Free The Cowboy's Summer Love by Unknown

When can we do it again?” Cady asked as they walked toward the van that would take them back to their pickups.
    “Darlin’ you are something else.” Trey threw his arms around Cady from behind and swung her around, planting kisses on her cheeks. “I thought we were going to have to hog-tie you and Tess to get you on the raft and I think you two had as much fun as anybody.”
    “Maybe we can plan another trip later this summer before the big wedding,” Travis said, nodding his head at Trent and Lindsay.
    “Sure. We’ll just have to work it in between haying, harvest, the wedding, the county fair and school starting. No problem,” Trent said.
    Enjoying the light banter as they rode back to their rigs, they decided to eat lunch in Maupin at a restaurant on the river.
    Not quite ready for the day to end, the majority of the group wanted to go up the river to a place they could swim and relax on a sandy beach. Tess would have much preferred going home to swimming but didn’t say anything. Arriving at the location, there were a few other groups, mostly teens, splashing in the water. Travis supposed the eight of them looked ancient compared to the carefree youth.
    While the guys went to stake out a spot on the beach with towels and blankets, Lindsay and Cady removed their tops and shorts to reveal bathing suits. Cady wore a sensible tankini top with a swim skirt while Lindsay was more adventurous in a bikini top with boy shorts.
    Tess looked at the two women and sighed. She had a swimsuit on beneath her clothes, but it was going to take an act of monumental proportions to get her to strip down to the suit and get in the water.
    Cady and Lindsay both looked so lovely and perfect there was no way Tess wanted to be compared to them. Although most of the time, she didn’t think too much about her size, there were days when it still bothered her. Today was one of those.
    By the time the girls wandered down to the water’s edge, the guys shed their shirts and shorts, and were standing in swim trunks ready to dive in. Brice and Ben plunged ahead followed by Lindsay and Trent. Trey swept Cady into his arms and charged into the water while Travis stood watching Tess, waiting.
    “Aren’t you coming in?” Travis asked, taking a step toward her. Tess took a step back and sat down on the blanket the guys spread out.
    “No. I think I’ll just soak in a little sun and watch you all play,” Tess said, trying to keep her voice light.
    “Then I’ll sit with you,” Travis said, sinking down beside her.
    Not only did his enticing smell envelope her senses, but she couldn’t take her eyes off his broad, muscled chest and shoulders. Tanned and solid, Travis was more appealing than any man had a right to be.
    “I don’t want you to miss out on the fun. Go on, Trav. I’m fine here, honest.” Tess needed to put some distance between them before she did something she’d later regret.
    “If you’re not going in, I’m not either,” Travis said, stretching out on the blanket and putting his hands beneath his head.
    Tess studied him for a few moments, going over every detail from the tip of his sandy hair to his incredibly handsome face, down his muscled neck and shoulders to that magnificent chest. She stopped her visual inventory as she noticed a jagged scar running around his side to his rib cage. About six inches long, the tissue was turning white, a sign that it wasn’t a new injury. Tess knew for a fact the scar hadn’t been there the last time she’d seen Travis without his shirt which was the summer he enlisted.
    Without thinking, she ran her fingertip along the scar and looked at Travis. His eyes popped open and melded to hers.
    “What happened? How’d you get that?” Tess asked, lightly pressing her hand to the spot.
    “Shrapnel. I’m lucky it didn’t do more damage than that. I turned just in time and started to run. As it was, a piece caught me and I had twelve stitches. No biggie,” Travis said, trying to