Page 3 of Infatuated
“Wyoming. We’re spending two weeks on a dude ranch. They have hiking, swimming, and horseback riding among other activities. It’s a place calledBlack Stallion Ranch.” He hands me his laptop with the page pulled up, and my eyes scroll through the mountainesque landscapes and pictures of the smiling, happy people. The exact opposite of how I feel. “Make sure to pack some jeans for horseback riding.”
My eyes shoot up to him. “What?” I shout. “No! I can’t go there. The party. This is huge. The biggest event of the season! My birthday...”My chance to get to know Joe on a deeper level.
“There’ll be other parties. We’ll only be gone for two weeks and can celebrate it out there. You can see Bethany and your friends when we get back and have a party then,” Mom reassures by rubbing my shoulders.
Tears sting my eyes, and I put the laptop on the table. “No, Mom, you don’t understand. Ihaveto go to this party.” I take a steadying breath. “When did you book this? Why didn’t you tell me before today?”
“I’m working on a business deal, and the client’s going. It sounded fun, and with the school year ending, the timing made sense. I’m sorry about the party, pumpkin, but we’re going and that’sfinal. It’ll be good for you to see this side of the country. A new adventure.” He smiles, trying to ease the pain of the blow he just dealt me.
The only adventure I wanted was with Joe at the lake.
Chapter 2
Tristan
Iscan the list of the new guests arriving today and mentally prepare for another round of city slickers who want to pretend to be cowboys. There are eighteen people in this new group, so it’ll be busy this week—all hands will be needed on deck. We have a few families with young kids and two more with teenage girls.I hope the girls aren’t worried about messing up their nails.
Aren’t all city girls worried about that sort of thing? Kasey, my girlfriend, always seems to be bitching about that. Guess I’ll find out soon enough.
This is my last season working the ranch before I travel the whole fifteen miles to become a college freshman. Okay, so it’s not far, but I’m the first one in my family to go and Mom and Dad couldn’t be prouder. I even got a full ride football scholarship to play with the Cowboys as I study for my business degree. I had my hopes set on a school farther away, but I couldn’t pass up a full ride. Especially when Mom and Dad don’t have the extra funds to hire someone else to help at the ranch.
I sit on the porch with my clipboard as I go through the morning checklist and sip my coffee. I have a football training session with my coach in a few hours, so I like to get an early start and help out where I can. I won’t be good for much more than a shower and a hot meal when I get home tonight. Coach works us hard, and since this is my last one with him, I know it’ll be brutal.
Mom joins me on the porch, holding her steamy mug of coffee in her favorite purple floral mug. She leans down and places a chaste kiss to the top of my shaggy, brown hair. She pulls my hair back off my forehead. “You need a haircut. It must fall in your eyes when you run on the field.”
I roll my eyes. My hair’s fine. Plus, Kasey likes that she can grab it. “Kasey likes it like this.”
She sighs, and I see her shake her head from the corner of my eyes. She likes the Bowmans, and she and Dad are close with them, but she doesn’t care for how Kasey treats me. “I know you like Kasey, baby.”
I grit my teeth. It’s too early for this conversation. “I’m not talking about this right now. I need to finish looking over the checklist for today and get to practice.”
“Let me make you something to take with you.” She gets up and walks back into the house, leaving me to finish.
“Morning, Tristan,” Kristy, one of the guests, says. She’s a nice girl, but she’s about twelve and has a major crush on me. I’m so happy she’s leaving with her family today. She follows me around like a lost puppy.
“Morning, Kristy. You and your family ready to ship out today?”
She pouts. “Yes. We’re packed and leaving for the airport in an hour.”
“Is there anything else we can do for you before then?”
Mom and Dad always ask that question when they see guests on the last day, hoping to leave a lasting impression. It’s a good way to make them feel valued until the very end of their stay.
She blushes and looks at the ground, kicking a rock. “Um, do you have Twitter? Can I add you as a friend?”
I smirk to myself.How can I tell her no without breaking her heart?“I’m sorry, I don’t have an account.”
Her face is as red as a tomato, and she refuses to meet my eyes. “Oh.”
Her father comes around the corner and waves as he walks with her toward the dining area. She looks back at me but doesn’t say anything else as they walk out of ear shot.
Kasey’s red truck flies down the driveway. She stops in front of the house and jumps out, running up to me. Her strawberry blonde hair is in a low ponytail, and her shorts are so small they are riding up her ass.Fuck, she has a killer body.
“How’s my favorite running back this morning?” She threads her fingers through my hair and tugs my head back. A guttural moan escapes with the bite of her pull. “Good boy,” she whispers before her lips crash down over mine. She slides her hands down the side of my face and body as her fingers trace the harsh lines of my muscles.
I deepen the kiss and pull her onto my lap. I stop her hands as she reaches my gray football shorts. I can’t be this wound up when I go to practice, and we can’t do this where guests can see. It’s unprofessional. I’ve been working too hard to keep good reviews coming in to allow her to mess it up because she wants a play session.
I drop my forehead to hers. “Mom’s inside, and we have guests awake.” She huffs, rolls her eyes, and climbs off my lap, wiping some stray lip gloss off her mouth. “Youseem excited. What’s going on?” I smile at her, trying to lighten the mood.