Page 102 of The Lucky Heart (Jamison Valley 3)
“This is beautiful,” I said when he parked next to a grove of trees that ran along the creek.
“This is my favorite spot on the ranch. Someday, this is where I’d like to build a house.”
A home here would be amazing. No matter how it was positioned, every view would be spectacular. On one side was the mountains; the other had the meadow and a grove of trees.
I could definitely live here.
I smiled, wishing one day I’d get that chance.
“Ready for your crash course in barbed wire?”
I grinned. “Bring it on.”
Three hours later, I’d stripped my sweatshirt down to the simple, white tank top underneath, now-drenched. My muscles hadn’t worked this hard in ages and I was a sweaty, hot mess. No wonder Silas had such a sculpted body and never went to the gym.
The patch of fence that we were repairing was deep in the trees. Silas was using a chainsaw to cut up a huge Cottonwood tree that had fallen onto the fence itself, and as he cut, I tossed the wood blocks into a pile, then hauled them all back to his truck for firewood.
Once the debris was cleared, we got to work on restringing the wire. Silas pounded steel posts into the ground, then I helped him string the barbed wire, attaching it to the posts using special clips. My arms had been scraped repeatedly and I looked like I’d lost a fight with an angry herd of barn cats.
But as difficult as it had been, I was enjoying the hard work. More so, I was enjoying working side by side with Silas.
“Let’s take a break.” He wiped his brow with his forearm.
His tight, white T-shirt showcased his broad and muscled chest. Damp with sweat, it clung to all the right places to highlight just how ripped he was, and as soon as we got back to his place, that shirt was coming off.
Silas sank down onto a fallen log, and I sat next to him, taking a long drink of cool water from his canteen. “Thanks for your help, babe. This would have taken me twice as long without your help.”
“Really?” Pride swelled in my chest.
He leaned over and brushed his lips against mine. “Really.”
I stared into his brown eyes full of bright sunlight and knew he wasn’t just appeasing me. Elliot had said that I didn’t belong here, and maybe he’d end up being right. Ranch work really wasn’t my passion or my forte. But I did belong with Silas.
And since my man loved this ranch more than anything in the world, I’d put up with sore muscles and scraped skin every day of the week. I rested my head on his shoulder and listened to the birds chirping in the trees. When we’d both had more water, he helped me off the log and we got back to work.
As the morning went on, the sunlight disappeared and the clouds turned gray. I was pinching on my last wire clip when a drop of rain hit my nose. Three more followed and landed on my arms before the clouds burst and not even the trees could keep out the downpour.
“Gah!” I yelled, holding my hands over my head as I ran down the narrow trail toward the truck. Silas stood at the end of the trail.
He was just standing there. Not waiting to rush me back to the truck. Not shielding his face from the rain. Just standing and staring. His arms were hanging at his sides as he let the drenching rain wash over him.
My hands fell from my face when I reached him and the rain soaked my hair, running down my forehead and into my eyelashes. “What’s wrong?”
The water streamed down his face but he didn’t answer my question.
“Silas?” I was starting to get worried until a small smile tugged at his lips.
“You’re breathtaking, Lis.”
My breath hitched. Soaking wet with matted hair and no makeup, I had never felt more beautiful.
Silas’s fingers caressed my cheek. I tipped my head so it rested against his wrist and closed my eyes, letting the rain drip down my nose and over my lips. So what if we were wet? If he wanted to stand here in the rain, I’d stand here too.
When his warm breath hit my lips, his nose rubbed against the side of mine. I opened my eyes when his fingers started tracing the rain drops down the sides of my arms. Goose bumps broke across my skin and my heart pounded as I stood perfectly still, enjoying the feel of his sensual touch coupled with the rain.
His fingers reached mine and he laced them together before pulling me forward on the trail. He didn’t turn but was somehow able to navigate the rough ground as he walked backward. It was erotic, having his eyes locked on my face, refusing to break away.
The trail c
