Page 80 of Rope Me In

He pulls me tighter into him. “Don’t act like you don’t know, darlin’.” The teasing tone of his voice lightens the mood in the room, and I clamp my lips together, trying to hide my own smile.

“I wanted to spend time with you,” he continues. “Not mucking stalls. Not doing chores or tending bar. Just time together.”

The clear desire in his voice only intensifies the feelings I’ve started to have for him. “What do you have in mind?”

That sly grin of his takes over his face, and he presses his hips forward so I can feel the heat of him. I bite my lower lip to keep back the whimper that tries to escape, but it doesn’t go unnoticed. “Play me another song first, then I’ll show you.”

I laugh. “You drive a hard bargain.”

He pouts his lower lip like a puppy. “Please, Presley?”

I shove his chest playfully but nod. “Since you called me by my real name,” I tease, “sure. Have any requests?”

Kade grins wider then runs his nose along the shell of my ear, and I shiver and clutch my arms around his waist tighter.

“Surprise me,” he whispers.

I pull back, happiness filling me from head to toe. “You got it, Cowboy.”

Chapter 27

Kade

“Didn’t I say Idon’t camp?” Presley eyes me warily as we get closer to Devil’s Rock. I debated long and hard about bringing her to the canyon, the place of my accident and so many other good and bad memories. But after our nights together, it felt right to share this place with her.

I chuckle. “For the millionth time, we’re not camping. We’re hanging out.”

She stares at me, like the concept of hanging out is foreign to her. Maybe it is, given all that I’ve been finding out about her.

“Okay, but there are a lot of rocks here.” She looks out the windshield of the truck with a frown on her face. “And nothing for miles.” The tone in her voice would have someone believing we were on a new planet and not a couple of miles into the Montgomery property.

“Calm down, City Girl,” I tease. “I thought you weren’t afraid to get a little dirty.”

The suggestive tone of my statement makes her squirm. It’s so easy to rile her up, and I love it. I bet she’s getting wet for me already. My eyes glance to the towel I laid on the seat to cover her mess from last night. Images of her coming on my tongue while restrained fill my mind and make me half hard.

I bite the inside of my cheek and grip the steering wheel to try to chill, not wanting tonight to be about sex. I told her we would hang out, and that’s what I plan to do. Not to mention, this is the first time I’ve been back here since my accident.

I’ve managed to keep how I’m feeling hidden, not wanting Presley to worry, but my stomach has been a ball of nerves. Not because I’m afraid to bring her here or that I’m scared of Devil’s Rock, but I have no idea how I will actually feel when I’m standing in the same spot where I almost lost my life. I inhale a shallow breath and will myself to remain steady and calm.

“We’re here,” I say, stopping a short distance from where we’ll set up for the evening. Normally, I’d ride horses to the canyon, but Presley wouldn’t have been comfortable. She’s got a long way to go until she’ll ride at more than a snail’s pace, which means it would’ve taken us over an hour to get here. And riding back in the dark would’ve been even more of a challenge.

Once I throw the truck into park, I turn to her. “In all seriousness, I promise, no camping. But someday I’ll get you to camp, and I’ll even bring a bed for you to sleep on.”

That makes her laugh and smile wide. “Isn’t that against camping rules?”

I match her mood, secretly happy that she didn’t balk at me talking about future plans. I put my hand on her thigh and squeeze. “I’d go against all the rules for you, if it makes you smile like that.”

Presley glances down at my hand, turning shy. We’ll need to work on that. I always want her to be comfortable looking me in the eye, especially when I’m saying something that pertains to the good things about her.

“Come on,” I say, reaching over the back seat to grab the things I brought. “I want to catch the sunset. The canyon lights up this time of year.”

Supplies in hand, we both hop out of the truck, and I breathe a sigh of relief that she didn’t try to lock herself inside the cab instead of joining me.

Presley walks around the vehicle to stand in front of me, her hands in the pockets of her usual black jeans. It’s windy tonight and a little colder now that the heatwave has broken. Her blonde-and-purple locks whip around her face, and theoversized black-and-purple flannel ripples in the wind around the curves of her body. Against the backdrop of the canyon, she looks a little out of place. Her grunge vibes don’t quite match the vastness of south Texas, yet somehow, she fits.

Presley’s lips tip up at me as she tries to keep her hair from flying in her eyes. “If a storm comes and a tornado picks us up, you have to protect me from the Wicked Witch when we get to Oz.”

I snort. “Didn’t picture you as aWizard of Ozgirl.”

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