Page 17 of Ride a Cowboy

Though he didn’t take his eyes from the road, it was obvious he felt the heat of her stare when he asked, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Trying to decide if that question was based on curiosity or jealousy.”

“Both,” he admitted readily. “Don’t tell me who. I don’t want to know. Might have to kill the man.”

Macie bit her lip and considered telling him anyway. In truth, it felt like something he should know. But part of her was worried. How would he react when he found out? Would it change things between them? This thing between them was so freaking new, she couldn’t quite wrap her head around it.

“Maybe you should let me tell you,” she said at last.

He narrowed his eyes; her tone had obviously told him he might not like what she was going to say. “Wait ’til we get to my place.”

“If I tell you now, you can turn around and head back to my apartment if you want.”

“There’s not a single name you could say that would change my mind about taking you to my bed.”

She hoped that was true. “Okay.” She decided to let it go until later. And then, because it was her, she picked up a new subject, telling Hank about the new kitten her cousin Jeannette had just adopted. Jeannette was in serious danger of becoming a cat lady.

Once Hank parked and turned the engine off, she reached for the door handle. Hank reached over and grasped her wrist gently. “Wait there.”

He didn’t give her a chance to ask why before he climbed out of the truck. When he walked around and opened her door for her, she understood.

“Very chivalrous,” she teased when he helped her down.

“Not at all. Just the way a man should treat his lady. I’m always going to open doors for you.”

“It’s only our second date, Hank, and you’re already talking marriage and calling me yours.”

“We’ve been friends for a while now, Macie. It’s not like we’re strangers. I know you and you know me. Only thing that’s changing is the kissing and where you’re going to be spending most of your nights.”

“Wow. I think you do know me.”

“What do you mean?”

“You keep throwing all this twisted logic at my feet, which speaks to my own warped view of the world and makes it really hard for me to argue with you.”

He chuckled. “You want a fight?”

“Not really, but…” Again, she was a bit worried about the last-lover thing that was hovering over their heads.

Hank sighed. “Come on.” He took her hand and led her to the house. “Sooner you speak your piece, the sooner I can get you naked.”

She laughed despite her nervousness. Then she realized it wasn’t just talking about the past that had her worried. It was crawling into bed with Hank. Her head had nearly blown off after each of those amazing orgasms last night, and that was with just his fingers and mouth.

There was something about the way he took control, in bed and out, that turned her on in ways she couldn’t explain. Truth was she wasn’t a fan of domineering men. But Hank seemed to be the exception to that rule.

Maybe it was because he wasn’t demanding things she didn’t want to give him. And maybe it was because she knew, deep down, if she said no, he would stop without question. She trusted him. Completely.

Once they entered the house, he closed the front door and turned to face her. “So out with it. Give me the name.”

Macie took a deep breath and just said it. “Porter.”

Hank’s brows furrowed. “My ranch manager?”

She nodded.

“When?”

“It was shortly after Johnnie died.” She had talked to Hank about her close friendship with Harley Mills’ brother quite a lot over the past year. Hank had known who Johnnie was. After all, Maris was a small town. But he admitted he hadn’t really paid much attention at the time to Johnnie’s death or the funeral. Mainly because Sharon had been dying around the same time. It was something they had in common, one of the things that had drawn them closer and helped forge their new friendship these last few months. They’d both suffered a painful loss recently.

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