Page 114 of Lassoed Love

“Must you always be so dirty?” she retorts, a hand on her hip.

“Always,” I growl, a playful glint in my eyes. “Especially around you.”

She scoffs but can’t hide the amused glint in her eyes. “You’re incorrigible,” she says, crossing her arms.

Closing the distance between us, I shoot her a mischievous grin. “Well, princess, I can’t help it. It’s just the way I am,” I reply, the playful tone lingering in my voice.

Leaning against the stable door, I drawl, “That's what youlikeabout me.”

Isla rolls her eyes at my response. “You’re lucky you’re charming,” she retorts, a smile playing on her lips. Closing the distance between us, I shoot her a smirk.

“Charm is just one of mymanytalents,” I tease, enjoying the playful banter. She blushes, and I can just imagine exactly what she is thinking about.

She then laughs, a genuine sound that warms my chest. “Modesty is not one of them, though.”

“Who needs modesty when you’ve got all this?” I gesture playfully to myself.

She smirks, her eyes dancing with amusement. “I should’ve known better than to expect humility from you.”

Leaning against the stable door, I chuckle. “Eh, humility is overrated.”

“So you do, huh?”

“I do, what?” She questions.

“Like me?” I tease, closing the distance between us until we’re standing inches apart. The air crackles with a different kind of tension—a palpable awareness of each other.

Her lips curve into a small smile. “Hmm, maybe,” she replies, her eyes locked onto mine.

I can feel the warmth emanating from her, and my gaze lingers onher lips. The mischievous banter fades into a charged silence. The stable seems to shrink around us as the unspoken tension grows.

In that moment, I’m acutely aware of her presence, the softness of her breath, and the electricity in the air. I fucking hope she feels what I’m feeling.

A part of me wants to close the remaining gap, to bridge the space between us and see where this might lead us again. But hesitation lingers, a reminder of the complexities we’re both navigating. I notice a flicker of vulnerability in her eyes. It’s subtle, but it’s there. I reach out, gently tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear.

“You know,” I say, breaking the playful tone with a touch of sincerity, “there’s no rush. We can take things at whatever pace you’re comfortable with.”

In the quiet pause that follows, my thoughts echo with the awareness that despite the progress we’ve made, the mind blowing sex we’d had—Isla has brought up some walls again.

It’s a familiar defence mechanism, and I can’t blame her. But I can be a patient man, where it’s warranted, of course. And I’ll just about wait as long as I have to—a fucking eternity, if needed, for this girl and this girlalone, until she is ready to take that next step with me.

Just as I go to mutter something to her, distant barking echoes through the air. I recognize it immediately—it’s Buddy, probably coming around to sniff what we’re doing. Then it hits me—she doesn’t know about Luna. I quickly mutter, “Uh, Isla, there’s something I need to tell you.”

Before I can get a word out, Buddy and Luna come barreling intothe barn, their playful barks filling the space. Isla freezes beside me, her body stiffening. Luna spots her and bounds over, jumping and tagging at Buddy. Isla’s eyes widen in pure shock.

“L-Luna, is that you?” she stammers, looking up at me. I can sense the astonishment in her voice.

As she looks at me with pure confusion, Isla utters, “You, it was you.” She bends down, patting Luna's back. “You adopted her.” Her eyes well up with tears.

I nod gently. “Yeah… I needed another dog around here, you know, with Bud getting old and all. Luna here just fits in so well.” I try to sound casual, waiting for her response.

Isla sits there for a moment, her eyes locked on Luna, seemingly at a loss for words. Then, as if a switch flips, she abruptly stands up and throws her arms around me. “Thank you, thank you.”

I embrace the sudden hug, my grip tight, and bury my head in the nook between her head and shoulder.

“I thought she’d never find a home. I’m such an idiot, like a complete idiot. It didn’t ever occur to me to ask you,” she says, her voice catching, eyes glistening with unshed tears.

The moment lingers as she stares into my eyes, close enough that I can feel the warmth of her breath. Slowly, she releases me and moves back down to Luna, who sits with her tail wagging.

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