Page 18 of Ride a Cowboy

“Didn’t know you and Porter knew each other that well.” His expression and his tone were wooden. Completely unreadable. Was he angry? Hurt?

“The truth is we didn’t, really…” She paused. She probably wouldn’t come out of this sounding too good.

“Just tell me what happened, Macie.”

“I was in charge of closing up the restaurant one night. It was a weeknight and business had been slow. I was in no hurry to go home and cry myself to sleep over Johnnie, so I told my cousin Paige to take off early. Porter was the only one still there, drinking alone at the bar. I locked the door, poured myself a shot of bourbon and the two of us drank together. He was upset about…” She hesitated again.

“Sharon.”

Macie nodded. “Sounded like he was close to her.”

“He was,” Hank confirmed.

“We both got tipsy. No,” she amended. “We got drunk. One thing led to another and he walked me back to my apartment. Guess you can figure out the rest.”

“Just that one time?”

“Yeah. We sort of needed somebody that night, but I swear, Hank, that’s all it was. I mean, he’s a nice guy and he was really sweet, but we were both in a bad place at the time. I haven’t been pining for him or anything.”

“I’m glad he was there for you.”

Well, that sure as hell wasn’t the response she’d expected. “What?”

“And I’m happy you were there for him. He needed you that night.”

And there went another little bit of her heart. The man was laying claim to all of it. Hard and fast. “Hank?”

“Yeah, Whiskey?”

“Can we go to your bedroom now?”

Rather than respond with words, Hank cupped her cheeks and kissed her, his tongue sweeping inside her mouth. When he pulled away, he captured her gaze with his. “I want you, Macie Sparks. More than I’ve wanted anyone in a long time.”

Grasping her hand, he led her to his bedroom. He closed the door and leaned against it. “Take off your clothes.”

She shook her head. “I’m not taking off a stitch until you do. Last night, you kept on way too many clothes.”

Hank unbuttoned his shirt and slipped it over his shoulders, dropping it to the floor.

Macie took a minute to admire the view. The previous evening, Hank had slipped to the bathroom after he’d untied her and returned in a T-shirt and lounge pants that he’d slept in all night.

Hank was older than her by just over a decade, but she liked the way he carried his years. As a rancher, he spent a lot of time outside, which meant his skin was naturally dark year-round. He wasn’t a stranger to physical labor either. And rather than a smooth, bare chest, he had a fair amount of hair, mostly brown, but with just a few strands of gray.

“You okay, Macie?”

She nodded, her eyes remaining on his chest. She was going to enjoy petting him.

“You sure?”

His persistence had her looking up. “Yeah. Why?”

“You’re not usually this quiet.”

Macie grinned. “Just enjoying the view.”

He gestured to her shirt. “How about giving me a chance to do the same?”

She’d been naked in front of him last night. His genuine appreciation of her body made it easy for her to tug off her own top. Then, without a moment’s hesitation, she reached behind her back, unhooked her bra, and stripped it off as well.

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