“Will you sing ‘Country Mile’? Pretty please? It’s mine and Mom’s favorite.”
My body relaxes, my shoulders sagging as I give her a soft smile. I should have known that it wouldn’t be one song. “Sure. Anything for you.”
13
GRAYSON
My chest rises and falls as I breathe noisily through my nose. Anger, annoyance, and something akin to pain rush through me, flowing in my veins and pushing me forward. In all my years, I’ve never had an inclination as strong as I do now to hurt something. Someone.
Fucking Avery Blake and her fucking music.
I crash through the barn door, uncaring when it hits the beam on the other side. When it bounces back into the frame, the building shudders, leaving me alone with the sound of animals moving through hay, the muted music of the band playing one of her songs, and the crowd in the paddock.
Pacing back and forth, I try to calm my anger. I know it’s irrational. I know that whatever I’m feeling now is just my past hurt coming back to haunt me. And yet, I hate her a little more for getting on that stage, for singing a song about love and heartbreak, but most of all, I hate how she looked at me, as if I was the cause of it all and not the other way round.
“Grayson.” Her voice is soft and uncertain.
I didn’t realize I’d been in here that long. Long enough for her to finish a second song and no doubt deal with the fanfare. I’m that far under the surface of my frustration.
“Go back to the party, Avery,” I growl, my anger barely contained. I don’t want to take it out on her, but she needs to leave before I say, or worse, do something I know we’ll both regret, like kiss her.
Despite my response, I hear her shut the door and tentatively make her way further into the barn toward me. “I can’t do that, Gray. I’m not going anywhere. We can’t keep going on like this. We should talk rather than run from each other. You clearly have things you need to get off your chest.”
I turn toward her, not bothering to hide my anger. Let her feel it. Let her see how badly she broke me. Avery flinches, stumbling back and resting a palm on her stomach before she rights herself and steps forward.
Prowling toward her, I don’t stop until we’re inches apart. “I said, leave,” I seethe.
A fire sparks in her gaze, and she holds my stare, leaning in a fraction. “And I said, no.”
Time comes to a stop, the sounds around us becoming muted until the only thing I can hear is our breathing. Her scent, like a field of wildflowers, wraps around me, pulling me into a fog that I don’t know that I want to come out of. I should step back, say something cruel and cold so she’ll take the hint and leave. But when I look into her eyes, I don’t see anything but want burning in her gaze, and I’ll be damned if I haven’t tried to forget that fire for years.
I don’t think; I just move. Diving my hand into her hair, I fist the blonde strands and angle Avery’s head. My other hand tosses off my Stetson, and within seconds, our mouths are fused.
All that anger I’ve felt since she showed back up in my life is being channeled into this kiss, and she’s taking it like a condemned man accepting his punishment. I’m taking and tasting everything she has to offer until I’m lost to the sensation of her.
Avery holds on to my shirt, and I bend slightly, repositioning my hands to grip the back of her thighs. She’s thinner than I remember, and for a second, a twinge of concern twists in my chest before I dismiss it. Instead, I run my thumbs over her bare skin; it’s just as soft and smooth as I remember.
She wraps her arms tighter around my neck, pulling me closer. Her lips feed from mine, like she’s been starving for this for as long as I have.
“Don’t stop,” she breathes against my mouth. “Whatever this is, I want it. I want you, Gray.”
I nip at her lip, a punishment for the reminder of how she left. With our mouths still connected, I stand to my full height, forcing her to wrap her legs around me. With no idea what will happen when we reach it, I head for the empty stall in the far corner. I know this barn like the back of my hand, so my steps are sure and even as my mouth remains locked in a battle with hers.
When her back knocks the wall, Avery breaks the kiss. Her chest rises and falls against my own, and with the curtain of her hair around us, I have no choice but to drown in the soft emerald green of her eyes.
She opens her mouth to speak, but I set her down, refusing to listen. Anything she says now will break the spell of whatever is happening.
Easing back, I rest my hands on her hips and turn her away from me. This isn’t about us rekindling; this is giving myself a release after twelve long years of waiting and hoping for her to return to me.
Maybe, after tonight, I can finally move on.
I press my hard body against the back of hers, wrapping my arms around her as I bury my nose in her neck. Avery presses her soft ass into my crotch, forcing a hiss from my lips. My cock aches almost painfully, trapped in the confines of my jeans.
We’re grinding on each other, our bodies speaking of our need for the other. I barely recognize my own voice when I say, “This is your last chance, Avery. Go back to the party.” I pause, trying to gather my thoughts as all the blood rushes to my dick. “Hell, go back to Nashville and forget you and I were ever a thing.”
She doesn’t speak right away, but when she does, the need and heartache in her voice that mirrors my own is unmistakable. “I can’t, Gray.”
Resting my forehead on her shoulder, I growl, “If you don’t, sunshine, I’m gonna fuck you so hard you’ll still feel me inside of you long after I’ve left.”
