BONUS CHAPTER COLE
From the moment that woman first looked at me across the bar, I knew I was in trouble.
Hell, I even tried to convince myself I was just being a gentleman by getting that slimy asshole, Jim Randall, to leave her the fuck alone.
But I knew that wasn’t it, best intentions aside.
Even from the other side of the room Lottie stood out.
Not just because of the city clothes – hell knows Jackson Hole sees enough of those year-round – nor even the shit-eye she was giving everyone in range.
No, it was just . . . her, something magnetic, something I hadn’t felt before.
More than just fucking beautiful. The minute I imagined her in some tight Wrangler jeans and a cowboy hat .
. . well, that was the moment I got off my ass and went over to her at the bar.
And then . . . that sexy British accent. The way she’d levelled me with a single look.
I was almost hard just thinking about it.
But then my phone rang, my brother’s name flashing up on the screen.
‘You’ve got two minutes or less, Jay – I’ve got a dozen cowboys and a whole herd to move this weekend,’ I said, shoving my hat on roughly and adjusting my jeans as I left the old barn. I needed to get a fucking grip.
‘When did you get so busy and important, little brother?’ he said, chuckling. He loved any opportunity to remind me of our five-year age gap, even though I now dwarfed him. ‘I’ve got a question to ask.’
‘This better not be something you can Google,’ I sniped, striding across the grass. I instantly scanned the property, seeing the trucks and trailers already gathered at the back of the barn, a couple of guys already raising their hands as they saw me.
But I knew who I was looking around for, and it wasn’t them.
Jay barked a laugh.
‘Who rattled your cage today? Well, does Google know whether you want to be my best man or not?’
I stopped, snapping right out of my thoughts. He and Lianne had got engaged at Christmas, but somehow I hadn’t figured I’d be a part of the wedding in this way.
‘Your . . . Oh, shit – really? Wow. I thought . . .’
‘You thought I was gonna ask Riley, didn’t you?’ he guessed, his footsteps and the sounds of horses in the barn back home echoing in the background.
‘Well yeah, he’s your oldest buddy,’ I admitted, reaching up to rub the back of my neck. ‘But, fuck, I mean, I’m honoured, man. Of course.’
There was a pause, masking what I knew would be one of his quiet smiles in return.
We’d been close growing up, especially after Mom left and shit was rough for a few years.
But once Jay had finished high school and took on running the ranch with Dad, I started with rodeo, getting good real fast, and we’d drifted apart.
‘Well now, I’m not going to pick a friend over my own goddamn brother for something like this, am I?’ he replied. ‘I’m gonna warn you, though, Lianne will be dragging you to suit fittings, rehearsal dinners and hell only knows what else.’
I groaned, setting off again and heading for the gate.
‘And a speech, right?’ I said, shaking my head at what I’d just agreed to.
‘Yep. Oh – and watch yourself around some of her girlfriends. A couple of shots and they’re gonna be climbing you like a fucking jungle gym.’
I snorted, reaching down to place my hand on the gate and vaulting over.
‘Those days are in the past,’ I muttered as I lifted the phone back to my ear. My attention was drawn yet again to searching through the people around the corral and barn, slowing as I finally spotted long, dark, curly hair.
She turned at the same moment, in conversation with Bailey. My heart all but stopped when she smiled, watching as it lit her eyes. I wanted to smile with her, despite knowing it would fade if she saw me, knowing I could kick myself for being an ass the other day.
‘You still there?’ Jay asked as I approached Domino and untied her from the fence, leading her around the side of the trailer. ‘What’s with you? Wait – I’ve heard there’s a new girl up there at the Diamond Back. Don’t suppose that’s . . .’
‘Gotta go, brother,’ I said, cutting him off. ‘Tell Lianne to call me about fittings or whatever she needs, okay?’
I swung onto Domino, pocketing my phone and smiling as I heard the end of one of Carter’s jokes. One of the ex-Elk Creek managers, now at a ranch over the border in Montana, he’d brought a bunch of guys to help out. Thankfully his riding was better than the jokes.
‘Hey man, thanks for coming along,’ I said, pulling up alongside him.
‘You’ve got it,’ he replied, turning in his saddle along with everyone else as the sound of galloping hooves thundered across the field.
Bailey and Lottie had taken off, dust rising in their wake.
Lottie was lowering herself, hair streaming, letting Jasper extend himself fully, ears pricked forward and the kind of youthful energy I’d never seen in him before.
Lil had told me she was a natural with horses, that they responded instantly to her, but I realized how quickly I’d dismissed it – dismissed her – the minute she’d talked about the city.
But it was clear how much Jasper loved her, that even Bambi, the most skittish baby girl we’d ever had here, had all but fallen asleep after Lottie had brushed her down.
Fact was, this was my shit to deal with. And, more than that – given how I couldn’t stop thinking about that girl, about that kiss – I was gonna need to do something pretty fucking drastic to turn it around.
‘Say, that the new girl?’ Carter asked as a couple of the others started whooping and laughing. ‘Diamond Back really does have all the good views over this side, huh?’
‘Knock it off,’ I growled, before gesturing for everyone to start moving. ‘That’s Lil’s cousin and she’ll have your hide for talking that way.’
‘Whose hide?’
Lil strode over on Penny, tipping her hat to the guys as they moved off to follow Bailey and Lottie, all of them nodding to her. Carter gave me a knowing grin as he left.
‘You know how nothing stays quiet in a small town. They were just talking about Lottie arriving.’
‘Huh.’ She arched an eyebrow. ‘And did they mention the fact that a certain cowboy was spotted sweet-talking the new arrival at Shelby’s Bar?’
Fuck .
‘Hey, I was just stopping Jim Randall getting his dirty hands on her. Made sure she got back to her motel, okay?’
I received my second dose of Dean shit-eye in as many days.
‘And yet somehow you said nothing about meeting each other when I thought you first met by the wood store?’
Double fuck .
I shrugged.
‘I didn’t want to embarrass her, she was roostered.’
She paused for a moment, then shook her head.
‘Listen,’ she said, drawing closer. ‘That girl’s got steel at her core, but she’s not nearly as tough as she looks right now. She’s having a shitty time – no thanks to a man – so whatever’s going on here with you two, you ease the hell up on her, okay?’
I frowned, instantly wanting to know who’d done that to her, feeling even more like the asshole she’d accused me of being.
‘Yes, Mom,’ I replied, unable to help myself smiling with her and realizing with an uncomfortable jolt how similar her smile was to Lottie’s.
‘Cole Miller, I love you dearly, but so help me God . . .’
I held my hands up.
‘I’m just messing with you, okay? I’m gonna make it up to Lottie. We’ll be the best of friends by tomorrow.’
She groaned as I moved Domino on, glancing up at the others, now way up the field.
‘Cole,’ she warned, doing the same with Penny. ‘I know your way of making friends with hot women—’
‘Race ya,’ I grinned as we moved into a lope, picking up speed once in the longer grass.
‘Asshole,’ she laughed, holding onto her hat as Penny sprinted to catch up.
I gritted my teeth, all too aware that she was the second woman to give me that title recently.
After setting up camp, finishing our food and settling down for the night, Jesse and I sat on the log outside the tent.
As Lil approached Lottie with a new hat in her hand, I doubled down on Jesse’s words, determined to focus, despite having spent the last twenty minutes distracted by the way the firelight had reflected in her hair, turning it gold.
‘. . . So I don’t know. The doctor said another break might stop me riding again, period, bulls or not, but . . . I just think I got unlucky that time. You hear how much JB earnt at World Finals last year?’
I nodded.
‘Three million.’
‘And then some with all the sponsors,’ Jesse added, shaking his head, finally noticing my distraction as Lottie put on the hat and smiled at her cousin in a way that twisted my insides. ‘Damn, that girl is something,’ he added, under his breath.
As Lil left, we watched as she took it off and replaced it, twirling gracefully on the spot as if testing whether it might fly off. It was fucking adorable, but Jesse’s enthusiasm had my hands clenched into fists.
‘She’s right, you sure do pass for a fine cowgirl,’ Jesse called out, chuckling to himself as she startled, those beautiful blue eyes now trained on us. ‘Just be careful no one else takes it and puts it on, y’hear.’
I, wingman to Jesse’s tired-old lines for longer than I could remember, almost rolled my eyes.
‘I’m sure you’re going to tell me why,’ she said as I tried not to stare, watching as her hands moved up to her hips as her expression turned full-Dean, but her voice .
. . that accent turned the words into sharp little knives.
I looked at her, unable to help myself smiling as I felt Jesse take the hit.
‘Wear the hat, ride the cowboy – or cowgirl, Princess.’
Smooth bastard. Unflustered as ever, he added a smile – the one that usually resulted in the same outcome each time. My fists clenched at the thought of those two hooking up . . . but it wasn’t my choice.