Claimed By Her Cowboys

Yet, here he was, planning on taking her out on a late-night horse ride. It crossed too many boundaries to count, and he knew damn well his willpower would be tested.

He’d been waiting for her outside while she ran inside to grab a shawl. There was a nip in the air at this time of evening despite the brutal heat by day. The crickets chirped in an endless chorus throughout the fields. He breathed in deeply, loving his time of night. He felt free, young, like anything was possible.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” she asked.

“What can go wrong?”

She smiled and carefully plodded through the thick grass shrouded in shadows. “I thought you’d changed your mind about the tour,” she said. “I didn’t want to push about it because I know how busy you always are.”

“It slipped my mind after dinner yesterday. But I’ll make it up to you tonight. How are you getting along now that your stuff is all moved in?”

“Good. I always told myself I wouldn’t put all my eggs into one basket, so it’s a little disconcerting, but I couldn’t be happier.”

“The boys behaving themselves around you?”

She giggled. “For the most part.”

Gabe turned around and stopped dead, leaning against the paddock fence. He raised a brow. “What did they do? No, what did Vinny do?”

“It’s nothing. Honest. I was just playing around.”

“No, there’s more to it,” he said. Everyone had been acting off since yesterday, and he hadn’t been imagining it.

“I thought you guys were close. Don’t you tell each other stuff?”

“Not when it comes to you,” he said. “What did Vinny say?”

She ran a hand through her hair. “It was just some comments about a foursome. How he couldn’t imagine being away from the two of you. It was a silly thought from a long time ago. I thought he mentioned it to you.”

“No, that, I’d remember.”

What was Vinny doing? He wanted a housekeeper, but he’d single-handedly scare her off if he kept talking garbage. Why couldn’t he keep his big mouth shut?

“Forget I said anything.”

He realized he was still standing there blocking the path, his brow furrowed and hands clenched. It was too easy for him to zone out into thought. “I’m sorry he insulted you. I’ll talk with him.”

“He didn’t insult me.”

What did that mean? She’d brushed off the comments or did a foursome pique her interest? He was about to delve into an area he had no business visiting. “Sharing a bed with three men doesn’t make you skittish?”

“Not if it was the three of you.”

Fuck me.

Was she playing with him again? Was this a test? He wasn’t sure how to respond.

“I don’t think an innocent little thing like you should be entertaining such thoughts,” he said. Gabe swore he could hear his own blood rushing through his veins. Every sense was hyperaware, along with his cock.

“Why? Is it because I’m not your type?”

Where did this siren come from? He was used to Annalise keeping quiet and only appearing to serve their food.

“You’re exactly my type.”

Her lips parted slightly. “That’s hard to believe. Maybe you’ve been alone on the ranch too long.”

“You think I don’t know what I want?”

“Word is you only care about working,” she said.

He scrubbed a hand along his jaw. “Because that’s all I have. All I know. I’ve sacrificed my life for Vinny and Archie.”

“So, you’re not allowed to be happy? You act like you have one foot in the grave.”

He shrugged. “I’m forty-five and live alone with my two friends. Things can only go downhill from here.”

“If you don’t look for something, you won’t find it.”

He looked her up and down before staring deeply into her green eyes. What was it about this girl that drove him crazy, made him want things he had no right wanting? He’d seen how Vinny and Archie looked at her. This entire situation was a clusterfuck.

Gabe smirked. “You telling me I should look for love?”

Chapter Five

Why didn’t it surprise her that Gabe would think of someone else?

Annalise wanted to kick herself. Ever since Vinny had mentioned the foursome comment, she couldn’t stop thinking about it, and now, she couldn’t even focus on keeping her thoughts out of the dirty gutter. At this rate, she was going to end up without a job.

“You should look for whatever makes you happy,” she said.

“Working makes me happy.”

She stopped and looked at him. Gabe raised a brow. “Does it?”

“Does what?” he asked.

“Does work make you happy or does it just fill up the time?”

He folded his arms, and she saw the twitch of his lip.

“What about you?”

“What about me?” she asked.

“Are you happy with just working? That’s all I see you do around here.”

“I … I like working, I do. It’s not what I want to do every single day of my life.”

“Tell me, Annalise, what do you want from life?” he asked. “Do you hope to find love someday?”