Chapter 12
Aura
My ass is still sore from our morning riding lesson and my arms are aching from mucking stalls in the afternoon.
Quint said I needed to learn how to care for the horses if I was going to ride them.
I think he was just trying to offload some of his chores onto me.
Regardless of the reason, my back protests as I’m struggling to maneuver my huge suitcase up and into the bed of his truck.
“Let me take that.” Quint reaches over to grab the handle.
Irritation creeps in. “I got it.” I try to pull it away, stumbling backward when my grip on the handle slips. Quint lets go too and the bag falls to the concrete with a thud.
“Are you okay?” he asks me, steadying me with his hands on my waist.
“I’m fine.” I blow my long bangs up out of my eyes, but don’t move away from his touch. It takes me back to the dance floor last night. The way he held me confidently, the way we moved in sync to the music, our bodies inches apart.
“You know I’m only trying to help you?”
He looks down at me, the brim of his hat shadowing his eyes from me again. I don’t know what it is about that thing. It shouldn’t be hot, but it kind of is. How is it that I’ve never thought about a cowboy being hot in my entire life until now?
That stubborn streak that refuses to ask for help is backed up by years of experience.
“I know. It’s just…help usually comes with strings in my world.
I’m trying to let go of that here, but it’s hard.
I know this isn’t LA, but it’s tough to lose that mindset.
So, if you can be a little patient with me, I’m doing my best.”
He nods. “I got it. Just know, if you need anything, I’m here. No strings. No expectations.”
“Thanks.” There’s a pleasant warmth at my waist where his hands are still resting.
I glance down at them, and he must take that as a signal I don’t want him touching me, because he pulls away to busy himself hefting my giant luggage off the ground like it weighs nothing.
He’s wearing a T-shirt again, grey this time, so I’ve got the full view of his arm muscles flexing as he tosses it into his truck.
I forget about trying to help when the hem of his shirt lifts to reveal a sliver of rippled abs and a small trail of hair.
No. Gotta shake that off fast. Especially now that I’m going to be living with him.
A satisfying clang rings out as he slams the gate shut after loading up the last of my bags.
“All set. You ready?”
I nod, swallowing hard and twisting my ring around my finger. It’s got a series of music notes etched in the silver. A graduation gift from Abby that always keeps me grounded even during my wildest Hollywood moments.
He nods toward the passenger door, opening it up and balancing me as I hop inside.
“It feels a little weird,” I say as the truck rumbles along.
“What’s that?” he asks without talking his eyes off the road.
“I hardly know you, and I’m moving in with you.”
“What do you want to know. I’m an open book.”
“AMA?”
His brow furrows. “What?”
“Are we going to do an ‘ask me anything’?”
“Sure?”
A hint of amusement creeps in. He must be really out of touch with the internet if he doesn’t know what that is.
“It’s like a social media thing. You do an AMA session, and people can comment with a question.
You’re supposed to answer anything no matter how outrageous it is.
Of course, in my case, it’s highly controlled by my publicity team, so the answers might not always be real. ”
“Really? And people like this? Seems a bit obtrusive.”
“It can be.”
“Well, you are welcome to ask me anything, and I promise every word will be true.”
“Okay. We’ll start easy, warm up. What’s your favorite color?”
“Easy, red.”
I smile. “Why red?”
“Oh, there’s caveats. You want me to explain it?
Hmm.” He thinks for a second. “I think it’s because red is the color of love, and it’s warm you know?
Reminds me of home.” He tilts his head to the side.
“My pickup truck. It used to be my dad’s.
We went on all kinds of adventures together in it.
He’d drive me around to meet with buyers or other breeders.
All the ranch stuff. You’d think I’d be bored, but I loved it.
Felt so grown up getting to join him. Hmm. ”
He rests one arm on the top of the steering wheel, deep in contemplation before turning to me. “How about you?”
I wag a finger at him. “Oh, no. This one is your AMA. I’m asking the questions.”
“Oh, okay, that’s how it works?”
“Yup,” I say, enjoying the reversal. Everyone is always asking me questions, wanting to get to know me and snoop on my personal life. It’s kind of fun to be on the other end.
“How about, hmm…what were you taking at school?”
“That’s an easy one too. I majored in Animal Science. Got my Bachelor of Science in Agriculture.”
I let out a low whistle. “Bachelor of Science? That couldn’t have been an easy one. So, you’re smart too.”
He grins over at me. “I get by all right. But I don’t know that I could have done that in any other science major.
I just love learning about animals and working with them.
I’ve spent my life around horses and whatever other critters are hanging around the ranch.
Goats, donkeys, some alpacas, cows.” His expression turns a little distant.
“My mom was a softie. She could never turn down an animal that needed help. I got that from her. I’ll introduce you to Daffodil later.
She was my first rescue. A sweet little donkey.
I guess that’s kind of how I got Blink too.
Although I do believe Blink may have decided I needed a rescue and appeared out of the ether to look after me. ”
“That’s an unusual name for a dog. Where’d it come from?”
He twists in his seat to face me after coming to a stop beside the family house.
“How about we get your stuff unloaded and head out for dinner. I’ll tell you about Blink and anything else you want to know.
Might be nice to have a meal alone to get to know each other better before I expose you to the chaos of a Holloway family dinner. ”
My shoulders ease up a little. I don’t even think I knew I was tense. There is that lingering question though. What’s his family going to think of me moving in with him?
“Deal.”
We’re settled into a little table in the corner of a tiny Italian restaurant.
Apparently it’s one of the few restaurants in town.
No surprise there, given the size of the place.
It’s going to be weird, though, after having every cuisine of the world, every style of restaurant at my fingertips at any given moment.
Not that I can go out to any restaurant any time I want.
Dining out has to be carefully planned in advance with one of two ends in mind: maintain as much secrecy as possible, or put myself in a carefully curated public situation and alert the media. Never a spontaneous casual meal.
The server gives us a warm smile.
She’s not what I was expecting. Her midnight black hair is pulled into a high ponytail, and she’s got the kind of piercing blue eyes that Hollywood covets. But the tattoos creeping up her neck and down her arms would provide a lot of extra work for a makeup artist.
“Gemma, hey, how are you doing?” Quint gives her his biggest smile.
“I’ve been good. We’ve all missed you around here, though. You going to come over for Friday night poker with Gramps now that you’re home from school?”
“You bet. I did sure miss illegal gambling while I was away at school.” She laughs, turning to me. I spot the exact moment she recognizes me, when her eyes widen just the slightest bit. But she recovers quickly. “Are you going to introduce me to your friend?”
Quint looks over to me with a question. I give him a slight nod. Maybe this was a bad idea, coming out. But if I’m going to be here for another month, I’m sure I’ll have to leave the safety of the ranch on occasion, so I might as well get comfortable with the odd person knowing my name.
“This is Aura. She’s staying with my family for the next month. Maybe longer. We’ll be around and about, but I’d really appreciate it if you can keep it under wraps as much as you can.”
“Of course.” She grips the tray in her pale hands, pulling it in tight to her waist. “Now what can I get you to drink?”
We order a bottle of red wine and Quint asks for garlic bread to start off.
“Gemma’s good people,” he says once she’s gone to put our order in.
“Our families have been friends for decades. After my parents died, they kind of took me and Shayla under their wings. Caleb was fine looking after us, but Mrs. Stein, Gemma’s grandma, made it her mission to make sure we grew up ‘civilized,’ as she likes to say. ” He makes air quotes beside his head.
I frown, pressing my lips together to hide my grin. “She might have some more work to do there.”
He leans in, shaking his head. “I’m plenty civilized. Don’t I always make sure to open doors for you, carry your bags, buy you dinner?”
I tilt my head up, pretending to think it over. “I guess. I’ll have to tell her what a good job she did if I ever run into her.”
“You should definitely come for poker one Friday. If you can play, that is. Gramps is a real shark. He’ll bluff you right out of your shoes if you’re not careful.”
“Illegal gambling. Maybe you’re not such a good boy.” I look up at him under my lashes. Those two words hit me in just the right spot and a bolt of lust zips through me. He just swallows hard and tucks his lower lip between his teeth. Hard to read his reaction.
“It sounds racier than it is. We gamble for candy. Licorice, Fuzzy Peaches. You know. That sort of thing.”
“I’m familiar with candy. Yes.”
“Of course.” He shifts in his seat. Did I freak him out, calling him a good boy?
I take pity on him and change the subject. “Now finish telling me about Blink.”