“That’s…” She sighed. “Well, it’s really shitty.”
“Gran and Grandad did their best to make up for that. They were stable and loving when the rest of my world was so unpredictable. There were years when I wished summer would last forever. I would have traded anything for it.”
“I can imagine,” Lena said softly. Our legs bumped as our horses drew too close.
“I don’t think I would have achieved half as much in my life if it wasn’t for them,” I continued. “That’s why getting this wind farm project off the ground and supporting Braeburn means so much to me. I owe every good thing I am to this place. And looking after it is the best way I can think of to pay it forward, for Grandad and Gran’s sake.”
A clearing appeared in the trees ahead, giving us a glimpse of the coast, and Lena’s jaw dropped. She slid out of her saddle, approaching the edge of the cliff. I slid down to stand next to her.
“Wow,” she said simply, staring out at the rolling waves of the Atlantic. “Every time I think I’ve seen the most beautiful thingLochbrae has to offer, something even more breathtaking comes along.”
“I know what you mean,” I said. But I wasn’t staring out at the coast. I was looking at her.
She turned to me, her eyes wide, lips parted. She let out a breath, perhaps a breath of anticipation, as I reached out, cupping her cheek. As I stroked my thumb across her face, those wild, insane desires beat at the forefront of my mind.
I wanted to kiss her.
I wasgoingto kiss her.
Unless she stopped me.
Unless she said no.
But I really didn’t think she was going to say no.
I wrapped my hand around her waist, tugging her closer, giving her time to push me away. To retreat. To tell me this was all in my head. But she didn’t. I leaned in, hesitating, waiting for the fantasy to be ripped away…
And Lena tilted her head, pressing up on her toes. I moved toward her, closing the distance between us as I caught her lips in a soft, gentle kiss. Something inside me soared at the feeling. It was like I was weightless, my stomach dipping at the sweetness of the moment. Soon that sweetness became heat, the warmth spreading through my veins.
I wanted her, desperately. And the moment she started to kiss me back, I knew for certain that she wanted me too.
15
LENA
Clover whinnied, and I pulled back from Weston slowly, my heart skipping in my chest. Up close, his eyes were as green as the surrounding hillsides and filled with tenderness.
Tenderness that made me reach out and tug him close again.
I pressed my lips to his, holding our mouths together, tasting the warmth of his kiss as desire swirled through me. I wanted to sink into him and see where this would go. His hands cupped my waist, sliding around to the small of my back, holding me so,soclose.
I didn’t want to stop.
No, I wanted…I wanted…
We bumped up against Clover, and she startled, snorting her displeasure. With that, we broke apart, chests heaving, and all I could do was stare. Because when I looked at Weston now, it was like I was seeing a completely different person. The buttoned-up CEO from Houston I was used to seemed a million miles away.
All that was left was the man who loved the rugged Scottish countryside, who’d paid for my best friend’s Paris bachelorette, who went to committee meetings and held people’s babies. This wasn’t my boss. This wasmyWeston.
My Weston? Where had that thought come from?
I pressed my hand to my forehead. This was all moving so quickly. And yet, there was a part of me that thought it had been a long time coming. And another part that wasn’t really thinking at all—that was just aching for more.
“I think they’re getting antsy,” Weston whispered, his words ghosting across my face and cutting into the monologue reeling through my mind.
The horses. Yes, the horses. Just focus on Clover and what she needed. “We should get them back to the cattle shed,” I agreed, proud of myself when my voice came out calm and steady. I turned and pulled myself into my saddle without a word about the kiss. Weston did the same.
What was there to say anyway? I liked it. I wanted more. But did he? Had it dawned on him yet what we’d just done?
