Page 112 of Rope Me In

That does the trick, and he smiles back at me. We’re closer to the stables now, and the velvety tone of Presley’s laughter washesover me as her purple hair comes into view, causing the hairs on my arms to stand on end. God, I want to hear that sound for the rest of my life—and I want to be the one who makes her laugh, smile, and curse.

“Look who’s back,” Blake says when she spots us.

Presley’s face lights up when she sees me, her eyes silently asking,How did it go?I quicken my stride, eating up the ground between us until I’m pulling her into my arms. My lips descend upon hers, and she lets out a gasp into my mouth as I kiss her. I don’t care that Gavin and Blake can see us; I needed to feel her lips on mine.

When I pull back, she’s flushing bright red, but the smile tugging at her lips tells me that part of her loves how much I want the world to know she’s mine and I’m hers.

I gather Presley snugly under my arm, and together, we face my brother and Blake. Gavin mirrors my stance with Blake, holding her close just as I do Presley. When Blake’s eyes meet mine, a silent conversation passes between us, one that says despite all the things that remain unresolved, everything is going to be okay. She places her hand over Gavin’s heart, and I nod gently at her.

“Gavin, I forgot something at the house—want to come get it with me?” Blake asks, a sly look on her face.

I rub Presley’s arm and grin at my brother. Blake didn’t forget anything at the house—of that, I’m sure. I waggle my eyebrows at him, and he shakes his head.

“Yeah, baby. Let’s go.” Before he walks off, he gives me one last glance. “See you both at dinner?” His shoulders appear relaxed, as if a heavy weight has been lifted. It takes away some of the pressure in my chest, and my own body settles.

I gaze down at Presley, and she tips her chin in agreement.

“Yeah, we’ll be there,” I say. I squeeze her shoulders, and my heart skips a beat, loving that she wants to be part of my life in this way.

Once we say our goodbyes and Blake and Gavin are out of sight, Presley turns in my arms and kisses me softly. “Everything go okay?”

“I think so.” I exhale, truly believing the words for once.

“Good, I’m glad.” She pecks my lips then tugs me so I’m following her.

I stumble a bit at the unexpected movement but quickly recover, chuckling. “Where are you taking me?”

She keeps her hand in mine but continues to walk backward as she looks up at me through hooded eyes. “I think I left something in my bedroom. Want to help me figure out what it is?”

I bark out a laugh and tug her into me. “I’ll always help you, Lemon. You never have to ask.” My words wrap around us, the double meaning intentional. She smiles up at me, her sapphire eyes glimmering with love as I pull her tighter against me.

With the sun shining down on us and the future looking brighter, Presley and I walk toward our “for now” home. Together.

Epilogue

Presley

Five Months Later

The Montgomery Family DudeRanch is officially open for business. Okay, well, notofficially, but tonight is a town barbecue that Blake and Gavin have asked my band to play at.

Mostly, it’s for the people of Randall to see all the work that’s been done to the place. But as Blake told us, “It’s a great time to get pictures for social media and make a marketing push for summer customers.”

Just as I turn off my curling iron, I hear the click of the front door closing and the familiar sound of Kade’s boots on the floor. My heart rate picks up, and I can’t stop myself from smiling. The last five months have been the best five months of my life. Not only have I been traveling with a band I love, but I’ve also been spending my days with themanI love.

Has every day been easy? Of course not. But they’ve also been exciting, new, and fun. Which isn’t surprising, because every day is at least one of those things with Kade, even the bad days.

“Presley?” Kade’s baritone voice calls from the living area. “Are you in here?”

I take a moment to look at myself in the mirror, smoothing my hands over the leather on my hips and grabbing my new cowboy hat off the counter, placing it on my head. To celebrate tonight and all the hard work Kade’s done—not only with thedude ranch but also on himself—I thought it would be fun to surprise him with a little outfit I found in Dallas yesterday.

Kade had stayed in Randall to help his family get some last-minute things done, and I went to my show. I was gone for less than twenty-four hours, but I missed him. I’ve gotten so used to him being with me at shows over the last few months that I felt like I was missing a part of me. I know he felt it, too, because I swear the man called or texted at least once an hour to make sure I was good. It was sweet, and my band teased me mercilessly for it.

When I’m satisfied with how I look, I call out, “I’m in the bedroom!”

I walk out of the bathroom and put my hands on my hips. I’ve never done something like this before, so I’m not exactly sure if I should pose or something. I glance at the queen bed covered in a lemon-patterned comforter—Kade and I replaced the two twin beds a few months ago—and wonder if I should lay on it. But then the door swings open, and I realize it’s too late, so I’m sort of standing there awkwardly when Kade’s buckskin cowboy hat comes into view.

“What time is the band getting here—” The question dies on Kade’s lips as his widened hazel eyes take in my sexy cowgirl outfit complete with leather chaps. His mouth falls open a bit before his gaze drops down my body once. Twice. Then a third time before he makes eye contact with me again.

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