I’ve lived the last five years wondering how her lips would feel against mine. Wondering how her body would feel pressed against mine like this. How her tongue would taste tangled with mine.
I’ve waited an eternity for this fucking moment and the last thing I’m going to do is let it be fleeting.
Everything around us ceases to exist. Her fingers tangle in the hair against the nape of my neck. Her lips melt into mine,tongues dancing to their own melody as we taste and tease. There’s no urgency, no rush. Just two people exploring one another in one of the most intimate ways possible—in ways I’ve only ever dreamed of doing.
All logical thought and possible regret vanishes from the crevices of my mind and is replaced with Willow, and only Willow. I don’t know what will come from this, but I know I can’t go back to the way we were before. Kissing her is like unlocking a part of myself that I’ve kept buried beneath the surface for so long. I’m done denying myself of simple pleasures like this.
Allowing myself one last drink of her, my lips slow, drawing out the tenderness before we break apart. We’re both breathless, hearts racing, chests heaving, desperate for oxygen, although mine might prefer her instead.
Her eyelids lift and the hues of blue swirl in her irises as she sucks in an uneven breath, staring down at me with her arms still around my neck. Her lips are parted, swollen and pink. A blush creeps across her cheeks as she releases one hand from behind my back and touches her freshly kissed lips with her fingertips.
My heart thumps harder. “I told you not to ask,” I murmur, my voice a low vibration, hoarse with lust and need.
Willow pulls her fingers away from her lips, hooking her hand with the other again behind my neck, and tilts her head to the side. “I’m glad I did.”
“Why’s that?” I ask, my eyebrows tugging together.
A smile spreads across her lips as she lowers her face down to mine, hovering her lips over mine. “Because I’ve been waiting for you to make up your mind.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
WILLOW
Rolling my weight back into my hips, I sit a bit deeper in my saddle and squeeze my legs around the barrel of my horse’s body, easing him into a canter as we pass the tree line along the fence. He drops his head, his neck elongated as he tucks his nose slightly, his gait a rocking motion as we move as one. I relax in my seat, my arms moving easily, my grip light on the reins as I let him move freely.
I’ve had Ace since I was twelve, and the bond I have with him is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced with a horse before. The horse I grew up riding had to be put down after a freak accident where she broke her front leg on a patch of ice. It was so unexpected and left me heartbroken at the time.
Since more than 50% of a horse’s weight is carried by their front end, a broken leg—and at the severity that hers was—is a fatal injury. Saving her would have left her with constant pain, the inability to move freely, and no quality of life.
It wasn’t a decision I was able to make since I was such a young child. My big heart and ignorance due to inexperience would have made it nearly impossible for me to make a call like that. I don’t think any parent would put that on their child. I pleaded with my father to try and save her, but after theveterinarian sat me down and explained everything in a way I could understand, I went and said my goodbyes, tears streaming down my face.
Noah walked me away from the barn and down to the house, but I didn’t want to be away from everyone. I saw Jace standing inside Finn’s bedroom window, watching the entire scene unfold. I took off down toward the river, unable to hold back any tears. It was Jace who came after me. It was Jace who held me until my sobs subsided.
And it was Jace who kissed me last night.
It was always Jace.
I haven’t stopped thinking about the way his lips felt on mine since he dropped me off last night. He kissed me first, then I kissed him. He didn’t push for anything more than that and the moment was honestly as perfect as I could have imagined it would be.
I climbed off his lap after kissing him, and we just laid side by side on the blanket, counting the stars for a little while longer. Then he drove me back to my house. A part of me expected a goodnight kiss when he dropped me off, but he didn’t. Of course he wouldn't.
What the hell would he have said if Noah had seen?
Slowing Ace down to a trot and then to a walk, we finish up the rest of our trail ride around the property. It was unrealistic to expect Jace to kiss me again. Even though we’re adults now, I don’t think it would go over any easier with Noah. Jace is one of his best friends. He trusts him with his life, and with mine. Although, I doubt he trusts him with my heart.
And if I’m being honest, I’m not so sure I should either.
It was just a kiss, get out of your damn head, Willow.
But, if he wanted my brother’s approval, he would get it.
Halting Ace outside of the barn, I swing my right leg over his back and slide down the side of his body until my feet hit theground. He lets his head drop, huffing a breath out through his nostrils as I scratch the side of his neck.
“You’re out riding early this morning.”
Stepping out past Ace’s head, I find Noah walking out of the barn. It’s just the two of us on the farm right now. Finn left yesterday evening to go meet with some new buyers who are interested in our syrup and he won’t be back until early next week. “Yeah, I figured I’d go out on a trail ride to clear my head a bit.”
Noah cocks his head, worry furrowing his brow. “Everything okay?”
