Page 2 of The Cowgirl's Chosen Love
“Please. My arms went numb five minutes ago. I’m losing circulation in my feet.”
Lisa glanced around the small room, but there was nothing that could help her. She stepped over a couple of broken wooden slats that lay on the ground and headed back into the horse stables.
“Don’t go anywhere,” she tossed over her shoulder.
He snorted.
She found a tall barrel in the horse barn, rolling it in and placing it under his feet. She had to physically position his boots on the surface, then climb up next to him, reaching behind his back to detach the hook that sliced through his coat before coming to a stop at the thick collar.
“You’re lucky you didn’t get skewered,” she said worriedly as they made their way to solid ground.
“I’m very lucky. I’ve been offering thanks the entire time I’ve been hanging there.” Josiah shrugged, grimacing in pain as he flexed his biceps to get the blood flowing. “No idea how long I’ve been stuck.”
The man probably ached from head to toe. “Take off your coat,” she ordered. “I’ll give you a rubdown.”
She expected him to ignore her offer. Possibly excuse himself then stomp away in a manly fashion as if he’d planned the whole thing.
Instead, he wiggled his shoulders from side to side, grunting in pain as his jacket slid down. “I have zero objections, but first? I’ve got an itch between my shoulder blades, and while everything else went numb, that spot refused to do anything except get more intense.”
Lisa laughed, putting her nails to the middle of his back and scratching firmly, higher, then lower until she found the spot that made him groan. “Any particular reason you turned yourself into a wall ornament? I have no idea how you got up there.”
“Comedy of errors.” Josiah pulled an arm across his chest to stretch his shoulders as she switched to massaging. “Barn cats have a terrible sense of humour.”
“Barn cats. Ahhh, yes. That explains so much. I take it you crawled up on something to try and catch one?”
“Those slats were attached to the wall when I started. Things were going perfectly well until—”
He stopped dead, then cleared his throat and changed arms. The move made his shoulders bulge, the already-firm bundles thickening to rocks under her fingers.
Josiah Ryder was built. There was no denying that the man was in excellent shape, from top to bottom. Not only was the body pleasant to look at, his face was the kind that made a person take a second look. With high cheekbones and a firm jawline, the structure was appealing, and the layer of scruff on his cheeks, chin and upper lip did it for Lisa.
That, and his piercing blue eyes that looked directly at her as she came around and forced her thumbs into his right biceps, working out the knots that had developed while he was trapped.
His body was hot, but it wasn’t only physical attraction that hit her hot buttons. It was the slow, stealth-like smile spreading across his pretty face. The mischievous expression she’d seen during her visits had raised her curiosity and her interest, especially when he’d deliver the occasional snarky comment or out-of-the-blue anecdote with perfect comedic timing.
Intriguing. Sexy. The man had an awful lot going for him, yet every time she’d so much as cracked open a window and tried to flirt, he’d shut her down.
She forced that puzzle aside because he was being evasive, which meant she simply had to dig for details.
“Things were going perfectly well until…what?” Lisa prompted, dropping her gaze as she rubbed past his elbow and toward his wrist. Lean, muscular arms dusted with just the right amount of wiry hair.
Damn the man. He even had sexy forearms.
“Maybe I don’t want to tell you.” The words held an unexpected lilt. “You’d find some way to torment me about it from now till eternity.”
“Dude, I found you imitating a fur pelt somebody hung to dry. I’m already going to tease.” Lisa switched to his left arm, starting at his shoulder and working her way down. “Besides, I’m only here for another couple of months, so it’s not as if you’re giving me lifetime ammunition.”
His easygoing drawl vanished and he spoke sharply. Far more intensely. “You’re leaving that soon? I thought you were here to help Tamara.”
“Just until the baby arrives and Tamara is back on her feet,” Lisa explained. “The kid’s due late April. I’ve been here since December. I figure six months is long enough to spend living in her basement. By the time May rolls around, I’ll be ready to do the next thing.”
“What’s the next thing look like?”
She shrugged. “Don’t really know. It’s probably a terrible thing to confess, but I finally decided that I’m not going back to Rocky Mountain House. The rest of the details are fuzzy, but I’ll figure it out.”
“You could stick around Heart Falls,” Josiah pointed out. “There are other places to live than under your sister’s roof.”
“Maybe. I’ve got this wild urge to get on a plane and fly off to somewhere I’ve only read about in a book. But I’ve got a bit of time to decide. I only told my family my decision a couple of days ago.”
