Page 19 of Rocky Mountain Home
Jesse wanted to fix this. He wanted to be there for her. Not sexually—hell, he was attracted to her, but this was completely different. It wasn’t about jumping her bones, but man did he want to lighten her load. He wanted to turn this around…
And there was nothing he could do. He was helpless in a way he’d never been before.
A moment later Dare patted him on the shoulder and straightened up. “Sorry. I don’t usually lose it like that. It’s not as if I spend every minute of the day and night thinking about it. Not anymore.”
Jesse shook his head. “You didn’t overreact one bit.”
“But it’s in the past,” she said. “Ginny and I were sixteen when Caleb took over the ranch, and he did his best. The other boys helped as much as they could. We kind of all worked through hell that next year. Caleb, Luke, Walker, Ginny, me and Dustin. They’re not really my brothers, but they are. Anyone else who asks I simply say they’re family, but you and I—well, our relationship is a bit more complicated than the average pair of strangers.”
Way more complicated, she was right about that.
“They’re family,” he agreed. “It makes perfect sense.”
She nodded, climbing off his lap and brushing her hands on her thighs. “Come on. I’ll show you the falls.”
As if she wanted to walk away from the memories.
Jesse followed her down the path. The dirt trail was wide enough to walk side-by-side, but they strode in silence, Dare staring ahead determinedly, Jesse considering what she’d shared.
Hell of a thing for everyone involved. Heck, Caleb had taken over running the ranch at twenty-four? A momentary twinge struck Jesse, considering he was older than that and barely responsible for himself.
“Do you all work on the ranch? I mean other than I know you’ve got the blog.”
“The guys do. Walker is on the road a bit these days—he’s riding the circuit—but Caleb, Luke and Dustin are always around. And Ginny, of course. Plus, I’ve always done my share of chores but I have less time and energy now, and the blog brings in money. Well, it’s not enough to live on. Close, though.”
“Your blog looks great. You definitely post awesome photos.”
She snorted. “Thank you for being photogenic.” She glanced over and swore lightly. “I’m sorry, do you want me to take the picture down? I should’ve asked right away.”
“No reason. The horses are out of the barn, so to speak, and there’s no getting the pictures off the internet, so you may as well get as much mileage on your blog as possible.”
She rubbed the side of her nose. “I’m so glad you aren’t an asshole.”
He was pretty sure there were mixed opinions on that assessment, but he’d take the compliment at face value. “That’s good, because one of my biggest life goals is to be considered not an asshole.”
Her sad expression brightened a little, and he counted it as a win.
They stepped out of the trees into a clearing and the falls burst into view, and the next while it was all about the scenery.
But something inside Jesse turned inexorably forward, like a set of old-fashioned wind-up gears that couldn’t be stopped until they’d reached their destination. The bright wild child who he’d played with for what he thought would be a brief moment in time was far more complicated than he’d expected.
The future was full of questions, and they’d barely even scratched the surface.
Chapter Four
What a twisted, mixed-up day. The Merriam-Webster definition of an emotional rollercoaster—Dare was nearing exhaustion.
They’d grabbed dinner-to-go from the local bar then she’d taken him around the back way to sit by the shores of Little Sky Lake for a picnic supper.
Somehow they’d gotten on to the topic of school and their favourite subjects. A random discussion, and low-key after the intense sharing she’d had to do right off the start. The storytelling was exactly what she needed to settle her soul.
Only the entire time they’d talked, there’d been this buzz of sexual awareness growing between them that she needed to fight.
Didn’t she?
The right and wrong of sexual attraction to this man was too much to consider while sitting beside him, his sleeves rolled up to reveal strong forearms, muscles flexing as he twisted the lid off a pop and handed it over.
Their fingers touched, and his gaze darted up to meet hers, a sensual smirk on his lips. “You got something on your mind, darlin’?”
