“No. I’m not.” She reached over and gently stroked his rough jawline. “I’m already living my fantasy with you, and I’m lucky enough that it’s been more than just one night.” She sighed as she stroked the hair at the nape of his neck. “If anything, I wonder why you want me. You’re a brilliant, incredibly handsome man who gives to others without any recognition for doing so. I’m just a regular woman, and I’m nothing special. My butt is too big, I’m much too curvy, and I’m not anything out of the ordinary, yet you still want me. Sometimes I’m afraid I’ll wake up and realize everything that’s happened with you was just one very long, one very hot wet dream. So no…I don’t dream or fantasize about any other man but you.”
Travis grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing her palm reverently. “Jesus, Ally. Sometimes I feel exactly the same way.”
Time stopped for just a moment, as though only the two of them existed. Ally’s breath seized in her lungs, the beauty of Travis leaving himself wide open to her making her heart flip-flop in her chest. Her connection to him was so strong, so right, that she wanted to cry just from the joy of being with him. “I’ll never hurt you again, Travis. Not willingly.” She released the tremulous breath she’d been holding. “And I’ll do whatever it takes to convince you of that. Even if I have to get out your ‘naughty boy tie’ and tie you up and ravish you until you’re completely convinced.”
Travis grinned at her wickedly. “I’m suddenly feeling incredibly insecure.”
She shot him an equally naughty grin. “Then I guess we’ll just have to work on that.”
Travis pulled into the driveway of an enormous, beautiful mansion with a circular driveway as he replied, “I’m going to take a lot of damn work.”
Even though Ally had butterflies in her belly at the prospect of meeting so many of Travis’s peers, she smiled.
“I think you’ll be comfortable here. Travis has stayed here before, so he knows where everything is. Make sure you stay well hydrated and take it easy tonight. We’re a little over eight thousand feet here, and you’re a flatlander. You might feel the effects of the altitude for a while,” Tate told Ally with a charismatic smile. “I’m glad you’re here, Ally. I hope you have a good time.”
Tate Colter was probably what Travis would call his best friend aside from his brother Kade, but he still wanted to punch him every time he turned that admiring smile toward Ally. “We’re fine. You can leave now,” Travis told him gruffly, looking around the guesthouse. He had stayed here many times before, and it was a nice place. But all he wanted was for Tate’s ass to leave. A ranch hand had brought their bags over earlier, while they’d sat and chatted with Tate over dinner. Now all Travis wanted was to be alone with Ally.
“Glad to know you missed me so much, buddy.” Tate slapped Travis on the back with a smirk.
Travis glared back at him, knowing Tate was just trying to push his buttons. It hadn’t taken long for Tate to realize that Travis was feeling territorial about Ally, and he’d immediately started paying as much attention to her as possible just to irritate Travis. Bastard!
Ally stepped forward and offered Tate her hand. “Thank you so much for having me. It’s beautiful here.”
“I’m very happy to have you,” Tate answered, putting his emphasis on the word “have” intentionally as he shook Ally’s hand much longer than he needed to.
“If you don’t leave, I’m gonna fucking kill you,” Travis growled.
Tate let go of Ally’s hand and let out a choked laugh. “Okay, okay. I’m going.” Tate obviously noted that Travis was getting close to his tipping point.
Travis gave him a hard shove, moving Tate closer to the door, not an easy feat since he and Tate were about the same size. But Travis had irritation on his side. Opening the door, he motioned Tate impatiently through the entrance, and slammed it behind him, flipping the lock noisily. He could hear Tate’s booming laughter as he walked away from the guesthouse. “Son of a bitch!”
“Travis. He was just giving you a hard time. He isn’t interested in me,” Ally said soothingly behind him. “Show me the house. It’s gorgeous.”
“I know what he was trying to do. I swear I’ll repay the favor someday.” He couldn’t wait until Tate had a serious love interest now.
The guesthouse was an expansive ranch, all on one floor. He took Ally by the hand and led her around the various rooms, stopping when he finally reached the master bedroom and slid open the sliding door to the patio off the bedroom. “My favorite part of this house.”