Page 80 of Every Move You Make

He can’t hide that smile now. I’ve got him.

Chapter 35

New Beau

Isaiah

“Are you sure it’s okay that I come on this trip?” I ask nervously as we grab our luggage from baggage claim.

“Stop asking me that,” Dell chuckles, his long golden hair flipping over his shoulder as he hauls his bag off the conveyor belt. It’s theonlyconveyor belt and honestly I’m surprised this itty-bitty airport even has one.

“Everyone knows you’re coming,” he reassures, throwing his arm around me as we walk to the doors for both arrivals and departures. “Honestly, if you turn back now, Gram will be very upset.”

“She would?”

He nods solemnly. “She’s very old and very frail, Isaiah. This might be her last birthday. You wouldn’t take away her joy of knowing I found someone special, would you?”

Oh.“Of course not.”

He leans in and presses a little kiss to my temple and my insides flip. “Good.”

As soon as we step outside into the muggy late afternoon air, a silver Mercedes-Benz G-wagon screeches to halt in front of us. A tall, thin woman with a long, perfectly curled ponytail comes out in a huff. “Get in,” she barks, flinging her arms around Dell and then me in rapid succession. “You must be Isaiah,” she says robotically, lifting both of our suitcases and throwing them haphazardly into the open trunk. “You’re very handsome.” It’s then that I can pick upher southern accent.

“Zay, this is my sister, Brook. What’s wrong with you?” Dell asks her in a bemused tone as we both hop in. “And where is Dad? I thought he was picking us up.”

The gas pedal is floored before we even click our seatbelts. “The Lockhart's cows got out and everyone’s trying to corral them.”

Dell laughs from the back seat and I turn to him. “Who are the Lockhart's?”

“Our neighbors. They have a small dairy farm about a mile down the road from us. How many cows got out?”

“All of them.”

“Jesus Christ. How do you feel about wranglin’ some cows, bud?”

“There’s a first time for everything.”

Dell smiles and brushes his bottom lip with the pad of his thumb, glancing out of the window as farmland whizzes past. Soulful chestnut eyes flick back to mine. “There is.”

Thirty minutes later, I’m painfully aware of the difference between cowboys and city folk like myself. The funny thing is, I never really thought of myself as a city guy since I grew up in the suburbs, but compared to Dell and his family, yeah, I’m a city boy.

He’s out there chasing cows and throwing lassos, while I’ve been put in charge of standing by the property line fence. About every ten minutes, someone rides over to me with a wrangled cow or two, and it’s my job to walk them over to the enormous barn where Mrs. Lockhart then takes them. She’s nice, albeit a little annoyed at today’s fiasco.

As I walk a young heifer to the barn (after learning the difference between a cow and heifer) I gaze out on the pasture and spot Dell galloping along. Where he found a cowboy hat between the airport and now, I have no clue, but I don’t dwell on it becausedamn. He’s so… poised and confident. I mean he’s always confident, but there’s something about him riding a horse that’s doing something to me. The way his ass lifts up along with the horse’s trot; the way he’s gripping the horn of the saddle; the way I can hear him laugh from all the way over here. I want him to ride me like that.

Did I have a thing for cowboys before today? I don’t think so. Do I now? Definitely.

“Last two,” Dell calls, breaking me out of a sexy mind reel. He hops down from his white and brown mare and his dad follows suit. With that signature smile and knowing eyes, Dell hands me the reigns of his horse as we all walk to the stables.

“Hell of a way to meet you today, Isaiah,” his dad laughs, and I can finally register just how much Dell looks like his dad. He has the same dark blonde hair, cut shorter and barely peeking out from under his cowboy hat. “Thanks for helping out. I’m Reed, by the way,” he says, outstretching his hand. I shake it firmly.

“Nice to finally meet you. And it’s not a problem. How often does this happen?”

Dell and his dad share an amused look. “Too often.”

“Look who we found,” a low voice croons. I turn to find quite possibly the tallest man I’ve ever seen, leading a calf by makeshift reins with a child riding on top. “This girl was eating her way through the neighbor’s garden,” he smiles.

“Hey hey,” Dell beams, momentarily letting go of his cow to hug this giant with dark skin and an easy grin. “Steven, great to see you, man.” Ah. His brother-in-law that he told me about on the plane ride here. He played basketball in college where he met Dell’s sister, Brook, and now he coaches at the University of Kentucky.

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