Page 140 of Scent to the Feral Cowboys

“What?”

“Few times you’ve ridden, you’ve been knocked off. You said that earlier,” he reminded me.

“Right...” I let the word hang in the air, wondering where he was going with this new topic.

“Cooper bought a horse a while back. We had no idea why, but the guy impulse buys like a teen with daddy's credit card. We’re never surprised when something random shows up.”

“Okay,” I said, waiting for the point.

“Horse was supposed to be as gentle as they come. Guess she didn’t care too much for labels though, because she’s got spirit in spades. We’ve all been working with her, getting her ready.”

“Getting her ready for what?” I wrinkled my forehead as I tried to understand what the heck he was talking about.

“Ready for you.” A new voice answered. Wade looked past me at the new arrival.

Heavy footsteps sounded behind me, and a shadow fell across the wooden floors. Large, completely obscuring my own, a haven that clouds couldn’t steal inside the confines of the stables. I turned around, finding Boone. His hair was neatly plaited, the braid pulled over one shoulder. His deep, tanned skin was so warm that it seemed to glow with trapped sunlight. The black shirt he wore had a few artful bleach stains, and the jeans were likewise faded. He looked effortlessly masculine, even with the bead and shell necklace hanging in a V down his chest.

“Hi,” I breathed out, wishing I either hadn’t said anything in greeting, or something far cleverer. I also wished I didn’t sound like a porn star waiting to get stuck in a dryer.

“Hi.” Boone’s eyes locked with mine, a crash of obsidian against hazel.

Who in their right mind would reject this man?

32

BOONE

I stood frozen in the stable doorway, my heart hammering against my ribs like it was trying to escape and get to Nelly. Her scent mingling with Wade’s hit me hard. It wound around me, seeping into my lungs, my blood, my very bones. I hadn't felt this way since Danny. Since he'd looked me in the eyes and said, "I'm sorry, but you're not the one." The memory of that rejection still burned like acid, even after all these years. Yet here I was, feeling that same terrifying pull toward Nelly, an Omega who clearly wanted nothing to do with any of us.

This wasn’t something one chose.

It was something that happened to you.

No warning. No control.

And once you matched, you wanted it more than anything.

My body moved forward without conscious thought, drawn to her like a moth to flame. Wade caught my eye from across the stable, his expression shifting subtly. He knew,of course he knew.Our pack had been together a long time. We were in tune with one another. But this was different. This was raw and exposed, like having my skin peeled back. The other guys didn’t understand. They couldn’t. They’d never scent-matched before,planned out their entire future, and had that imaginary life and home and pups disappear in the wake of seven words.

"Hi," she breathed, the single syllable hanging in the air between us.

"Hi," I responded, my voice lower than usual, rougher. Every instinct I had screamed to move closer, to breathe deeper, to memorize the contours of her face. I fought it all down, clenching my jaw until my teeth ached.

Danny's face flashed through my mind—blue eyes, pale skin, wheat-blond hair. He’d taken my breath away with that smile his first day at school. The new transfer, a California boy who stuck out like a sore thumb. His sunshine and coconut scent had knocked me sideways, making me believe in things like destiny and forever. We'd been so young. Just sixteen. Too young to understand what we were feeling, too young to handle the intensity of a true scent match.

For two years, I'd believed I'd found my forever. No one would ever be better. No one could complete me the way he did.

Then came the day he couldn't meet my eyes. The day his scent changed, souring with anxiety and regret. The day he explained he wasn't ready for a lifelong commitment, that he wanted to explore other options, see what else was out there. He didn't use the word "rejected," but he might as well have branded it into my flesh.

“But you’re my scent match, Dan.”

“Boone, I think what we had was just puppy love. I don’t feel the same way anymore. I’ve changed.”

Had. He was using the past tense already.

“Is it me? Did I do something wrong?” Fuck, it hurt. Shit, I was cracking in half.

“You know we can’t control this, Boone. It’s biology.”