Page 46 of Riding the Storm
I shoot him a look that wipes the grin clean off his damn face, then turn and follow after her. But she’s fast. By the time I make it to the end of the hallway, she’s already been swallowed by the crowd.
Dammit.
I rake a hand through my hair, trying to get my breathing under control. My lips still tingle, my chest feels like I just came off an eight-second ride, and every part of me is still buzzing from what just happened.
I detour to the door behind the bar and step outside, into the cooler night air, hoping it’ll help get my body back under control.
It doesn’t.
The deck is half full of drunken couples and strangers wrapped up in each other, music spilling through the cracked-open door. I can still see her in my mind—that wild flash in her eyes right before I kissed her, the way she melted for a heartbeat before snapping back like a live wire.
I didn’t imagine that.
That wasn’t one-sided.
I lean against the railing, exhaling hard.
This is going to be a problem.
Because whatever’s happening between me and Charli Storm, it’s not supposed to. I came here to get my head straight, to work with her, to do the training. Not to start something that could—and probably will—blow up in my face.
But the truth is, right now, I don’t really fucking care about the consequences.
Not one bit.
Because I’m gonna kiss her again. And no amount of logic’s gonna change that fact.
The door swings open behind me, laughter spilling out again. I half expect to see her storming out, ready to tell me off and kick me in the balls, ready to put me in my place, like she has since day one.
But she doesn’t come.
She’s probably inside with her sisters, pretending like nothinghappened. Pretending like that kiss didn’t just light her up from the inside out, like it did me.
I glance up at the stars, the Wyoming night stretching wide and endless overhead, and I can’t help the rough laugh that escapes me.
“Well, this night sure took a messy turn,” I mutter.
And somewhere deep down, I know it’s only the start of a much bigger mess.
The door opens again, and this time, it’s Cabe. He spots me instantly.
“There you are,” he says, walking over with a lopsided grin. “The girls are looking for Charli. You wouldn’t know where she disappeared to, would you?”
I try for innocent. “Me? Nope. Why would I?”
He narrows his eyes, clearly unconvinced. “Uh, because we left you at the table together.”
“Last I saw her, she was headed to the restroom.”
“Well, I’m gonna go find her and try to wrangle all of ’em to the truck. You ready?”
I nod. “Be there in a minute.”
He goes back inside, and I stay put for a moment longer, listening to the muffled music and the low hum of voices inside. I should go try to talk to her. Apologize and explain that it was just a heat-of-the-moment thing. That it won’t happen again. But she’d probably bite my head off, and right now, I’m not sure I’d blame her.
Because it wasn’t.
And it will.
