Page 69 of Stick Around,

Something that felt like... me. The real me. The me I’d forgotten existed.

Nervous energy coursed through me as I slipped my phone into my back pocket. I needed to tell the guys. They’d get a kick out of this, especially after watching me practice nearly every day.

I grabbed my hat and headed out toward the stables. The afternoon sun beat down, making me grateful for the shade of my hat brim as I walked the familiar path.

The ranch smelled like hay and horses and that earthy scent that had somehow become comfort in such a short time. I reached the stables’ entrance, expecting to find the guys working, but slowed my steps when I heard their voices drifting from the tack room.

“She handled that group today like she’s been running camp for years.” Reid’s voice, unmistakable in its quiet appreciation.

“Well, she is a teacher.” There was a quiet laugh that could only belong to Kellan. “I wouldn’t have thought to do stick horse relays, but the kids ate it up.”

“Marisol texted. She’s cleared to come back next week.” Enzo’s tone was tinged with some emotion I couldn’t place without seeing his face.

Kellan let out a breath. “Good. That’ll take the pressure off Quinn. She’s been doing everything.”

“Yeah.” Enzo’s voice trailed off as if he was unsure. “I don’t want her to feel like shehasto stay. She didn’t sign up for all this.”

Did they not want me to stay?

My feet stopped moving like they’d been glued to the floor. He wasn’t cruel or even wrong. Their discussion was matter of fact, like deciding on feed schedules. It was a simple truth I’d been trying to ignore.

I was temporary.

These men were permanent fixtures in each other’s lives. They were lifelong friends, business partners, and family in all but blood. And I was the woman who’d blown in on a hobby horse and would eventually blow back out.

I backed away silently, my earlier excitement deflating into something small and uncertain. The competition notification on my phone suddenly felt like it was burning a hole in my pocket; a reminder that everything here rested on borrowed time.

Just like my failed engagement had been.

My throat tightened as I walked away from the stables, veering off toward the fence line where the horses grazed. I leaned against a post, watching Tater Tot meander through the tall grass with his massive frame moving in that gentle giant way of his.

What was I doing? Soon I’d be back in my classroom, teaching seven-year-olds. These men had lives that would keep spinning without me. They had horses to train, fences to mend, and a business to run.

I pulled my hat lower over my eyes, which were now filling with tears.

Why was I even surprised? It wasn’t like we’d discussed any future beyond my vacation. I came here for a week, decided to stay a little longer, and now what? I’d been entertaining some fantasy where I never left? Where I somehow slotted into their lives permanently?

I pulled out my phone again, staring at the competition notification. In three weeks, I’d be prancing around on a stick horse in front of judges and spectators. Would Kellan, Reid, and Enzo even want to come?

A sharp whinny cut through my thoughts as Junebug trotted over to the fence, her dark eyes fixed on me like she understood every confused thought in my head.

“Don’t give me that look.” I reached out to stroke her velvety nose. “I’m fine. Everything’s fine.”

Junebug huffed against my palm.

“Okay, I’m lying. But what did you expect? That I’d move in with three cowboys and live happily ever after? That’s not how real life works.”

Except nothing about this situation was how real life worked. People didn’t just win hobby horse competitions that sent them to ranches. Elementary school teachers didn’t end up inrelationships with three men who ran said ranch. Breakups didn’t lead to intense sexual awakenings with multiple partners.

Yet here I was.

Junebug pressed her head against my shoulder, surprising me again with her gentleness. For a horse that Reid claimed had attitude issues and was dangerous, she seemed to understand exactly what I needed.

I ran my fingers through her mane. “I should talk to them. But how? ‘Hey guys, I know I’m supposed to leave soon, but what if I didn’t?’ That sounds desperate.”

I was hit with conflicting emotions. I’d spent so much of my life playing it safe and following rules. I usually made practical choices, which had led me straight into the arms of a man who’d cheated on me and then blamed me for it.

Maybe it was time to stop playing it safe.