Total pages in book: 41
Estimated words: 37728 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 189(@200wpm)___ 151(@250wpm)___ 126(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 37728 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 189(@200wpm)___ 151(@250wpm)___ 126(@300wpm)
“Did you say something?” Lane stops near the hallway, both of my bags in one hand, looking right at me.
“Nope, not a thing.” I’m not ready to admit that I came home for more than one reason or the way Lane so easily offered up a solution with the job front.
“You good to walk, or do you need help?”
“I can walk,” I reply. Unlike Lane, I take my shoes off. No way will I be the one responsible for scuffing his beautiful golden oak wood floors.
“Not fast enough.” He sends a crooked grin my way as I kick off my shoes, well, slippers, rather. I had socks on, and much like now, back at my Mom’s, he was impatient to get me here.
“Well, not all of us have your long legs, Lane Johnson.” I roll my eyes and make my way toward him. He waits patiently like he always has. This man has a golden retriever personality like no other. Sweet, gentle, affectionate, easygoing, and, beyond all else, dependable. A characteristic I took advantage of when I was too young to realize what an amazing man Lane really is. He’s also a good listener and is very observant. Fine, Lane Johnson is everything a person like me needs.
I’m stubborn to a fault, though I do like to blame that quality on my mother. I learned from the best. She’ll do anything she can without asking for a lick of help. Eleanor Robertson would have to try it upside down, inside out, backward, and forward before she’d admit defeat.
Lane picks up his pace once I’m behind him, giving me a view of his broad shoulders, tapered waist, thick thighs, and round ass. The man has a dump trunk, and the funny part about it is he’s not in a gym two hours a day, seven days a week. Oh no, his muscles are from working on the ranch, baling hay, riding horses, fixing fences, and the many other tasks he does on a daily basis.
“Like what you see?” I’m interrupted in my Lane daydream. I must have really been out of it. My bags are on the chair in the corner, and he’s standing at the foot of the bed.
“You know I do.” Last night wasn’t enough. One time with Lane will never be enough. I’m more addicted to him today than I was when I left college. And don’t get me wrong, the two of us may have been separated, a thought I don’t want to think or talk about now and not ever, but it was always Lane Johnson for me.
“That I do. Wish like hell you weren’t hurting, and I didn’t have to continue with my day on the ranch.” I almost pout at the thought of him leaving me already, except I can’t. This is his job. He’s not the one who’s battered and bruised. Which means Lane won’t allow me to do so much as ride along with him.
“Me too. I don’t suppose I can talk you into letting me go with you?” He sits down on the edge of the bed, and I step closer, my knee nudging his until he opens them for me. I’m feeling a lot better after a full night of sleep and some medicine.
“No way in hell, baby.” His hands slide up the back of my thighs. The blood in my body heats, my skin comes to life beneath his touch, and I’m going to have a hard time not begging him to take this a lot further.
“Fine. Leave me the Wi-Fi password. A lady of leisure I am not, so I may as well start figuring out how to make money.” When everything went down, my job was the last thing on my mind. I have enough funds tucked away for a rainy day until I figure out what’s next, and while I don’t have a plethora of bills—thanks, Mom, for instilling a good ethic with money—the one credit card I have has a decent limit. I only use thirty percent of it at any given time and pay it off at the end of the month. My car may not be much, but there’s no note on it, and it gets me from point A to point B. That being said, I still have day-to-day bills, like my cell phone, car insurance, and food. And while Lane is moving me into his house, I’d still like to have a job to contribute in some way.
“Look at the ranch’s website, see what you think we should do. Mom hired someone, but it’s not getting the traffic she expected it would. The phone is ringing off the hook for orders, and it’d be a lot easier if she didn’t have to hold Case in one hand and the phone in the other.” The Johnson Ranch is known for its beef cattle. They offer shipping for processed cuts of meat on the side.