she happened to be visiting at the moment—the stables.
Earlier in the evening, Austin, the primary sponsor of the evening’s gala, had used the stable to unveil his plans for a new therapeutic riding center in Dallas. Laney and her friends had arrived late to the event and had missed his presentation, so she was eager to learn more. Now was as good a time as any to get a sneak peek.
She rubbed her bare arms as she followed the paved driveway around the estate. While it rarely snowed in Dallas, the evening’s low temperature was a chilly reminder to its inhabitants that it very well could.
Laney arrived at the stable moments later. It wasn’t far from the main house and the evening’s festivities were amplified through strategically placed outdoor speakers. She heard the lead singer from the band loudly informing the crowd that there were only ten more minutes to midnight. When she looked back, she saw that the ballroom doors were open and guests mingled outside on the stone terrace, chattering and laughing.
Eager for peace and quiet, Laney tugged on the service door of the stable and slipped inside. As she eased it closed, she breathed in deeply and smiled.
They were all here. The odors of pungent earth, of crisp hay and alfalfa, of sawdust and pine, of leather and oil. Real. Tangible. A part of the air, a part of her.
As a child, the gentle eyes of the horses had wooed her. She’d fallen in love and never looked back. In the stables, she didn’t have to hide. Not even from herself.
“It’s about time you showed up.”
The voice had the slow, easy drawl of a cowboy. None too hurried, and always sexy.
Laney heard her shocked breath whistle through her teeth. She blinked in the low light, but couldn’t see anyone. She took a step back and placed her hand on the door, ready to book at any moment.
“Austin?”
Seconds later, she heard a teasing chuckle and a neigh of disapproval.
“Don’t pout, Sadie, I’ll be back to check on you in the morning,” Austin soothed. He emerged from a large stall at the far end of the stable. “But right now, I must see why this beautiful young lady has been ignoring me all night.”
She let go of the doorknob. “How did you know I was here?”
Austin shrugged. “I didn’t exactly, but I figured if you were going anywhere on the grounds, it would be to the stables. I knew you couldn’t ignore me here.”
Ignoring him? Lord knows I’ve tried, she thought.
But Austin certainly had Laney’s attention now as he sauntered toward her. Tux unbuttoned and flaps secured behind hands stuck in his pockets. The black bowtie gone and the black Stetson on. He stopped only a few feet away and in the dim halo of yellowish-light cast by the fixtures above their heads, his expression was unreadable, yet tantalizing.
“You scared me!” she managed to whisper, not wanting to disturb the horses. “I thought you were some crazy journalist sneaking around wanting to take my picture.”
Austin squared his hands like a makeshift camera against his eyes and peered through them. “Say cheese.”
Laney’s heart raced against her will under his pretend lens. To be the subject of Austin’s “admiration” was the dream of most of the women in Granger, and likely all of the females at the party, but not her.
“How about I say goodbye?” she fumed under his intense gaze. She wasn’t mad at him, but her reaction to him confused her. His eyes seemed to burn a hole through her long-held image of him as a business associate of her mother’s.
He dropped his hands to his massive chest. “Whoa, girl. I’ve been wanting to talk to you all night. You can’t leave yet.”
As his rich tenor swirled over her, Laney knew she would never tire of hearing his voice.
She touched her hair, styled into an elegant updo for the party. “Talk to me? About what?” she asked, trying not to sound flattered.
His eyes swaggered over her from head to toe, lingering here and there in places that caused her skin to warm.
“Your choice of attire for the gala,” he stated matter-of-factly.
She froze and her mouth dropped open. First Austin unwittingly scared her and now he was openly judging her.
“Two minutes to midnight, folks!”
She ignored the singer’s gleeful warning and smoothed her hands along the side of her royal blue full-length gown. This wasn’t some department store knock-off, but rather it was custom designed for her. Not because she was a Broward and could afford it, but because she wanted to remain true to herself: one-of-a-kind. Unique. And right now, steaming mad.
Not sure if Austin was teasing or not, Laney met his gaze head-on. “What’s wrong with it?” she blurted.
Austin shook his head. “It’s far too different than your usual T-shirt and jeans,” he stated, without a hint of a smile.
How dare he insult me, Laney thought. As a child, her brothers, Wes and Jameson, had teased her relentlessly about her tomboyish wardrobe and the memories came flooding back. Now that she was older, she knew they hadn’t meant to hurt her, but the pain was still there.
Just as she was about to tell Austin where he could stuff his unwanted opinions, he tilted his Stetson back slightly with the tip of his thumb.
“And on you, that gown is far too stunning to ignore.”
10...9...8...
Was it the music or her heart that suddenly stopped as Austin stepped closer and draped his hands on her bare shoulders?
7...6...5...
Austin seemed not to hear the drum roll or the guests chanting the countdown. He tilted her chin up and she stared at his lips, slightly bewildered.
4...3
She’d never been this close to Austin, never smelled his rough, masculine scent, never dreamed she’d want to be even closer.
...2...
Laney closed her eyes, suddenly aware that she wanted to grasp onto something she wasn’t even sure was going to happen, but a part of her hoped that it would. The part that foretold regret.
...1...
Austin cradled her face in his hands and lowered his mouth to hers.
“Happy New Year, Laney.”
Ignoring all sense and logic, amid the fireworks and distant gun shots, she slipped her hands around his waist and caved into the spell of his kiss. He was gentle at first, exploring the edges, feathering the center, his movements tugging at long-buried desire. The nerve points of her mouth jolted awake, as if from a deep sleep, reminding her of how much she’d missed the touch of a man’s lips. Now the feel of Austin’s lips was branded upon her senses forever.
Their embrace was like a blanket they huddled underneath against the clamor of noisemakers
