Tempting the Cowboy (Circle B Ranch 8)

Her eyes widen as her lips form a perfect O. "Where? Not your ears, nose, or brow." She looks over my body.

"No, it's, uh...lower."

"Your nipples? I'd scream too." She giggles.

"Not exactly," I drawl.

She lowers her gaze to my groin. "You pierced your dick?"

"Yep. Went out for my birthday a few months ago, woke up with a double frenum piercing."

Her jaw drops again. "Let me just google that, one sec...” Ivy sets her fork down, then grabs her cell. She types and glances at me over the screen. “Holy shit. You did this?”

She shoves the phone in my face, and I see dozens of dick pics. “Two bars under the tip like that? Why?”

I shrug. “Knox dared me to get a Jacob’s Ladder or Prince Albert. I wasn’t about to do that, so I went this route. Apparently, he has the same one."

"Oh God, don't put that image in my head. He's my brother-in-law!”

I let out a hearty laugh. "He promised it was the most sanitary, so I drank a six-pack and went through with his stupid dare. Slept with an ice pack for two nights."

"Don't mind me, just looking up what a Jacob's Ladder is...holy shit!" She tilts her eyes as she stares at the screen. "Why would anyone do that?"

"Some really get pleasure out of it." I shrug.

"I can't imagine having sex with someone who has this many piercings. Do ya think it'd hurt going inside?"

I shift on the couch, needing to adjust myself so she doesn't see the chub she's giving me. Hearing her talk about dick piercings and sex so freely gives my cock inappropriate ideas.

Shrugging, I stay silent because I quickly need a subject change. I shove more food into my mouth, hoping we’re done chatting about this topic.

"Do you remember when we ran into each other at the hospital?" I mention once we’re finished eating.

"Yeah, why?"

I contemplate not asking her, but it's been driving me crazy. "You were about to say something to me when Raelyn interrupted. When I asked you to finish, you blew it off. I’ve been wondering what you were gonna say ever since."

"Oh...well, I kinda froze when I realized you had a girlfriend. She made me nervous, and I struggled to get the words out, so I took it as a sign to drop it. Saying never mind was just easier."

"Please tell me."

She draws a slow breath before responding. "I was gonna ask if you wanted to hang out or grab a coffee sometime. Since we now shared a nephew, I thought it'd be good to get to know each other better. But when I realized you weren’t single, I worried it'd seem like I was askin’ you out on a date."

"Is that what you wanted it to be?" I secretly hope her answer is yes.

"Maybe eventually, once we talked and hung out a few times. But I hadn't realized you were seeing someone and didn't want to make it awkward."

"I would've loved to have taken you on a date, Ivy. Obviously, not while I was with someone else, but I'm single now."

Her cheeks heat. "Me too, though, I've been single for like nineteen years."

"I find that really hard to believe."

"I’ve been on some dates but never with anyone serious or long-term. Boys my age are immature and annoying. So I stopped wasting my time on them and buried my face in fictional men instead."

"Probably for the best," I admit. "High school boys are dumb and only think about one thing."

"Is that so? What's that?" she muses.

The corner of my lips tilts up at her mischievous grin. "Getting into your pants and about a dozen other girls' before graduation."

"I bet you and Knox were the same way."

"Oh yeah, Knox was horrible."

"Don't even pretend you were so innocent. I might've been young and naïve back then, but I remember Hadleigh talkin' about you two all the time. Even up to a few years ago, she'd gush all about the Bishop boys’ antics."

"My previous statement still stands. High school boys are dumb as hell."

She chuckles. "I wanted to hang out with you guys so much. When I was like thirteen, Hadleigh came to pack the rest of her stuff after college graduation, and I heard her talkin' on the phone about all the trouble y’all got into after her grad party. I was so jealous and wanted to be a part of your group so bad."

"It's a good thing Hadleigh didn't let ya tag along then. We would've corrupted you big time," I admit.

She scowls. "I could've held my own."

"I'm sure. Then Knox and I would've had two women on our asses."

Laughter spills from her mouth, and I can't stop staring at her perfect lips that tried to kiss me last night.

"Yeah, I fear what would've happened if my sister hadn’t been around to straighten y'all out. I've heard y'all been arrested, gotten into fist fights, snuck into abandoned buildings, stole alcohol from the bar...I learned all kinds of things from eavesdropping on Hadleigh's phone calls."