Page 83 of Saltwater Cowboy

Full-on, head-thrown-back, wheezing laughter.

“You—” He gasped, wiping his eyes as he let go of my jeans and climbed back down. “You screamed like someone was trying to murder you.”

I scowled. “I thought someone was trying to murder me. I didn’t know horses had a built-in earthquake function!”

He grinned up at me, shaking his head. “You are the worst cowgirl I have ever met.”

I exhaled, loosening my grip on the reins, my heartbeat finally returning to normal. “You know what? I accept that title. Crown me and let me go inside.”

But Wells just folded his arms and smirked. “One more lap.”

I groaned. “You’re a tyrant.”

“And yet, you keep listening to me.”

I muttered something under my breath that I was pretty sure counted as a threat, but I did it anyway—one more lap, much to Wells’ amusement.

And, okay. Maybe—just maybe—it wasn’t as horrifying this time.

But I’d die on this horse before I admitted that to him.

Wells walked up to Bandit’s side, looking up at me with that same cocky smirk that had been plastered on his face all evening.

“Alright, Sunshine. Time to dismount.”

I stared down at him, then at the ground, which suddenly seemed way farther away than when I first got up here. “You say that like it’s easy.”

“It is easy,” he said, reaching up. “Just swing your leg over and slide down.”

I snorted. “Slide down? Like I won’t dislocate a knee?”

He rolled his eyes and held out his hands. “Come on, I got you.”

I hesitated. “Don’t let me fall.”

Wells sighed, like I was personally testing his patience. “Trust me.”

I exhaled and, very carefully, swung my leg over. The second my foot left the stirrup, gravity betrayed me, and I half-slid, half-plummeted straight toward Wells.

He barely caught me.

For a second, we just stood there, my hands gripping his shoulders, his arms wrapped around my waist, his chest shaking with silent laughter.

“You’re supposed to help me down, not let me free-fall,” I muttered.

“I did help you,” he said, grinning. “You’re in one piece, aren’t you?”

I scowled. “Debatable.”

He finally let me go, stepping back with that damn smirk still in place. “Not bad for your first ride.”

I huffed, brushing off my jeans. “Yeah, yeah. Next time, we’ll see how you like being completely out of your element.”

His laughter chased me all the way back to the house. “Does this make us friends yet?”

I glanced over my shoulder with a deadpan look. “I almost just died, cowboy. Absolutely not.”

SLOW BURN