“I’m on it,” I promised. “Get some sleep.”
It was midnight before I got back to my grandfathers’ ranch and the bunkhouse. I was exhausted from the emotional upheaval of the day, but I could finally rest easy now that I’d seen how healthy the baby was and had been able to witness the pure love and support radiating from my sister toward Neckie.
When I finally slid between the sheets, I checked my phone. It’s not that I hadn’t thought of Augie all day—I had. But I’d had no way of calling him since my phone hadn’t charged while I slept at Augie’s and there was little to no reception where Neckie lived. I’d finally used Hudson’s phone to text Lanny at the office and make sure they told Augie not to show up for our lesson the following day. But I didn’t have his number to call him directly.
When my phone powered up back at the bunkhouse, there was a missed text.
Augie: Hi. Thank you for last night. Hope you heard lots of interesting gossip from the soccer mom crowd in your classes today.
Work? Why did he think I’d gone to Twist when my note said I was going to Neckie’s? Despite the late hour, I typed in a response.
Me: Sorry it’s so late. Didn’t you get my note? Neckie had the baby.
I fought sleep as long as I could, waiting for a response, but it never came. The minute my eyes popped open the next morning, I knew what I needed to do. I threw on the same clothes from the night before and bolted out the door.
Chapter 27
Augie
I awoke very early on Wednesday morning to the sound of my doorbell ringing and wondered where the hell I was. There were empty beer bottles on the coffee table in front of me, and my feet were tangled in the knitted afghan I kept on the family room sofa. I’d fallen asleep there after Hudson had come and carted off a drunken Charlie. The confusion of being half-asleep and half-hungover didn’t clear until I was standing at the front door in nothing but boxer briefs looking through the peephole at Saint Wilde.
My stomach started flipping over like an excited puppy, and I felt its betrayal like a knife in the back. Don’t get excited over someone who obviously doesn’t give a shit about you, idiot.
I opened the door carefully and gave him my best attempt at a glare. It failed.
He rushed into my arms and grabbed me into a bear hug, squeezing me so tightly I squeaked. My anger disappeared in a puff of smoke. Before I could think about it, I was hugging him back. I felt his entire body trembling in mine, and I started to worry.
“Saint?” I asked in a strangled voice. “What happened? You’re scaring me.”
He loosened his hold just a little bit but kept his face tucked against my shoulder. “Did you get my text?” he asked. The words were muffled against my bare skin, and the warmth from his breath made me shiver.
“No. My phone is turned off. Come inside.”
The frigid morning air was blowing past him through the open door, and I felt goose bumps prickling up everywhere on my exposed skin.
“Come on. I’ll fix us some coffee. It’s freezing,” I murmured as he pulled away from me.
He quickly dashed at his eyes and looked away. It happened so quickly, I almost didn’t believe I’d seen it.
I grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the kitchen, parking him on a stool while I rounded the corner to start the coffee. The entire time I filled the pot, I could feel his eyes on my bare back like an intimate touch. Just his presence in the room was enough to make me breathless, but knowing he was tracking me made me stupidly horny on top of it.
Once the coffee was going, I rinsed out my cotton mouth in the sink and turned to face him. His eyes snapped down to the tent in my shorts, and I felt my skin flush. Okay, so he knew I wanted him. Big deal. Surely by now that wasn’t a surprise.
When his eyes locked on mine, they were as deep blue gray as the center of a storm. I closed the distance between us and stepped between his legs before asking him one question.
“I just need to know if you’re okay first,” I said.
He nodded. “I am now.”
And that was all I needed to hear. My mouth landed on his, and his hands instantly came around to grab my ass and pull me closer. My own hands wrapped around the back of his neck to hold his mouth against mine while I devoured him. Desperate moans were leaking out of me, and he made growling noises as he took ownership of my mouth.