Rocking into me, licking me, squeezing my flesh, we made out with our feet in the stream, our horses grazing nearby, ranch life going on around us. If I thought about it too much, it would have been surreal, but Luca had stolen my ability to latch on to anything cognizant.
God, this man could kiss.
I slipped my hands up the back of his shirt, spreading wide over his warm, smooth skin, and felt my bones melting. I let it happen too, knowing he had me. My knees could have given out, and Luca would have held me upright.
His lips trailed down my throat, sucking and licking. There was nothing gentle about the way he tasted me. This man was taking out the frustration he’d been living with in silence, and every inch of my skin he could reach was his target.
His mouth latched on to the crook of my neck, all teeth and tongue and lips. My toes curled into the bed of the stream, eyes rolling back. Oh god, this was definitely going to leave a mark.
“Luca,” I panted, raking my nails into the muscles along his spine. “I can’t go back to my dad’s house with a hickey.”
It took him a few seconds to ease up, his lips ghosting over my throat. “Pretty sure it’s too late for that. I would imagine it’s not the first time.”
“What are you talking about? I was always a good girl.”
He slowly raised his head, and I got a good look at his blown-out pupils. “Nothing bad about a husband and wife making out in a stream.”
I shoved him gently, but he kept his hold on me. “Says the man who doesn’t have to face down his father with a hickey.”
Releasing my hair, he carefully pulled it forward so it draped over my shoulders. “There. Now the evidence is hidden. Only you and I know it’s there.”
“Thank you.” I trailed my fingers down his back and brought them to his sides, hooking into his belt loops. “I think we should head back.”
His gaze dropped to the sliver of space between us. “I’m going to need a few minutes before I can get back on that horse. Can you get out of my eyesight?”
A laugh burst out of me. “Oh shit. I guess riding Barney won’t be too comfortable with an erection.”
He shuddered, slamming his eyes shut. “Jesus, Saoirse. Don’t say erection. Don’t even acknowledge my cock’s existence. I’m already burning up here. I don’t need you to fan the flames.”
“All right.” I removed my hands from his waist and tried to take a step back, but he was still very much holding my ass. “You might need to let go of me too, Luca.”
He gave my butt another hard squeeze, followed by a quick, sharp slap. “Get out of here.”
Chapter Twentyone
Luca
We took care of the horses. Saoirse made me shovel shit. At first, I thought I was being hazed, but then she did the same thing without a word of complaint, so I sucked it up and took care of old Barney’s stall.
As my reward, Saoirse let me hand-feed him some snow peas. I was dubious when I was told they were his favorite treat, but that big, old motherfucker gobbled them right out of my hand and smiled at me, happy as a clam.
I guessed he was cool. I’d sure as hell enjoyed taking a ride on him, even if he was slow as molasses. My pride didn’t keep me from admitting—but only to myself—I would have been ass over heels on anything faster.
By the end of our two years together, I was determined to master horseback riding so I didn’t get stuck with the horse they gave to small children. And when Saoirse pointed out Ramses, Lock’s stallion, who was twice the size of Barney and looked like he could chomp my head off in a single bite, I became even more determined.
No offense to Barney, but I wanted a badass horse like Lock’s.
“Oh no.”
I whipped around to find Saoirse staring down at her phone in horror.
“What?” Knuckles under her chin, I drew her face up. “What happened?”
“My mother.”
My stomach dropped. “Is she okay?”
“She’s here.”
“Here? Where?”
“In town. She’s in Sugar Brush, demanding we have dinner with her, or she’ll come to the ranch.” Her hand shot out, clutching my arm. “I can’t let her come to the ranch. My dad… can’t be around her. He—”
“It’s fine, pretty girl.” I took her hand in mine, angry to find it trembling. This woman had screwed Saoirse up so bad her very presence made her shake. “I’m here with you. We’ll have dinner with her. I won’t let you do this alone. I promised you that, remember?”
She nodded, her eyes clouded with unshed tears. “I just really don’t want her to come here.”
“She won’t. Let’s go get cleaned up. Tell Lock what’s going on. Warn your dad if you feel like you have to. Keep it quiet if you don’t. I’m with you every step of the way. That’s our deal, right?”
It took her a second to respond. Her chin quivered even as she raised it. “Right. That’s our deal.”
Main Street of Sugar Brush, Wyoming, looked like it had stepped out of a greeting card. Glass-front mom-and-pop shops lined the street, with a few restaurants scattered in between. I rolled down the road on my bike, Saoirse wrapped tightly around my back. She pointed out the pub where we were meeting her mom.
Joy’s Elbow Room.
Cute. The whole town was.
I’d never be able to live in a place this small, but in another life, I could see myself spending long weekends here with Saoirse. That would never be us. This was what we had, so I’d take it and enjoy the hell out of the entire Saoirse experience.
I parked the bike, helping Saoirse off, as Lock pulled in beside us. The second his sister had told him their mother was in town, he’d told her he was coming with her. Elena and the kids stayed back, having dinner with Connell.
In the end, Saoirse had decided to tell her dad Lily was in town. The way he went from open and amiable to shuttered and silent told me everything Saoirse had said about her parents was true. They were broken, and she had to witness the continued crumbling of her father.
It struck me deeply. I wondered if her parents even understood what they had done to her. I didn’t think I knew a tenth of how far her pain reached, but with her shaking hand in mine, I suspected it was all the way to her core.
Lock patted his sister’s back. “It’ll be okay. We’ll deal with whatever she has to say then go have some ice cream back home.”
She listed toward him, her head hitting his shoulder. “Can we skip this and go home now?”
“Nope. Gotta face the music, kid.”
I would have recognized Lily as Saoirse’s mother without anyone telling me. Willowy and blonde, she’d passed her looks down to her daughter. She was already seated at a round, wooden table that looked like it belonged on a pirate ship, and she wasn’t alone. A slim, balding man in a navy suit rose to his feet beside her as we approached.
Saoirse turned her head, speaking lowly to me. “That’s Peter, her chief of staff.”
“He looks like a jackhole,” I muttered.
“He is.”
I squeezed her nape, then slid my hand to the small of her back, reminding her I was with her all the way.
Lily pulled Saoirse and Lock into stiff hugs—stiff on her children’s part, her embrace was firm and fierce, which took me by surprise. She offered me a warm handshake and an introduction to Peter that thankfully didn’t involve touching. I got the vibe this guy had perpetually sweaty hands.