by Laura Ann
“Oh my gosh, yes!”
Sawyer grinned and slid them onto his face. “If you’re gonna talk the talk, you gotta walk the walk.”
Kinsley shook her head. “Unbelievable.”
SAWYER COULDN’T HELP his smile. The sound of Kinsley’s carefree laughter was a tonic to his soul. He had spent a lot of his adult life being weighed down by the pressures of the military. The stress, the worry, the duty...it had all served him well, but he hadn’t experienced a lot of times when he was able to feel light and free.
And yet, one smile from this gorgeous woman and I’m a new man. I don’t know how to keep resisting this. The feeling is addictive, and the more I’m with her, the more I want to be with her. How does Harlan keep himself away from Cora? He shook his head. He obviously has much better self-control than I do.
Sawyer’s heart ached as he thought of Harlan and what he had gone through during his time as a prisoner of war. The Harlan they had known had never returned, and not even bubbly Cora could get through to him. Anyone who had eyes could see that the perky redhead was in love with her boss, and Sawyer knew Harlan well enough to know that Harlan felt the same way. But for some reason, he held back, refusing to even acknowledge the attraction between them.
Secretly, the entire crew at Lockwood Industries was rooting for Cora to win. Sawyer just prayed she held out long enough for Harlan to finally come to his senses. If he’s going to lecture me on taking my chance, he needs to follow his own advice. He took a deep breath. If only I wasn’t worried about hurting him by saying that.
“So where are we going?” Kinsley asked.
Sawyer cleared his throat. “Would it be all right with you if we picked up take-out?”
Kinsley frowned. “Yeah. Of course. Where did you want to eat?”
Sawyer glanced over. He was a little nervous about the next proposal, but after confessing his feelings this afternoon, he felt like they needed some time alone. “I was hoping we could go back to my place and spend the evening together,” he said softly. He was grateful that Ridge was married and no longer living with him because Ridge would have given Sawyer a terrible time about staying away for the evening.
Harlan, on the other hand, had stated that he had work to do anyway, and would spend time at the office so Sawyer could have the place to himself. A fleeting feeling of guilt had hit Sawyer at the thought that Harlan would be alone all evening, but then he’d remembered that Harlan had been the one to push Sawyer toward Kinsley. A simple, ‘Thanks, man’ had set the two brothers off on the right foot and now the Lockwood home was cleaned and emptied, waiting for Sawyer and Kinsley to arrive with their dinner.
Sawyer desperately wanted to watch Kinsley’s reaction to his suggestion, but he forced himself to keep his eyes on the road. There was a silence for a few seconds, and he worried he was pushing her too far. Maybe she’s not as interested as I thought she was. Maybe she’s not ready to spend time together like this.
“I think that sounds wonderful,” she finally answered.
When Sawyer glanced over, her eyes were shining and a small smile graced her beautiful lips. He couldn’t help himself and reached over to intertwine their fingers, resting their hands on his thigh as he drove. “Do you like Greek? I know this great place that serves really good gyros.”
“Love it,” she responded.
Sawyer nodded and the car fell silent as he drove. This time, however, the silence wasn’t uncomfortable. It felt easy and normal, as if they didn’t need to make small talk in order to be together. It felt...right.
A half-hour later, they were pulling into Sawyer’s driveway. “Hang on,” he said, jumping out of his door and rushing around to hers. Pulling it open, he offered his hand.
“Such a gentleman,” she teased, using his hand to step down from the large vehicle. Once on the concrete, she turned and grabbed their bags. “Better not forget the food,” she said, holding it up.
Sawyer took it from her. “Absolutely not. I’m famished.”
“I might not have any brothers, but if Amadeus is anything to go by, I’ve learned not to come between a man and his food,” Kinsley teased.
Sawyer closed the passenger door, then leaned forward, using his arms to cage Kinsley in. He loved how tall she was, her eyes so close to his. He didn’t have to duck or feel like he was going to break her with the wrong move. “Are you comparing me to a horse?” he teased, closing the distance between them.
“Maybe,” she whispered back. Her eyes flickered between his eyes and lips, letting him know she felt the electricity flaring between them. “I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, ‘hungry as a horse’.”
Sawyer nodded slowly. “I have. And it’s probably truer than I care to admit.” He tilted his head to the side and rubbed their cheeks together. “But I have one thing Amadeus doesn’t.”
“Hmm...” Kinsley hummed, leaning into his touch. “And what’s that?”
“The opportunity to do this,” Sawyer breathed, bringing his face back so he could bring their lips together. Every time they kissed, Sawyer felt like it was the first time. His heart took off in a gallop and he felt his entire body come alive. He gripped the side of the car, forcing himself to keep the kiss lighter, even though he wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around Kinsley and never let her go.
The knowledge that she was becoming more important to him than anything else seemed to thrum through his body. But they were outside, where anyone could see them, and Sawyer also knew that he had to be careful until this case was over. Falling in too deep could result in someone getting hurt, and I refuse to let that happen.
With one last kiss, he pulled back and rested his forehead against hers. “I don’t usually have dessert first,” he said with a chuckle.
Kinsley smiled and shrugged. “They say life is short. Might as well enjoy what you can.”
Sawyer laughed and stepped back, taking the bag of food and her hand. “Come on. Let’s go eat dinner before I decide to indulge my sweet tooth again.”
CHAPTER 18
Kinsley couldn’t remember the last time she’d been so happy. She practically skipped along with Sawyer as they went inside his small rambler. She looked around as they walked in, noting the definite bachelor vibe. “Do your brothers live with you?”
“Ridge is married,” Sawyer said as he dropped their food on the coffee table. “But Harlan and I still live together.”
Kinsley looked around. “Where is he?”
“Working.”
She frowned. “Harlan’s working this late at night?”
Sawyer glanced over with a smug grin. “He may have decided to work after I told him I was bringing you over.”
“So you drove your brother out of the house?” Kinsley slapped his shoulder. “Mean!”
He caught her hand and tugged her down with him on the couch. “I think the word you were really looking for was ‘genius’.”
She laughed and took the Styrofoam container he offered her. “Thank you.” Kinsley folded her hands in her lap. “Mind if we say grace?”
Sawyer shook his head and set his stuff down. “That would be great.”
After a blessing on the food, they opened up their dishes and Kinsley took a deep sniff. “Oh my goodness, that smells delicious.”
“Told you,” Sawyer said through a mouthful.
Kinsley wrinkled her nose. “Manners, Sawyer. Manners.”
He swallowed and winked at her. “If I had a dollar for every time my mother or sister said that to one of us boys...”
Kinsley laughed and shook her head, then bit into the warm, filled pita. “Mmm...” she hummed. The gyro was fantastic, and before she knew it, it was gone. “Whew.” Kinsley wiped her fingers on a napkin and sat back. “I shouldn’t have eaten so much, but man, was that good.”
“They’re one of my favorite places,” Sawyer admitted, leaning back as well. He turned his head to look at her. “I don’t think they can tell us apart, but they know who we are when we come in.�
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Kinsley grinned. “Yeah...I can see how it would be difficult to tell you guys apart.” She pursed her lips. “Harlan’s hair is a little different, so that helps, not to mention he seems very serious. But Ridge and you...” She poked him in the stomach. “Maybe one of you needs to get a tattoo or something.”
Sawyer raised an eyebrow. “You want me to get some ink?”
“Weeellll...not really,” Kinsley admitted. “I’ve never really gone for the bad boy look.”
Sawyer leaned up and over toward her. “What look do you go for?” he asked, his voice softer than before.
“I made a list when I was a little girl,” Kinsley answered just as softly, watching his handsome face come closer to hers. She swallowed hard and prayed that her breath wasn’t horrible as he shifted closer.
“Yeah?” Sawyer leaned in and kissed her cheek. “What was on that list?”
Kinsley closed her eyes and took in a long breath through her nose. “The first requirement was that he had to be taller than me.”
Sawyer’s chest shook against her shoulder as he chuckled. “I think I can check that one off the list. What else?” He kissed the underside of her jaw.
“Uh...” It was getting difficult to concentrate, but Kinsley didn’t want him to stop, so she frantically wracked her brain for those things she had written down when she was a young teenage girl. “He had to love horses.”
“They’re growing on me,” Sawyer admitted as he kissed her ear.
“He had to be handsome,” Kinsley said before she thought better of it. When Sawyer began to laugh, she felt the heat in her cheeks turn to embarrassment as much as enjoyment. “Hey! I was young!” she defended.
Sawyer leaned back so they could see each other’s eyes. “That’s okay. I think we got that one covered too.”
Kinsley rolled her eyes and pushed on his chest. “Arrogant!”
He shook his head. “Confident.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Sometimes they’re the same thing,” she shot back, but she couldn’t help but smile.
He shrugged. “Say what you want.” When he brought their lips within millimeters of each other, he asked, “Anything else on this list I should be aware of?”
“I’m pretty sure it said he had to have blue eyes and blond, curly hair,” Kinsley said almost inaudibly. Her paper said no such thing. In fact, she was pretty sure her descriptions were closer to describing Brad Pitt than someone like Sawyer Lockwood, but in that moment, Kinsley wasn’t too worried about what her teenage self thought.
Sawyer’s eyebrows shot up high. “That’s oddly specific.”
She grinned. “What can I say? I know what I like.”
Sawyer shook his head and smiled. “I’m going to kiss you now,” he said. “But before I do, you should know that I’m completely head over heels for you, Kinsley Storm. You’d think with as many of the people at my office who have found their significant other lately that I would have been prepared for this, but I wasn’t. I thought you would just be another rich girl, another assignment. But from the time you put down your foot and refused to let me have my way, I knew there was more to you than I realized.”
Kinsley blinked hard, but the tears that were forming at his sweet words wouldn’t stop. One by one, they began to trickle down her cheeks, and she took in a ragged breath.
“I’m so sorry that I was so stubborn for so long.” He kissed one of her eyes, and then the other. “But I’m here now and even after this case is over, I have no intention of letting you go.”
“That’s good,” she breathed. “Because there’s nowhere I’d rather be than at your side.”
Sawyer chuckled. “I won’t tell Addy you said that.”
She smiled and shrugged. “I’m pretty sure he already knows.”
“Then this one’s for him,” Sawyer said, closing the distance.
SAWYER IGNORED THE buzzing in his back pocket, instead choosing to sit back and bring Kinsley over to his lap. Just as he got her settled, his phone went off again and he reluctantly stopped their interaction. “Dang phone,” he mumbled.
Reaching back, he snatched it out of his back pocket and went to throw it on the coffee table, but it went off again. Curious as to who would call so many times, he glanced at the screen. He frowned at Ridge’s name. “Sorry,” he mumbled to Kinsley. “Let me take this really quick.”
Kinsley pouted, but leaned against his shoulder to wait for him.
“Hello?” Sawyer asked quickly, hoping it was just a social call.
“Dude, where are you?” Ridge’s voice was a tight whisper and Sawyer’s guard immediately went up.
“At the house.”
“Is Kinsley with you?”
“Yes.”
“You need to get down to the barn,” Ridge said even more quietly. “Something funny is going on here.”
Sawyer sat up and Kinsley straightened, her brow furrowed as she tried to figure out what was going on. “What do you mean?”
“Roman and I came to put in the system tonight,” Ridge said quickly, “But we almost got caught. We’re hiding at the moment, but someone is at Amadeus’ stall, and the horse isn’t happy he’s there.”
Sawyer pushed Kinsley off his lap and jumped up, grabbing his keys and heading for the door. “What does he look like?” he barked, going immediately into protective mode. He jumped into the SUV and went to start the engine when the passenger door opened and Kinsley climbed in. “You need to stay here,” Sawyer ground out as he turned the key too hard.
“I’m going, too,” she said, sticking her chin in the air. “This is my horse we’re talking about.”
Sawyer forced himself to soften his words. “Kins, I can’t risk you getting hurt. Please stay back.”
Tears began to fill her eyes. “No, Sawyer. I have to go. I have to.”
Sawyer closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, unsure how to make her understand, when Ridge spoke up.
“Dude, you don’t have time to argue. I don’t know enough about horses to know what this guy’s up to, but it can’t be good. Just get here. We’ll help you keep her safe.”
Without another word, Sawyer slammed the vehicle into drive and tore out of the driveway. “Tell me what he looks like,” Sawyer demanded after he’d gotten onto the road.
“Young, lanky...he’s wearing a ballcap so I can’t really see his hair,” Ridge said. “There’s not much to distinguish him.”
Sawyer frowned. That description definitely meant it could be Tyrone, but it also fit a dozen other workers at the barn.
“What’s Amadeus doing?” Kinsley asked loudly enough for Ridge to hear.
Sawyer pulled the phone away from his ear and turned on the speaker button, then handed it to Kinsley.
“He’s snorting and stomping. Keeps throwing his head, too,” Sawyer added. “I don’t know horse language or anything, but he doesn’t seem happy.”
Kinsley nodded. “Is the person actually in the stall?”
Love for the woman at his right soared through Sawyer. Here they were talking about someone possibly trying to hurt her favorite possession, again, and Kinsley was as cool as a cucumber, asking questions to better help them understand the situation.
“He’s trying to get in,” Ridge whispered, “but the horse isn’t making it easy.”
“Good, that’s good,” Kinsley muttered. “Can you tell why the guy wants in?”
“Not exactly,” Ridge said. “But he’s carrying a bucket with a bunch of supplies in it.”
Kinsley frowned. “What kind of supplies?”
“It looks like a hammer handle, and the bucket keeps making metal noises.”
“Horseshoeing supplies?” Kinsley muttered more quietly, as if thinking out loud. “What would he be doing with that?”
“Can you cripple a horse with the wrong horseshoe?” Sawyer asked.
Kinsley gasped, and her knuckles turned white as she gripped the phone. “That’s it. He must be trying to mess with Addy’s s
hoes.” Her breathing grew shallow and rapid, and Sawyer began to fear she would hyperventilate.
“Kinsley!” Sawyer spoke loudly in order to gain her attention through the fear. “What happens if the guy messes with Addy’s shoes?”
“He can go lame, or if there’s a funny nail, he can bleed and be hurt,” she said through her sniffles. “If he’s hurt enough, it could cause problems for regionals next week.”
Sawyer nodded his understanding and took back the phone. “Don’t you let that guy anywhere near Amadeus, Ridge. Do what you have to, to take him down.”
“I’ve got no proof he’s trying to hurt anyone,” Ridge whispered back. There was a pause before he spoke again. “How far can I let him go before I interfere, Sawyer? Because we both know this whole thing will go far better if we actually have evidence.”
Kinsley put a fist to her mouth and looked like she was ready to break down in sobs. As much as Sawyer wanted to give Ridge the go-ahead to let the perpetrator actually do something illegal, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. The thought of Kinsley’s anguish if something happened to Amadeus was too great.
“We can’t risk it,” Sawyer said hoarsely. “You gotta stop him now. Hopefully we can get some kind of confession from the guy when we get there.”
“No.” Kinsley’s voice was raspy and small.
Sawyer looked over. “What?”
“Leave him be for now,” she said thickly. After clearing her throat, Kinsley spoke again. “Ridge, keep an eye on him. If he gets in the stall, make sure you’re recording it. If, at any time, the man touches Amadeus and he seems to be in pain, then please intervene. Otherwise, wait and watch. We’ll be there in about ten more minutes.”
“Roger, roger,” Ridge said. “I’m gonna hang up now so I can concentrate, but keep your phone handy.”
Sawyer set the device down and re-gripped the steering wheel. “Kinsley Storm, if I haven’t said it before...” He swallowed hard. “You are absolutely amazing.”
“Actually,” she whispered, “I’m trusting in the fact that you’re amazing and will put this guy where he belongs.”