Page 35 of Cabins Cows Critics
“Hell yes,” he says, smile growing wide. “Okay, so you said it’s a romance and there was a big, strong, handsome cowboy. Oh, you said there was a twist, but you never told me what it was,” he says, mouth open in exaggerated disbelief. “And after I made you coffee and everything.”
“Okay, okay, I’ll tell you,” I say, and he settles back against the tree again, sliding his hands under my ass to lift me, and I sink deeper into his lap.
“That’s better,” he says, kissing along my jaw.
“I thought you wanted to hear about the twist?” I say, and he hums.
“I can multi-task,” he murmurs, kissing further toward my neck and sending a shiver through me.
“It’s really hard to remember what I wrote when you’re doing that,” I reason.
“So you haven’t gotten to this stage in your book yet?”
“What do you mean?” I ask as he lifts his head.
“It’s a romance, so there will be…romantic times between your big, strong cowboy and his lover, right?” he asks, and I feel my face go a degree warmer.
“There is…will be. I mean, I haven’t… I’m really not explaining this right.”
“Okay, I’ll behave,” he says, kissing me quickly on the lips and moving his hands back to the small of my back.
“Why do I get the sense you’re lying?”
“Because you’re smart.” He chuckles and kisses me again.
“My main character is smart, too. He’s a detective, actually.”
“Ohhh, the cowboy and the cop.”
“And the killer,” I say, and his brows go up.
“Tell me more.”
The excited grin on his face is just adorable as he listens to me explain the first couple of chapters and the plan I have for the first half of the book. I’ve never really talked about my writing, I mean, except for with Wen, and she’s my best friend, so we talk about everything. This is different; while Wen is genuinely supportive, Connor is outright excited.
“Oh, oh, like when the butcher of Bakerville turned out to be an actual butcher?” he asks, bouncing me excitedly in his lap.
“Yeah, I thought the city cop could come to town following clues from murders all across the state, and he suspects the cowboy, so he tries to get close to him, you know…to see if he can catch him in the act or slipping up, or whatever—“
“But they fall for each other?” he interrupts.
“Yeah, but I don’t know how they find the real killer yet, and I sort of need to figure that out to weave in the clues for the reader through the book, too.”
“Oh, what if the cop falls for him but still thinks he could be the killer, and he maybe finds something that points right to the cowboy as the killer, and he has to choose to confront him or turn him in or whatever?”
My pulse quickens as I turn over his suggestion in my mind, playing out the different scenarios until I stumble on one that clicks.
“I think that will actually work, yes, I need to write this down,” I say, moving to climb off him, but he pulls me close and links his thick arms around me, pinning me to him. “Oh, do you want a special thank-you for giving me the idea?” I ask, but he shakes his head.
He slides his hands under my ass and somehow manages to stand, holding me to him in one smooth movement. He’s moved us enough away from the tree that I can link my feet behind his back.
“I will take a kiss,” he says, and I cup his face and bring my lips slowly toward his, pausing a breath away.
“I’m not sure that is a high enough price you’re charging me. It was a really good idea,” I say, and he laughs.
“I don’t want payment. You don’t owe me anything, ever.”
“So the kiss—“
