Free BuckingHard by Darah Lace

But then he’d been such an asshole and made her cry
because her every touch made his cock brick-hard and he couldn’t think beyond
the need to fuck her right there on his damn horse. He’d been too concerned
with his own turmoil to notice hers.
    And then at the house, she still seemed intent on talking
until Deidre showed up and…
    That’s okay, Mason. I know what I need to do.
    Mason closed his eyes, remembering the look in hers. Crushed.
Defeated. Resigned. All hidden behind a watery smile. He’d done more than hurt
her feelings. He’d gone out of his way to push her away and then he’d put
another woman first.
    “God, Bradi, I’m sorry.”
    Tell her that, dickhead.
    He would. First he had to know if she was leaving because
she wanted to or because he hadn’t given her a reason to stay. Whether she
accepted the PRCA internship or not, it had to be what she wanted. But if she
showed any sign of hesitation, one smidgeon of indecision, he’d fight hard and
he’d fight dirty to keep her here with him.
    And after all was said and done, if she truly wanted to go,
he’d find the strength to step aside and let her.
    * * * * *
    Stepping from the barn and into the hot noon sun, Bradi
shaded her eyes to search for Mason. She found him on the far side of the
corral. All she had to do was turn around and walk away. He wouldn’t know she
was gone until it was too late.
    But her feet stayed rooted to the ground. She couldn’t do
it. His display of jealousy earlier might have been a matter of pride, but he
seemed truly hurt that she would leave without saying goodbye. After last
night, she owed him that much.
    Striding across the hard-packed dirt, she soaked in the
sight of him. He stood with his back to her, a booted foot propped on the first
rung of the fence, his jeans stretched tight across his ass. A maroon T-shirt
hugged his shoulders and ballooned at his trim waist. She ached to slip her
arms around him and hold on forever.
    Instead, she leaned on the gate that opened to the pasture
and pretended to study a patch of large oak trees in the distance. “Mom and
foal are doing fine.”
    “I had no doubts. You did a great job.” He raked a hand
through his hair. “Did you tell Doc?”
    “Not yet.”
    From the corner of her eye, she saw him look at her but she
stared straight ahead. “You need to tell him.”
    “I know. I… I will.” She’d hemmed and hawed for a half hour
before the call from Clay came about the mare and she’d eagerly used the excuse
to postpone talking to Doc. But she couldn’t put it off much longer. “Lindsey
invited him up to the house for lunch.”
    He flicked the latch on the gate and she backed away to let
him open it. “Come take a walk with me.”
    “I really should talk to Doc and then get going.” She was
taking the red-eye to Denver and needed to leave soon so her parents wouldn’t
get stuck in Houston traffic.
    A hand at the small of her back propelled her forward. He
closed the gate and pointed to the grove of trees. “Just five minutes.”
    Walking beside him, the silence raked over Bradi, much
different from the silence of the ride home from the creek yesterday. Their
relationship had changed overnight, and she had no one to blame but herself.
    “This PRCA job, is it what you want?”
    No. “It’s a good opportunity.”
    “Is it?”
    She shrugged. “It’ll look good on my resume. And it’ll open
doors later on.”
    He nodded and motioned her out of the hot sun and onto a
worn horse-trail. Sunlight sprinkled the path, which narrowed the deeper into
the trees they walked. His arm brushed hers, sending a rush of tingling heat to
her breasts. Her nipples drew into hard points.
    She stepped ahead of him and kept to the middle of the
trail, leaving no room for him to walk beside her. “I’ll get to travel.”
    He grunted.
    “And I’ll make good money,” she rambled on to keep from
wondering if his eyes were glued to her ass. “Well, better money than here at
the