Page 54 of Wrangling a Texas Hometown Hero

They did enjoy it. After they went to church with her family, they headed back to Mrs. Stokes’ guesthouse where they spent hours in bed. In the late afternoon, they returned to the ranch and saddled up the horses. She had forgotten how well Jace rode . . . and how good it felt to ride along with him like they’d done so many times in the past. They talked about everything—Mrs. Stokes catching Jace cutting her roses and smiling knowingly when he told her who they were for. Football and her ideas for improving the ranch. Her sisters finding out about them getting together.

“So how did the Secret Sisterhood take it?” he asked.

She turned in her saddle and stared at him. “You know about the Secret Sisterhood?”

He laughed. “I’ve known about it ever since I walked into the barn when I was fifteen and heard y’all whispering in the hayloft. I snuck up the ladder and listened to the entire meeting.” He lifted his gaze in thought. “I think it had to do with how cute the stupid Jonas Brothers were.”

She reached out and socked him in the arm. “Hey, watch it. Don’t ever talk badly about the Jonas Brothers. I love them.”

He shot her an evil look. “But can a Jonas brother give you multiple orgasms beneath a bright blue Texas sky?” Before she could ask him what he was talking about, he pulled her out of her saddle and onto his lap . . . and showed her.

Chapter Eighteen

“So what do you think, Jace?” Herb asked. Coach Denny had taken the day off to go fishing with a cousin who had come into town—something that never would have happened a few years ago. Which reinforced Jace’s belief that Denny was ready to retire, but just didn’t know how to let go. Jace understood. He hadn’t known how to let go of being a quarterback either. But in the last few weeks, he hadn’t thought about what he’d lost. He’d only thought about what he had.

Coaching and a beautiful sassy cowgirl.

As much as he wanted to lose himself in all the sweet images he had of that beautiful sassy cowgirl, he had a job to do.

He stared out at the football field filled with sweaty teenage boys trying to kick footballs through the goalposts. They were looking for a kicker. So far, they hadn’t found one. The boys who had tried out couldn’t kick their way out of a doggie poop bag.

A football sailed toward him and Jace reached out and caught it. “I think we’re in trouble. We won the last game on sheer luck and determination. We won’t win the next one without having a kicker.” Not that Jace was wrapped up in winning anymore, but he still wanted to give his team the best chance of doing it. “Are these the only boys who want to try out?”

Herb shrugged. “Yep. Kids don’t want to play football these days. They’d rather stay home and Snapple on their cellphones.”

“I think it’s called Snapchat, Coach.” He looked around at the circus that was taking place on the field and blew out his breath. “It looks like we’ll just have to choose the one who comes closest to splitting the uprights.” He turned and started to head down the field to the opposite goalposts to see how that group of boys was doing when a movement in the stands caught his attention.

The woman in the brown cowboy hat taking a seat on the bleachers made his heart jump in his chest. Hallie’s hair was in two pigtails that partially covered the Wilder Wildcats T-shirt she wore. She plopped her cowboy boots on the bleacher in front of her as if she planned to be there for a while. He wanted to head across the track, take the stairs two at a time, and pull her into his arms.

Instead, he just stood there grinning like a fool.

He’d been smiling a lot lately. Something Decker had commented on the other night when he had stopped by for a beer.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you so happy, Jace. Are you in love with Hallie?”

The question had taken Jace by surprise. After a moment of floundering, he’d collected himself and denied the accusation. But now he wasn’t so sure. For the last week, his insides had felt like a shaken can of soda pop—all bubbly and fizzy.

And happy.

Happier than he’d been in a long time . . . maybe ever.

But was it love?

He wasn’t ready to make that leap. He’d thought he’d been in love with Sweetie, but it hadn’t been the forever kind of love. And maybe it wasn’t with Hallie either. Although, this time, was different. This time, he felt things he’d never felt with Sweetie. Being with Sweetie had been easy. Hallie was anything but easy. She never let him get away with anything. If he got too cocky, she put him in his place. If he wanted to vent about the football team not putting in the effort, she told him to put on his big boy panties and figure out how to motivate them. She had high expectations of him to be the best man he could be and damned if he didn’t want to be that man for her.

He wanted to be everything for her.

Maybe that was love. Maybe he was just too scared to admit it. Too scared that Hallie didn’t feel the same way. He knew she wanted him. Every chance they got, they were all over each other—in the barn, the hayloft, in his truck, in her truck, in the lounge chair in Mrs. Stokes’ backyard . . . and, last night, on the front porch swing at the Holiday Ranch, she’d done some naughty things to him.

Yes, she wanted him. She also liked being with him. In the last week, they had spent almost every second together. If he wasn’t at the ranch, she was at the guesthouse. She hadn’t mentioned leaving once. Now that Corbin had hired Reid, there was no reason for her to continue to stay at the ranch.

And yet, she was still here.

Of course, so was he.

Now that word was out about his and Hallie’s relationship, Mrs. Stokes had nothing to hold over his head. He could leave anytime. But as he stood there with the comforting feel of the football resting in his palm and the smell of sweaty teenagers and freshly cut grass filling his nostrils, he realized he no longer wanted to leave.

It wasn’t just Hallie.

---