CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX Cole
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Cole
I stare at the still-annoyed little vixen beside me. It’s only a matter of time before she breaks; this is going to be the best date she’s ever had. Starting with my face between her legs and her coming on my tongue, propped up on my bathroom counter after she stepped out of the shower this morning.
Now, we’re in the tack room of the small barn at Silver Pines.
“I haven’t ridden in years,” Ginger says as I pop a cowboy hat onto her head, swiping some curls away from her cheek as I do. It’s quiet at the ranch today; Mama took Mabel to the party store in Lexington to shop for CeCe’s wedding centerpieces, so the big house was empty when we arrived. The universe is doing me a solid because the weather is perfect for a ride—warm but not insanely humid.
“Then I’m doing you a service,” I tell her as I tighten the stampede strings under her chin. I glance down at her. She’s wearing cutoff shorts, a loose flowy tank, and her trademark ivory cowboy boots. She looks delicious.
I’m just about to push her up against the wall when Wade’s right-hand man, Haden Westbrook, comes into the barn. He’s a good guy, a lot like me when I was younger, and definitely takes advantage of the whole cowboy thing with the women. He came here from the proverbial wrong side of the tracks when he was just eighteen, but he’s been loyal to Wade and our ranch for the last several years.
“Shit. Sorry, y’all. I didn’t know anyone was here. You just missed Ivy and Wade. They were heading into town for a doctor’s appointment.” He hangs some equipment up on a hook then looks back at us. “I’ll be going for a beer later with Dusty if you want to join?”
I shake his hand. “Not this time. Got plans tonight here for dinner and we’re just about to go for a ride. Raincheck?”
He looks at Ginger than back at me with a sort of all-knowing grin. “Sure man. It’s a nice day for a ride. A little wet near the east side of the river, so watch the footing, but enjoy.”
“Thanks bud,” I tell him.
“Have fun, kids,” he says with a laugh, like he isn’t four years my junior, before disappearing into one of the equipment closets.
“I’m gonna go ass over tea kettle, aren’t I?” Ginger says, a little worried.
I lean down to kiss her cheek. “Nah, I’ve got you, baby. Let’s go.”
I take her out into the field at the end of the barn loop where I have two of our quietest horses ready.
“This is Sunflower,” I tell her, gesturing to the chestnut horse she’ll be riding. “Do you remember how to get on?”
“As much as you do,” she replies coyly.
She looks at me defiantly, then pulls the little stepstool that’s leaning against the post over to her horse. I watch as she gathers up the reins, pops her foot in the stirrup and swings her leg over, mounting her horse like she does it every day. I’m starting to wonder if there’s anything this woman can’t do.
“Well, alright, clearly you don’t need my help then,” I tell her, getting on Smoke, my favorite horse to ride, just as effortlessly. If there’s one thing I can do, it’s ride a horse. Might as well have been born on one.
“Alright, ma’am,” I say with an exaggerated drawl, as though I’m from a fifties Western. “Welcome to Silver Pines. We hope you enjoy your tour. Save all your questions until the end please and watch for bandits on the trail. I reckon it’s a hot one today.” I tip my hat and trot by her. “See if you can keep up. There’ll be lunch and refreshments at the end of the tour.”
She laughs. “And what tour is that?”
I glance back at her over my shoulder. “All my favorite places, Vixen. Thought it might be nice to share them with someone,” I say, feeling freer than I’ve ever felt with this adorable cowgirl behind me in the greatest place on earth.