Page 23 of My Cowboy Bodyguard

He rubs his throat and glares at me.

I fold my arms and glare back at him, not sorry. I thought he was a threat to my woman, and I’ll act first and ask questions later.

“What business are you doing for Flint that has you sneaking into the barn?”

“I wasn’t sneaking. I was trying to go on the porch of the house and knock but a rooster chased me.” He rolls up a pant leg to examine his calf.

Knowing the rooster, I’d believe it. That thing fancies himself a guard dog. “Are you looking into trying to find our former ranch manager?”

“I am.” He brushes dirt from his clothes. “Bringing a lawsuit against him will take time and a lot of money. In the meantime, your family is still on the hook to pay the mortgage and the loan note. If I can locate the man, that may lead us to any remaining funds he has left from the forgery.”

“Leo?” Amanda climbs down and walks up to us. The appreciative look Michael gives her smoking figure makes me wish I’d choked him harder.

I wrap an arm around her waist and pull her close to me. Then I look at the other man. “Rain is only misting now so you head to the house.”

He nods and pulls his attention from Amanda a little too reluctantly for my liking.

After he’s gone, she says, “My boss called. She needs me to come in and cover a shift for a sick coworker.”

“Alright. I’ll take you to town.”

“I don’t need you to?—”

“Ineed, honey. I need.”

“But—”

“The king has spoken.” I grin at her.

She glances at my jeans. “I didn’t hear him. I guess he went back to sleep and is all tucked in for the night.”

“Oh, honey. He can be roused. He’s a light sleeper. Trust me.”

She walks backward toward the barn door. “Catch me and prove it,” she taunts and then spins and runs to the house.

I chase after her and she screams with laughter.

River’s damn rooster flies right at my face and Amanda gets inside the house, slamming the door in her wake.

Fuck! Cock-blocked by a cock.

Chapter 8

Amanda

Leo sits in one of the overstuffed chairs by the front of the bookstore. His long legs stretch out in front of him. I sweep my attention up his snug fitting jeans.

It was one thing when I wondered what he was packing in those jeans. It’s another now that I’ve experienced it.

He doesn’t look away from the window. “Thinking dirty girl thoughts about me?”

“How’d you know?” I blurt out.

The side of his lips move, and he glances at me. The knowing in his eyes makes me wet. That intimacy. That heat.

“Keep looking at me like that, honey, and the store will be closed for the night right now.”

I love that I can turn him on and make him want me.

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