Page 99 of Slow Hands Cowboy

“I’m asking Walker to help me with that. He’s given me some good tips on building community resources. I was focused on tourism. Bringing more tourism into Mustang River, highlighting the businesses here. I know you have an interest in that. But Walker reminded me that it doesn’t work to ignore a big swath of the population here. People that need services. That need help. This is an affluent town, by and large, but of course there are always people that aren’t. And I think because there are such disparities here, those people often get left behind. They get ignored. And that’s what I’m trying to stop.”

“Nice,” Lila said. “Well, if you need any help spreading the word, I’m more than willing. I’m very loud.”

“That’s a good thing. And thank you,” Addison said.

“Have you been to see the mustangs yet?” Marlowe asked.

“I grew up here,” Addison said, “but actually, I haven’t ever seen the mustangs.”

“How have you never seen the mustang herd?” Lila asked.

“I don’t know. I didn’t spend a lot of time out where they are, because they’re in the wilderness areas and they run through this property, right?”

“Yes, they do,” Cody said. “We have a whole lot of them.”

“Actually, I’d be interested to know what your stance is on preserving the herd.”

“Is that a controversy?”

“It is,” Zane said from down at his end of the table. “There are ranchers who want to make sure that the herd gets culled. What they want is for their horses to have access to the different resources, not the Mustangs.”

“That doesn’t seem right,” Addison said.

“Agreed,” Cody said. “We’re of the mind that as ranchers, we owe a share of the natural resources back to the animals that live here. We’re basically leasing this ground till we go back into it. Sustainability matters.”

“I would agree with that,” Addison said, “though I definitely need to get a little bit more educated on the topic. Like I said, my thought tends to be around the town, around tourism. I guess I haven’t thought as much about ranching interests.”

“These things are mainly decided by the Bureau of Land Management, but I do believe that local pressure influences it. So even if you’re not in charge of drawing up actual initiatives, it would be good to maybe include the Mustangs in tourism. Just make it really damned unpopular to mess with the herd.”

Addison nodded slowly. “All right. I like that idea.”

“I’ll take you to see them,” Walker said.

“Oh, thank you. I would really, really love that.”

For just a moment, he saw her. She meant that. It wasn’t the polished politician version of Addison who wanted the Mustangs, it was his Addison. The one he had staying in his house, the one that he had gotten to know.

When had he started thinking of her as his? That was nothing more than a recipe for disaster.

He would do well to remember that.

“Great,” he said. “I’ll take you out tomorrow night and we’ll stay the night. You have to be there at sunrise to actually see them.”

“Oh my God,” Marlowe said. “Do you all use wild mustangs as a seduction technique?”

Cody looked up at the sky, his expression innocent. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

And that was more than Walker needed to know about his brother.

Chapter Twenty-One

Addison was running late to meet Anna at Eat & Run. But that was Walker’s fault. She had been in the shower getting ready to go to lunch, and he had come home from doing something on the ranch, and had joined her, which had been more than a little bit distracting, and had made the shower take a whole lot longer than it would have otherwise.

And he had made good on his promise to keep condoms everywhere. He’d had one hiding in the shower. And he had made very good use of it.

She wasn’t this person. Not usually. This person who thought about sex and pleasure all the time.

But he made her like that.