I laugh. “I’m still doing social media, but I’ll be in the field as much as I’ll be at a desk out here. And being around horses is a dream of mine.”
“I remember your posters.”
“Oh, God.” I laugh. “Those horsey posters on my bedroom ceiling. I was obsessed. And I’d only ridden a horse at summer camp.”
“You can ride every day now if you want to.”
I do want to. I want to experience Montana. I’d like to throw myself into Wild Ranch and into my job as much as possible.
I raise my beer and we click mugs. “To taking chances.”
“To taking chances,” he repeats, his brown eyes locking with mine.
I bring the mug to my mouth to break the eye contact.
CHAPTEREIGHT
Jared
I don’t want to stop hanging out with Ashley at the Lucky Cowboy. I’m feeling a bit like the name of the bar, and I haven’t felt that way in a long time.
My homegirl being in town is like a breath of fresh air sweeping into Montana. I love Missoula, but I do get homesick for New Orleans. I don’t focus on it often, and having my twin brother here with me makes it a hell of a lot easier.
But Max is family. Ashley is a whole other kind of energy. And I can’t get enough of hanging with her.
However, she’s understandably exhausted after her day of travel, and neither of us can put off the inevitable.
I stuck to one beer with dinner, so I drive us back to Wild Ranch while Ashley fights to stay awake in the passenger seat next to me.
“We’re home, sleepyhead,” I tell her quietly as I park next to our cabin.
I really need to stop saying things like “home” and “our cabin.” In a month, I’ll be moving out, so the less attached I get to my current living arrangement, the better.
“So,” she says in an extra-slow Louisiana drawl as we enter the cabin and both pause in the living room.
“So,” I imitate her, enjoying the way the southern sound rolls off my tongue. I haven’t tried to get rid of my accent, but it’s always more pronounced around people from home.
She huffs out a breath in an attempt to sound irritated, but I know she’s trying not to commit to a sleeping decision. Just like I am.
Like she can sense the awkwardness, Louie gets up from her resting place on the couch and wraps her tail around my leg.
“She’s hungry,” Ashley says as she heads for the kitchen. “I’ll fix her up a can of food.”
Ten minutes later, the cat is happily eating, and Ashley and I are out of excuses.
“Look.” I break the tension. “This is uncomfortable. We both know that. I’ll take the couch, and you have the bedroom.”
Ashley scans my face. I don’t know what she’s looking for exactly, but she obviously decides something because she reaches out her hand to me.
“We’ll share the bed.”
I blink. “What?”
“I thought you’d want to.” She blushes. “Whatever. If you don’t…”
“I do.” I grab her extended hand. “Of course I do. I was just surprised is all.”
“Don’t overthink it,” she tells me as she leads me to the bedroom.
