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His chest puffed out and his eyes flashed with pride. “That’s right. I was the quarterback.”

The woman snorted. “Of course you were the quarterback.” She rolled her eyes and headed back inside. “Don’t take too long. Your dad wants us to get to work on one of the Keagan’s tractors out back. Shane Owens is footing the bill, and it’s got top priority.”

Adam jutted his chin toward the motorcycle. “We figured out the problem. You had a…”

Grace studied Riley out of the corner of her eye, pretending that she was listening to the boring update being offered on the motorcycle. There must be something really wrong with her if she wasn’t willing to let Riley hang out with her at home. If he’d been some local guy, he would have already known where she lived. Ha, it wouldn’t be hard for him to figure it out anyway. All he’d have to do is ask around. Everyone and their dog could tell him where the Callahan’s ranch was located.

So why couldn’t she just admit she was wrong and tell him to come over?

Her father, that’s why.

She still had no idea where her father would stand on this situation. Grace could imagine her father wouldn’t be thrilled about Riley from the start. The meeting could range from awkward silences to full-blown shotgun escorts off the property.

Grace had been smart to tell him no. She needed to have a long talk with her father about what Riley really meant to her.

Her thoughts shifted to what Faye had said about Riley loving her. If she was right about that, then Grace needed to figure out right quick how she felt about him. She might be old-fashioned and prefer to take things slowly, but she wasn’t about to lead him on.

“You ready?”

She jumped and looked up at Riley. “What? You want me to ride with you?”

He shot a look over to his bike and chuckled. “I wasn’t suggesting that, but now that you mention it—”

“No.”

Riley’s lips curled into a crooked smile. “Rain check, then.” And before she could tell him he shouldn’t be kissing her in public, he brushed a kiss to her sensitive lips. Tingles erupted and her knees went weak.

She might not love him yet, but she was quickly arriving there. It was like she’d been spending her days riding a horse alongside a train. But now she wasn’t on the horse anymore. She’d managed to jump aboard that train and was flying faster and faster toward the place where he was.

Love might not be far off.

23

Riley

The next couple of days were a little rough, but then they usually were after Riley allowed things to build up like they had at the restaurant. That sort of thing was perfectly normal. Sometimes issues could get to be a little much, but once they blew over, it was fine.

Except this time, it was a little different. He couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d done something wrong. Even though Grace wasn’t acting any different, he could sense something had shifted and that made it harder to get over the hurdle.

On top of those uncomfortable thoughts, Riley had to deal with his new therapist. The only one who finally had availability in his schedule open up was an older cowboy. He didn’t talk much, but the disapproving glances he gave Riley whenever he showed Grace even an ounce of affection had Riley on edge.

If Shane was okay with his relationship, then this guy should be too. Riley wasn’t doing anything wrong.

This train of thought almost always set him back. Grace still hadn’t invited him to her home. She hadn’t allowed him to pick her up for a date. He hadn’t met anyone besides Brielle and Faye. For the life of him, Riley couldn’t figure out what held her back. Her father was bound to know about him by now. Wouldn’t it just be better if he got to know her family now before people started talking?

With each passing therapy session and every dinner they shared, that was the one issue that continued to bother him. As much as he tried to ignore it, he couldn’t deny that Grace was either scared of taking the next step or she simply didn’t want to.

The napkin with her address had been folded up neatly and he kept it in his wallet. With Faye’s help, he could take the situation into his own hands and show her he wasn’t scared of her father. Riley was ready.

He’d spent far too long alone, and Grace was the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. There was a chance she just needed a little nudge.

Riley looked over to Grace where she sat on the edge of the corral fence. Today was colder than it had been since he’d arrived, and her nose was an adorable shade of pink. She’d said she had some errands to run today so she couldn’t stay after their session. Perhaps he’d have a chance to head out to her place and finally meet her father face-to-face.

“That was good. You’ve got some natural talent with horses.”

Riley swung his gaze around, finding Bud’s hard eyes on him. His new therapist followed his gaze over to Grace and then back to Riley. He leaned on the saddle horn and nodded toward him. “Take Dolly around the corral a few more times and then we’ll head in.”

“That’s it? We’re just going riding? No talking? No forcing me to confront my demons?”