like it’s been permanently imprinted there, and I’m suddenly craving pineapple.
Check your pills when you get home, I tell myself. Something’s wrong. Something’s off. This isn’t normal.
Last night with Seth was weird too. The way my body reacted to his scent. And now Kai.
“You’re an Omega, right?”
How did he know? How could he possibly know?
I shake off the thought and hurry toward Belle, who’s already positioned near the corral fence with her camera ready.
“You look flustered,” she observes out loud, glancing at me sideways.
“Nah, I’m… warm. From the sun.”
“Uh-huh.” Her lips twitch. “Careful there. These rodeo stars only do temporary. Don’t go falling for them.”
“I would never.”
“Sure you wouldn’t.” She laughs and turns back to the corral, where Kai is leading the chestnut mare to the center of the arena. “Come on, Juliet. Let’s get to work,” she says to me.
Juliet. Right. Because I’m definitely not playing the romantic lead in some tragic love story. I’m the sensible one who doesn’t lose her mind over pretty cowboys with captivating smiles and scents that make her want to drown.
Keep telling yourself that, June.
Kai swings onto the mare with fluid grace, settling into the saddle like it’s an extension of his body. Belle starts shooting immediately, her camera clicking in rapid succession as he guides the horse through a series of movements.
He’s incredible up there. Wild and fearless, pushing the mare into sharp turns, sudden stops, a full gallop that ends in a controlled slide. There’s an energy to him, a reckless joy, like he’s doing this purely because he loves it and doesn’t give a damn about anything else.
“Give me something dramatic!” Belle calls out.
“Dramatic is my middle name, boss!”
He clicks his tongue, shifts his weight, and suddenly the mare is rearing up on her hind legs, front hooves pawing at the air. Kai throws one hand up, perfectly balanced, and holds the pose for three heart-stopping seconds before bringing her back down.
A cheer goes up from the cowboys gathered along the fence. Someone lets out a whistle.
“Show-off!” one of them yells, and I glance over to see who’s calling out.
The speaker is leaning against the fence with confidence, blond hair falling to his shoulders, windblown and golden in the morning light.
He’s got a short beard, closely trimmed, and green eyes that crinkle at the corners when he grins.
Checkered button-up shirt, jeans, boots, nothing flashy—but somehow he looks like he should be on the cover of a magazine anyway.
He’s ridiculously attractive. Not in the wild, dangerous way Kai is gorgeous, but in an approachable way. The kind of guy who looks like he’d be fun at parties and even more fun in private.
“Jealousy doesn’t look good on you, Carter!” Kai shouts back, and the blond one—Carter—laughs.
“Nothing looks bad on me! That’s my whole brand!”
“Your brand is being second best, and you know it!”
“In your fucking dreams!”
The banter makes everyone laugh, including me. Belle nudges me. “Too distracting for you?”
“Nope.” I fan my face with my hand, not even bothering to hide it. “Not at all.”
She grins. “Right.”
Kai finishes his set of shots and brings the mare to a stop, patting her neck affectionately. “How was that, boss? Magic enough for you?”
“Perfect,” Belle says. “Carter, you’re up!”
Handlers move forward to lead Kai’s mare away while others bring in a new horse, a gorgeous black stallion with a glossy coat. Carter pushes off the fence and approaches him, running a hand along his neck, murmuring something too low to hear.
“That’s Shadow,” Belle tells me. “Carter’s horse. They’ve been together for years.”
The bond between them is obvious as the stallion nudges Carter’s shoulder, and Carter scratches behind his ears with affection. When he mounts up, it’s seamless, one fluid motion, like they’ve done this a thousand times.
He guides Shadow in a slow circle around the corral, and Belle starts shooting. Carter moves differently than Kai, less flashy, more controlled, but there’s a quiet confidence to him that’s equally captivating. He doesn’t need to show off. He knows exactly what he’s capable of.
“Looking good out there!” Kai calls from where he’s now positioned along the fence. “Try not to put everyone to sleep!”
“Sleep is what happens when they watch you!” Carter fires back.
“That’s called being hypnotized by my beauty!”
“You mean bored to tears!”
More laughter. More banter. It’s easy to get lost in their charm.
Carter finishes his shots, poses for a few stills, and then guides Shadow toward the fence. As he dismounts, his gaze catches mine, green and warm, lingering just a moment longer than necessary.
Don’t, I tell myself. Don’t read into it. Don’t be pathetic.
The shoot continues. More cowboys cycle through—local riders, younger guys who are clearly new to this, a few grizzled veterans who know exactly how to work the camera. Belle directs, I watch and learn, and the morning slides by in a blur of horses and clicking shutters and masculine energy.
A commotion near the gate interrupts my thoughts. Murmurs ripple through the crowd, and a smattering of applause breaks out.
Belle lowers her camera, glancing over. “Ah. The last one. Always someone who runs late.”
I turn.
And my heart stops.
He’s walking toward the corral with that same unhurried confidence I remember from last night—long strides, shoulders back, like he owns every inch of ground he covers.
He’s wearing a cowboy hat today, pulled low over his face, casting shadows across his features.
Dark button-up shirt, sleeves rolled to his elbows.
Worn jeans, scuffed boots, a belt buckle catching the light.
Seth.
He enters the corral, and the crew parts around him automatically—respect or fear, I can’t tell which. His horse is already waiting, a beautiful bay with a white blaze, and he approaches it without hesitation.
My pulse is racing, palms are sweating. Every cell in my body is suddenly, intensely aware of his presence, tuned to him like a radio picking up a frequency.
“Sorry for the delay, ladies,” he says, his voice carrying across the space, not even glancing our way. Low and rough, just like I remember. “Got held up.”
He mounts the bay in one smooth motion, settling into the saddle with easy authority. Belle raises her camera.
And then he’s moving.
Where Kai was wild and Carter was controlled, Seth is something else entirely.
Raw. Powerful. He rides like he’s channeling anger, maybe, or frustration, every movement sharp and deliberate.
The bay responds beautifully, and together they move through a series of maneuvers that make my breath catch.
A dead sprint across the corral, hooves thundering against the packed earth. A sharp turn that sends dust flying. A sliding stop so precise it looks choreographed.
He’s incredible. There’s no other word for it.
“Damn,” Belle murmurs beside me. “He’s intense today.”
I don’t respond. Can’t do anything except watch him.
He brings the bay to a stop near the center of the corral, chest heaving slightly. The bruise on his jaw is visible even from here, purple and furious, a souvenir from last night that he’s making no effort to hide.
Belle finishes her shots and lowers her camera, looking satisfied. “All right, that’s a wrap on action! June, you’re up for headshots.”
I nod, grateful for something concrete to focus on.
“Gentlemen!” I call out, moving toward the crates Belle indicated earlier. “Let’s get this done so you can all get back to your terribly important rodeo and cowboy lives. Who’s first?”
Kai’s hand shoots up immediately. “Me! Do me first, doll!”
“Eager, aren’t we?”
“Always.” He drops onto the crate, legs spread wide, and angles his face with a look that’s half smolder, half mischief. “How’s this? Good enough for the camera?”
I peer through the viewfinder. He looks like a cologne ad, all sharp cheekbones and bedroom eyes and that tattoo sleeve catching the light.
“You don’t have a bad side,” I admit. “It’s actually annoying.”
“I know. It’s a blessing and a curse.” He adjusts his angle slightly. “Mostly a blessing.”
“How about something that doesn’t look like you’re trying to seduce the lens?”
“But seducing things is my specialty.”
“I’m shocked.”
He grins, and I catch it on camera. “Got what you needed?”
“That’ll do. Next.”
Carter takes his place and gives me a smile that probably devastates women across multiple states. “Any special requests?” he asks.
“Just try not to make the camera fall in love with you.”
“No promises.”
I snap a dozen shots in quick succession. The camera loves him, and he knows exactly how to work it without looking like he’s trying.
“Perfect,” I tell him. “You’re done.”
He stands, and as he passes me, he pauses. “We’ll see you at the fair tonight, then at the photo booth?”
“Yep, for sure,” I say, aiming for noncommittal, though part of me is already slightly excited to spend more time with these rodeo Alphas. Of course, that’s the wrong thing to be admitting to myself when it will only end one way… and that’s with my heart broken.
I wave the next cowboy forward, and one by one, they cycle through. I fall into a rhythm, adjusting angles, coaxing expressions, capturing something real in each face.
And then there’s Seth, who is standing at the edge of the group, arms crossed, watching me with a sharp expression. Those blue eyes are searching for something.
“Your turn,” I say, keeping my voice steady. “Have a seat.”
He approaches slowly. Sits on the crate. Doesn’t pose. Just stares at me.
My heart is racing, pounding out of control again. Stop it, I tell myself. Be professional. Be normal.
“You look familiar,” he finally says.
My pulse gives a hard, stupid kick, like my body heard his voice and decided logic could take the day off.
His brow furrows slightly, eyes narrowing the way they do when he’s lining up a ride, focused, searching. “Have we met before? Something about you…”
Yes, I want to say. Last night. You called me your scent match. You fought my ex-boyfriend in the street. You fell asleep telling me you’d remember me.
But the truth tangles in my throat.
What’s the point of handing it to him? He’s staring right through the memory like it’s fogged glass. And even if I forced it back into focus for him… what would it change?
He’s a rodeo star passing through. And he’ll remember when he needs to. I don’t need his kind of complication.
He keeps watching me, waiting, those blue eyes combing my face like he’s hunting for the missing piece.
I open my mouth—
“Seth Benton.” The name cuts in from behind me, deep and masculine, the kind of voice that doesn’t ask for attention but takes it.
Seth’s head snaps toward the sound, and I follow his gaze.
A uniformed deputy stands at the edge of the driveway, then starts toward us like he’s got all the time in the world. My stomach knots so hard it hurts.
Of course last night didn’t stay buried.
“Seth Benton,” the deputy says again, voice flat and official, “you’re coming with me. You’re under arrest for assaulting a police officer.”
God damn it, Tanner.
My stomach drops.
This is my fault.