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I laugh, and he moves to stack some crates on top of each other.

“Here, let me help you with that.”

“No, you don’t have to do that.”

“It’s no problem.” I stack one on top of the other, which is nothing compared to the six that he picks up. Between the two of us, this looks like it will be his last trip. I follow him out the front door to a second barn, behind another willow tree with matching crates stacked up beside it.

“Have you had a chance to meet my sister, Liv, yet?”

“I haven’t, no. This is my first time out of my room since I got here. The jet leg has been a bitch.” I think he stumbles a step but I catch his small laugh. “So what do you do here, Ryder? The website said it was a family-run Inn.”

“I mostly take care of all the animals. I raise all our cattleand sheep. We have a few of our own horses on site, but we also have a stable where we hold other people’s horses also.”

“That seems like a big job for one guy.”

“I have a buddy that helps out when he can and Liv jumps in wherever she’s needed. She takes care of most of our horses.”

“It’s cool that you all have a place here.”

I shove down the twinge of discomfort that sprouts from my own words and take in a deep breath. I stutter on the inhale when I look around and finally survey my surroundings. The back of the inn is much like the front, with more rolling hills and wildflowers, but out here it’s like they’re alive. It’s like they’re singing to me. I feel something deep in my chest.

“This doesn’t seem real,” I whisper to myself.

“It’s pretty incredible, isn’t it?” Ryder walks beside me, looking out to the fog that’s rolling in the distance between the valley, where the two hillsides come together. The fog isn’t depressing the way San Francisco’s fog is. It’s beautiful, ethereal, and otherworldly out here. “It would be a lot prettier without that monstrosity.”

I look back and see an old, large, green pickup truck, with an equally large Knox storming out of it. The crease between his brows becomes more prominent the closer he gets to us.

“What are you doing putting our guests to work?” He snaps at his brother while passing him.

“She wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

He stops his run in front of me, reaching his uninjured arm out for the crates, but I’m quick to pull back. “Seriously, what’s wrong with you brutes? I’ve got this.”

“She’s not the one with a broken arm, mate.”

A menacing smile appears on Knox’s face, and he turns back toward his brother. His good arm grabs Ryder’s neckbefore pulling him close and whispering something in his ear. Ryder shrugs him off and clears the distance to the barn, where he drops the crates. I follow a few steps behind, setting the crates down and my eyes flicker back and forth between them. “Taylor, thank you for your help. I’m glad I bumped into you. Literally.”

“Anytime, Cowboy.” I salute him as he walks by, patting Knox on the shoulder. Ryder does nothing to hide his smile, but whatever he finds so funny, Knox clearly does not. His eyes narrow following in his brother’s wake.

“Hey.” I wave my hand in his face, bringing his attention back to me.

He shakes his head, and his eyebrows relax. He lifts the black hat from his head before turning it around and I bite the corner of my lip at the sight of this man in a backward hat.

“So, what’d you do today?” he drawls.

“Well, I—” My eyes flit up to the right and his knowing smile makes it impossible not to smile back.

“You just got up, didn’t you?”

I throw my hands up in defeat. “To be fair, I was up late last night.”

“Yeah?” he asks, taking a step closer to me. “Had a hard a hard time sleeping, did ya?”

“You know what they say, don’t eat too close to bedtime.”

His eyes twinkle with something like mischief and the corners of his lips pull up. He takes one final step, closing any distance between us, cocking his head to the side. I subtly suck in a breath of his intimate scent. It’s soft but intoxicating, suede and cedar mixed with something that is just so specificallyhim.

“That’s a shame. I love to eat at bedtime.”