Page 26 of Every Single Wildflower
“I know,” I answer.
He stops in front of me, his hand lifting to my hair, but he pulls it back at the last second, his brows furrowing. He doesn’t speak for a moment before asking.
“You want to go somewhere?”
Yes. Anywhere with you.
The single thought flashes across my brain, and my heart stutters.
“The ridge?” I offer.
With a sharp nod he turns on his heel, and even though a slither of guilt works its way into my chest, I ignore it and follow.
“Can you believe this view?” I ask, gazing up at the stars.
The ridge at the back of the ranch is one of my favorite places. Besides the flower field, or the barn, it’s where I come to think.To just absorb the silence when I feel like I can’t hear my own thoughts.
“It’s fucking beautiful,” he says next to me.
I smile, but when I glance at him, he’s not looking up at the stars, he’s looking at me.
My skin tingles under his gaze, my hands clenching the fabric of my dress. This feels dangerous. It feels wrong. It feels wrong to admit I feel more at ease with him than I do with anyone else.
To break whatever moment is quickly forming, I blurt. “All I really wanted to do tonight was dance.”
He searches my face, before he hops off of the tailgate of his truck. Fishing his phone from his pocket, he thumbs the screen before placing it down on the side.
He offers me an open palm. “Then let’s dance.”
“Maddox.” I laugh, trying to ease the racing of my heart. “You don’t have to.”
“I said let’s dance, Goldie.”
Goldie. That’s the first time he’s ever called me that.
Without another intrusive thought, I slip my hand in his as he guides me down to the ground. My boots hit the dirt; the hem of my dress doing the same. He tugs me to his chest, his hand settling on the small of my back. The music begins to flow from the small speaker on his phone, filling the empty space with a beautiful melody. George Strait’sTheMan in Love with Youplays softly as we move together beneath the sky. And for the very first time, I allow myself only a fraction of a second to wonder what it would be like to be loved by Maddox Sheppard.
Chapter twenty-one
Ivy
“So, this is good right?” Cooper aims his question at Ryder who doesn’t show a flicker of emotion. “Yeah. I mean, thankfully it isn’t expired.”
Cooper blows out a breath, his blue eyes releasing the anxiety that’s been held there since I arrived. “So, we can save it.”
“I would like to say yes, but I need to do some research before we know how deep the ranch is.” I smile as Judith; our waitress pours me a fresh cup of coke. One without cherries. I swear, for a man I’ve known since I was five he has absolutely no idea who I am. But he’s at least trying, and I don’t want to ruin his progress, so I accepted the drink and waited until he left to trash them.
“We should talk to dad,” Ryder says. “He’ll get pissed if we snoop without his approval.”
I nod, knowing damn well he won’t question me. He wants me to play my role, he’ll have to play his. Someone that cooperates will be a foreign feeling for him, but tough shit. The ranch is on the line.
“I agree.” Cooper whips out a toothpick. “Might as well do it now.”
“That’s fine.” Ryder shrugs. “Clyde has the ranch covered for the next couple of hours.”
I take a big gulp of my drink, then drop it back to the table. “Then let’s get this over with.”
Twenty minutes later we are surrounding my father’s hospital bed. He’s awake, our eyes connected for the first time in years.
