"Boone said he had something to show you." He's already moving toward the door. "You should stay."
"What? Colt, I don't—"
"Trust me." He pauses at the door, then grins. "Or don't. But stay anyway."
Then he's gone, the door closing behind him with a soft click.
I turn to Boone, confused. "What was that about? What do you need to show me?"
Boone's leaning against the kitchen counter, hands shoved in his pockets, looking more uncertain than I've ever seen him. "He, uh... he caught me off guard. I haven't prepared any of this."
"Prepared what?" My heart starts racing. "Boone, you're scaring me. What's going on?"
He starts pacing. Actually pacing. Moving back and forth across the kitchen like a caged animal.
"I never thought I'd be saying this," he mutters, more to himself than to me. "Never thought I'd have the chance. Or the right. You're so much younger, and you're Colt's best friend, and—"
"Boone." I step into his path, forcing him to stop. "Please stop pacing. You're really starting to worry me."
He stops, but his eyes won't quite meet mine. His jaw is clenched tight, muscles jumping beneath his stubble.
"Just say it," I whisper. "Whatever it is, just say it."
He takes a deep breath and finally looks at me.
Then his hands come up to grip my arms, and I'm frozen in place. He's towering over me, so close I can feel the heat radiating off his body. So close I can see individual whiskers in his beard catching the morning sunlight streaming through the windows.
"Colt noticed," he says. "The way I looked at you. He called me out on it."
My eyebrow arches. "What do you mean, the way you looked at me?"
His hands tighten on my arms. Not painfully, just... possessively. "I want you, Nicole. I've wanted you since you were nineteen. Since that summer you came back to take care of your mom. I thought I was hiding it. Thought I was doing the right thing by keeping my distance. But I guess I wasn't hiding it as well as I thought."
The world tilts. My heart stops, restarts, pounds so hard I'm sure he can hear it.
"You..." I can barely get the words out. "You want me?"
"So fucking badly I can't think straight." His voice drops lower, rougher. "I know you're younger. I know you're Colt's best friend. I know all the reasons this is complicated. But I can't pretend anymore. Can't keep watching you from a distance and wishing for things I thought I couldn't have."
I want to laugh. I want to cry. I want to grab him and never let go.
"I thought—" My voice cracks. "I thought you saw me as just some kid. Colt's annoying friend who used to steal cookies from your kitchen."
"Is that really what you thought?" He sounds almost pained. "Jesus, Nicole. I've been trying so hard not to look at you. Not to notice your curves or your smile or the way you bite your lip when you're thinking. Not to imagine what it would feel like to kiss every inch of your body. I thought you were completely oblivious. Thought I was just some old cowboy you'd never look at twice."
"You're not old," I breathe. "And I've been looking at you for years, Boone. Since I was nineteen. Since I saw you working withthat horse, all sweaty and intense, and realized you weren't just Colt's brother anymore. You were... everything."
His pupils dilate. "Everything?"
"Everything I've ever wanted. Everything I thought I couldn't have." I reach up, touching his chest. His heart is racing under my palm.
He makes a sound low in his throat, half growl, half groan. "Don't. Don't tell me that unless you want me to do something about it."
"I want you to do something about it." The words come out bolder than I feel. "I'm done pretending. Done being scared. If you want me, Boone, then take me."
For a moment, he just stares at me. Then his hands slide from my arms down to my waist, pulling me against him. I feel it immediately, his cock, hard and thick, pressing against my stomach.
"Feel that?" His voice is pure gravel. "That's what you do to me. Last night was torture. Today's even worse. I can't control myself around you anymore."
