“I gotta go,” I tell Lucifer.“Call me when you’ve talked to the club.”
I hang up before he can respond and step out of the barn just as Amelia slams her car door shut.She’s wearing tight jeans and a simple white t-shirt that stretches across her tits.She looks good.Too good.But she’d look better naked, sprawled out in one of the stalls, hands tied just the way she likes.
I’m so fucked it isn’t funny.
She marches toward me with purpose, chin up, shoulders squared.Something about the determined set of her jaw makes my mouth go dry.
“Morning,” I call out, trying to sound casual.“Wasn’t expecting to see you today.”
“I’ve been thinking,” she says, stopping a few feet away from me.“About Dylan’s riding lessons.”
“I’m listening.”
“I’ll let you teach him,” she says, crossing her arms over her chest.“But only on Saturday mornings.I’m at the farmer’s market then, and he gets bored just sitting around my booth all day.”
I try to hide my surprise.Saturdays aren’t ideal, but I’m not about to tell her that.I’ll take whatever scraps she’s willing to give.
“Saturday mornings work for me.”
“Good.”She nods.“I’ll have to drop him off at seven so I have time to set up my booth before the market open.Will that be a problem?”
“I’m up before the sun.It’s no problem at all.”
Another nod.“I usually finish up by noon.I’ll shoot straight here afterward.”
“That’s plenty of time for a beginner lesson.”
Hell, an hour would’ve been sufficient, but if she wants to give me several hours with her son, I’ll take it.I can show him the ins and outs of the ranch too.It won’t be long before Dylan is a cowboy.
“Don’t be too eager, Maddox.I have conditions,” she says, taking a step closer.
Of course she does.I bite back a smile.“Hit me with them.”
“He learns the basics.Proper mounting, proper posture, how to handle the reins.No fancy tricks, no showing off, no galloping across fields.”Her eyes narrow as she pokes her finger against the wall of my chest.“And absolutely no jumping.”
“Amelia, I would never put Dylan in danger.”I hold her gaze steadily.“He’s safe with me.”
Something flickers across her face.“I want to believe that.”
“Then believe it.”I take a step toward her, closing the distance between us.
She swallows hard, and I watch the movement of her throat.My gaze catches on the bruise marring her neck.It’s faded some over the days, and all that does is make me want to leave another one.
“One more thing,” she says, her voice suddenly firm again.“If you’re going to be in Dylan’s life, then whatever this is between us—” she gestures back and forth “—it needs to stay strictly platonic.”
I raise an eyebrow.
Here we go again.
“Define ‘strictly platonic.’”
“You know exactly what I mean.”Her cheeks flush pink.“No more...truck incidents.”
“Are pool tables off limits too?”
She rolls her eyes.“Yes.All of it.No more orgasms.No flirting at the bar.No popping up at my apartment unannounced.No trying to prove things are different now.No...anything.We keep it civil, for Dylan’s sake.”
I study her face, noting the way she won’t quite meet my eyes now.She’s not as resolved about this as she wants me to believe.I can work with that.
