Page 53 of Spurred On

She runs, jumps, and when she gets far enough out of the water, I holler, “Let go!” She lets go, arms and long tan legs flailing around. She tucks her body just in time to land in a cannonball, splashing us all. We all cheer as she comes back up to the surface; my girl has officially completed her ranch orientation.

When she makes it to shore, the smile on her face tells me all I need to know. She may not have been born a country girl, but we’re going to make one out of her.

She walks up to me, dripping wet, and shakes her head off at me. “Well, I’d say that was a fantastic cannonball.”

“You outdid Weston, that’s for sure,” I praise as I hold out her towel, which she takes and wraps around her shoulders. She turns around and sits between my thighs as I lean back. Moments like this make me never want to leave Windy Peaks again. I let my thoughts run with that, more than I ever have. Would it really be so bad if ranch life was my only life? Getting to come home to this girl all the time? It seems like I might have a new dream brewing.

Chapter 30

Ava

Staring at myself in the mirror, I swipe some mascara over my lashes because I’m finally getting some girl time that isn’t on the clock. “Alright, Aspen will be picking me up in a couple of minutes.” She has a full girls’ day planned.

Maverick steps into the bathroom door frame, leaning against it with his arms crossed. “What are you two going to be doing?”

Looking at him through the mirror, I say, “Well, since someone hasn’t taken the time to show me around his hometown, Aspen volunteered to do it for him.” I do my best to make my tone sound serious, but I know that every second he’s been home, he’s either working the farm or here with me.

“Hey, if you were looking for a tour guide, you should have said so.” He shrugs his shoulders and sends me a toothy grin.

Faking a sigh, I dramatically say, “Too late. You’ll have to go hang out with Weston and Rhett. Maybe then they’ll cool their jets about how I’ve stolen you.”

“Well, maybe if they stopped being thirty-year-olds who act like teenage boys, they could find themselves their own women.” He steps into the bathroom and wraps his arms around my waist.

Turning around, I wrap my arms around his neck. “You’re aware you only found your own woman by getting blacked out drunk in Vegas? Maybe you shouldn’t be offering up that type of advice.”

“You know what? I’ve decided I have zero regrets about that. There’s no way my country ass would have been able to convince you to take a chance on me without extraordinary measures.” My heart takes flight at his words, leaving me with a soaring feeling. He does that a lot. Makes me feel lighter than I ever have.

“Yeah, well, I also decided I don’t regret it. So how about that?”

“Glad to hear it, sweetheart. If you decide you need to be rescued today, call me.” He leans down and pecks me on the cheek before taking a step back.

“Please do not rescue me from the only girl time I’ve had since I moved here.”

“You work with her every day.”

That is a bit dramatic. I work with her three days a week now that I’m out of orientation. I’m still not trusted to do a lot by myself, which is fine because I’m terrified nearly every moment of my shift.

“There’s no part of our job that allows for quality girl time. Especially in the ER. We’re either flushing out snotty noses or going toe-to-toe with the grim reaper.”

“He’s tried to visit me a few times. Can’t say I’m a fan,” Mav jokes. His words hit a little too close to home, stirring up the anxiety I’ve been trying to shove down since his ride last week.

“That makes two of us, anyway. I’ll be out all day. And lord knows how late. But I’ll text you if I think it will be too late, so you don’t have to wait up.” I step out into the living room.

“You know I’d wait up for you anyway,” Mav reassures me. There goes that soaring feeling again.

The knock at the door interrupts our conversation, and Aspen, being Aspen, doesn’t wait to be let in. She throws open the front door and flops onto the futon. Her long brown hair cascades down hermiddle back, loose waves as wild as she is. Her bootcut jeans hug her long legs in a way that makes me envious.

“Sure, come in, Aspen,” Mav says, shaking his head as he walks to the kitchen.

“You ready for a day of fun in Windy Peaks?” she asks as she crosses her legs.

“Yes, let’s go!” I’m excited to see what else this town has to offer. Not that the ranch and all the land around it isn’t enough, but it would be nice to see more than our eight-person friend group.

“See you later, loser!” Aspen hollers to Mav. I turn around to see him flipping her the finger. Shaking my head, I head out to Aspen’s truck. Apparently, I’m the only one on the ranch who doesn’t drive a 4x4 vehicle, and after getting a little taste of winter here, I can see why it would be beneficial.

“Alright, so I have a little lunch date for us planned. And then there’s a cute boutique we can do some shopping. No offense, but your wardrobe could use some updating. Oh! And obviously, coffee.”

“Obviously,” I reply. I need a steady three cups a day just to function.

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