Vivian Arend - Rocky Mountain Rebel

Joel glanced down, adjusting his grip on her fingers to curl his entire hand around hers. “You want to know all the terms?”

“All about horses. Tell me everything.”

“I bet there’s an app for that,” Joel deadpanned.

“You’re better than an app. You can hold my hand while you teach me.” She gave him a smile, hoping this was the right thing to do, willing him to accept her offering.

Willing herself to be brave enough to take this adventure and stick it out to the end, because the potential for something wonderful was incredible.

Past, present and future. It all hinged on the here and now. If she could make it through the next months and learn to handle horses. If Joel was smart enough to help her.

If the town could just stay out of their business for a little while.

They stood there for a minute. She wasn’t sure what came next. “I guess we should get back.”

“I guess we should.” Joel didn’t let go of her fingers until they were at the bike, then he lifted her hand to his mouth and pressed his lips against her fingers briefly. “Give me a ride back to my truck?”

She wasn’t sure if she should go awww for him being a gentleman, or kick him for leaving her aching with anticipation. “You don’t want to drive?”

“Your bike. Let’s see how you handle it.” He handed her the helmet and waited until she’d mounted. Then he stepped over the back and curled an arm around her belly, and all the wild fantasies she’d shoved into a corner sprang up.

Hard-as-nails muscles pressed against her, bands of iron holding her steady.

The dry mouth she’d suffered from vanished, and she swallowed hard to stop from drooling. “I think it’s better if you drive. I don’t think I can balance her with your weight in the back.”

She escaped from the circle of his arms. Not because she didn’t want him holding her, but because she wanted it too badly.

Joel seemed to accept her excuse. “It’s a bigger bike than you should have, isn’t it?”

“I’ll trade down someday. It was cheap.”

He slipped into position and waited for her to mount. Wrapping her arms around him didn’t seem nearly as dangerous, but the control she clung to was an illusion. Because in spite of the drive back to the truck, the time it took for him to dismount, in spite of all that, she was still horny as all get out from having her inner thighs rubbing his fine ass.

She wanted him between her thighs for real, and while it seemed she’d get her wish eventually, going slow was the order of the day.

Not even a goodbye kiss.

Joel hauled open his truck door. “I need to get back. I’ll see you at ten outside the red door.”

He started his engine, rolling down the window so he could finish talking to her. Like he was putting a barrier between them. Vicki adjusted position and turned the bike for the road. “Ten then. I’ll call you if I can’t make it for some reason.”

Although what reason could she have other than avoiding the horses of hell?

He pointed sternly, a cross between a frown and mischief on his face. “You show up or I’ll track you down.”

Drat .

There really wasn’t any answer for that, and if she stayed around any longer things would get more awkward. So she took off, her body still buzzing with need, her head filled with images of pregnant Six Pack mares, and Joel Coleman pinning her to the ground.

She was totally going to get off tonight on the memories of him covering her, and she wasn’t even a bit ashamed.

Joel gave her room to leave, not wanting to crowd her as she somehow got the massive bike back onto the highway. He pulled over, ready to turn down the narrow drive leading to the trailer he shared with Jesse, then changed his mind.

He needed help on this one, and his options were limited as to who he could ask. Frankly, his dad was the one he’d normally go to for the horse advice he required, or Karen, but they were both out of the question for obvious reasons.

Instead he headed toward town and his closest brother. Daniel might not have the twin-speak advantage there’d always been between him and Jesse, but in some ways, that made him a better sounding board.

They got each other. Understood the motivation to do something a little different.

Pulling up in front of Daniel and Beth’s home in town felt a touch strange, though. Jesse had been right. His older brothers were settling down, which was normal, but changed the dynamics like crazy.

As did the wild new family additions who rushed his truck.

“Uncle J, Uncle J.” Little boys shrieked as he stepped onto the lawn, allowing his three nephews to tackle him to the ground.

“Hey, guys. You ready for it? Three, two, one.” The game Daniel’s adopted boys had created of Guess the Uncle hadn’t gotten old yet, so he and Jesse still went along with it.

“Joel,” two of them shouted.

“Jesse,” the littlest of the three, Robbie, insisted.

“That’s Joel’s truck, you dum-dum.” Lance poked his brother. “Jesse only drives it sometimes.”

Robbie tilted his eight-year-old head to the side and stared hard into Joel’s eyes. “You sure you’re not Jesse?”

“Sorry, short stuff. Uncle Joel at your service.”

Nathan didn’t care who it was dropping in unannounced. “You gonna take us fishing? Riding? To visit—”

“Whoa, rein it in. I’m here to visit your mom and dad, and you for a bit, I guess. What you up to?”

“Playing.”

The front door opened, and Daniel stuck his head out. “Lunch time.”

The three short people vanished as if they’d never been there. Joel pushed himself off the grass and wiped at his jeans. “You got extra for me?” he called.

Daniel leaned on the doorframe. “Don’t know. You planning on teaching my kids any more bad habits like proposing another ‘who can shove the most hard-boiled eggs in their mouths at one time’ contest?”

“That was Jesse.” Still he couldn’t help but smile as he headed in and patted his brother on the back. “Also, I seem to remember you won.”

“Shh, no getting me in trouble.” Daniel grinned at him. “Good to see you. Got something other than a free lunch on your mind?”

“That transparent?”

They walked toward the kitchen and the noise level rose exponentially.

“You’re always welcome, but there’s not much excitement around here for a single guy, egg-eating contests exempted. Also?” Daniel paused in the doorway and spoke softer. “I saw you last night at Traders. You were distracted. Let me feed you, and once the horde is full we can take them outside and talk.”

Joel nodded, but felt a bit of a fool. “Is Beth around? I kinda have a question for her first.”

Daniel raised a brow. “Sure. You can take lunch into her office.”

He passed over a plate filled with finger foods and pointed down the hall.

“It’s nothing bad,” Joel started, but Daniel waved him down.

“Don’t be stupid. You want to talk to Beth, talk to her. I don’t need to know the details ahead of time. Ass.”

“Daddy. You’re not supposed to call your brother an ass. Mummy said so.” Robbie was all wide-eyed as he worked on the sandwich he held in a two-handed death grip.

“You’re not supposed to call your brothers an ass until they are adults. Then you can pick the best words for the occasion, okay?”

The older two nephews snickered as the littlest one puzzled over that explanation.

Daniel pushed Joel down the hallway. “Go, before you get me in more trouble.”

The continued spirited conversation behind him regarding the use of the words ass , jackass and butt had Joel chuckling by the time he knocked on the office door.