Chapter 10
TEN
JESSE
What are you gonna do about it? I repeat the question in my head, trying to figure out if this is some sort of trick or if Aubree is really testing me.
It’s crazy. With the shit we’ve got going on behind the scenes at the ranch, and her coming back? This should be the last thing on my mind, but I go back to the twenty-something-year-old I was when she kissed me.
I didn’t realize what that meant, or what kind of gift she was giving me.
To be honest, I still can’t let myself think that far ahead, not when we’re courting danger every couple of weeks.
But tonight? I just wanna be a regular guy with the woman he hasn’t been able to get out of his mind for years.
Reaching out, I grab her hand, pulling her up and closer to me. “Let’s go.”
My voice is barely loud enough to be heard, but hear it she does. Wrapping her arms around my neck, she scoots in so that our bodies are touching. I link my arms around her waist as “Something in the Orange” starts playing from the jukebox in the corner.
She closes her eyes and leans her head against my shoulder.
The lyrics hit hard, about when your woman tucks her head between your collar and jaw. That’s right where she is right now, and if I could keep her here forever, I would. There’s an overwhelming urge for me to tell her what’s been happening.
“Bree…” I start.
“Jesse,” she whispers. “Don’t. Don’t tell me we shouldn’t be doing this, that it’s going to end before it even gets started. That it’ll end badly. Give me these few moments. Can you do that for me?”
The desperation in her voice cuts right through me.
Whatever brought her back here, whatever she’s running from, it’s eating at her just as much as our secrets are eating at me.
Maybe we both deserve this moment of peace, this illusion that we’re just two people who care about each other without all the complications.
“Yeah,” I murmur against her hair, breathing in the familiar scent that’s haunted my dreams for years. “I can give you that.”
My arms tighten around her waist, pulling her impossibly closer. The heat of her body against mine sends electricity shooting through my veins. She fits against me like she was made for this spot, like all the years apart were just a mistake that’s finally being corrected.
The song fades out, and another one begins, something slow and mournful that speaks of longing and second chances. We continue swaying, moving together like we’ve been dancing for years instead of minutes. Her fingers play with the hair at the nape of my neck, sending shivers down my spine.
“Are you happy to be home?” I ask, my lips brushing against her temple.
She’s quiet for so long, I wonder if she heard me. When she finally speaks, her voice is barely audible over the music. “I’m happy to be home, but not happy about what brought me here.”
The words hit me like a punch to the gut.
I knew there had to be something. Aubree never would have come back willingly.
She was too proud, too determined to make it on her own in the big city.
Whatever happened must have been bad enough to drive her back to a place she’d sworn she’d never return to.
“What brought you back, Bree?” I pull back slightly so I can see her face, but she keeps her eyes closed.
I feel her body tense against mine, her fingers stilling in my hair. For a moment, I think she might actually tell me. Then she opens those deep brown eyes and gives me a smile that doesn’t quite reach them.
“You’re gonna have to work a lot harder than that to get me to spill all my secrets, Jesse Nelson.”
The challenge in her voice makes something primal stir in my chest. I’ve always loved her fire, the way she never makes anything easy. Even when we were kids, she’d make me work for every smile, every laugh, every moment of her attention.
“Is that so?” I drawl, letting my hands drift lower to rest at the small of her back.
“Mm-hmm.” She leans into me again, but this time there’s a different energy between us. Less desperate, more playful. “I’m not the same girl who left here, you know.”
“I can see that.” And I can. There’s a hardness to her now that wasn’t there before, a wariness in her eyes that speaks of experiences I can only imagine. But underneath it all, she’s still the Aubree who used to steal my breath with just a look.
We dance through two more songs, lost in our own little world. The bar could burn down around us, and I wouldn’t notice. All that exists is the feel of her in my arms, the soft sound of her breathing, the way she melts against me like she belongs there.
But eventually, the music stops and the harsh overhead lights flicker on. Last call echoes through the room, shattering the spell we’ve been under. Reality comes crashing back—the ranch, the secrets, all the reasons why this is complicated.
“Guess that’s our cue,” Aubree says softly, but she doesn’t immediately pull away.
“Guess so.” I reluctantly loosen my hold on her, already missing the contact. “Come on. I’ll drive you home.”
The ride back to the ranch is quiet, filled with a tension that has nothing to do with awkwardness and everything to do with the electricity still crackling between us. Every time I glance over at her, she’s looking out the window, but I can feel her awareness of me like a living thing.
When I pull up in front of the main house, neither of us moves to get out. The silence stretches between us, heavy with all the things we’re not saying.
“Thank you,” she finally says, turning to face me. “For tonight. For giving me those moments.”
“Anytime.” The words come out rougher than I intended, weighted with promises I’m not sure I should be making.
She reaches for the door handle, but I catch her wrist, stopping her. “Bree.”
She turns back to me, and before I can second-guess myself, I’m leaning across the space between us. My hand cups her cheek, thumb tracing across her soft skin, and then my lips are on hers.
The kiss starts gentle, tentative, like I’m afraid she might bolt. But then she sighs into my mouth and her hand fists in my shirt, pulling me closer. The taste of her explodes across my tongue, whiskey and something uniquely Aubree that I’ve never been able to forget.
When we finally break apart, we’re both breathing hard. Her lips are swollen, her eyes dark with desire, and it takes every ounce of self-control I possess not to drag her back to me.
“That’s not all I’m gonna steal,” I tell her, my voice hoarse with want. “Before this is over, I’m gonna have your heart too.”
The boldness of the statement surprises even me, but I don’t take it back. I can’t. After tonight, after feeling her in my arms again, I know I’m not walking away a second time.
A slow grin spreads across her face, transforming her from beautiful to devastating. “I can’t wait to see you try, cowboy.”
She slides out of the truck before I can respond, but not before I see the challenge burning bright in her eyes. As I watch her walk up to the porch, hips swaying with each step, I know I’m in trouble.
Big trouble.
But for the first time in years, it’s the kind of trouble I’m looking forward to.