Page 24 of Protected By the Mountain Man

Gabe ambled over to the bucket where I had the carrots stashed, Shadow at his heels like he'd found himself a new best friend. I watched them for a moment, the way Gabe moved with an easy familiarity around the horse, and something about it made my chest tighten. I hadn't seen that kind of gentle assurance in anyone since?—

“Kat?” Gabe's voice pulled me back.

“Sorry,” I blurted out, looking anywhere but at him. “What I said earlier…I shouldn't have.”

He picked up a carrot, pausing to look at me. “No, you were right. I was an asshole to you…to your family.” He glanced down, his hand brushing Shadow's mane. “I don't deserve kindness. Not from anyone.”

I hated how much that confession tugged at me. I wanted to tell him he was wrong, to argue that everyone deserved a chance at redemption…

…but before I could get the words out, something nudged me hard from behind.

“Whoa!” I stumbled forward, off-balance.

Straight into Gabe's waiting arms.

“Easy,” he said, his voice a gravelly catch that rumbled through me. I steadied myself against the solid wall of his chest, inhaling a scent that was all earth and sweat and something indefinably him. My mind raced back to last night's fantasy—his hands, his mouth, his body pressed to mine. I tried to shake it off, but my breath hitched, betraying me.

Looking up at him, I saw it. That same heat from my fantasy mirrored in his eyes, burning just for me. His gaze held mine, insistent, telling me without words what he wanted.

“Kat, you okay?” His voice was hoarse—the kind of tone you’d have in bed, when you’re…

Stop it, Kat.

I nodded, more reflex than anything conscious. “Yeah, yeah, I'm good.”

But I didn't step back.

Neither did he.

Tilting my head slightly, I watched him lean in closer, his breath warm against my cheek. The world narrowed down to this moment, charged with something wild and reckless. His eyes darted from my eyes to my lips, his tongue flicked out in anticipation, we?—

Another shove, this time on the elbow—making Gabe release the carrot in his hand.

That’s when the spell shattered.

But on the upside, it seemed Shadow was finally getting better…and that he’d just saved me from disaster.

Gabe and I jerked back from each other, an awkward laugh bubbling up from my throat as I bent to retrieve the fallen treat. “Guess he got jealous,” I joked weakly, trying to ignore the heat that flushed my cheeks.

“Or maybe he's just hungry,” Gabe added with a chuckle, his voice regaining some of its usual nonchalance.

I stood up, smoothing my hair back from my face, my hands slightly shaky. “Yeah, probably that.”

“Right,” he said, glancing away for a moment before meeting my gaze again. “We should get back to it.”

“Sure.” I nodded, my heart still racing from the almost-kiss. Or maybe from Shadow's interruption—I wasn't sure which was more jarring.

I handed Shadow his carrot, but even as I did, I couldn't help wondering if keeping Gabe around was such a good idea. My life, already complicated by loss and the daily grind of ranching, didn't need the additional drama…or the distraction.

But damn if I didn’t want both.

TEN

Gabe

Even though I’d told her she didn’t have to pay me, Kat kept trying.

She would leave cash all over the place—stuffed into the pockets of my clean laundry, wedged in the door handle on my truck, under the windshield wipers. She’d even taken to coming into my bedroom while I was out, leaving cash like the damn tooth fairy.

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