Page 54 of Rogue Cowboy
Her knees felt weak—ridiculous because she was ranch born and raised.Strong.
“I need you to take care of me.”
He must be joking, but then she remembered how he’d rushed out of her trailer last night.He’d been pale, his skin clammy with a sheen of sweat, and his breathing had been erratic—like how she got sometimes.
But Cole was the strongest, most independent man she knew.He couldn’t need her, could he?What if he did?She rolled her shoulders back—to be needed by a man like Cole.It was almost unfathomable.
“I don’t know how,” she admitted, but boy was she willing to learn if only she was someone without the baggage, someone stronger, cleaner, whole.
“You’re doing just fine.”His voice was rough, raw like how she felt inside.
“Cole, I’m not that girl anymore,” she confessed.“Or maybe it’s more I don’t want to be.”
“I know.”
Like it was no big deal.
“I’m not the same, either,” he said easily, and his palm moved down to her waist, then her hip to align her with his body—closer but not touching, and she felt like if she sucked in a deep breath, her chest would brush against his.And if she leaned in, she’d feel him—the most masculine part of him—against her tummy.
The thought should scare her to death.But when Cole touched her, when he was close enough to breathe in, all she felt was clawing emptiness beginning to be filled.
“Look at you, heart like a hummingbird, baby,” he whispered, leaning in.His lips brushed down her neck, and she felt like his tongue circled where her pulse beat.“Are you frightened?”
Heat rushed through her.“No.”
“I’m a little frightened of your power,” he stunned her by saying.
“I don’t have any power.”She tilted her neck to give him better access.He kissed a trail down her neck and across her collarbone.His tongue stroked seductively, and she shivered even as the morning sun warmed her.
“You crackle with power,” Cole said.One thumb traced her bottom lip.“And you overthink.”
She nipped the pad of his thumb on impulse, which startled her more than him, but his eyes did flare with some unnamed emotion, and the fact that she could surprise him, make him notice her, did fill her with a sense of power she’d lost long ago.But maybe it had only been misplaced.
“You want simple?”she teased.
“I want you.”He shocked her with his honesty.
“You confuse me,” she admitted.She was nothing special.Not anymore.
“Same.”He cupped her cheeks, thumbs stroking.“We don’t have to have all the answers.That’s why I’m here.”
“But why not find someone else, someone easier?”
He placed her hand on his chest.“Who values easy?My heart chose you, Riley.Then and now.”
I went swimming in Miracle Lake today.I haven’t been in a few years, but my family all went like we used to, only there are more of us now—nieces and nephews.We picnicked.Boone brought inflatable paddleboards, and a little blowup kid boat for the little ones.
You like to swim?Our ranch has a couple of prime swimming holes.
He relaxed into the conversation she’d initiated.Each time she reached out first, he had more hope, felt like their friendship could become more.
I’m sure your swimming holes are warmer than Miracle Lake.Even in August it’s so cold you can’t stay in long.Glacier fed, but invigorating.Reminds me I’m alive and washes me clean.
You’re clean, Riley.You sparkle.
Chapter Eleven
Cole forced himselfto relax and breathe.When had standing on the street in a small Montana town become so hard?There were civilians two to three deep lining the historic main street—the architecture so different from Last Stand’s thick limestone walls and colored tin roofs.He’d been home nearly a month before he’d hit the road and had hoped that would be enough time for him to settle in as a civvy.He’d known it wasn’t, but he’d wanted to see Riley to learn if he had a chance.
