Once Upon a Cowboy

by Rachel Lacey

  “Yeah, you won’t find any line dancing here in Virginia.”

  “Well, I’m from Florida, so what do I know? But I’ll go get my boots and meet you back down here.”

  “It’s a date,” he said, leaning in to press a kiss against her lips.

  As she walked away, he wondered if he’d ever get used to the ways his life had changed, how good it felt to have her in his bed and in his life. His thoughts drifted to Alana, remembering the many times they’d taken trail rides together, the way Alana’s body would sway against his as they rode, the soft brush of her blonde hair over his arms.

  They’d thought they had their wholes lives in front of them. He’d lost her, really lost her, so long ago, it was usually hard for him to remember, but suddenly he saw her as clearly as if she’d been standing right in front of him, head cocked the way she did when she was teasing him, blue eyes sparkling beneath the hot summer sun. He heard the sound of her laughter, as light as the summer breeze, the slow drawl of her voice when she said his name.

  If only she could have been here to see this barn and the things he’d accomplished. He blinked away Alana’s image, focusing his eyes on Megan’s retreating form, replacing the past with the present. His hands clenched around Duchess’s saddle pad as he attempted to anchor himself there.

  Megan sat on her bed, shoving her feet into the brown leather cowboy boots that had cost way too much to risk getting dirty in the barn, but did she care? Nope. Going for a trail ride with Jake would be worth any amount of dirt on her boots. Their relationship couldn’t last. Between the two of them, they had way too much baggage to make it work, but for today, she was having the time of her life, and that was all that mattered.

  “What on earth are you doing?” Ruby asked from the doorway. “I thought I had finally convinced you we’re in the wrong state for line dancing.”

  Megan flipped her off with a smile. “For your information, I’m getting ready to go for a ride. On a horse. Which is exactly what these boots are made for.”

  Ruby raised her eyebrows. “Really? With Jake?”

  She nodded as she stood and walked over to Ruby. “These are not as comfortable as they look.”

  Ruby snorted with laughter. “Are you going to wear a cowboy hat too?”

  “You know what? I should. There’s got to be one somewhere here in the castle.”

  “Are we going to talk about what else is going on here?” Ruby asked, not budging from the doorway, eyebrows still lifted for emphasis.

  “Like the fact that I spent the night with him?” She lifted her own eyebrows. “I figured you guys had already drawn your own conclusions about that.”

  “Well, we did,” Ruby confirmed with a smile. “But we still want to hear it from you.”

  “It was an amazing night. And for the record, you were right about him being a virgin,” Megan told her, cheeks flushing at the memory. “But he and Alana had fooled around plenty, so he wasn’t exactly starting from zero. And he’s a quick learner. I’m more than happy to help him make up for lost time.”

  Ruby’s expression softened. “Well, I’m glad it’s going well. Elle’s off with Theo tonight, but do you want to go into town and get dinner together? If you don’t have plans with Jake, that is.”

  “I definitely can’t spend the night with him, because I’ve got to keep all five of the foster dogs tonight, to make up for Elle watching them for me last night.” And she could probably use a little distance from Jake, before this casual thing started to feel…not so casual. “So yeah, let’s get dinner.”

  “Excellent. I’ll text later, unless I bump into you in the meantime.” With a wave, Ruby headed down the hall toward the room housing their foster cats.

  Megan grabbed her jacket and headed for the barn. She found Jake already outside with Twister, silhouetted against the late afternoon sun. If only she’d brought her camera with her, that could have been the cover shot for his website, because damn, they made a handsome pair, the strong man and his equally strong horse. Something about the cowboy hat he wore while riding really did it for her. Actually, everything about him seemed to do it for her.

  “Ready?” he called, leading Twister toward the steps so she could climb onto his back.

  She nodded as she walked toward them, butterflies of anticipation fluttering in her belly. She’d enjoyed her first ride on Twister, however short, but riding with Jake sounded even more exciting, and especially going out on the trails.

  “Just grab ahold of the saddle, like you did last time,” Jake instructed. “Put your left foot into the stirrup and swing up onto his back.”

  She did as he said, hoisting herself up. Twister shifted beneath her, and she gripped him with her thighs to find her balance. There was something amazing about feeling all that strength and power beneath her. “It’s the coolest thing,” she said. “Being up here on his back.”

  “Isn’t it?” Jake swung into the saddle behind her. “We’ll take it nice and easy today, just a relaxing trail ride for all of us.”

  Jake settled behind her, his chest against her back, as Twister began to walk. It was a disorienting feeling, the sway of the horse beneath her paired with the strong column of Jake’s chest behind her. She gripped the horn, feeling like every step of the horse sent her crashing into Jake.

  “Relax,” he told her. “Just let him move you. You want to stay loose and let your hips take all the movement.”

  “That sounds like a different kind of activity.” She glanced at him over her shoulder.

  He gave her a sexy smile. “Could go for either, I guess.”

  But she did what he said, relaxing her muscles so that her hips swayed with Twister’s gait, and soon she found the comfortable rhythm she’d managed last time. She and Jake moved in unison with each step.

  “Have you been out on the trails much?” he asked as they approached the edge of the woods that surrounded the castle.

  “A few times, probably not as much as I should have. Elle takes the dogs jogging out here a few times a week.”

  “Twister and I have only been out here a few times too, but we used to ride on trails a lot at our old barn. It’s nice. Really peaceful. Plus, you never know when you might surprise a deer or something out here.”

  “I see why you like it so much.” She let herself relax against Jake’s chest, looking up at the canopy of trees overhead.

  “Riding has always been my escape,” he said, his voice rumbling through her. “Nothing better.”

  They rode in silence for a few minutes. The forest around them was dappled with sunlight as it spilled between the branches of the trees, creating a kaleidoscope of green and gold. She needed to come back out here with her camera too. Why hadn’t she photographed the forest before?

  The only sound came from the muffled clop of Twister’s hooves against the trail, the occasional huff and snort of his breath, and the whisper of the breeze through the trees. Peaceful. Mesmerizing. Combined with the rhythmic movement of the horse beneath her and Jake’s warmth pressed up against her back, she felt like she could go into a trance. Maybe this was what it felt like to meditate, heightening your awareness of the world around you.

  “Penny for your thoughts,” Jake said quietly.

  “Just soaking it all in.”

  “I hear that.” He rested a hand on her hip. They came out at a little overlook, the castle and grounds laid out beneath them like something out of a fairytale…or a postcard. The castle itself was impressive, with the tower on one side and the fountain in the middle of the circular drive out front, but add in the gardens off to the left, the barn and pastures and all the other various outbuildings, and it was truly breathtaking.

  “Whoa,” she whispered. “Sometimes I still can’t believe I really get to call this place home.”

  “Me neither. Big step up for me, that’s for sure.”

  “Where did you grow up?” she asked, realizing she’d never heard him mention his own family, only Alana’s.

  “
A few towns over, in Bakersville.”

  “And does your family still live there?”

  He straightened behind her, not exactly tense, but she still got the distinct impression that she’d touched on an uncomfortable subject for him. “No.”

  She didn’t push, leaning back against him in silent support. Twister tossed his head, picking at a few blades of grass along the trail.

  “My mom died when I was seventeen,” he said after a pause.

  “Oh no. I’m sorry.” She reached back to touch him, wishing she could face him, hold him, even see his face.

  “Overdose.” His tone was low and even, but she could hear the pain behind his words. “She battled addiction my whole life. I barely know my dad. He was never around much, and he lives in Oregon now. I haven’t seen him in years. After Mom died, my older sister Helen took a job outside DC. Honestly, the Robertsons have sometimes felt more like family than my own.”

  She leaned back, pressing her hands against the tops of his thighs. “I really wish I could hug you right now.”

  His arms slid around her in response. “But I can hug you. And it’s okay, really. It all happened a long time ago.”

  “That doesn’t mean it doesn’t still hurt,” she said quietly. Truthfully, she couldn’t even imagine what that would be like. She had two awesome parents who loved her and would do anything for her. It made her unspeakably sad to think of Jake basically fending for himself since he was a teenager, or for his whole life, maybe. Growing up with a mother who was an addict couldn’t have been easy. Thank God he’d had the Robertsons, at least.

  “I really don’t think about it that much,” he said. “I try to just keep myself in the present.”

  “That’s a good attitude.” Honestly, Jake seemed to have handled everything life had thrown at him with an incredible amount of grace. They fell silent for a few minutes, just taking in their surroundings and the closeness between them.

  “Do you mind if I ask about your accident?” he asked, his tone gentle.

  She forced herself not to straighten, not to pull out of his embrace. “You must have heard about it when it happened.”

  “I guess I did, but only vaguely.”

  “We were on our way home from Bar None, Elle, Ruby, and I,” she told him. “We’d all been drinking, so we had Theo’s driver, James, take us home.”

  Jake’s hand rested on her thigh, warm and comforting.

  “A deer ran in front of the car, and James swerved to avoid it.” She closed her eyes, remembering the screams, the panic, the pain. “It was a minor accident, really, except a tree branch came through my window.”

  “I’m sorry,” Jake murmured, bending his head to kiss her cheek, right over the scar.

  “There was so much blood,” she whispered, touching her face reflexively. “It got in my eye, and I thought I was losing my vision, that the branch had gotten my eye too.”

  “That’s a hell of a thing.”

  “Anyway, tree branches don’t make for the neatest wounds, so…” She would carry the scars from that night on her skin for the rest of her life.

  “Nothing neat about it, but life rarely is,” he commented, arms still around her, warm and strong.

  “I guess not.” She relaxed against his chest, shaking off the memories of the crash. “Anyway, I’ve seen plastic surgeons, done all the creams and treatments, and this is about as good as it’s going to get.”

  He squeezed her leg. “Your scars are part of who you are, and I think everything about you is pretty damn great.”

  “Thanks.” It made sense when he said it, but she hadn’t truly felt like herself since the accident. There was Megan from before the crash, and Megan from after. And she wasn’t entirely sure who the new Megan was yet. Maybe Jake could help her merge them together. Or maybe she had to do that on her own.

  They sat together quietly, watching as the sun inched closer to the treetops, casting the castle and grounds in a golden glow. His arms rested comfortably around her, his hands covering hers on the saddle horn. Beneath them, Twister began to shuffle impatiently.

  “Guess we better let him get moving again,” she said finally, leaning down to rub the horse’s neck.

  “Yep.” Jake clucked to him, and they were off again, walking down the trail back into the forest. “This trail is a big loop, comes out behind the farmhouse.”

  “I’m definitely coming back with my camera,” she murmured.

  “Lots of great shots out here,” he agreed.

  They rode in an easy silence back to the castle. Jake’s arms were still around her, his warm, solid presence pressed against her back, and she could only describe the feeling as…contentment. Which was frankly unsettling in itself. She’d never felt contented with a man before, and it terrified her to feel that way about Jake, when neither of them were in any place to think about a serious relationship.

  “So, about tonight…” he said after they’d gotten off Twister and stood together in the barn. There was an awkward moment where they stared at each other, each waiting for the other to make the first move. “I have a late session with an offsite client, and then I really need to catch up on some work. Can I see you tomorrow?”

  She exhaled, inexplicably relieved he hadn’t been expecting her to spend the night again, because right now she needed a little space to figure out why she felt so…attached after only one night with him. “Definitely, and I promised to have dinner with Ruby tonight anyway.”

  “All right, then.”

  “Working on your next book?”

  He nodded. “And I’m behind on my word count for this week.”

  “Well, I’d better let you get to it. Text me about tomorrow, but I’ll probably see you around regardless.” She leaned in to give him a quick kiss, which turned into a lingering one as his arms slipped around her, anchoring her against his body.

  “Not tired of this yet,” he murmured against her lips.

  “Well, I should hope not,” she teased. “It’s only been twenty-four hours.”

  They kissed, slow and lingering until she finally broke away for some much-needed air, forehead resting against his cheek while his chest heaved beneath her palm.

  “See you tomorrow, then,” she said, stepping backward out of his arms before they got carried away. Because she had no doubt it wouldn’t take much for them to get carried away. Not tonight, and not for their relationship in general.

  11

  “So where are Elle and Theo tonight anyway?” Megan asked as she twirled pasta around her fork.

  Ruby sat across the table from her, dark hair as usual pulled into a messy bun, black-rimmed glasses reflecting the overhead lighting. “They went to a charity event in DC.”

  “That sounds…stuffy,” Megan said with a giggle.

  Ruby speared a shrimp out of her seafood linguine with a smile. “Such a chore, schmoozing with rich people. Elle will be in her element, though.”

  “She will,” Megan agreed. “She’s good at that. I’d love to get dressed up and go to a fancy party like that, but schmoozing isn’t exactly my thing.”

  “And I’d rather skip the party all together.” Ruby scrunched her nose. “So, how are things with you and Jake?”

  “Really good, I think.”

  “You think?” Ruby asked.

  “Well, it’s all still really new, you know? I’m not sure where it’s headed, but the sex is great, and I really enjoy being with him, so we’ll just see what happens.”

  “Sounds like a good attitude,” Ruby agreed with a nod. “After everything he’s been through, he could use some sex and fun, right?”

  “Exactly. What about you?” Megan asked, giving her friend a shrewd look. “You haven’t been on a date since we moved to Virginia.”

  Ruby made a face. “I hate dating. Can’t I just skip that part and settle down with someone?”

  Megan laughed into her wine. “Not unless you want to go on one of those ‘Married at First Sight’ shows.”

 
; “Absolutely not.”

  Megan looked across the table at her friend. Ruby had on a black-and-white patterned knit dress with a chunky red necklace, a perfect example of her off-beat style. She was quirky and pretty and funny, and it was ridiculous that she kept herself locked in her tower at the castle most of the time. “You should set up an online dating profile.”

  “I’ve thought about online dating,” Ruby admitted. “I should be good at it since I get to hide behind my computer.”

  “Then do it,” Megan said. “Let’s make you a profile when we get home. I’ll help.”

  “Well…maybe.” Ruby looked away, sucking her bottom lip between her teeth. “I guess I’ve gotten comfortable being by myself.”

  “That’s why online dating could be a good first step for you. Just see who’s out there, see if anyone catches your interest. No harm in that, right?”

  Ruby polished off her glass of wine. “True. Have you tried it?”

  “Surprisingly enough, I haven’t.” Megan had always enjoyed going to parties and bars and never had trouble finding a man to bring home at the end of the night. What would dating be like for her in the future, though, after she and Jake had run their course? Would she set up an online dating profile? Would she reveal her scars in her profile photo? Would anyone click on it if she did?

  “See, that’s the difference between you and me,” Ruby said thoughtfully. “You’re just naturally good at this, and I’m not.”

  “I don’t know about that. We’ll find you a man…or a woman.” Megan smiled as she remembered that night during their freshman year in college when Ruby had called to gush about the woman she’d kissed after her study group. As surprised as Megan had been to learn her friend was bisexual, part of her hadn’t been surprised at all. “See, you’ve got an even wider dating pool to tap into than I do.”

  “All right,” Ruby said with a definitive nod. “You’ve convinced me. Let’s do it.”

  They finished up their meal and headed out. When they got back to the castle, Megan paused in the foyer, her eyes on the library. “Did you know Jake’s an author?”