I fight a smile at the idea of him on a horse with what he’s currently wearing.
“You can just call me Camden.”
Cade nods, crossing his arms across his chest. He’s tan—too tan. I make a mental note to make sure he and Dad are applying sunscreen every morning. They spend all day out in the sun, and if I find out they aren’t taking care of their skin, they’re going to get a long lecture.
“What brings you out here, Camden?”
Camden focuses on me. I hate the way that even when he looks so out of place standing in our driveway, he somehow still looks good. He almost looks like he belongs here, even though he’s dressed for a business meeting and not a trail ride. “I wish I could tell you, but I’m along for the ride. Your sister is in charge today.”
Cade laughs. “Careful giving her that much power.”
“I’m already regretting it.” His tone is teasing, and it doesn’t feel like a jab.
I clap my hands together. I’m ready to put him through it a little so maybe he becomes an asshole again. I can handle Camden being a dick; I’m used to it. What I’m not equipped to deal with are the lingering looks on my lips and the nice things he’s saying every now and then. “Camden is here for a trail ride.”
“A what?” Camden asks, a scowl appearing on his face once again. There it is. This Camden I’m much more familiar with.
“You can’t take him on a trail ride wearing that.” There’s humor in Cade’s voice. He was there the night we first met Camden. If you could even call it a meeting. I accidentally ran into this asshole, spilled beer all over him, and he was pissed. Cade was there, but I’ve since learned he was too busy pining after my best friend to pay attention to what was going on. Probably for the best because he also didn’t notice that I was flirting with Chase, one of his good friends.
“I’m not going on a trail ride at all,” Camden interjects, looking at me as if I’ve had the craziest idea in the world to take him out on the trails.
“We’re getting you to fall in love with Sutten,” I argue, already walking toward the stables. Luckily, it seems like we don’t have any guests here right now out on the trails, so we’ll have the stables and trails all to ourselves. “And I happen to know the best view in Sutten comes from being in the saddle on the side of the mountain.”
“I agree with your brother,” Camden yells from behind me. “I don’t have the proper clothes to go riding! I don’t have any riding boots.” I don’t bother looking over my shoulder to see if he’s following or not. He can follow me or be left alone with my brother. I doubt he picks the latter.
“Riding boots,” I call, happy to see my horse, Tonka. I haven’t been good about coming out here and giving him attention when I know I should. Life is just busy, and I know that he gets to go on trail rides often. Finally, I turn around, finding Camden following me a few steps behind. “Tell me, Camden, did you ride English saddle growing up? You went to equestrian camps, didn’t you?”
“No,” he states matter-of-factly. “I’m not really one for…animals. But I once dated a girl who jumped competitively, so I know a little about horses.”
“Did you break her heart?”
“Depends on who you ask.”
Cade catches up to us, sliding his phone back into his pocket like he’d just gotten off a call.
“Talk to Mare?” I prod. She keeps up with Cade, but she doesn’t keep up with me as much. I try not to let it bring me down. She’s busy finishing a book, and I’m confident she’ll come back once she’s done everything she needs to do in Chicago. But I miss my best friend.
“Yeah, she didn’t have long—she was about to go to sleep for the day. She was up all night writing.”
I hate that I feel Camden staring at me. I’m worried he can read my every thought. That he’ll find out something else to use against me.
“How about I go get some clothes and boots of mine to see if they work for you?” Cade offers, sizing up Camden’s clothing of choice.
“You couldn’t have told me to dress accordingly?” Camden ignores my brother’s comment completely, pinning me with a brooding stare.
All I can do is smile and shrug. “And ruin the surprise? Never.”
17
PIPPA
My cheeks twitch as I try to stifle the laugh threatening to escape. I manage to hold it back for a few seconds before it bubbles out of me, sending me into a fit of laughter.