20. Presley
Chapter 20
Presley
Watching Kade Montgomery on a horse is…
Wow.
I think I’ve developed a cowboy kink. Or a Kade kink. Am I into kink now?
I feel hotter than the sun as memories of last night make their way into the forefront of my mind again . Not that I’ve been able to forget—it’s all I can think about.
I may have fibbed a little when I said I wasn’t sore. While it’s not bad, occasionally my jeans and underwear rub against my skin just right, and it burns a bit. But I like it. Because he’s right—it reminds me of him and what we did. And while I didn’t think I’d want to be reminded of being spanked, fingered, and brought to tears fully clothed over his lap, I find I’m not that embarrassed. At least, not in the way I thought I would be—it’s more so because I liked it.
“Presley,” Kade calls to me from atop Big John. I’m standing outside the gate of what he called a “round pen.” Which is literally that: a circular pen made with metal piping. “Are you hearing anything I’m saying?”
I smile bashfully. “Um, can you repeat it?”
He shakes his head, but I can see he’s amused. “One of the most important things is to stay relaxed. Keep your heels down, your hips open, and your seat”—he points to his ass—“in the right position. We don’t want you to be pinching your knees.” He shows me what he means by gripping the horse with his knees, making his heels pop up. Then he puts his heels down and relaxes again. “See?”
“I see.”
He continues to walk the horse around the circular pen. “Big John here won’t give you any trouble, but it’s important not to be tense while on a horse. They respond to your seat, to your emotions. If anything were to happen, if they were to get spooked, the best thing to do is to try to remain as calm as possible.”
“You’re not making me want to get on him.”
That throaty chuckle of his reaches my ears. At one point, it would’ve annoyed me, but now his laughter sends tingles up my spine.
“Just watch me a bit more, Lemon. He’s harmless. I would never put you in danger.”
His words wrap around my heart, and I feel another one of my walls start to crumble. How is this man getting into my system so quickly? Should I be worried?
Trying not to think too much—like I normally do—I focus on Kade.
As he walks Big John around the pen, he tells me more about the basics of riding. How to steer the horse, how to use my legs, different vocal cues. One thing does become clear: Big John seems like a good boy. I have to admit he’s kind of cute, too. He’s a dark reddish-brown color that almost looks mahogany in the right light, and I like his long black mane and tail. My favorite part, though, is that he’s got a white marking on his forehead that looks like a heart.
Kade clucks to the horse and tells him to trot. At first, Big John doesn’t listen, so Kade gives him a little tap with the spurs he put on his boots earlier. The horse finally picks up speed, but it’s slow.
Kade laughs, the sound carefree and light. I like seeing him like this, so unlike the man I first met .
“Well,” he calls, “nobody will be winning any barrel races with this guy, but he’ll do fine for what we need him for.”
I don’t know what he means by any of that, but I watch Kade for another ten minutes, enjoying the way he works with the large animal underneath him. He talks to Big John a lot as he rides, patting his neck and moving the horse around like he could do it in his sleep. I allow myself to forget about anything and everything and let watching him become an almost religious experience. He’s good at this. Really good at this.
Yep, I definitely have developed a Kade kink.
After a while, he brings Big John to a stop near where I’m standing—still safely outside the pen—then hops down. “Your turn.”
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”
Kade unlatches the gate and opens it with the hand not holding the reins. “Come in here, and we’ll go slow.”
I stare at the horse then into Kade’s soft hazel eyes. “Please don’t let me die.”
He purses his lips as I step into the pen, closing the gate behind me so I’m trapped between him, the horse, and the metal piping. “I promise,” he says, his voice low and sincere. “Nothing is going to happen to you. Trust me, Lemon.”
“I trust you,” I say without hesitation. Not only because I want to say the words, but also because it’s true. After last night and how he went out of his way this morning to care for me—making sure I ate, drank, and took ibuprofen and giving me that mentholated balm—I feel as though I can trust him, no matter how stupid that may be, especially considering my past. But I have to go with my intuition on this one, and it’s telling me that, despite the rocky start we had, I can trust him.
When Kade’s eyes light up and his entire face softens, as if those three simple words had a profound effect on him, I know I’ve made the right choice. He squeezes my bicep gently before he pulls back, motioning for me to stand at Big John’s neck .
“Stroke his neck and shoulder; chat with him for a bit.”
Even though I watched Kade talk to him, it feels silly to talk to a horse. I tentatively press my hand against the beast’s warm neck, his soft hair tickling the skin of my palm.
“Breathe, Lemon. Remember, horses feel your emotions. They’re sensitive animals, but you have no reason to be scared of Big John here.”
I do as he says and exhale, stroking down the horse’s neck. “Hi, Big John. You’re a big boy, aren’t you?” As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I feel heat creep up my neck. Why is this embarrassing?
“That’s it. You’re doing great.”
His praise has me flushing harder as I remember him praising me last night. For crying out loud—I’ve turned into a horndog after one intimate moment with him. Well, more than a moment.
But if Kade notices my reaction, he doesn’t say anything about it.
“Do you want to try to sit on him?”
I stroke Big John’s neck and look into his soulful brown eyes. “Don’t hurt me,” I tell him. The horse snorts, and I jump back, bumping into the wall of Kade’s chest.
“That was his way of saying he’s not going to hurt you,” he says, his mouth now near my ear. I allow myself to stay in his warm embrace, relishing the way I can feel his chest rise and fall as he breathes. Just as I’m about to step back, Kade leaves a lingering kiss on the top of my head like he did as I was falling asleep. I tilt my chin up at him, and he looks almost as shocked as me that he did it.
He recovers after a second and smiles so his dimples are showing. “You can do this. I know you can. I’ll be right beside you.”
I nod. “Let’s do this before I change my mind. ”
The look of pride he gave me last night returns, and I can’t help but feel fueled by it. Nobody has ever looked at me like that. Not my parents, not Derek, no one.
“Okay. I’ll give you a leg up. We don’t have mounting blocks around here, but I’ll be sure to get one for the future.” Kade has me follow him to the center of the pen then adjusts the stirrups for me so they’re shorter. Once he’s done, he motions for me to stand near the saddle.
“You’re going to put your left leg in the stirrup and take hold of the reins and the saddle horn with your left hand. Then I’m going to help swing you over by supporting your right leg and pushing you up.”
I shake my head at the thought of him lifting me up in any capacity. “Kade, no. Isn’t there a rock or something?”
“Lemon.” He lets out a sad sigh. “I don’t know what’s going through that pretty head of yours, but whatever you’re thinking, stop. Let those thoughts go, or I’ll spank them out of you again.” He taps my butt to emphasize his point, and I jump. Then he brings his lips to my ear. “Now put your foot in that stirrup, and let’s get you on this horse.”
My gaze meets his. He looks like he did last night before he spanked me, all authoritative and sexy. I find myself nodding and doing as he asks. Kade stays at my back as I wrap my left hand now holding the reins around the horn, my body tensing as I realize this is actually happening. I’m about to get on a horse.
“Just breathe through your fear, darlin’. Remember, I got you.”
I exhale the rigid breath I’ve been holding as he bends down to grab my booted calf.
“Bend your knee, and then when I count, you jump on three. Got it?” he asks.
“Got it,” I answer, bending my knee.
“Good girl.” His words send shivers up my spine as he starts to count. “One…two…three.” I jump on three, and Kade hoists me up with strength I didn’t expect. I let out a squeal as I awkwardly flop on top of Big John, who, to his credit, doesn’t move an inch.
“Look at you, Cowgirl.”
My thighs grip the large animal as my hands turn white around the saddle horn. It’s high up here, but at least I’m not afraid of heights, just mechanical failure. Or in this case, Big John failure.
Once I get my bearings, I relax my hands a little and stare at the horse’s ears flicking back and forth. It hits me then what I’m doing, and a feeling of pride begins to swell in my low stomach. I’m facing a fear of mine.
“Holy shit—I’m on a horse!” I exclaim.
Kade releases a deep belly laugh. “You’re on a horse. And you swore again.”
I smile down at him, a wide smile that has my cheeks starting to hurt. A sensation that feels an awful lot like happiness spreads through my body like wildfire.
Kade stares up at me with a look of wonder on his face, like this is the first time he’s ever seen a smile before. His hazel eyes are gentle, and after a moment, a grin to rival mine appears on his lips. The way he beams has the sensation of pride in my stomach turning into an entirely different one—one that feels an awful lot like a thousand butterflies.
The hand that’s still on my calf tightens, and he licks his lips. “Feel okay?”
I take another breath and nod. “Yeah, better than okay.”
He squeezes my calf one more time then pulls his hand away. “Good. Now put those heels down and relax your legs. You’re telling him to go right now. You’re lucky he’s lazy.”
I immediately do what he says, willing my legs and thighs to relax more. As soon as my butt sinks deeper into the seat of the saddle, the burn left over from Kade’s slaps becomes more prominent. The sensation has me biting the inside of my cheek to stifle a small groan, and my brow furrows .
When my gaze meets Kade’s, he looks like the cat who caught the canary. “So you are feeling it, huh?”
“It’s not bad.”
He tsks, tapping my thigh. “You’ll pay for that, Lemon darlin’. But let’s get you moving. We’ll talk about that later.”
“Move?!” I squeak, making Big John’s ears flick at me.
“You can’t just sit in one spot. It’s time to practice riding now. Unless you’d rather ride me.” He winks.
I’m unable to stop the huff of laughter that leaves my lips—there’s the Kade I first met. But this time, I think he means it. My nipples harden beneath my bra, and I try to clear my mind of the images he put there. He may be flirting with me, but it’s not like we’re going to take this further or do something like date. I can’t date right now, and he doesn’t do serious relationships—at least from what I’ve heard. It would be silly of me to think otherwise, right?
I blow out a long breath. “Okay, let’s try it. But don’t leave me, please.”
The words come out more pleading than I expect, and Kade’s eyes soften. “Like I said, I’ll be right here.”
“Okay.” I nod.
“Okay.” He grins, patting the horse’s shoulder. “Let’s turn this city girl into a cowgirl, Big John.”