Stone Cold Cowboy(91)
“You two have a good time?” Ford asked.
“Great,” she said.
“Sure,” Rory said, still stuck in his head. Rory handed her the supplies and turned to walk the horses into the stables. “Take that up to the house. I’ve got work to do. I’ll be in later.”
“Uh, did you two have a fight, or something?” Ford asked. “I haven’t seen him like this in a while.”
“No, something else,” she said, her gaze locked on Rory’s retreating back. “Hey,” she called out to him. “Come back here.”
Rory stopped in his tracks and looked at her over his shoulder. She dropped the blanket and bag on the ground and planted her hands on her hips, staring him down.
Ford ran forward to take the horses’ reins Rory held up to him. Rory walked back to her and stopped three feet in front of her. “What?”
“Is that how you say goodbye to me now? No kiss. No ‘See you soon, sweetheart.’”
“Sadie, I have to get the horses settled. We’ll talk more later.”
She swept her hands out, indicating the ground in front of her. “Do you feel the bricks you’re laying between us? I can barely breathe for the suffocating silence. Don’t do this. Don’t be the quiet, distant guy I thought you were. Be my Rory.” She couldn’t hide the tremble in her voice or the sheen in her eyes.
He rushed her, wrapping his arms around her waist, lifting her right off her feet, and kissing her like he did when he made love to her, like she was his everything. His mouth softened over hers and he took the kiss deeper, sliding his tongue along hers. He tilted his head, melded his mouth to hers and held her tight with his arms banded around her back. He kissed her again and again until she placed her hands on his cheeks and pressed her forehead to his.
“It’s all right, honey. Everything is fine. Make me a promise. Until I tell you one way or the other, let’s go back to the way things were. No worrying about what might be. Please.”
“I’ll try, but I want to know as soon as you know.”
“I’d never keep something like that from you.”
“I know.”
“For now let’s do the same thing we’ve been doing. We stick together. We keep working on us.”
“Us.”
“Yes. Us. You and me.”
“I like that.”
“Good. I’m starting to like you again.”
That made him smile. “You like ordering me around.”
“It worked. I got my kiss.”
“All you had to do was ask.”
She eyed him. “Right. Go do your work. I’ve got to finish an assignment for school. I’ll see you at dinner.”
Rory kissed her softly on the lips, lingering for a long moment, hoping that extra time he took showed her how much he loved her because even now he struggled to find a way to actually tell her.
He kissed her one last time, set her back on her feet, handed her the things she’d dropped, and watched her walk away. He hoped she didn’t ever leave for good.
Rory walked into the stables. Ford stood just down the aisle brushing down Sadie’s horse.
“What did you do to upset her?”
Rory rubbed his fingers over his lips, remembering their kiss and all they shared this afternoon. He hadn’t meant to upset her. “Nothing. Something happened. It was no one’s fault.” He believed that, but still the consequences weighed on him. “I went quiet on her, and she didn’t like it.”
“She’s the best thing that ever happened to you. Don’t fuck this up.”
“Thanks. I’ll take that under advisement.”
“Seriously, she’s perfect for you. She told you to come back to her.” Ford’s broad smile made Rory smile back. “That chick’s got balls.”
“No, well yes, but mostly she knows I’m at her beck and call.”
“Then why the tension?”
“Leave it alone for now. We’ll work it out.”
“Do it fast. With everything going on with her family, she needs to know she can count on you when things get crazy again.”
“Did something happen?”
“No, but I’m sure it will with her brother on the loose.”
Ford was probably right. Sadie had just lost her father. Her brother was wanted by the cops. The DEA was breathing down her neck. He’d overreacted about something they’d tried to do right, but went wrong. Or maybe it didn’t. She might not be pregnant at all. But the thought of having a baby with her didn’t scare him. It didn’t faze him in the least. In fact, as much as he’d fought the idea because of his granddad’s prodding, the thought of a beautiful blond-haired, blue-eyed little girl made him unexpectedly thrilled.