“Did you ask Matty for my number?” Part of me is flattered he’d be so obvious to flat out ask for my number from someone else.
“No.” His reply is short, taking me by surprise. I jerk my chin then ask him,
“Ok…then how did you get my number?” He doesn’t respond for a few moments, and we bounce back and forth as Ghost carries us closer to our trailers.
“About that…” Tilting my head to look up at him, I find his eyes already on me, the gray in them almost glowing back at me.
dean
I knewthis explanation would happen one way or another. I’d been too frantic to find her to think about how I would rationalize my sudden possession of her number. I feel her staring up at me, waiting on me to answer. My mind spins with half-truths, but in the end I decide to give her an honest answer.
“Remember that night, when I ate you out in the middle of the arena?” Her gasp makes me laugh. I adjust the reins in my numb hand and reach out, letting my fingers drag along her jaw.
“Of course I remember,” she says quietly, looking around like someone will overhear her.
“When I was walking out, I found your phone in the dirt. So I put my number in.” I watch her as she mulls over my response.Half-truth.
Shaking her head, she rereads my texts. “I have a password.”Shit.
“Let’s talk in the trailer,” I say, pointing ahead of us, our trucks finally coming into view. Hannah’s body sags with relief and a wave of my own finally allows my shoulders to relax.
Just as we close the horses in my trailer together, the sky opens up again and buckets of rain dump down on us. In the few minutes it takes me to open my trailer, our clothes that had just barely dried are dripping with water. I make quick work of flipping on the lights and switching on the heater, then I kick off my muddy boots, my socks leaving wet footprints across my floor as I head into the bathroom and turn the water on as hot as the knob will allow. Soon steam fills the space and I strip out of my clothes, turning to find Hannah standing in the doorway, watching me.
“You hacked into my phone?” Her eyes fill with tears, and my heart sinks to the floor.
“Hannah, I…” I take a step towards her, but her hands fly out, stopping me.
“I should be so pissed at you.” I take a step closer, and she lets me. “But I can’t find it in me to be upset. If you hadn't done that, you wouldn’t have found me tonight.” I take another step then skid to a halt as realization dawns on her. Her mouth drops open in a gasp, fingers flying over her screen. Then she stops, flicks those deep brown eyes up to mine, and turns her phone towards me. “You shared my location?” Her words are thick with irritation, but I can’t stop the corners of my mouth from tipping up. Instead of replying, I simply lift my shoulders and let them drop. “You son of a bitch.” Mud flies off her boots as she storms towards me, slapping me across my bare chest.
“Ouch!” I say, rubbing at my red skin. She stomps past me towards the bathroom, and I turn to follow. Hannah spins on her heel so fast I about knock her over.
“Oh no, you don’t.” The glare she gives me has me taking a big step backwards. The steam from the bathroom gathering behind her adds to her ominous stance. “I’m gonna take my shower…alone.” She jabs a finger in the air. As the door slams behind her, I hear her yell, “And I’m using all the hot water!”
That went better than expected. I drop back on my bed, running a hand through my soaked hair and down my face. As promised, she used all the hot water. By the time I wash off the day and crawl into bed next to her, she’s out. Despite how heavy my eyes feel, I can’t help but stare at her laying next to me in my worn Colorado State t-shirt. My palm still stings from the cut I put across it earlier. Turning onto my back, I run a finger over the bandaged skin. I can’t help but wonder if it’ll scar. I fucking hope it does.
A heavy weight rolling on top of me wakes me from my deep sleep. I don’t remember the last time I slept through the night as peacefully as I did last night. My body was so cold I spent most of the night wrapped around Hannah, her warm body fitting perfectly between my arms. Peeking an eye open, I instantly want to roll over again, shutting out the light beginning to pour in the window. Until I see her. Hannah sits on top of me, her naked thighs framing my waist. I’m instantly wide awake, and pining for another taste of this woman. Her brown waves are thrown over her shoulders, tumbling down her back. Cursing myself for pulling on my briefs last night, I shift, trying to pull her down on top of me more.
Giggling, she mumbles softly, “Morning,” before leaning down and pressing her lips to mine.
“Morning.” My voice rumbles around us, still thick with sleep. I draw lazy circles on her outer thigh, slowly working higher and higher until I grip the bottom of my shirt. She pulls back, suddenly looking shy, her hands removing mine from her waist and pulling them to her chest. Cocking an eyebrow, I wait for her, watching as she nibbles on her bottom lip for a moment. Growing impatient, I wiggle a hand free and trace the freckles dotting her cheeks. “Out with it, darlin’.” A soft smile breaks across her face, kissing my injured hand. She holds it in her lap before looking down at me with teary eyes.
“Did we really sayI love youto each other last night?”
“Among other things, yes baby, we did.” I eye my bandaged hand as it slips under her shirt, over the curve of her belly, between her breasts, and rest it on her chest. Images of my hand covered in blood sliding over her cuts has me growing hard between her legs. A single tear slides down her cheek and lands on my bare stomach. “And I meant every word,” I whisper, pressing my palm harder against her, hoping that she can feel how much I mean what I say next. “Nothing I do in my life is on a whim, darlin’. Every action, every thought, every step is made with intention. And that includes you.” Her face is wet with tears when she looks out the window, wiping them away. The morning sun spills over her face and the air is knocked from my lungs. I struggle to get a breath in just looking at the woman above me. Out of all the fucked up things I’ve done in my life, how did God see me fit enough to catch her?
“I was so scared last night,” she hiccups. “I usually love the rain, but last night was so terrifying.” Wrapping my arms around her back, I pull her down so she’s laying on top of me. With her arms crossed over my chest, she rests her chin on her arms and looks up at me.
“I meant what I said, darlin’, and I hope you did, too.” Her hair is soft against my rough hands as I tuck a strand of wild curls behind her ear. “If you love the rain, maybe you can love me, too.” I let my palm slide down her hair softly, letting every curl wrap around me like she has my own heart. “For a while, I’ve lived in a world full of nothing but dark clouds. The only sun that’s broken through them in a long time,” I kiss the tip of her nose, “is you, Hannah.”
We spent another hour in my trailer, her body writhing underneath me, riding on top of me, and me between her legs. The dynamic between us shifted once again. I knew from the moment I picked her up two years ago that one day she’d bemine, but now that she is, I still can’t wrap my brain around it. I meant what I said last night against the tree.In the beginning it was the thrill of chasing you, of having you, of tasting you that kept me going. But since our first kiss, you’ve marked me, claimed me. And there isn’t a world where I’m still standing that you aren’t mine.Even watching her climb behind the steering wheel and drive away from me does something foreign to my heart. The morning chill reminds me that summer is coming to an end, there’s only a handful of events left before I usually book a cabin somewhere in Tennessee for the fall and winter. I fully intend on bringing Hannah with me, but I won’t deny that I’m worried our bubble will pop once the leaves begin to change color.
Hannah drives one way, headed into Oakley to meet with Matty before making her way across the state again to meet me at our next stop. A stop I’ve been dreading since I saw it pop up on my calendar. Denver Colorado is even closer to Green Haven Ranch than Evergreen was. And the fact that Owen showed up there instead of the arena a few miles away from our family home doesn’t sit well with me. His number in my phone still sets me on edge when I scroll through my contact list. I’ll have an eight hour drive to let those thoughts drive me mad, so I shake the fog from my head and settle in the cab of my truck. Instead of pulling up Hannah’s location, I turn on Jonah Kagen. Reaching for the volume control on the dash, I twist it to the right until the sound of guitar and drums drowns out my thoughts.
hannah
“Good Lord,Hannah, I was so worried about you!” Matty pulls me in for a hug the moment I walk through the door to the small diner we’re meeting at. I sag into his familiar hold, breathing in what once was my only comfort. That was before I met Dean and he spun my world in the opposite direction. Giving him a reassuring squeeze, I pull away, smiling at him. I do my best to comfort him as I fill him in on the details of the night before over our shared basket of salty fries and burgers. Not all the details, obviously. The images of Dean pressing me into the tree and burying himself inside of me causes my cheeks to flame and butterflies to bounce around in my stomach. Dean and I ate a few protein bars on the ride back to the trailers, but both of us were too exhausted to scrounge up any food before we fell asleep. And this morning, well, let’s just say we were hungry for something else. My stomach had basically eaten itself by the time I walked into the diner. Matty watches in amusement as I shovel food into my mouth.
“And your head…” Matty motions to my forehead with the fry he holds between his thumb and forefinger. Without thinking, I reach up and wince when I make contact with the swollen cut.
