Chapter 13 Rowan
ROWAN
Dust hung in the late afternoon air as I led the last horse back toward the barn.
“Easy, girl,” I murmured, patting the mare’s neck as she walked beside me.
The training session had gone well. Better than I expected after the fire and everything that had happened in the past few days. The horses were calmer now, the routine grounding them the same way it grounded me.
Still, my mind kept drifting.
Mostly to Tex.
I could still picture the way he’d leaned against the fence watching me ride earlier, arms folded, cigarette hanging between his lips, eyes sharp and focused like he was studying my every move.
I slid the stall door shut and latched it.
That’s when I heard it—music.
Soft at first. A few low chords drifting out from the open kitchen window of the house. I frowned slightly and stepped out of the barn, brushing dust from my jeans. The sound became clearer as I crossed the yard.
A guitar, and someone singing.
I slowed as I reached the porch. Tex’s voice was rough around the edges, deep and a little gravelly, but the melody flowed easily, the notes warm and steady. It was kind of beautiful.
I leaned against the doorframe quietly so he wouldn’t notice me, watching and listening, though mostly I was just trying to figure out this man.
Inside, Tex sat on the couch with the old guitar resting against his thigh. His head was tilted down, dark hair falling slightly across his forehead as his fingers moved easily over the strings.
For being a big, intimidating biker, the scene was surreal.
This was the same man who looked like he could break someone in half with his bare hands. He was sitting there playing music like it was the most natural thing in the world to him. Like he didn’t live in a world of half-naked women and violence.
He was an oxymoron if I’d ever seen one.
I must’ve shifted my weight or breathed too loudly, because Tex’s head lifted abruptly and he spotted me in the doorway and stopped playing.
“How long you been standin’ there, sweetheart?”
“Long enough.” I stepped inside, smiling slightly. “You should’ve been a singer instead of a biker.”
He laughed, a low, easy sound, and set the guitar across his lap. “Trust me, the world’s better off with me riding a bike instead.”
“I don’t know,” I said, walking closer. “That sounded pretty good to me.”
He shrugged.
“I bet if I were a couple of years younger, and you were a singer, I would have been screaming your name and throwing my underwear at you on stage.” I laughed, and he raised an eyebrow. “What?”
“You could still throw your underwear at me. I wouldn’t mind. Stage or no stage.”
I snorted. “Oh shut up.” But something unfurled in my belly, like a cat waking up from a long sleep and stretching itself out in the sun. How long had it been since I’d had sex? A year or more. God, did I even remember what to do?
“What are you thinking about?” he asked, and I felt my face flush with heat. “And what’s this shit about ‘being younger’?” He frowned and I rolled my eyes.
“I just mean I’m not a kid anymore. I have responsibilities and bills to pay. I don’t have time to scream at sexy men on stage and throw my good underwear at them!”
He chuckled at that, and I found myself laughing along with him. “You think I’m sexy?”
“Oh God, that’s what you got from that?” I laughed. “I think you know that you’re attractive, Tex, let’s not pretend.”
He set the guitar down and stood up, and my eyes followed his every move, my heart rate quickening. He took a step toward me, and I felt myself suck in a breath.
When he reached out, his hand going to my hair, I practically whimpered. My nipples were hard and painful, my body flushed with desire.
“What are you doing?” I asked, my voice a whisper.
He swallowed, and I watched the slow roll of his Adam’s apple. “You had a little hay in your hair,” he said. His gaze was fixed on mine as he pulled the little piece of straw from the tangle of my hair without looking away.
“Rowan…” he began, and then his cellphone rang, cutting through the heated moment loud enough to startle us both. “Jesus.”
I stepped back from him, barely able to breathe. “I’m just going to…” I waved a hand in the air and turned and left the room. I went to the kitchen and splashed water on my face, trying desperately to slow my racing heart. Moments later, I felt him come into the kitchen behind me.
“That was JD,” Tex said, and I turned to look at him. I had taken the dishtowel and was dabbing my face and chest dry, and he watched the movements with interest.
“Everything okay?” I asked. “Any news?”
He shook his head. “Nothing. Looks like the cartel have gone to ground for the time being.”
I looked away from him. “I hate this—the waiting. I feel like I’m walking a tightrope, just waiting for something to happen. I just want this over with.”
“Well, then maybe you’ll like what I’m going to say to you next then.”
I frowned and cocked my head to the side. “What is it?”
“JD wants to get them out of hiding. He wants to try and bring it to a head. The sooner this is over and done with the better, right?”
“I guess,” I replied.
“Then we can all get back to our normal lives.”
“Oh,” I said, hating how disappointed I felt at those words. “Yeah, of course, that’s what we all want, right?”
I stared at him, willing him to say something other than agreement.
“Yeah,” he replied, and my heart sank.
I wasn’t sure what I was expecting, or what I was hoping for, but it wasn’t that.
He didn’t owe me anything, and that was okay.
Maybe I just hoped that he was feeling the weird vibe growing between us too.
But it was becoming obvious that he was just Tex, a biker with a penchant for women, whiskey, and violence, and I needed to stay in my lane.
I put down the dishtowel and looked away. “So what does he suggest?”
Tex took a deep breath before continuing. “He wants to meet in town. Right out in the open. We’re going to tell all the club members, and we’re going to have people waiting.”
“And I’m guessing you want me there,” I said, slowly.
His expression hardened. “JD does. He doesn’t think they’ll come out of hiding for us, but for you…that’s a different story. You’re what they want.”
I heaved a heavy sigh, understanding what this meant. “Why haven’t they come here? I mean, it’s not like there’s a bunch of you protecting me here—it’s just you.”
Tex looked startled by my comment and frowned. “Do you not feel safe?”
“Well yeah, but—”
“Do you not think I can protect you?”
“That’s not what I said,” I replied, noting the annoyance in his tone. “Tex, I didn’t mean—”
He shook his head. “They’re not coming here because they know I’ll fucking kill them, Rowan.
You’re more protected by my side than they like.
You know this ranch and I know how to kill.
It’s as simple as that. But out in the open, things can go wrong.
Mistakes are made—and that’s what they’re hoping for.
Before they had the upper hand, but not now. ”
“Tex, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to come across like that. I do feel safe with you.” I looked down at my feet. “Okay, so let’s do what JD said then. If that brings them out of hiding and gets this over and done with quicker, then we should do that.”
A heady silence grew between us, the seconds putting miles between us.
Finally, Tex spoke. “Okay, I’ll let him know and we’ll get everything set up. We’ll post prospects here, and you and I will ride down together.”
My stomach did a weird little flip. “No thank you. We can take my truck.”
He shook his head and scowled. “No, we take my bike. It’s the quickest and easiest way to get you out of there if something happens.”
I cocked my head. “Seriously?”
“Serious as a man on death row.”
“Fine,” I said through gritted teeth.
He pulled out his phone from his pocket and looked at me. “Well then you better go make yourself pretty. Not that you’re not pretty already, I just mean, I know women like to do all that other shit before they go out. I’ll make the call.”
I turned toward the stairs before he could see the way my cheeks had warmed.
Upstairs in my bedroom I stood in front of the closet longer than I should’ve, wondering what to wear.
Wondering what type of woman he usually went for.
Not that I really cared, because I was who I was and didn’t intend to be anyone else for anyone.
Besides, there wasn’t actually anything going on between us.
But a woman could enjoy being looked at by a man without there being any strings attached, couldn’t she?
I took a quick shower to wash away the horse smell and sweat of the day, scrubbing myself with my favorite orange shampoo and floral bodywash, and then I shaved my legs to within an inch of their life.
When I got out, I towel-dried my hair and rubbed moisturizer over my skin.
I already knew I was overdoing it. I hadn’t made this much effort in years, but there was something about the huge, gruff man in my house that made me want to feel feminine.
That made me want to feel sexy, even if he was desperate to get our lives back to normal.
I pulled out a pair of fitted jeans from my closet and a soft black low-cut top that hugged my waist before flaring slightly at the hips. After a moment’s hesitation I swapped the jeans for a short denim skirt and added my favorite brown boots.
It was cute, but not trying too hard. At least that’s what I told myself.
My hair had all but dried and I let it fall over my shoulders before heading downstairs. I normally wore it all tied up and off my face because there was nothing worse than hair sticking to your sweaty face, but tonight was about letting loose.
Tex was standing near the door when I came into the living room. He turned and stopped, his gaze traveling slowly from my boots up to my long, tanned legs, up my waist, over my breasts, and then to my face.
Something dark and appreciative flickered in his eyes and my heart skipped a beat.
He’d washed and changed too, his dark hair smoothed back instead of falling in his eyes, giving me a full view of his handsome face.
He was wearing a plain black T-shirt with his leather cut over the top and then his brown leather jacket over that, and he smelled of soap and sandalwood and cigarette smoke.
“Well now,” he said slowly, “that outfit might cause some trouble.”
I rolled my eyes, though I couldn’t hide the small smile tugging at my lips. “Shut up. You ready or not, cowboy?”
He grabbed his keys. “Oh, I’m ready, Rowan. Trust me, for a woman like you, I’m always ready.”
I turned away so he wouldn’t see me blush or see me smile. “Come on, we’ve got a bar to get to.”
Outside, the sun was dipping low, casting warm gold across the ranch. Tex’s motorcycle sat near the porch, big and black and unmistakably powerful. I’d seen bikes before, obviously. But something about this one felt different.
Two slightly smaller bikes were next to it, and two other men stood next to them, smoking. They both looked up as we walked closer.
“Put your tongues away,” Tex grumbled, “and keep your eyes on the job. Anything, and I mean, any fucking thing happens on this ranch tonight that isn’t supposed to, and I’ll hold you both personally responsible. And trust me, you do not want that to happen. You feel me?”
Both men nodded. “Got it.”
“Good, now fuck off. Go and check the horses or something.”
The two men stalked away toward the barn and I felt sorry for them.
“Did you really need to be so mean to them?”
A low rumble of laughter left Tex’s chest and he looked at me with those beautiful blue eyes of his. “Yeah, I did.”
Tex swung his leg over his bike with practiced ease and kicked the engine to life. The rumble vibrated through the ground beneath my boots.
He glanced back at me and held out his helmet. “You coming?”
I stepped forward, hesitating for a mere second before pulling the helmet on and climbing on behind him. I settled onto the seat, feeling the warm leather against my thighs. It felt strangely natural. Like I’d been on it before. Like my body knew exactly what to do.
Tex reached back suddenly and grabbed my bare thigh, his large hand warm against my skin as he pulled me closer.
My breath caught, the air pausing between inhaling and exhaling as his large hand clutched at me.
“Gotta hold on, sweetheart,” he said over the sound of the engine.
I wrapped my arms around his waist. “Like this?” I asked hesitantly.
He reached down and pulled my arms tighter to his body, until my breasts pressed against his back and I was breathing in his musky scent. “More like that.”
I gasped at the closeness of him. The feel of his hard body pressed against me, the vibrations of the bike running through me, and the heavy thump of my heart in my chest.
“Try and move with me. Keep loose, not too uptight. You, me, and the bike, we’re going to be like one today, okay?”
“Okay,” I replied hesitantly.
He moved slowly at first and then I let out a gasp as the bike roared louder and he eased it down the dirt road. The ranch blurred past us, wind whipping through my hair as we picked up speed.
My chest pressed against Tex’s back, the heat of him solid and steady beneath my hands, I felt something not just stir and stretch, but come roaring to life.
For the first time in days, I felt something close to excitement instead of fear. And I wanted more of it.
Ahead of us, the road stretched toward town. Toward the bar. And toward the rest of the men from Tex’s club.
Tex would keep me safe. I whispered those words to myself over and over, knowing them to be true, though I couldn’t know how or why. I just knew that Tex would never let anything bad happen to me.