He steps forward until we’re close enough that I can smell his rugged masculine scent. I could reach out and run my hand down that hard flat stomach if I was a braver woman.
“Brooklyn,” he whispers as he reaches out and takes my hand. My heart is hammering against my ribs, thundering from my head to my toes. I can feel my body urging me to lean forward. My chin tilts up as my lips beg me to get his mouth on mine. Every part of my body is being drawn to this man in a surreal unnatural way. It’s startling and overwhelming and feels so right.
“Yes?” I whisper as his head moves down and to the side, in the exact position his mouth would be in if he wanted to kiss me.
I inch up on my toes to get my mouth a little closer to his. My nipples harden as his hand tightens around mine.
“Brooklyn, I—”
“Logan!” a woman’s voice bellows from somewhere on the ranch. We both jerk away from each other and turn in the direction of the greenhouse.
There’s a pretty woman with long red hair under a sunhat who’s walking over holding Zeus by the reins. “Your horse was in the greenhouse eating my carrots!”
I chuckle as she makes her way over. Logan smiles at me and I smile shyly, feeling a guilty heat in my cheeks. We almost kissed, didn’t we? That’s not a way to act on a job interview, but then again, this is all fake anyway. Might as well kiss the hot guy who is way out of my league if he’s game for a make-out session.
“Who is this?” the woman asks as she looks at me with a warm smile.
“Zoe, this is Brooklyn,” Logan says, introducing me. “Brooklyn, this is Zoe. She works in the greenhouse.”
“Nice to meet you,” she says as we shake hands.
“Likewise.”
“Brooklyn is going to be working on the ranch with us,” he says as he rubs the back of his neck.
Zoe jerks her head over to him in shock. “I didn’t know we were hiring.”
“Yup,” he says with a nervous shrug. “We need help with… stuff.”
“Stuff?”
“Mm-hm. Stuff.”
“Okay, then,” she says with a smile as she turns back to me. “Welcome aboard.”
She hands the reins back to Logan and gives him a fierce look. “And keep this guy out of my greenhouse. Got it?”
“Yes, ma’am,” he says as she storms away.
We keep walking to the stables, only this time we keep Zeus between us. I don’t think it’s a good idea to be so close. I can’t seem to control myself around this man and he can’t seem to control himself around me.
It’s not like me to act this way. I’m usually quite standoffish when it comes to guys. I’m nineteen years old and I’ve never even been kissed yet. I came close once when I was fifteen, but just before my lips touched Anthony Spier’s, I turned and ran away.
It felt all wrong and I knew that I’d regret it. That same feeling came with every other boy who tried to kiss me. Every single one except for Logan. That almost felt… perfect.
“So, you said you’re new in town?” he asks, watching me over Zeus’ back. The horse is so tall that I can barely see over it, but Logan is tall enough to make up for my shortness.
“I actually live in Belgrade Springs,” I tell him. It’s the town over, a bit of a drive from Blackcloud Point.
“That’s where I’m from,” he says as he looks at me in shock. “You were there the whole time?”
“No,” I say with a shake of my head. “I’m originally from Columbus, Ohio. I moved to Montana about two years ago.”
What the hell is wrong with me? I’m not supposed to give him my real information. I had created a fake name with a complete backstory on the drive over here and one bat of those long sexy eyelashes has me blabbing every last secret I have. I’d make a terrible spy.
“I was going to say…” he says as he shakes his head. “I don’t know how I could have possibly missed you.”
We meet eyes again for a long moment as we walk. I’m so focused on him that I don’t watch where I’m going and trip on the uneven ground. Luckily, I grab onto Zeus as I stumble and catch myself.
His smile is so incredibly hot as I get back up and laugh nervously, my cheeks blushing with embarrassment.
The fluster I’m feeling just melts away, replaced with a warm comforting feeling as we arrive at the stables.
“Come on in,” he says as we walk in front of Zeus. He huffs out a breath and I jump, startled as I feel the horse’s hot breath on the back of my neck.
Logan lets out a carefree easygoing laugh as he slides his hand on my lower back and then guides me through the door.