Page 22 of Unbroken (Poplar Springs #2)

TWENTY

FIONA

“ C an I say it now?” Eli asked me, taking off his hat to shake the water from it.

We were standing under the porch covering of the tiny hilltop cabin that had once served as Pop-pop’s hunting pad.

Not that he ever did much hunting, at least not to my memory.

I knew that both Josh and Shannon used it as a lowkey party spot when they were in high school, but our dad had figured it out before it was my turn, and he’d installed locks on the two windows and put a giant padlock on the door.

When Josh and Eli decided to expand the number of rides and trails, the cabin had received a good scrubbing from top to bottom and any needed repairs were made.

Now, it served as a stopping point halfway up the mountain and an unofficial pit stop when necessary.

And today, it had become very, very necessary.

The rain that had started off slow had quickly become a drenching downpour, leaving the retirement brigade regretting their decision to bet against Mother Nature.

Currently, the group was hunkered down inside, enjoying some snacks and bottled water while Eli and I stood on the porch and kept an eye on the horses huddled together under the covered patio .

I sighed. “Fine. Say it. I deserve it.”

“Told you so.”

He wasn’t gloating, it was more that he was trying to prove that he knew what the hell he was doing, which I couldn’t deny. Eli Carter was better at this than I was and as much as I didn’t like that getting under my skin, I had to respect the fact that he knew more than me.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” I said, feeling grumpy about the rain, which was another item to add to the list of times when I’d been wrong. That damn list just kept growing.

The sudden storm, plus the wet clothing, had me hugging myself for warmth. I tried to hide a shiver.

“You’re cold. Go inside with the group,” Eli said, leaning against the porch railing. “The horses are fine. I can watch them.”

“No, why should I be comfortable when I’m the reason we’re stuck out here?” I shook my head. “It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have pushed it. But if you’re cold, you can go inside.”

“Please,” Eli said. “It wasn’t just you. Those boomers know a thing or two about getting what they want. Even if all of you hadn’t outvoted me, I’m pretty sure they’d have found another means to get their way.”

Eli was right. No matter what, we probably would have caved, but I still shouldn’t have pushed it. I watched the rain glumly. “How long is this supposed to last?”

“An hour or so, then it’s back to blue skies. We’ll be fine for the rest of the ride.”

I paced to the edge of the porch. “Ugh, that puts us behind for the rest of the day. I’m so mad at myself for this! ”

“Hey, would you stop it? Bad calls are a part of life. I should know; I’ve made my share at the ranch.”

“Please,” I snorted. “According to Josh, you can do no wrong. You’re the golden child.”

Eli smirked. “If that’s what he’s told you, then he’s being very kind—and not very honest. I’ve cost him both time and money, sometimes all at once.

Like the broken tractor. We kept repairing it, initially wanting to wait until the business was stable enough for us to afford a new one.

At one point, Josh was going to take the leap and buy a new one that was marked down ten percent, but I swore to him I could fix the old one and get us to the end of the season, when it would be thirty percent off.

” He paused and shook his head. “I fixed it, it broke, I fixed it again, it broke again, but I was too proud to admit defeat and kept at it. By the time I gave in, the sale was over, and they weren’t due to get any new shipments for a month. ”

I grimaced. “Yikes. He didn’t tell me that. What did you do?”

“I paid one of the local gearheads to rig up a fix that was stupid expensive, but that got us through until I could track down a barely used one. In the end it turned out okay, but let me tell you, it was dicey for a while. Dustin and the other hands wanted to kill me because their workload was doubled while the tractor was out of commission.”

“Wow. I had no clue,” I said, finally meeting his gaze. “But while I’m glad to hear that you’ve made some mistakes too, that doesn’t change the fact that I made a big one today. I’m really sorry, Eli. I should’ve trusted you.”

“Can you say that again so I can record it?” he said, holding his phone out to me, wearing a small smile.

It was enough to lighten the moment, and I finally laughed. “It’s not every day that I’ll admit that Eli Carter was right, and I was wrong! ”

He chuckled, then stopped abruptly. “Are you as cold as you look? Because your lips are almost blue.”

I felt a stirring in my chest at the thought that Eli was watching my mouth. I touched my fingertips to my lips self-consciously. “Really?”

“Yes, really. You should’ve worn layers, city girl.”

I walked over and punched him lightly on the shoulder, trying to ignore how solid he felt beneath my fist. “It was eighty-five when we left. And you’ve only got a chambray shirt on.”

“Layers,” he said, plucking at the T-shirt beneath it.

“And sure, it was warm at the bottom of the mountain when the sun was blazing, but you know how fast the weather changes around here, especially as we get to higher elevations. If you’re not going to wear them, you should at least carry an outer layer with you.

The horse can handle the extra weight,” he said with a smirk.

“Stop lecturing me,” I pouted, rubbing my bare arms.

Eli moved closer to me. “I’m not lecturing you. I’m looking out for you. There’s a big difference.”

His voice was low and he was still staring at my lips. I swallowed hard and glanced around to see if any of the guests were nearby.

“And why would you do that?” I asked softly, barely breathing as he moved toward me.

“Isn’t that part of our deal?” Eli asked me calmly. “I’m acting like your boyfriend, and a boyfriend would definitely worry about his girlfriend’s comfort and wellbeing. Right?”

I nodded wordlessly as he stalked closer, dumbfounded and wide-eyed like he’d placed me under a spell.

“A boyfriend would notice his girlfriend shivering and offer his coat, but if he wasn’t wearing one, he might take his girlfriend into his arms and hold her against this chest to warm her up. Like this.”

At this point he was right in front of me, breathing shallow and eyes still fixed on my mouth. He opened his arms, then paused as if asking permission for what would come next. I took a step toward him, and he closed the gap between us and wrapped his arms around me.

After dancing with him at the wedding reception, being this close was familiar but also foreign because this time he was holding me flush against his chest. There was no polite cushion of dance-distance between us.

I could feel my breasts pressing against him and the fronts of our thighs touching.

He felt massive, solid, and shockingly comfortable.

I let my head drop against his shoulder and when he adjusted his grip to pull me even closer, I trembled.

“Still cold?” Eli mumbled, his mouth against my hair. “Is this helping at all?”

I nodded again, worried that if I tried to speak, my shaky voice would give away what was going on inside of me. I breathed in his woodsy scent as his hand lazed across my back, rubbing slowly. It was like he was trying to warm me up while at the same time memorizing the contours of my body.

This wasn’t a friendly back rub. It was foreplay.

Every stroke set my senses tingling until I couldn’t take it any longer. I pulled away, fully intending to put some distance between us before I did something we’d later regret. I paused, looking up at Eli as a shadow of confusion flickered in his eyes.

It was too much. I needed to get away from his beautiful face, his tempting mouth just inches from mine.

We were fake boyfriend and girlfriend, all for show, and there was no one around to witness what was happening.

There was no point in getting all hot and bothered without an audience to appreciate it .

And yet I didn’t move. I stared up at him, drinking in the moment until he did exactly what I’d been thinking of from the moment he’d first touched me.

Eli Carter kissed me.