Page 77 of The Wildest Ride

Destiny was the ranch. Leaning in to sensation was her mother’s way.

“You’re awfully quiet over there.” His words whispered across the back of her neck, deep, slow and ready for bed.

She shivered, whispering back, “Thought you were asleep.” Her own voice came out more hoarse and weighted than usual, hinting of things she wasn’t inviting him to enjoy.

At least not out loud.

Out loud, she had a ranch to keep safe and a rodeo to win. But pulling her mind back to the competition wasn’t having quite the same dampening effect as it had earlier.

“Do you see the stars?” he asked.

Heat filled her core. The mere timbre of his voice was enough to set her off, it seemed. His words took a bit longer to get through, but when they did, it was her out.

“I haven’t,” she said, carefully rolling onto her back—careful not to brush her body up against his, careful not to touch any more than they already were. He stayed where he was, lying on his side, his arm her pillow.

Overhead, the sky sparkled like a child’s glitter art, the Milky Way a deep river of light slashing across the sky, roaring overhead, its current of stars thick and palpable, even from the earth.

AJ was a radiator at her side and the sky overhead was made of diamonds, and she couldn’t remember ever feeling quite so soft.

She’d never been the type of girl to fantasize about romance, but if she had been, this moment would have been it.

Minus the stampede.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” he said.

Turning her head slightly, she found his gaze on her and grinned. “Ancient, but it never gets old.”

He ran a finger down the side of her cheek, almost absentmindedly, his expression taking on an openness in the moonlight that she’d never seen during the day. “There aren’t many things like that in the world.”

His rough fingertip against her skin robbed her of breath, so Lil gave only a small shake of her head in response, pulled in by the gravity of his velvety brown eyes.

Something was pretty, but it wasn’t the stars.

Closing her eyes, she dragged her mind to counting sheep since thinking about AJ and the stars did not seem to lead down the path of sleep.

Not when he was warm, right there, and willing. Not when the stars were good at keeping secrets...

But that wasn’t her.

She hadn’t even gone all the way with her longest boyfriend. Though in that case the timing and situation had never worked. Dorm mates coming home unexpectedly, lack of condoms, the occasion not feeling right...

And then Granddad passed and that time of her life was over.

Then it was all ranching and missing him. There hadn’t been room—or energy—left for men.

“You’re not sleeping.” There was a smile in his voice, but Lil didn’t open her eyes to see it. “Your eyes are squeezed shut too tight.”

Lil still didn’t open them, but said, “Might be if you weren’t gabbing away.”

He chuckled softly and the sound wrapped around Lil, low, genuine, and silky—sound candy made for her pleasure alone.

Her breath caught and she shivered, her breasts turning heavy and sensitive beneath the material of her shirt.

He angled his body toward hers, almost imperceptibly, his muscles taking on a taut readiness that hadn’t been there moments before.

He knew.

He could tell she wanted him.