Page 13 of Wild Eyes
His eyes slice to mine and then back to his sister again. “You’re gonna let Emmy in your car?”
Rosalie shrugs. “Nah, she’s feral. I’m gonna strap her to the roof.”
He laughs, and the deep, warm sound reminds me of lying beneath his body on that hot asphalt roadway.
“But first, I need to introduce you to someone. She’s going to stay in your bunkhouse until Ford and I can get one of the guesthouses up and running.”
I wince inwardly. She’s not asking him. She’s telling him.
He crouches to wet the horse’s stomach, and from his side profile, I can see he’s grinning as the water sprays him back and glistens on his golden skin.
Even as the spray of water leaves wet spots on his jeans.
“Bird girl. Didn’t expect to see you again so soon.”
Rosalie’s head whips in my direction, her brows knitting together as confusion paints her pretty features. “Bird girl?”
Lord help me.“I’m notbird girl.”
He stands and turns to face us, hitting me with the full impact of his physique. It’sabsurd. My facial muscles get an extra workout as they struggle to keep my jaw from dropping open.
With a teasing grin, he lifts one arm and wipes it across his forehead, which does nothing but make his abs look more defined.
“Bear girl?” he tries again, with a cocky lift to one eyebrow. “You like that one better?”
His sister isveryinterested now. She nudges me and says, “Beargirl?”
All I do is glare at Weston, and all he does is smirk back.
“So…” Rosie’s head flips between us. “The two of you have met? That’s what I’m taking away from this? West, this is Skylar. Skylar Stone, you know?—”
“Oh yeah. I know.” The Adonis in front of us turns to crank the water tap. It squeaks as he does, and the horse’s head flips in his direction. Without a second thought, his hand reaches out to stroke her neck with a soothing “Easy, girl.”
I’m not proud of the way that simple sentence makes my body clench.
All that goes away when he recounts our bear story. “Skylar here was trying to make friends with Winnie the Pooh on the side of the highway earlier today. I had to stop and help her, so she didn’t get turned into a snack.” He wipes his hands on his jeans as he chuckles. “Was actually a pretty close call.”
“I didn’t know that it would notice me!”
Rosalie seems alarmed. “What kind of bear?”
“Grizzly,” Weston provides dryly, entirely ignoring my explanation.
Her expression is full-on horrified now. “Oh my god, Skylar. Honey,no.”
I gaze at her, hoping to prove I’m not a total idiot. I didn’t mean to be stupid. The photo opportunity was just too good to pass up. I wanted to post somethingrealon my social media. Connect with my fans after the mess I’ve been lately. Prove I can still form full sentences. “He’s forgetting there were babies.”
“That doesn’t make it better.” Rosalie’s eyes go bigger, and Weston laughs behind her.
“It’s not funny,” I snap at him. Recently, too many people have had too many things to say about my intelligence, and even though this could be a charming moment, the mockery smarts.
He must hear the frustration in my voice because he stops instantly. Though I’m not sure the way he’s looking at me now is any better. His gaze is too heavy, and his jaw altogether too square when he swallows deeply.
“Right.” Rosalie claps her hands again, startling me out of my stupor. “Well, leave it to West to jump headfirst into a situation with a grizzly.” She points at him. Then winks. “I’ll leave that out the next time I talk to Mom and Dad, but only if you say yes to Skylar staying at the bunkhouse.”
He grunts at that, but he’s still staring at me like I’m a puzzle he’s trying to figure out.
“I don’t want to impose on Weston?—”
