Page 21

Ace

“Marry me.”

I whip my head to the side, looking over my shoulder. Is she fucking kidding right now?

As I stare at her with narrowed eyes, Hadley slides down the side of her white horse and stalks toward me.

“I’m not in the mood for this,” I grit out and look back at the water.

With a huff, she says, “I said, marry me, Ace.”

I don’t have the energy for her. I take a breath and watch this side of the river—calm and slow, while across the way, it ripples faster, plunges deeper, and swells beneath the caverns.

It eventually turns into a loud waterfall about three miles away.

I feel like that water right now—no turning back, hurtling toward something big and unmoving, fueled by rage and momentum.

I’ll need to figure this out, above everything else I’ve been trying to handle on my own.

Fuck, this blindsided me, and I hate that even more.

A part of me is relieved that it’s her. My brothers are going to try to either fire me up more or push for a solution.

I’ve been riding for well over three hours before settling here.

The sun was starting to cut the horizon line, and I was lost in every emotion I could muster from what Griz said today.

“Foxx Bourbon will be left to my married grandsons...”

What the actual fuck?

I’ve done everything he’s ever asked of me, and beyond just the bourbon business. This was never part of any plan. And I had too many plans in the works to even consider marrying someone.

I glance back, taking in her expression as she waits for my response. Breathing hard, she puts her hands on her hips, squaring off like she’s a damn superhero.

Squatting down, I drag my fingers through the cold clear water, washing off the dirt and sweat from gripping onto my horse's reins. It’s careless to be this lost in my own head. I squint my eyes, standing and turning toward her.

“You're proposing, huh? To me?” I scoff out a sarcastic laugh.

“You heard me.” Then she fucking smirks, crosses her arms, propping her tits as she takes another deep breath and repeats herself for the third time. “Marry me.” Her blue eyes search mine for a reaction.

I’m already shaking my head. “That’s not an option, sugar. Or a solution.”

She shows no signs of rejection, just her pretty lips quirked up at the corners at hearing what I carelessly just called her.

But then I let myself get lost in the idea of it for the briefest of seconds.

The way it felt to be close to her the other night.

The years of wanting her and never allowing myself to even consider it.

And lately...No. No, I can’t even think about it.

Her chin holds high, shoulders back, like she’s the most confident thing in the world and not asking the most vulnerable question a person could ask.

As I try to move past her, she grabs my arm, stopping me.

“That is exactly what that is, Ace. A solution. And it might be the closest I’ll ever come to paying you back for what you did for me. ”

It's a situation we never talked about. She didn’t need any details, only that Switcher wasn’t a problem for her any longer. And she’d never know what I agreed to in keeping it that way.

She shrugs a shoulder. “I’ve been a part of your family for most of my life.

” Her voice stays steady as she lays out her truth.

“I never thought I would ever have a chance to truly help.” Those blue eyes seared into me without relenting as I stared into the quickly transforming stormy sky.

“Put aside whatever happened at Lincoln’s wedding or the bachelor party and just stop trying to figure everything out on your own for a minute, and look at me . ”

That’s the last thing I need. Closing my eyes, I suck in a deep breath for as long as my lungs will allow. The heaviness in my chest and the numbness in my limbs are unrelenting.

“You’re not even going to consider it?”

I make the mistake of finally looking at her when I say, “No.”

With cheeks pinkened from the wind and heat, her eyes search mine for an answer I’m not equipped to address.

Her hair is wild from the ride she took to get to me, and I have to hold back a sigh at how beautiful she is.

It’s almost comical, this fiery woman with her white horse, trying to save me.

I don’t need anyone to do that for me. I’m the one to do the saving, not the other way around.

Top that off with the fact that she’s the one person I promised never to touch.

But when she licks at her pretty lips and takes a step closer, that promise seems like the dumbest fucking thing I’ve ever made.

I can’t look away from the way her shirt falls from her shoulder, or how her newly sun-kissed skin is peppered with freckles, how easy it would be to forget every single reason I shouldn’t and just kiss her. Fuck!

I swipe my thumb along my lip and grit my teeth. I’ve cracked three molars because of Hadley over the course of my adult life, so what’s a few more? If I keep looking at her like this, I know whatever’s left of my resolve will crack too.

“You were never a very good liar, Ace,” she says, squinting her eyes like she can see right through me.

Her self-assured, casual attitude pisses me off more.

She smiles to herself and moves to her white horse, running her hand down its neck and along its mane.

“You forget that I’ve known you for a long time. And I pay attention.”

It would be better for her to stop talking. “Hadley,” I breathe out quietly, almost as if it’s a plea. But she doesn’t hear it that way. If anything, she takes it as permission to keep going.

“You have this thing you do with your thumb when you’re about to lie to one of us—you rest it on your lower lip, like you’re giving yourself a moment to make sure the lie is digestible.” How the fuck has she noticed a detail like that?

But it’s my lack of response and the lingering quiet that has her lips tilting up just as a small dimple peeks out. When I took notice of the small things about her, I knew I was teetering on a line. One that I shouldn’t be going anywhere near again.

“Each of you Foxx boys have a tell—Griz’s ’stache twitches just as he clears his throat.

Lincoln is the worst.” She follows the obvious statement with a laugh.

“It’s written all over his face. I love him so much, but that man can not keep much to himself.

” With a sigh, she continues. “And Grant is the hardest; maybe because he lies the least out of all of you. He’ll rub at the back of his neck.

” She points to the air. “Laney spotted that one. But you...” Her mouth pulls down as she shakes her head.

“You’re the easiest, Ace. Maybe it’s because you lie too much or just that I pay too close attention.

” She runs her hand along the horse’s saddle, tilting her head back.

With her eyes closed, chin tipped up toward the mist that’s started to break from the sky, she says, “But I asked you to marry me, because maybe I’m selfish—” She cuts herself off and shifts her body to look right at me.

“But at least I’m brave enough to admit that.

You’re not considering it, because I think you’re scared,” she says with a sturdy resolve. As if she’s figured it out.

“Is that so?” I ask, trying to find my footing here, my body coiled tight. I don’t even know why I’m engaging in this discussion. This isn’t how I do things—I always have an idea of what’s coming; I’m always prepared. Except for today. And except when it comes to her.

She laughs out, “Holy shit.” Her voice softens when she adds, “That’s it, isn’t it?”

“Knock it off, Hadley,” I say in a defeated tone. “I’ve got enough to figure out on my own. I don’t need this.” I wave my hand at her. “Go home.”

Only, that has her laughing more, like that’s the funniest fucking thing. But she doesn’t budge; in fact, she doubles down and takes a step closer. “I’m right, aren’t I?”

I shake my head, swallowing the urge to prove her wrong.

Tilting her head up to look at me, she asks, “Too scared to go after what you want, Daddy?”

My eyes flick up to hers as my breath catches in my chest.

That’s all it takes.

The last push.

It’s enough to rip away a decade of self-discipline to keep away from her. Years of filling my time with women who would never stack up to the fucking fantasy with big blue eyes and a smart mouth.

It takes less than twenty feet to reach her.

She doesn’t scurry back or cower when I yank her body flush against mine. No, not Hadley. She holds me just as fiercely, her hands gripping onto my shirt as if she needs to hold on to whatever I plan to do with her.

My fingers tangle into her hair as I angle her exactly how I need.

I’m not just going to take; I need to see that she wants this, to know that her words are more than just a bratty attitude or to prove a point.

Her eyes look up into mine as her lips tip up, waiting.

But when her fists tighten in my shirt, it’s enough to know that she wants this. Wants me.

“Fuck,” I gasp just as I kiss her. Her mouth meets mine like it’s the first clash on a battlefield.

War declared. Hard and dominating, matching me breath for breath.

Like it’s always been between us—push and pull.

A fight with no winner, and in its wake, only pleasure.

There’s no learning or fumbling movements.

Her lips part for my tongue, and she welcomes it with hers.

Teasingly, it coaxes a groan from my throat without warning and a hum from her chest. She nips at my lips as I pull back for a new breath, like she isn’t ready to stop, the fucking brat.

The scrape and twinge of pain makes me want more.

My pulse thuds in my neck and echoes in my ears, blood heating.

I want every piece of her, as if she’s my last meal.

I don’t think ahead or linger on what comes after as I kiss a woman I’ve been wanting for longer than I can even remember. With her body melting into mine, her hands that gripped my shirt move up around my neck and her fingers sink into my hair. It feels so fucking good to feel her touch like this.

When I drag my lips from hers, I can’t pull back entirely.

It’s like my body won’t allow it. Being this close, with her wrapped around me and submitting to exactly what I want, feels too right.

I rest my forehead against hers, her chest heaving like I’ve stolen every breath from her, when she’s pulled every sane decision from me.

The smell of her has always been sweet—sugary.

But this close, it’s better than anything I’ve ever tasted.

The way her lips are so soft and sure..

.I’m already craving more. Leaning in, I lick at her bottom lip, and she answers the invitation by tilting toward me and giving me another taste of her mouth. Good fucking girl.

My phone vibrates in my back pocket, slamming me back to my senses with a jolt.

Clearing the haze and knocking me back into the reality of what we’ve just done, what I’ve just done.

I flinch. This is reckless. Proof that I can’t control myself when it comes to her.

And now I’ve done something I can’t undo, rewind, or fucking forget.

Her eyes search for what changed so quickly, why I’ve pulled away.

I close my eyes for the briefest moment, knowing I’m about to hurt her.

“This was a mistake.” On a shaky breath, I rush to add, “This can’t happen again.

” Taking a full step back, I let go of her and pull from her grasp.

Her arms unhook from around my neck, her hands gliding down my shoulders and forearms like she’s not ready to let go.

It's been years of being careful, and it all dissolved in a careless moment. That heavy weight from just minutes ago is back, the one I’ve been carrying for ten years.

“There are plenty of ways I can make my daughter’s world a helluva lot more complicated. And don’t think I won’t find a way to do it.” He paused for a moment before letting out a short laugh. “And just like that,” Wheeler said, snapping his fingers. “I’ve found the one thing a Foxx wants most.”

I take another step back so that there isn’t a single part of me touching any part of her.

The easy smile and warmth that emanate from her are sucked away and replaced by a rigid stance.

Her shoulders push back, hands shifting into fists and anchoring onto the curve of her hips.

But there isn’t hurt or impatience resting on her face—or even regret.

Instead, her puffy, smudged lips hold a knowing smirk.

She licks at her bottom lip and, fuck, I liked it so much more when it was my tongue licking there instead.

There are plenty of things to say. Meaningless filler words that she’s already reading loud and clear with my body language alone.

This isn’t about her ridiculous question anymore.

This is about us. The teasing and jokes she’s made, the glimpses of her I tried to make sure went unnoticed.

Flirty promises from her bratty mouth and my dominating urge to see a woman as strong and charismatic as her submit to me. My quiet obsession. Us isn’t an option.

She scoffs and shakes her head. On an eye roll, she says, “Okay, Ace. Whatever you say, Daddy. You know what’s best.” Ah, fuck.

I shift my stance, instantly feeling like there’s no right way to play this. I watch as she moves in quick steps toward her horse, grabbing the reins and mounting the all-white thoroughbred mare. The horse’s coloring is as unique as her.

She’s the only other person I know who rides as hard and fast as I do.

My brothers take it easy on their horses, but Hadley and I like to push.

She likes to see what these beauties can do when given the chance.

It’s the part of her I’ve always seen—power and radiance that simply needs to know what it feels like to run.

Standing in silence, I watch her ride away.

The thrum of the river barely registers against the blood rushing in my ears and the sound of hooves moving at speed away from the river’s edge.

I have no strategy, no move or gambit. Bending forward, I brace my hands on my knees, half out of breath and dizzy, while my other half is ready for a fight. “Fuck!”