Page 28 of On Her Terms

“I was a total bookworm.”

“That doesn’t really surprise me.”

“I...was a bit of a loner, I guess. I didn’t have a lot of friends,” she says, her voice low, and I get the sense that she’s telling me something very important about herself.

Her eyes meet mine and the sadness I see guts me. “I’m sorry.”

“That’s okay. I had my stories.”

“What kind of books did you read?” She turns her head away and glances out over the lake as we pass it. I wait a long moment and then ask, “Are you not going to tell me?”

“No.”

I laugh. “Why not?”

“Because you’ll make fun of me.”

I touch her chin, draw her eyes back to me. “I would never make fun of you, Brianna.” She looks off into the distance again, like she’s remembering something, something hurtful. “Tell me,” I say.

“I read romance. Okay?” she blurts out.

I lean in to her and press my lips to hers. The girl who doesn’t believe in happily-ever-after reads romance. I knew it. Deep inside I knew she was the kind of girl who wanted the white picket fence, and goddammit she deserves it. Still, I can’t help but wonder about her fears. Is it her job that has her too frightened to commit, or is it something else altogether?

“There is nothing wrong with a good romance story,” I tell her. “My mom reads them all the time.” That seems to relax her.

“What did you do for fun when you were working here?” she asks.

“When I wasn’t working, I was kiteboarding.”

Her eyes go wide. “That seems like so much fun. I’ve never tried it. I was too scared. You’re way more adventurous than me.” She taps her head. “I recall Tate saying something about that. Didn’t you guys go skydiving?”

“Yeah, we did, once.” She smiles up at me. “I can make the arrangements for us to go kiteboarding if you’d like. We should always face our fears, Brianna.”

“I’m not sure about that.”

“I am.” The heavy scent of pine and moss falls over us as the horses take us below a canopy of leaves that blocks out the night sky.

Her hand goes to my thigh, and as it rests there, I wonder if she even realizes she’s doing it. Nevertheless I really like the easy intimacy growing between us.

“I’d probably kill myself if I ever tried,” she says. “Best for me to stay on land.”

“I won’t let anything happen to you.”

She sags against me, and a quiet, comfortable silence falls over us as we sit back and enjoy the view. Half an hour later the horses drop us off where we began and we all climb off.

“It’s still early. You guys want to hit the club?” Tate asks as he pulls Summer into his arms.

“Brianna?” I ask. “What do you think?”

“Sounds like fun.”

“We’re in,” Cara and Amber say.

Jared and Carter also nod in agreement.

“I’ll get Granddad settled into his room and meet you all there,” Tate says. He drops a kiss onto Summer’s lips and walks away.

We all make our way to the club, and the place is alive when we enter. The scent of alcohol and perfume clogs the air, and Summer snags us a big table. We all order drinks, and Brianna begins swaying in her chair. I’m about to ask her if she wants to dance, but Jared jumps at the chance.

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