Chapter 2

chapter

two

Landry

It's been a week, and I haven't been able to get that sassy brunette out of my head. I don't even know her name. Chances are I won't see her again any time soon. Which fucking sucks because the moment our eyes met, it was like getting struck by lightning from the inside out.

Those dark brown, nearly black eyes and her fuck-me gaze had me hard as stone while the rain soaked my skin.

I turn my truck down the drive to my buddy Linc's house. It's poker night, and I could definitely stand to blow off some steam. To say it's been a stressful week is a damn understatement. I'd returned to the scene of her crime multiple times just to see if I spotted her car.

That fucking car too. A sleek, black Mercedes. That girl is city to her core and way too good for a country fuck-up like me. Someone who didn't even graduate from high school. So it's a good thing I didn't see her again because she's way out of reach.

But then as if I conjured her out of my mind, she's there. Standing at the edge of the gravel drive that leads to Linc's house. I park my truck and jump down to speak to her, but then she disappears.

"The fuck?" I jog in that direction, ready to check myself into the hospital for delusions, but she's there. Just on the ground.

I'm not even a little sorry that I found her like this either because her skirt is askew, revealing bright red, silky panties.

"You're just an accident on two legs, aren't you darlin?"I squat down.

"You," she hisses.She straightens herself, covering her plump cheeks and thick thighs and then shooting me a glare.

"Yes, me. Evidently, someone has to be around to save your pretty ass when the time calls for it." I pull off my cap, and scratch my head, then put it back on. "Though I don't recall that being in my job description."

Her eyes narrow on me. "Are you stalking me?"

I laugh because if I'd known where she was, I likely would have been following her around. "You wish I was stalking you."

"No. I really do not."

"What the hell did you trip on?" I ask. Sure, the ground around her is uneven with jagged limestone and cacti dotting the landscape.

"A rock?" She shrugs. "I don't know."

I glance down at her feet and find her in strappy black heels that are definitely made for fancy city galas or a Michelin star restaurant, and not the un-manicured yards up on Saddle Ridge.

"Let's get you up." I pick her up, lifting her under her arm pits. But when I've got her on her feet, she stumbles a little and winces in pain. "These are not the kinds of shoes you wear in the wilds of Texas."

"What are you doing here?" she asks.

"Rescuing you. I thought we'd already covered this." I lift her in my arms—bridal style—and look down at her beautiful, frowning face. She's so prickly and fuck if I don't love that.

"Seriously, why are you here?" she asks again.

"I was invited."

She snorts. "That's doubtful. This is my sister's house. So I can't imagine why you would have been invited here."

"It might be your sister's house, but before that, it was my buddy's house, and tonight is our standing poker game."

She opens her mouth to speak, then closes it.

I walk towards the house, ignoring the havoc she's wreaking on my body. Having her this close, all her soft curves against my chest, the scent of her fancy-smelling shampoo infiltrates my senses. I inhale, doing my best not to be so obvious about it that she knows I'm breathing her in.

"I don't like you," she says.

"Awww, darlin, you wound me. What's your name, anyways? Might as well introduce ourselves since I'm gonna have to follow you around and keep you from injuring yourself."

"Oymygod, you're so annoying."

I chuckle. "That's what my brother always says."

"Smart man."

"I'm Landry, and you are…"

She stares up at me.

"See, this is the part when you introduce yourself."

I can see her brain working, trying to give her either a biting come-back or an excuse. But then she resigns herself to the fact that we're about to step into her sister's house with her in my arms. She sighs. "Brooklyn, but everyone calls me Brook."

"Because you prefer Brook?"

She shrugs.

"You know Natalie never told us her sister was so cranky."

"I'm not cranky. You just annoy me."

"Is it the constant coming to your rescue that is on your nerves? Or just how damn sexy I am?"

I kick at the cabin's front door until someone comes and opens it. It's Linc. His eyes drop from my face to the woman in my arms.

"This belong to you?" I ask, breaching the doorway. "Found her outside. She was rolling around in your yard."

"I was not," she hisses.

"What happened?" Linc asks.

"I just tripped," Brook says. "It's not a big deal."

"Can you grab an ice pack?" I ask my buddy, then I carry her straight to the large sectional sofa that eats up most of the living room.

I set her down, then get a pillow and prop up her ankle. I feel around on it looking for swelling, but don't find any. It's definitely tender to the touch though, judging from the way she sucks in a breath.

"I think you might have just twisted it. Probably need to keep it elevated, iced and stay off to it for at least a day."

"What are you a doctor now?" she asks.

"Nah, darlin, I'm just copping a feel." Then I stand to my full height and walk away.

I grin as she sputters behind me, mad as a wet cat.

I am so screwed.