Roped Tight (Ryker Ranch #4) - Kim Loraine Page 0,38

don’t know if Sutton Wilde is gonna make it. He’s staring her down like she’s little red riding hood, and he’s the big bad wolf.”

I laughed. “Oh, the poor boy has no clue what he’s in for. Sera will destroy him.”

“It’s gonna be real fun to watch.”

I clinked my beer bottle to his, but on the inside, I was more than a little worried about what it might mean for a Wilde and a Ryker to be paying attention to each other. It seemed a lot like that combination in any aspect might be flirting with disaster.

Finishing my drink, I stood and tipped my hat at the guys. “I’m heading home. Night, fellas. Keep an eye on our girl, will ya?”

They didn’t give me any grief; they never did. I wasn’t the kind who drank to get drunk. One or two beers, and I was good. Now that I saw Trent had his wingmen and Sera had her watchdogs, I was ready to get home and do some serious soul searching about what I was gonna do about getting Sam out of my head.

Sam

They gave us the weekend off, which I didn't mind because working with these men had been challenging in every single way. That didn't mean I wasn't gonna work; I just wouldn't be dealing with cameras in my face or city boys trying to get each other killed. I saddled up Shadow and took her for a nice long ride, checking fence and taking some time to think long and hard about my conversation with Mama yesterday. But that damn kiss with Tucker two days ago…I’d be lying to myself if I said he didn't seem different. He was still intense and powerful, but there was some kind of gentleness about him, a vulnerability I hadn't seen on our first go around.

Now, there were conversations we needed to have, but I was nervous about having them. Because having them meant facing some hard truths I might not be ready for. I stopped my horse when I reached the place in the fence where a few months earlier, my brother Tristan and I happened upon Tucker, tangled in the barbed wire, broken, battered. That was the first moment I realized I was not even close to over him.

When he’d been injured, I didn’t think. I ran for him. I doubt he ever really knew that I was there. That I went with him to the hospital. That I was the one who got him safely home. He’d been so out of it. His injuries could have been so much worse, though. I shook my head to clear the dark thoughts of what might have happened. No sense dwelling on that now, because he was fine. Healthy, healed, and back working like nothing had happened.

I dug my heels into Shadow’s side and clicked my tongue to get her to go. I wanted to fly across the land, to feel the wind whipping my face, reminding me of exactly what I loved about this place. She really had some get up and go in her, and even now, she was the only girl for me. We rode deep into the property, jumping the creek that was one of my favorite places to play as a kid, and riding into the hillside where I could eventually get to the top and just… bathe in the beauty of everything I still had.

A familiar horse stood at the top of the hill, tied to a tree, and grazing on a patch of deep green grass. Excitement and anticipation twisted my gut. Tucker was here. Somewhere. Even now, we were pulled together like magnets. I don't know how I thought I could avoid him forever. And it seemed like a stupid idea now.

I got off my horse and secured her next to Tucker’s, and she immediately settled in for a nice graze herself. She’d earned it. The old girl had worked hard today.

Walking along the trail’s edge, I scanned the area for any sign of Tucker, but I didn't see him. I was sure he was fine. We regularly went in and cleared out the ground, trying to keep it as clean as we could of fallen limbs and dead leaves. But a big part of me was disappointed I hadn't found him. I just wanted to see him. His face was something that I been addicted to for far too long.

A low groan hit my ear, followed by a rustling of leaves, and