Chapter 10
JULES
T he weekend came quickly, and Jules knew just how she wanted to spend her first chance at free time in Wyoming. About two hours north of town, there was a wild horse sanctuary that she’d always wanted to experience, but she never seemed to have the time to make the trek from Denver between jobs.
From Sterling Ridge though, it was a simple day trip. So, with her camera bag packed shotgun and her second coffee of the day in her cup holder, she threw on her favorite suede jacket—with fringe—and hit the road.
It was one of those days that still carried a chill late in the morning, but the sun was fast to warm you, hinting at a lovely summer afternoon to come. Buzzing with anticipation, she cranked up her Lainey Wilson channel and sang along shamelessly.
She cruised along, winding through the mountain passes, until a smell caught her attention. Specifically, the smell of smoke—coming from under the hood.
Pulling off to the side of the road, she jumped out to examine her car. With the way the smoke was billowing from the slats, she was not going to risk opening the hood and getting a face full of whatever was going on in there.
“Shit, shit, shit,” she muttered, slamming her fists down on the hood and immediately regretting it when heat seared her skin. Shaking out her hands, she returned to the driver’s seat and plucked her phone from its spot in a cup holder.
Her finger hovered over Maddie’s name when she recalled the plans that her best friend had with Grey today. She wouldn’t be able to reach them out in the mountains of the ranch. And she certainly didn’t want to interrupt. Her next choice would have been Laurel, but she was on bed rest.
Which left only two other Sterling Ridge contacts in her phone, and she was hesitant to use either.
The first was Brett, who was an incredibly intimidating human.
And considering the fact that she had made it almost halfway to the sanctuary, she would be looking at almost an hour of driving back with him.
The second was Riley’s number. One she was eager to use for dangerous reasons.
All week she had been at war with her desire for him.
The last thing she needed was to spend an hour in the close confines of his truck with him.
It would be overwhelming to have him so near with the privacy of a vehicle.
But she didn’t have the self-control to scroll away from his name.
She clicked Riley’s name.
Riley
There was nothing quite like a local rodeo. It may not have had all the flash as the big arenas, but it had good people with big hearts. Competitors weren’t out here to chase money or fame, it was simply a way to do what they loved.
Riley may not have always fallen into this category, there was a time when he absolutely was chasing money and fame. But being back at the Sterling Round-Up was a blessing he didn’t want to overlook.
He leaned forward on the fence to watch the first bareback competitor fly from the chute. It was a Sunday, which meant events started as soon as morning mass ended. He sipped his coffee and studied the man atop the bucking bronco.
That used to be him out there, adrenaline coursing through his veins as he worked through a perfect spurring technique. And as Riley watched the cowboy out there, he couldn’t help but make mental notes of what he would be doing differently.
“Miss it?” an aged voice asked, the man jumping up on the fence beside him. He turned to find Colton, a fellow roughstock veteran who taught him everything he knew. Colton was good friends with his father and took a young Riley under his wing at an early age.
“Do you?” he asked in return with a chuckle. Of course, they both knew the answer. Always yes.
“You’re one hell of a roper though, son,” Colton offered with a pat to his shoulder. “Ever think about jumping in on team roping too?”
“I tried to get Grey out there with me, but he wasn’t interested. And after getting to watch him do his thing, there isn’t really anyone else I’d want to team up with.”
Colton nodded with understanding; he was familiar with the guarded team lead over at Hayes Ranch. That is, guarded to anyone outside of the ranch family. This wasn’t Grey’s scene; he wouldn’t enjoy the rush like Riley did. And Riley could respect that.
“Well either way, looking forward to seeing ya out there tonight. The family come to watch this time?”
“You’ll never catch Piper supporting me competing,” he laughed again, his eyes lifting towards the crowd.
Now that his parents were living in the steady heat of Arizona, there was hardly ever someone in those stands for him. Sometimes Cooper would come. And Grey let Maddie drag him at times. But outside of his fellow ranch hands, Riley didn’t have someone up there supporting him.
It was lonely at times. The only people that rushed to greet him at the end of his event were the same ladies that rushed to greet all the guys competing out there. And he wasn’t interested in that kind of attention.
His phone vibrated against his denim clad thigh, distracting him from the self-pity he was starting to wallow in. And when he saw the name flashing across the screen, his heart threatened to leap into his throat.
Juliette .
Giving a nod goodbye to Colton, he stepped down from the fence and crossed over to the quietest corner he could find before answering.
“Hello, Juliette. To what do I owe the pleasure?” He tried to hide the eagerness in his tone but was certain he failed.
“Are you busy? I, um, I need help.”
“Are you okay? Where are you?” Riley dragged his hand down the back of his neck and started for the parking lot. He’d call Colton from the truck to take care of his horse. All that mattered was getting to Jules.
“Oh, no. Sorry that probably sounded bad. I just broke down on the side of the road, I’m fine. It’s just, Maddie and Grey are currently otherwise occupied and I did not feel like interrupting. And well… you’re the person I know the best around here besides them.”
Forget being lodged in his throat, Riley’s heart soared instead.
A full grin split across his face as he weaved through the parking lot.
After having a restless night wondering if she was going out and meeting new guys at Wrangler’s last night, he had been frustrated that he had no reason to see her outside of work.
Professional. Why had he agreed to a professional relationship? What did that even mean? But now it looked like he got to see Jules this weekend after all.
“But if you’re busy,” she continued, “I can?—”
“I’m already getting in the truck. Tell me where you’re at.”
Tossing his Stetson on the dashboard, Riley cranked down the windows and ran his fingers through his hair. All the while, only silence carried through the phone. He started driving through the parking lot, waiting for her response.
Finally, Jules admitted, “I’m not actually sure. Everything is way more spread out around here than Denver.”
“Drop a pin and send it my way?”
More silence. Then, “My location isn’t loading.” There was an edge to her voice now, worry creeping in.
“Okay, that’s fine,” he offered calmly. “Just tell me where you were leaving from and what you were headed towards. I’ll find you.”
“I was leaving town, I’m staying in Maddie’s old apartment above the bakery. And I was heading for the Blue Sky Wild Horse Sanctuary. Have you heard of it?”
“Sure have, I’ll head your way. Just stay on the phone and describe to me how far you got.”
The remainder of the drive, he listened intently as Jules described what she recalled passing.
She didn’t explain things simply—a street sign, a clear landmark.
No, instead she described a cute blue house with a garden out front.
She talked about how the road swooped just as a clearing opened, leaving a breathtaking view for the briefest of moments.
And as he turned around that same curve, he couldn’t help but smile. Riley had driven this road more times than he could count, and at some point, he stopped noticing the view around the bend.
It really was something.
Then the road straightened, and the terrain leveled once again.
Soon, he was pulling up to a vintage car with a stunning woman climbing out of it.
She looked like she belonged in a photo shoot for a Mustang ad, the movement of her fringe jacket calling focus to the way her body swayed hypnotically with each step.
She came around to the back of her car and jumped up on the trunk, crossing one leg over the other and hooking her bottom heel on the bumper.
She had those same knee-high black cowgirl boots on from their night together. Today though, they were paired with short black denim shorts, showing off her legs that stretched for miles. With red lips and her strawberry blonde hair falling over her shoulder, Jules looked downright sinful.
“Thank you for coming to get me. It was this or walking to the bar up the way. I saw signs that it was close.”
“You were going to go to The Gin Mill looking like that? Were you going to try to replace me?” he asked as he climbed out of his truck and strode over to her.
There was fire burning in his veins at the idea of her walking into the sleaziest bar in the county looking like a cowboy’s wildest dream. The men that would be drinking there on a Sunday afternoon didn’t deserve to even give her a second glance, let alone the other things they’d want to do.
Snatching her outstretched ankle in his hand, he slid her down the car towards him until her knees straddled his hips.
“Tell me you won’t replace me at a sleazy bar,” he murmured, leaning in until their breaths mingled.
No matter how laid back he typically felt, the moment he was in her orbit, he seemed to lose his mind.
“Replace you for what?” she challenged.
“A non-professional arrangement.” He kept his hands planted on the car, tilting his chin down until their eyes met.
“You don’t want to be replaced?” she asked in a whisper, lifting one of her hands and dragging a long, black painted fingernail down his chest where the top few snaps of his shirt were undone.
His hands screamed to feel her. But if they were going to do something, he was determined to make sure she didn’t want to hide it after. “Has anything changed for you?” His voice was gravely and thick as he asked.
Lifting her other hand, she slowly began undoing his shirt further, until it was open enough for her to spread a hand across his bare chest. She pressed a palm to him and curled her fingers, lightly dragging her nails against him. Damn, this woman had the magic touch.
“Does it make you mad?” she asked. “The idea of me hooking up with someone else.”
“You’re goddamn right it does.”
Bowing her head, she dragged her nose along his jaw before nipping at his throat. The feel of her mouth on him again was sweet torture, and he pressed his hands down harder against the car.
“Show me,” she murmured against his throat.
“I don’t play games, Juliette. If you want to do this, you don’t go back to pretending nothing has happened between us. You can’t flee from a hotel room this time.”
As he suspected, his words stopped her in her tracks. She pulled back, biting her lip and studying his expression.
Jules didn’t truly want him; not like he wanted her. And he wasn’t going to give in until they were on the same page.
“That’s what I thought.” He began closing his shirt back up, ignoring the pouty frown on her unbelievably sexy lips. “Let’s go, we’ll call a tow from the truck.”
He turned and started back the way he came, forcing himself not to look back over his shoulder at her. After a few steps, he heard the sound of her boots hitting the ground.
“I wasn’t looking to replace you,” she muttered as she caught up to him. “I dress in things that make me feel good. If you like it, too, I guess that’s just a bonus.”
She yanked open the passenger door and climbed into the cab the same moment he did. Dropping onto the bench seat, she avoided looking his way.
“Who wouldn’t like the way you dress?”
“Apparently, I can be a bit much.” Her words were vulnerable, cautious. “And if you thought this was an outfit for picking up a guy at some sleazy bar , it must be true.”
Against his better judgment, he reached out and brushed her hair back over her shoulder, his knuckles grazing her soft skin. “A bit much? Whoever thinks that about you is a dumbass. Besides, I would have hated you walking to that bar instead of calling me no matter what you were wearing.”
Something between a scoff and a sigh escaped her, and she turned to face him. There was a speckle of trust in her eyes, and maybe even some hope. His Juliette was back. Not the front she put up outside just now.
Whether she actually planned to walk to the bar or not, it didn’t matter. She had called him instead. She had called him and that was what mattered.