Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Cash
The mare’s been skittish all morning. Ears flicking back at every little sound and gust of wind, jumpy at the slightest touch. I move slow and steady, letting her circle the pen until she starts to settle the way I knew she would.
It’s about trust. It always comes down to trust.
People like to think there’s some big secret when it comes to training horses, but at the end of the day, it’s about building a relationship with the animal. When they learn they can trust you, that’s when it all clicks.
I suppose not every human is inherently trustworthy, though. A lesson I’ve learned quite well.
Just another reason why I prefer horses to most humans.
I’m so focused on Chestnut, I don’t notice her right away.
“Morning,” comes a soft voice behind me.
When I glance over my shoulder, my gut clenches, and my cock twitches in my jeans.
Kali Collins.
She’s leaning on the rail, bundled in a slightly more appropriate jacket and boots that make her look like she’s headed out on a hike instead of a day at the ranch. At least she doesn’t look like she’s going to slip and fall with every step.
Her long dark hair is tied back in a braid. Her eyes are bright and her lips…
Dammit.
I have no business looking at this woman, thinking the things I’m thinking.
She’s a reporter.
The enemy.
And I’d do well to remember that.
Regardless of the dreams that had filled my night and woken me with a raging hard-on.
Or maybe that’s exactly why I should remember exactly who Kali Collins is.
“Morning,” I say carefully.
She smiles. “I thought maybe I could watch you work this morning,” she says. “I promise you won’t even know I’m here.”
Doubtful. My body is very aware of her.
Not that I’ll admit it.
I shrug, going for nonchalant. “Do what you’ve got to do. But no sudden movements. She spooks easily.”
“I promise I’ll be careful.” She looks pleased I didn’t put up a fight. I don’t like it, that hasn’t changed. But I told her yesterday I’d let her ask a few questions, and I’m a man of my word.
Besides, Wyatt laid into me last night after dinner, making it more than clear that the ranch needs this, so whether I like it or not, I need to play nice.
If my brother had any idea of how nice my dreams about the young reporter were, no doubt he wouldn’t want me anywhere near her.
I give Kali one last look before turning back to Chestnut.
I was afraid the horse might object to having an audience, but it’s almost as if she’s happy to have Kali watching.
Her nervousness disappears while I move around the ring with her.
After a few laps, she’s leaning into me and even nuzzling my arm a little.
“You’re really gentle with her,” Kali says softly on our third lap as we draw close. “Is that always the approach?”
I keep my focus on the mare, but Kali’s question gets the flicker of a smile out of me. “Most of the time,” I say. “You can’t force trust. Not with horses.”
“Not with people, either.”
That makes me turn to her, but she’s jotting something down in her notebook. When she looks up, she asks, “So, it’s more about reading the signs and following the horse’s lead?”
“It is.” I don’t even bother hiding my surprise.
Chestnut nudges me with her big nose, and I reach up to stroke her neck.
She seems to like Kali, so we take a few steps closer to the edge of the corral.
“Every twitch of her tail, every breath…she’s telling me something.
It’s my job to listen,” I say as we get closer.
“Like now, I think she’s letting me know that she likes you. ”
“Me?” Kali’s eyes grow wide. “You think she likes me?”
I can’t help but smile at the excitement on her face. I nod because it’s true. “Do you want to pet her?”
“Are you serious?” Kali’s mouth drops open and I have to swallow hard to push the image of those pink lips wrapped around my cock out of my head.
Focus, Cash!
“I sure am.” I reach out and take Kali’s free hand, guiding her slowly toward Chestnut. With her hand flat, I press it lightly to the horse’s neck.
“She’s so soft,” she breathes.
I hold onto Kali a moment longer than necessary, but when she starts moving her hand slowly up and down in gentle strokes, I pull away.
The horse leans into the touch.
“She’s incredible.”
My eyes don’t leave Kali. “She is.”
With every second that passes, I find my feelings toward this woman shifting. Chestnut seems to like her, and I’ve always said that horses are some of the best judges of character I’ve ever met. And since I can’t seem to get out of spending time with her…
“Have you ridden before?” The question slips from my mouth before I can think twice about it.
“Ridden?” Kali turns so quickly, I’m afraid she might spook Chestnut, but miraculously, the horse doesn’t seem affected. “You mean, on a horse?”
“Yes.” I chuckle as her skin flushes a very cute pink. “Have you ridden a horse before?”
She swallows hard and shakes her head. “I mean, maybe I sat on a pony at the fair once.”
“That doesn’t count.”
Before I can talk myself out of it, I slip through the wooden rails, take her hand in mine, and start leading her toward the barn. “Come on.”
She blinks. “Where are we going? What about Chestnut?”
“She’ll be okay in the corral for a few minutes.” I focus on her small hand in mine. She doesn’t pull away, and her touch feels good. “You can’t be on a ranch and not have ever ridden a horse before.”
“What?”
“We’re going to fix that.”
“You’re serious?” Her light laughter washes over me.
“Deadly.” I glance over her. “You want the full story, don’t you?”
She nods.
“How can you write about horses if you’ve never ridden one?”
It’s not exactly the question I want to ask, but it’s the only appropriate one.
We reach the barn. I release her hand to push open the door. Kali hesitates, biting her lip between her teeth. “I’m not sure I’m really dressed—”
“I’ll find you a flannel,” I interrupt, already reaching for a saddle. “You’ll be okay.”
When I look up again, she’s still standing there, watching me. That same spark of something passes between us again. Curiosity? Attraction? Maybe both.
But for the first time since she showed up, I stop fighting it.
Kalli
The horse is bigger than I expected.
Much bigger than the mare out in the corral.
I look up at the horse and then back to Cash. “Are you…how am I supposed to…he’s so big.”
Cash’s easy chuckle hits me low in the gut. “Easy,” he says, stretching a hand out to me. “Put your foot in the stirrup here.”
I hesitate. “And then what?”
“And then...” He huffs out another laugh, low and soft. “You swing your leg up and over him. Don’t overthink it. Joey is a gentle giant.”
“Joey? Joey the horse?”
Cash nods. “He just goes by Joey.”
That makes me laugh, but only for a moment before I once more look back toward Joey and his…hugeness.
“Honestly,” Cash says. “It’s not hard.”
“Easy for you to say,” I mutter, staring at the saddle as if it might bite.
“Don’t worry.” Cash moves closer to me, his voice drops low. “I’ve got you, Kali. Promise.”
I take his hand and look in his eyes.
Trust.
That’s what he’d said about the horses. This moment didn’t feel any different, and looking into his dark eyes, I don’t see any reason not to trust him.
I take his hand before I can talk myself out of it. His palm is rough and warm against mine, steadying me as I lift my foot up into the stirrup. His other hand comes to my waist, guiding me up, firm but gentle.
There’s nothing more to his touch than assistance. It shouldn’t make my heart race like this.
But it does.
Everything about this man makes my heart race and my breath come quick.
By the time I settle onto the saddle, my pulse is in my throat. Cash is still close, adjusting the reins, his fingers brushing my knee.
“See?” He looks up at me. “It’s not so bad up there, is it?”
I take a moment to assess the situation. It really isn’t all that scary at all, despite how high off the ground I am.
“Not yet,” I whisper, making Cash laugh.
“Wait here.” He starts to walk away as if I’d go anywhere. Or that I even know how. I watch while Cash quickly saddles a black and white spotted horse. He moves with the ease and confidence of a man who’s been doing it his whole life.
With my notebook on the bench where I left it, I make mental notes about how he straps the leather buckle tight around the horse while talking soothingly to him the entire time.
He stops to pat the horse and scratch its nose as he goes, never forgetting that he’s working with another living creature.
Cash doesn’t need any help as he heaves himself up and onto the saddle with a smooth flash of masculine energy. Seeing him astride the horse just might be the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.
I swallow hard and remember myself as Cash and his horse join us.
“What’s his name?”
Cash pats his horse’s neck. “This is Oreo.”
I lift my brow, and he shrugs. “I don’t name them,” he says. “Well, not all of them.”
“I like it,” I say with a smile.
“Are you ready to go for a ride?”
There doesn’t seem to be much option now that we’re both on horseback. Besides, while I was waiting, I got more comfortable and it doesn’t feel quite as foreign sitting in the saddle as it had a few minutes ago.
“Let’s do it.”
Cash smirks. After a few basic instructions, he leads the way on Oreo out of the barn.
Thankfully, Joey seems to instinctively know what to do and, without any encouragement from me, begins to follow Cash and his horse outside.
The horses start to move a little quicker, and for a second, I panic. Then something shifts. The easy sway of his gait evens out, and the rhythm becomes almost hypnotic. My body naturally starts to move back and forth in time to the movement as we go.
Cash and Oreo lead us out into the snow-covered pasture. The crisp air fills my lungs, and the mountains stretch out around us. It feels open, and spacious, and…free.
I laugh, unable to keep the feeling inside me. “Oh my God. This is…it’s amazing!”
Cash glances back, that handsome smile that makes the skin around his eyes crinkle, stretches across his face. “You’re a natural.”
The simple comment hits me. “You think so? Really?”
He nods. “You’re doing great.”
Something in the way he says it makes me sit a little taller in the saddle and breathe a little deeper. Cash circles around, so he’s riding next to me now. He’s quiet but attentive. I try to watch him and the way he handles his horse, mimicking some of the little movements he makes.
Every once in a while, our knees brush, and every time, heat flares low in my belly.
By the time we circle back toward the barn, my cheeks hurt from smiling so much, and I’m not ready for it to be over.
“Well?” he asks as we reach the barn. “What did you think of your first ride?”
“I loved it. It was amazing. I can see why you like it so much.”
“It is pretty incredible,” he says with a chuckle.
“Honestly, it’s been a long time since I took someone on their first ride and even longer since someone loved it so much.
” I blushed. “It’s nice,” he finishes, holding my gaze for a lingering moment before swinging his leg over the horse and hopping to the ground.
When he reaches up to help me down, I take a moment to lean over my saddle and stroke Joey’s neck, whispering my gratitude in his ear. The horse’s ears twitch, which I take to mean he was just as pleased with the experience.
“Ready?” Cash says from the ground where he’s waiting, a bemused expression on his face.
“Not really, but…” I shrug and take his outstretched hand.
Cash’s hands find my waist again, strong and sure as he guides me down off the massive horse. The moment my boots hit the ground, I spin around. I’m pressed against him. Chest to chest, the solid form of the horse behind us.
We’re so close, I should step away. Say something professional. Ask him a question for the article.
Anything.
Instead, I look up.
His eyes catch mine, and something inside me just…breaks loose.
Before I can stop myself, I rise onto my toes and kiss him. It’s soft. Just a quick brush of my lips on his. But the spark it sends through me is instantaneous. Wild.
Reality hits me a second later. I gasp and pull back, my hand flying to my mouth, the words tumbling out too fast in a jumbled mess. “I’m so…I’m sorry. That was…I never should have—”
He doesn’t let me finish.
His hands slide to the back of my neck, and he kisses me. Properly this time. Slow and certain. The kind of kiss that steals the air right out of my lungs and makes every thought about why I shouldn’t be doing exactly this disappear.
His mouth is warm, the rough stubble on his cheeks, rough against my skin. His breath mingles with mine until I can’t tell where I end and he begins.
When he finally pulls back, I’m dizzy. My heart racing.
And the only thing I know is that I’m in more trouble than I’ve ever been in my entire life.