Page 17 of Let Her Buck

I blink at her in surprise. “That’s the one. Up the road past the old general store. You know it?”

“I used to live there,” she says, her voice a little quieter now. “The stable belonged to my dad before he died. We had a lot of outstanding debt…I couldn’t save it. The bank sold it off after a lot of back and forth.”

My gut tightens at the pain in her voice as she talks, the unconscious tightening of her hand around mine.

“I’m sorry,” I murmur, tugging her a little closer.

She shakes her head and gives me a small smile. “It’s okay. The new owner’s nice. She boards a lot of traveling riders’ horses. Small world, huh?”

Too small. Too close. Too dangerous.

“You wanna come with me?” I ask before I can talk myself out of it.

Her smile answers before her mouth does. “Yeah. I’d like that.”

We don’t talk much on the walk over. We don’t need to. She stays close, and our arms brush sometimes, like the silence between us is easy. Natural.

By the time we reach the stable, most of the lights are off, the place quiet except for the occasional soft whicker of horses from inside. The barn smells like a combination of fresh hay and worn leather, and a little musk from the animals. I take in a deep breath, letting the familiar smell ground me. Because right now, I feel like I’m teetering up on the edge of a cliff.

Laney steps in first, her fingers brushing along the stalls like she’s tracing ghosts.

“Beans is back here,” I murmur, guiding her to the last stall on the right.

Beans flicks his ears when he sees me, snorts like he’s unimpressed. I chuckle and pat his neck. “He’s got personality,” I say, glancing at her.

She smiles, reaching out to stroke his nose. “You mentioned. He’s beautiful.”

“He’s a menace.”

“So are you,” she teases.

I look at her then. She looks like a fairy with the moonlight streaking over her gorgeous face. She’s got hay in her hair, dirt on her shoes, and she’s smiling at me like she’s exactly where she wants to be.

I lose whatever control I had left.

I back her up against the stall, my hands braced on either side of her head. Her breath hitches, but she doesn’t look away. Doesn’t back down.

“You make it hard to think straight,” I murmur.

“Then don’t,” she whispers, voice trembling slightly.

I kiss her. Slowly at first. I let myself savor the taste of her mouth, her throaty little moans. And then I deepen the kiss, ravaging her mouth like a starved man.

Laney isn’t holding back either. Her hands are in my shirt, tugging me closer, and mine are in her hair, on her waist, her hips…everywhere I can touch without crossing a line I’m not sure I’ll come back from.

She moans softly against my mouth, and I almost lose it.

“Laney,” I groan, pulling back just enough to catch my breath. My forehead rests against hers. “I need a damn shower before I forget how to be a gentleman.”

She’s flushed and breathless and the prettiest damn thing I’ve ever seen.

“Come back to my place,” she says quietly.

“Laney.”

“It’s just up the road. I’ve got clean towels. You can shower. And then maybe…” She swallows, a slight blush coloring her skin. “Maybe we can talk.”

Talk.

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