“We’ve kissed twice now.” His voice is low and raspy. “Once I attacked you, then you attacked me.” His brow raises and I smile. “The next time, though, I don’t want either of us holding back.”
“And what if I kissed you right now?” I ask breathlessly. Every cell in my body is awake with desire. Touching him, being in his arms, is everything I remember. Only he’s stronger, sexier, and right in front of me.
He grins and moves his head toward mine. “Then I’ll take that as your swing.”
Can I resist? It’s Zachary. He’s always been a part of my soul. I don’t know that I can walk away—even if I want to. I had lived my life without him once, I’d survive it again, but I think I’d regret not trying.
“Zach,” I whisper. A part of me is stalling. The other part is asking for him to tell me what to do.
He leans in closer and my eyes close. But instead of his lips touching mine, he kisses my forehead. “I can’t tell you if you’re ready, Pres. I can only tell you that I’ve always loved you. I’ve always closed my eyes and seen you beside me. It was never over.”
“What about all the crap between us?”
“Like what?”
“Like the fact that I have two small boys who just lost their father. I’m still fucked-up from it. That I have no money and had to move home. I’ve been through so much trauma in the last six months that I can’t sleep. Everything hurts.” My eyes fill with tears. “I’m so tired of hurting. And you scare me. You can hurt me worse than you know.”
I feel the acceleration in his heart. His blue eyes are soft and warm. “I can’t guarantee that this will work. I would be lying if I said there weren’t obstacles. I know you have Cayden and Logan. I would never try to start something with you if I didn’t want your kids to be a part of my life.” He pulls me tighter. “I’ll be their friend. I’ll let them get to know me and see how not all the Henningtons are idiots.” We both laugh as I shake my head.
“Well,” I say jokingly.
“I know your husband died, and how. As for you being broke . . .” He stops for a moment. “I don’t give a fuck. Your lack of money or if you were rich doesn’t hold any weight here. I want to see where this goes, and if it works, I want to take care of you. There’s a lot of shit we have to work through. This isn’t going to be easy, darlin’.”
Nothing seems to be anymore. “I don’t want easy, Zach. I just don’t want agony.”
“I don’t ever want to hurt you.”
“I know you can’t promise that.”
“No, I can’t. But I can promise that I’m not going away easily. I’ll wear you down, Presley Mae. I’ll remind you that sometimes the reward is worth the risk.”
He kisses my nose and releases me. I stand there feeling bereft. The loss of his arms causes me to shiver.
He’ll wear me down because there’s not much resistance left in me.
I hope he’s ready.
“I DON’T THINK WE CAN ride any farther today,” Wyatt says as the sun sets in the distance. “We’ve still got a few more miles and the cattle aren’t cooperating.”
It’s been grueling the last few hours. The pace has been agonizingly slow, and no matter what we seemed to do, we were still chasing another stray for twenty minutes.
We’re about halfway, so there’s no way to go back and no way to go forward. I knew I shouldn’t have freaking done this. Somehow the gods have a way of kicking me in the teeth. Now, I’m going to be forced to camp out with Zach, Wyatt, and Vance, who has been riding with Wyatt. Fantastic.
“I need to call the boys,” I say as I walk toward the trees. “This is the last thing I need.”
Wyatt laughs. “I’ll snuggle with you. There’s always room in my sleeping bag for you, Cowgirl.”
My eyes dart to Zach as he gives Wyatt a glare that would make any man cringe. Wyatt looks back over and flips him off with a smile. “What’s the matter, Zach? Your tent isn’t working properly?”
“I’ll kick your ass so far you won’t be able to find your way back to Tennessee.” Zach’s voice is low and threatening.
“Please, I’ve seen you fight.”
“Presley,” Zach says with gritted teeth. “Why don’t you call the boys. I’ll help Wyatt with setting up camp.” He grabs the back of Wyatt’s neck, causing him to shrink. “We’ll get everything in order before you get back, won’t we, Wyatt?”
Wyatt tries to elbow him, but with no luck. “Let go before I break your nose!”
“Stop being a dick.”
“At least I have one,” Wyatt says, swinging his body around.
This is a brief glimpse into my future with Logan and Cayden.
Boys.
I shake my head and walk away. Daddy answers the phone on the first ring. “Hi, sugar.”
“How did you know it was me?” I smile. They refuse to get a phone with caller ID.
“I know when you need me.” Daddy can sometimes make everything feel better. I’ve never been more grateful for that. “How’s the ride?”
“Slow.” I sigh. “Stubborn cattle.”
He laughs. “I understand stubborn things.”
I’m pretty sure he’s talking about me. “I bet you do, Daddy.”