Page 29 of Some Cowboys Brave the Flames

He went over what had just occurred, and he could pinpoint the exact moment he’d let his walls crumble. She’d brought up his girlfriend, not once, but twice. Just the mere mention of it was like a slap in the face.

Charlie had essentially called him a cheater. And if he actually did have a girl somewhere, then she would have beenright. He’d never be so crass as to do that to anyone—least of all Charlie. His lies were muddying everything up.

He glanced at the door where Charlie had disappeared. Would she have allowed him to kiss her if she didn’t think there was someone else? He’d wanted to. More than he wanted anything, he wanted to explore her lips with his own—just to see if what he remembered, what he craved, was still there between them.

Deep inside, he knew it was. He knew that it wasn’t a fluke he felt this way about her.

Now he had a bigger problem.

Since he’d told her he wanted her, that she tempted him, there was no way she’d believe he could be trusted.

He muttered a curse just as Daniel entered the barn. He glanced over his shoulder—presumably where he could see Charlie, then he swung his gaze over to Ash and his brows furrowed. “What’s wrong?”

Ash shook his head, waving a hand. “Nothing.”

“Did she say something to you?”

Ash stopped still and stared at Daniel.

“Because I can talk to her if you want me to.”

“What makes you think I’m bothered by anything she has to say?” The words exploded from him in tight breaths. “I could care less what she thinks.”

Daniel shrugged, leaning against one of the empty stall doors. “You’ve been a little… off… lately.”

Ash huffed. “I’m fine.”

“Is it your girlfriend?”

Once again, Ash stiffened. His blood ran cold. So Daniel had noticed that bit. He’d heard the way Charlie had talked about his girlfriend like it would be enough to set him off. This could be his chance to ease out of that lie—at least with Daniel. It was as if the world had offered him an olive branch. “Things aren’t great.”It was all he could think of to say. It wasn’t one hundred percent incorrect, either.

Daniel offered a look of support. “I’m sorry, man.” Then his mouth set in a firm line. “I’ll talk to her.”

“No!” Ash blurted.

His friend remained grim but nodded. “If you ever want to talk about it…” He raised his hands with a shrug. “I’m here.”

“Thanks,” Ash murmured. It was nice to know that he had someone who would be up for that sort of thing—only it wouldn’t help him at all if he did miraculously find a way to win Charlie over.

Another nod.

They didn’t finish their lasso practice, and that was just fine with Ash. He wasn’t sure he wanted to be around when her other brothers came in for dinner. He didn’t want to risk being invited to that meal and have to be in the same room as her until he could figure out a way to get his feelings across.

He was going to take what she said to heart—weigh the pros and cons of the options he had in front of him and decide.

Smoke madeit hard to see what was right in front of him. Embers and ash floated through the sky like snow falling down around him and his crew. These were the men he could count on to watch his back, to make sure he didn’t make a mistake.

But they weren’t exactly the guys he could talk to about his romantic issues. Most of them were married. At twenty-eight, he was one of few he knew who didn’t have either a girlfriend or was married with at least one kid. In other parts of the country, getting married before twenty-five was unheard of. But in this part of Colorado, he was the anomaly.

They fought the fire together as one unit, pressing in on it, forcing it to retreat.

And every step he took, his thoughts were consumed with Charlie.

She was like a wildfire in his head, his chest, his whole body. She consumed his every waking moment, fed his every desire. Whether she was smiling at him or glaring at him, he still adored her. Her words could be a balm or cut like a knife, and he’d still want to go back for more.

There was no rhyme or reason to why he couldn’t get her out of his head, and at this point, he knew he didn’t want to. It would be like cutting off a piece of himself. She belonged with him, and he wanted no one else.

Something cracked loudly, a branch overhead. Ash caught sight of the large overhanging piece of wood, then dropped his gaze to Chuck at his side. He hollered at the man, then charged at him, knocking him out of the way just as the branch crashed to the ground.

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