Chapter 4 #3
“Hey, cousin.” My cousin, Cash Harlow, greets me. His dark blonde hair is tousled in curls on his head, with tan, glowing skin—surprising because he now calls New York his home, and he doesn’t get much sun.
“The prodigal son finally returns,” I say dryly. He’s my uncle’s only son and a bastard of a man. He only ever came home when he needed something—money. We haven’t been close in years. Hate isn’t a strong enough word for my feelings towards him.
He turns to Sadie with a crooked smile, one that worked on most women, and I shift in my seat. “You must be new. I’m Cash,” he offers his hand to Sadie.
“Sadie,” she takes it, smiling up at him, and my veins feel like they're on fire. “Wait—Cash Harlow? Cole’s son? Heir of Lone Pine Ranch?”
How the hell does she know that?
Cash gives her his best smile. “One and the same.”
Oh please. “One and the same,” I mutter. “Why are you here, asshole?” Cash being back home is not a problem I need right now, nor did my aunt and uncle. Whatever self-centered reason he’s here could only mean one thing.
Trouble.
“This is where I was born. It’s my home,” Cash replies.
“It hasn’t been your home in a long time,” I huff.
Cash rolls his tongue. “Apologies for my rude cousin. He has the social immaturity of a grizzly bear.”
I glare at him, proving his point.
“You’re too pretty a girl to be sitting here,” Cash smiles, gesturing to the dance floor. “You deserve to be out there.”
I’m two seconds from kicking his jaw in.
“Is this your way of asking me to dance?” Sadie asks.
“Would you dance with me, Sadie?” Cash offers his overpriced silver-watched hand, peeking out underneath his grey suit. A watch he probably bought with Cole’s money.
Sadie glances at me, biting her lip, unsure what to do. I hope she turns him down, just so I can see the disappointment on his face. It would make my whole night.
“Come on, let me show you a good time,” Cash pushes, pressuring her with an offer of his arm one more time.
Sadie shrugs, reaching for him. “Why not?”
My chair grates across the wooden floor as I stand in between them. “Sadie already promised me a dance.” There’s no way in hell I’m letting Cash dig his claws into her, like he does with everyone else. “Didn’t you?” I ask her while rolling up the sleeves of my flannel.
Sadie’s eyes light up in surprise. “I did.” She glances at the tattoo sleeve on my left forearm.
“You can have the next one,” Cash reaches for her arm.
“I don’t fucking think so,” I slap his hand away, staring at him with such intensity that he pales.
Being the second choice isn’t an option. I will choose violence if he doesn’t take a fucking step back.
“She asked me first.”
Cash purses his lips, glancing at Sadie, but she’s looking at me with a surprised smile on her face.
“Fine then.” Cash finally takes a step back, and my body relaxes. “Come find me when you change your mind,” he winks at Sadie. “See you around, cousin.” He strides off, back to whatever hellhole he came from.
I turn to Alaska, ignoring Ryker’s smirk that he’s had on his face since I stood up. “Can we talk later?”
“Sure,” Alaska murmurs.
“Don’t worry,” Ryker wraps his arm around Alaska. “I’ll keep her company.”
“Oh joy,” Alaska says with a slight frown.
When I turn back to Sadie, she’s chugging down the rest of her beer like a champ. I’m slightly impressed. “We doing this, Cowboy?” She wipes her mouth, removing some of her dark red lipstick with it.
Is she nervous?
“Now or never,” I offer my arm.
She laughs and hooks her arm around mine. “Better be now, or I might change my mind.”
The dance floor is crowded as Averie strums a slow and steady rhythm on her guitar. Several men who work at the ranch make eyes at me, smirking and assuming the worst as she pulls me in.
Damn small towns.
Her slender arms wrap around my neck as I pull her in, pulse quickening as my hands find the curve of her waist. Enraptured by the smell of her perfume and her hair, like some kind of flowery shampoo and warm spice. Inviting, and it shouldn’t be. Sadie is anything but inviting.
But in this moment, I forget about the guilt with Alaska, the run-in with Cash, and the new problems awaiting me at Lone Pine.
The feeling of her lace corset brings me back to this morning, when I brushed up against her bare skin by accident. I still can’t believe she decided to run in only a sports bra and tiny shorts in goddamn November in Montana. I’m only a man, and I can only forget so much.
She steps closer to me, close enough that I can hear the uneven rhythm of her breathing. I realize how small she is compared to me. How could someone so aggravating be so small and still throw such a mean right hook? This woman is nothing like she appears to be.
An enigma I can’t quite figure out.
Would she really have changed her mind about dancing with me? Or is she just trying to get under my skin?
My throat swells as her big doe eyes meet mine, flickering with an emotion I can’t decipher.
A man could get lost in their depths. She sweetly smiles underneath thick eyelashes, filling my body with heat.
Everything about Sadie draws me in. Her scent, her curves, her raspy laugh, her perfect smile, her confidence and fiery attitude…
Fuck, I shouldn’t be here. I shouldn’t be thinking about her this way. And I definitely shouldn’t have agreed to dance with her.