Page 26 of Smokin' Situation

Disconnecting the call, I leaned back against the side of the barn, squeezing Rhey’s fingers and lifting the back of her hand to my lips for a brief kiss.

“Thank you,” she whispered, rubbing her thumb across my knuckles. Leave it to trauma bonding to make you feel close to someone after a life-threatening event. I’d felt the spark between us the moment she first made eye contact with me yesterday morning, so I knew it wasn’t just the situation causing my chest to fill with relief that I’d been able to get to her in time.

Seraphina softly nickered from her spot across from us, pawing at the dirt beneath her hooves.

“I know, I’m sorry. You’ve been very patient.” Standing up, I moved across the barn, unstrapping the saddlebag and throwing it over the edge of the stall door next to where I’d hooked up Phi. Shifting to the side, I unstrapped the back cinch of the saddle next, lifting the stirrup over her back and working the knot loose on her front cinch.

She nosed my shoulder, pushing against me. “Yeah, I know. You want it off. I’m working on it.”

Tracing my hand across her hindquarters, I hooked the cinch straps on the saddle and lifted it from her back, laughing as she chuffed at me while I carried it to the far wall where the saddle racks were. Her reins and bridle were next, and I wished I had a halter handy to tie her up, but I had a feeling she didn’t have any plans to stray.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” Rhey asked, standing on the far side of the horse and wringing her hands together.

“Can you head out back and see if you can find the water spigot and a hose? I don’t need to do a full bath, but she’s gonna need some water.” She nodded, headed toward the door to the barn. I watched as she peeked outside, glancing out the door to either side. “Should be around the back.”

I pulled the sweaty saddle blanket off Phi’s back, laying it over a post underneath the saddle and then returned with a brush. She breathed softly, occasionally pushing against my side with her nose as I brushed her down, making sure she was okay after our adventure through the woods. Rhey returned a few moments later, a worn green hose trailing behind her.

“I had to hunt down the shut-off valve to turn the water back on, but I found a hose.”

She met me halfway as I walked toward her, squealing when I wrapped my arm around her back, hauling her forward to lay a searing kiss on her lips.

“What was that for?” She seemed a little dazed when I pulled the nozzle out of her hands and stepped back.

“You opened the door to kissing, if you want me to stop, just say the word.”

She shook her head, her cheeks turning pink. “No, uh. You can keep kissing me.”

“Good to know,” I commented, stepping inside the first stall and hunting for the water bucket. Phi followed me in when she heard the spray hit the bottom, shoving her head in and drinking deeply as I filled it up the rest of the way.

I wasn’t sure how fresh the hay was, so I opted for what was in the sealed feed box, scooping out a small portion and hoping it wasn’t too stale.

Rhey was quiet as I worked to get my horse settled, closing her into a stall so she didn’t wander overnight. She knew the ranch better than I did, but there were too many dangerous things at play to let her roam tonight.

“You ready to go check out our digs for the night?” I asked, closing the door to the barn so other animals stayed out of it overnight.

“Wow, old man, dating yourself with that lingo,” she teased, bumping her shoulder with mine.

“You’re not that much younger than me,” I replied. “At least you don’t seem like it.”

“Is that your way of fishing to see how old I am?” Her tone was teasing, but she wasn’t wrong. I’d told Kate she was in her late twenties, but I didn’t really know how old she was.

“Did it work?” I asked, grinning at her.

“You’re a lot more charming than you initially seemed. But you can put away the dimples. I’m thirty-one.”

So, she wasn’t much younger than me at all. I fleetingly wondered if she would have been in the same graduating class as Jay, since my younger brother was also thirty-one. But I didn’t even know if she’d been around when we were in high school. Girls hadn’t been my focus back then, so I probably wouldn’t have noticed her. Not like I was aware of her now.

Deciding to be upfront since we didn’t have much of a gap between our ages, I responded without prompting. “I’m thirty-five.”

“Practically a fossil,” she teased, and I fought the urge to throw her over my shoulder as we headed down the trail toward the closest cabin.

“Only thing hard about me is…”

Her laughter cut me off, making my chest warm. “Wow, maybe I preferred you quiet and brooding. Your mouth is almost worse than the guys back at the bar.”

“I was going to say my head, but since you brought it up, literally. You know other thingscanindeed get quite hard around you.” And they were continuing to stay hard around her. Women who could hold their own were a major turn on. Despite my lingering anger, I couldn’t deny I was attracted to her even more strongly than yesterday.

“Well, keep it in your pants for now. I’m sure I’m disgusting. My skin is covered in soot.”

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