Page 14 of The Rancher

"I was kicked out on my own so suddenly," I begin. "I doubt my mother would help me even if she could. My aunt is a flake and said I could only stay for six days max without explaining why. I'm basically alone in the world.” My breath is unsteady. “That’s why I'm always worried about the future and need to prepare for the worst-case scenario. There’s nobody to bail me out. Even if I had money in the bank, a landlord could kick me to the curb because he wanted to give the place to his kid, or a family of tap dancers could move in upstairs and I wouldn't be able to work. With a tiny house, I would have my own place. Permanently. And proper space between me and other people, not just thin apartment walls."

"I get that," Stone murmurs, nodding.

"Plus, it's an investment. Sure, I might be paying for water and sewage and renting the land, but it would be less than apartment rent, so I can save for the future. And it's such a small space that I would never be tempted to buy anything large. I don't spend money on things. I want to save every penny for my future and my freedom." A slow breath calms me slightly. "It's like I could finally unclench, you know? Feel that I've succeeded at life."

He nods slowly. "I think I understand. It's a symbol." His hand lands on my knee again, and I feel another wash of this instant connection between us.

"This might sound crass," he says softly, "but when I made my first million, that was a symbol to me that I had, as you put it, won at life. But I didn't like who I'd become, so I ran away." He chuckles, shaking his head at the memory. "New town, new people, invested in this ranch, built my house. Now I just live on the income and never think about money." He looks at me sideways. "Except when I'm buying animals, of course."

"Even I, as an almost pathologically frugal person, think that buying abandoned animals is a completely worthy expense. That is the time to splurge, in my books."

"For my part, I'd like to splurge on taking a lovely woman out to dinner tomorrow night."

"You want to be seen in public with me?"

"I want to show my beautiful girl off to the world so everyone knows they shouldn’t be hitting on her." He flashes me a cheeky grin. "It's a dude thing, sorry. Is that so bad?"

I grin. “Not at all."

How does he make me feel so special through the smallest things? From the second Stone met me, he has treated this lonely girl like his absolute treasure.

9

STONE

Ilove the way Remy's face lights up as we pass through the gate of Bone River Ranch. How long would it take for her to think of this as home, I wonder?

It would be great for both of us if I could persuade her to move here. But I need to take my time and let it roll around in her mind for a while before I even suggest it. Better yet, maybe I could help her come to that conclusion herself.

I park at the back of the stable and walk Unicorn into one of the larger stalls, directly across the aisle from Prince. They study each other carefully, then Prince gives a soft neigh of welcome. Unicorn makes the same sound in response.

"Does that mean they’re friends now?" Remy whispers.

"I would guess so. They're both lonely, around the same age, and in a new environment at the same time. That kind of creates a bond. I have a good feeling about these two."

I adjust the feeder in Unicorn’s stall and make sure it's filled. Then I look around the stable, where I've been neglecting my chores for the past few days.

"I've got about an hour’s worth of work to do out here." I pull Remy against me, kissing a line from her ear to her collarbone. "Shall I drive you back to the house? Or would you like to drive yourself?”

She laughs. "I've never driven a truck, never mind one that big, so I'm happy to walk." She hesitates. "But…if you don't mind⁠—"

“Shit, I should have given you the spare keys ages ago. Sorry.” I pull the house key off my clip. "Here you go." I drop it into her hand, then kiss her lightly. "I know you're going to go straight to work, and that's fine. But could you please take that bowl of raspberries on the counter with you? They need to be eaten today."

"Such terrible punishment for working," she giggles.

She stretches up to kiss me, the light peck turning into a slow, sultry kiss. Instantly my hands scoop under to lift her, pinning her against the wall. Having Remy in my arms, her sexy body trapped between me and the wooden planks, triggers a primitive urge that sends a huge wave of lust pulsing straight through my hips, my thighs and my cock as it instantly thickens in my jeans.

"Feel what you do to me, pretty girl." My voice is a growl. "My entire body needs to fuck you. Needs to hear every sound you're going to make when your pussy is wrapped around my cock." What the hell is coming over me? I never talk like this.

She gasps, her eyes wide as I kiss along her throat. Then she squirms against me. For a heart-stopping second I think I've gone too far and she's trying to escape. Then I realize she's actually moving with me, moaning as I practically drive her into the wall.

"Tell me to stop, baby."

Her head shakes as I pull down the front of her shirt, yanking down her bra to pull a nipple into my mouth. She quivers in my arms. "Just one more minute," she breathes.

"Anything you want, beautiful. Just think about how tight you're gonna wrap your legs around me when I plunge all the way inside you. Think about how wet your soft pussy is going to be. Think about how someday, when you're ready, you're going to beg me to thrust so deep we forget our own names.”

Remy cries out a moan as I release her breast to kiss her petal-soft lips again. Soon we’re both panting, squirming against each other. It feels like my cock is going to snap off or explode. I've never been as hard as I get for her. Never felt so aroused. It's almost too much to control.