10
Mandisa wrapped her arms around Slade’s waist as they rode Queen-Sorrel through what seemed to be endless fields ofgreenery.
When they’d left his lab, he’d offered to take her “up the road,” as he called it, to a private dining room. She’d nixed that idea, wanting to be rid of her business suit in the worst way. He’d suggested they hit up some of the microbreweries in the area on Rainey St. as an alternative. But once he told her they were usually packed to capacity during the afternoon and evening hours, she begged him to take her back to his ranch for lunch and some of Mama Indy’scoffee.
After eating at Mama Indy’s table, enjoying both the food and the company, the evening sky was pressing upon them. They changed into riding clothes, said quick goodbyes to Slade’s family, and headed directly to thestables.
Mandisa had ridden a few times since she’d arrived. She wasn’t going to win any prizes, but she was beginning to become comfortable with the beautiful creatures Slade loved so much. He’d walked only one horse out by the time she met him. He climbed up, settled himself effortlessly in the saddle, and then offered her a hand. With quick ease, she was seated behind him, and they headed away from the main road and into a thicket oftrees.
She wrapped her arms around his waist. Soothed by his warmth and the serenity of their surroundings, Mandisa leaned into Slade, resting her cheek against his strong back, allowing the mild rhythm of the horse’s gait to lull her intorelaxation.
She didn’t recognize this part of his land. It was covered with tall trees whose branches and leaves acted as a lush veil, shielding whatever and whomever it protected from the intrusion of outsideeyes.
Mandisa snuggled closer to Slade, savoring the calm his nearness and their surroundings offered. She wasn’t clueless—after that blowup at the lab, she knew exactly why Slade had brought her here. He either wanted her to forget, or he wanted to divest himself of his memories instead. She’d wager his motivations rested somewhere dead center of both thoseobjectives.
Whatever was going on between Slade and his father, she felt its hold bleeding away from his relaxing form. The earlier tension seeped out, leaving him calm and loose as he sat in thesaddle.
She felt him pull the reins of the horse, bringing her to a soft stop. “Don’t fall asleep back there. Wouldn’t do for you to fall off. If you get hurt, you’ll have to extend your stay while yourecuperate.”
He slid off the horse with ease and held his hands out, beckoning Mandisa to lean forward. With his hands firmly planted at either side of her waist, he took on her weight, guiding her off the horse until her feet were safely planted on the ground. Slade joined one of his hands with hers and used the other to swing his saddlebags over hisshoulder.
He led her into the thick foliage, pulling back branches and leaves until they were in the middle of a clearing. Just as the last rays of the day’s sun dipped beneath the horizon, Mandisa saw the twinkling of slow-moving water in a placidstream.
“Slade…” Mandisa didn’t have words beyond the whisper of his name. It was more of a tether to reality for her as the perfection of the scene unfolded beforeher.
She felt Slade step behind her, enfolding her in his arms, the heat of his body permeating her flesh, seeping deep into the fabric of her soul. She closed her eyes and shook her head slightly. This was too much for her. It was sensory overload. To feel so much in such a short time left her raw and desperate for the man holdingher.
Slade leaned down and pressed a warm kiss to her cheek before stepping away from her and pulling her to a spot under a tree near the stream’s edge. He released her hand, pulled a blanket from his bags, and spread it across the ground. He sat down, leaned comfortably against the large tree, and crooked his fingers to beckonher.
Without thought or hesitation, she walked the few steps to the blanket and sat down between his legs, allowing him to encircle her in his arms. The moment was perfection. No sounds passed between them other than the soothing hum of the water sliding across rocks as it ebbed andflowed.
They remained that way, locked up in each other’s arms, allowing their surroundings to add to the fullness of themoment.
“This feels so right,” he whispered. His voice was so quiet she had to wonder which of them he was addressing, Mandisa orhimself.
“Hmm?”
“This…you…us,” he answered. “It feels right for us to be together here. Don’t youagree?”
Without question she did, but could she allow herself to admit that being here with a perfect stranger, doing nothing but sitting by a stream made everything in her life seemright?
“All vacations feel that way, Slade. That’s why we lovethem.”
“This isn’t just vacation fun, Mandisa. This is more than that, and I think we both knowit.”
She leaned away from him, turning slightly to meet his gaze. “Slade, we both knew this was temporary. I’ve got little more than a week left here, and I’m going back toBrooklyn.”
“But what if you weren’t, Mandisa? What if you decided tostay?”
Mandisa didn’t understand what he was asking. Notreally.
“Whatever you decide about this prospective business deal between us, I’m not ready to let this thing go. I’m not sure if it’s something that can last forever, but I know it needs more than a few weeks before we walk away fromit.”
She turned around completely, sitting cross-legged as she faced him. The crisp blue of his eyes sparkled like the water in the stream. His eyes calmed her, called to her in ways nothing elsehad.
“Slade, I live in Brooklyn. You live in Texas. We both have busy careers. How can we cultivate this intomore?”
“There’re planes, buses, cars, web cams, phones—all sorts of apps and devices that will allow us to see each other either virtually or in person. I’m just not ready to let this—or you—go,Mandisa.”
