Roped Tight (Ryker Ranch #4) - Kim Loraine Page 0,19

horses. I’d never been attracted to a man on a horse. It wasn’t something special to me, I saw it all the time. But Tucker on a horse made me understand what was so damn sexy about a cowboy. Maybe it was this cowboy in particular. I wanted to look at him every day. But what I wanted more than anything was for him to be mine.

A week later, we were packed up and nearly ready to head back to the ranch. Tucker leaned against the side of the truck, hands in his pockets, eyes trained on the rolling clouds above. His beard had grown from neatly trimmed to a little bit wild. I didn’t hate it. In fact, one of my favorite things was the feel of his scruff along my inner thigh. I must've made some kind of noise because he snapped his focus to mine, a slow smile spreading across his face.

"Staring?" he asked.

That familiar zing of excitement raced up my spine. "If I am, what are you gonna do about?"

His gaze turned dark, lust shining in the depths of his eyes. "Why don’t you come over here, and I’ll show you?”

Wishing this never had to end, I took a deep breath and strode toward him, already removing my hat to give him better access to my mouth. He grabbed me in that forceful way he had, the gesture sending my heart racing, before claiming my lips with his. So much lived behind his kiss, passion and tenderness, anger and desperation. I wanted to know what was going to his mind, what would cause such frantic need. He broke the kiss before things got out of control and we ended up delaying our already late return even further.

Breathing hard, I let out a low chuckle. “Fuck, I have to figure out how we can find time to do this when we get back to the ranch."

“When are you leaving? For Colorado?”

I shook my head. I’d made up my mind. I was staying. “I’m not. I’m turning it down, staying on the ranch to help out. We can be together.”

His posture stiffened, focus dropping to the ground. "Sammy, I don't think that’s such a good idea."

What the fuck was he talking about? What wasn’t a good idea? "I need you to explain. Because what it sounded like you just said was, you don't think we're a good idea."

"We aren't."

All the air left my lungs. Every single ounce, gone in one shot, as though he kicked me hard in the gut and knocked the wind out of me. My brows drew together as anger and disbelief warred for control of my emotions. "So… I'm good enough to fool around with in secret, but once we get to the real world, this isn't happening?"

All that shit he said about our bodies wanting each other, about him wanting me ever since I kissed him. He’d been telling me exactly what this was, and like an idiot, I thought he meant something different. I thought he meant this was something real. Not just something physical. He wanted my dick. Not me.

His eyes widened for just a minute, then hardened again. "It's not what I mean. I just… I can't get involved with you."

"Well, it sure as fuck seemed like you were involved with me when your mouth was on my dick."

He shook his head. Clenching his jaw, he sighed, the sound weary and frustrated. "What do you think your dad's gonna say when he finds out the two of us were up here fucking when we were supposed to be fixing up his love nest for your mama?"

I swallowed back a retort. He was right. When put that way, what we’d done, what had been eye-opening and life-changing for me, somehow now sounded sordid. I was Tucker Weston's dirty little secret.

I let out a bitter laugh. It was all I could do because the bile rising in my throat stole the words right out of my mouth. Slipping my hat back on my head, I turned away from him and strode out of sight, down the trail that led to a viewpoint that overlooked the vast expanse of forest and mountains beyond.

My fucking heart was breaking. But it wasn’t Tucker's fault. It wasn’t like he had promised me the world. Hadn't made allusions to a future together where we lived happily ever after. In fact, he’d done the very opposite. And still, I’d fallen fast and hard over the last two weeks.