He fed another horse a few. “Me, Logan, Emily, Kat, Crisis and Ream lived on a farm together. Kat and Ream own it now, but this horse was one of Emily’s first rescues.” He patted the neck of the stunning white horse I’d been feeding. “His name is Havoc. And jelly beans are his favorite treats.”
I hadn’t realized the band was that close and that they’d lived together. It was like… a family. It warmed me to hear that he had that and obviously still did.
More horses wandered over and ate the candy, some bobbing their heads as they chewed the sugary treats. I fed the last of them to a compact bay horse, laughing when he spat out the black one.
Killian slid his arm around my waist and with one tug, I was up against him. “What are you doing?”
“Touching you.” His fingers brushed my bare skin between my T-shirt and my jeans sending heated shivers across my skin. His other hand cupped my chin, thumb stroking back and forth. But I noticed he was careful not to touch my lip.
The sun beamed down on us as the horses grazed nearby, while I stood in Killian’s arms. Any resistance was left back in the car or maybe even farther back at my apartment.
I melted. My body sagged into his while he held me.
Oh, God, I was in trouble.
Killian did it for me. He was confident, always had been, and maybe that was what attracted me to him in the first place. He took risks and didn’t give a shit what others thought of him. You either liked him or didn’t. And when he spoke to you, his attention was solely focused on you.
I hadn’t known him to laugh before, but I did now, and it was real. There was no pretense; it came from deep within him, and it set off sparks of colors inside me.
And finally, when Killian kissed me, it was all those things combined. Risky, confident, owning.
It was all consuming.
I thought he was going to kiss me now, but he didn’t.
“Emily is coming,” he murmured and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.
My heart dropped. That was why he was holding me. So, Emily would see us.
“Logan has been calling your cell. He’s in the house.” Emily came up beside us, and Killian slowly released me, but his finger lightly hooked my belt loop, keeping me from moving too far away.
“I left my cell in the car,” he said. He leaned in and kissed the side of my neck. “I’ll leave you with Emily. You good?”
No. I wasn’t good. I was confused and turned on and I wanted him to grab me, pull me into his arms and do a hell of a lot more than kiss me.
Emily smiled and walked away to pat Havoc.
“Yeah. Good.”
He tugged on my belt loop, so my back landed up against his chest and then his hands slid down my sides to my hips and tightened.
My breath stalled. My heart raced. My body quivered.
“You’re going to kiss me, Savvy. And when you do, there’ll be no going back.” His warm breath grazed my neck as he whispered, “Breathe, orchid.”
He released me and I spun around, stepping away from him.
He winked at me then walked away.
As I stood and watched him, his words drummed into me. He was right. There’d be no going back and that was what scared me.
“Ready to meet Clyde and Dale?”
I turned to Emily and smiled. “Can’t wait.”
But what I really wanted to do was run after Killian, leap into his arms, and kiss him.
Past Ireland
I walked down the school hallway, my lips still tingling from kissing Keeva Campbell in the Science lab when our hands bumped as we both reached for our books on the desk we shared in class. We were the last ones to leave the classroom as it was our day for cleanup, meaning making sure everything was put away.
I’d taken the opportunity and leaned in and kissed her. It was more like my mouth pressed against hers for a brief few seconds, but it was my first time kissing a girl, and I really didn’t know what to do once I got there.
A few of the older guys on the football team talked about kissing girls, but most didn’t.
My brother, Emmitt, being one of them, but he was a year and a half younger, so he wasn’t interested in girls. He thought they were disgusting.
I couldn’t wait to get home and tell him about it. He’d no doubt make a gagging sound and then want to know every detail.
I pushed open the school doors, and the damp, cool air hit me. I glanced up at the dark clouds and figured I had about five minutes to get home before it poured rain. It was a fifteen-minute walk, but I’d take the shortcut through Mr. McCurdy’s sheep field and across the bridge.
Hitching my rucksack over my shoulder, I jogged across the parking lot and climbed the stone fence. I ran across the field, hoping to make it home before I got soaked.
Rain drops fell, and I figured I was going to get wet no matter what so I slowed my pace. Da was going to be furious my new shoes were covered in sheep dung.
That was if he even looked at me.
I didn’t care. Not anymore.
And nothing could take away the excitement that I’d kissed a girl. The prettiest girl in school who said she liked me.
Reaching the other side of the field, I jumped the stone fence and headed for the bridge across the stream where Emmitt and I often went and skipped pebbles whenever Mum and Da were fighting. And they fought a lot.
The wet wooden panels on the bridge clunked as I crossed. I stopped in the center where Emmitt and I often grabbed either side of the railings and tried to make the bridge swing. It never did, but it was fun anyway.
The rain fell harder, and I peered over the side of the bridge to look at the stream below where we skipped stones. We had a competition as to who could skip the most and Emmitt was winning with six skips.
That was when I saw it.
The familiar red coat snagged on the rocks.
My heart stopped.
My stomach lurched.
My mind spun.
The water rushed around the red material making a V as if… as if something was blocking its path.
Then I knew. I knew what was obstructing its path.
“Emmitt,” I shouted.