The wooden door of the stall creaked and I froze. Fuck. I held my breath and listened, but there were no footsteps approaching. As quietly as I could, I tiptoed my way to the back entrance of the barn and turned the corner, only to run right into Mr. Let’s Talk. He reached for my hand, but I jerked away from him.

“You didn’t think you fooled me back there, did you?”

“Fuck you,” I spat, turning on my heel. I marched off but he followed close behind. “I have nothing to say to you.”

“Well, too bad. I have a shit-ton to say to you. Now stop being a childish brat and give me one minute.”

Sucking in a breath, I froze. Did he really just call me a childish brat? Gritting my teeth, I faced him head on. I half expected him to smirk, but there was nothing but seriousness in his stormy gray gaze.

“All right, this ends now,” I snapped, pushing on his chest. He stepped back, his jaw clenched tight. “You may think what I’ve done is childish, but I’m pissed and embarrassed. I show up naked in your room, just to have you turn me down; to tell me you wouldn’t want to take a chance on me. I may have had a little buzz at the beginning of the night, but I was nowhere near drunk. It was the only thing that gave me the courage to tell you how I felt.”

Huffing, I turned and marched out of the barn. “Now I just feel like a fucking idiot. So, by all means, make me sit down and hear all the reasons why you don’t want to be with me. Go ahead and call me childish. I don’t care anymore,” I said, waving my arms in the air. “At least I wasn’t afraid to let you in.”

My heart thundered in my chest. It felt good to scream out my feelings, but now they were no longer mine. Anger could make a person say just about anything.

Out of nowhere, a rope lassoed around my body. I screamed when it bit into my skin, burning as Blake tightened it, roping me in. I struggled to break free, but it was so tight, even my hands started to tingle. I tried to stand my ground, but the harder he pulled, the tighter it got.

“Dammit, Blake. Let me go! I can’t feel my hands.” I had no choice but to willingly move my feet. If I didn’t, he’d drag me across the ground through the dirt. My dignity was more important.

“You shouldn’t have walked away,” he growled, his voice by my ear. He jerked me around and pushed me into one of the empty stalls. I turned my face away, but he grabbed my chin. “I don’t think so, princess. You’re going to look at me when I say this. Do you want me to tie your hands and feet together too?”

I had no doubt he’d do it. “Fine,” I spat, lifting my glare to his. “What do you want?”

His lips closed over mine, hard and raw as he forced his tongue inside. I tried to fight him off, but it was a half-assed attempt. Who was I kidding? I didn’t want him to stop. Not to mention, I couldn’t move. I was at his mercy, and I liked it. He pushed me into the wall, rubbing his arousal against me. Moaning, I bit his lip and he pulled away.

“You,” he growled, leaning his forehead to mine. “I’ve always wanted you, even when you thought I didn’t.” He loosened the rope and pulled me into his arms, kissing me again.

My fingers tingled from the blood rushing to them, but I was able to get his jeans unbuttoned. I didn’t want to wait any longer. His cock jumped when I ran my hand down it, massaging him.

Blake grasped my lip between his teeth and groaned. “I’m sorry for what I said. It was lies, all of it. I never meant—”

“Shut up,” I said. There would be time for words later. “Just shut up and help me out of this shirt.”

His eyes sparked, then he lifted my shirt and unclasped my bra, freeing my aching breasts. I gasped when he closed his lips over my nipple, sucking it between his teeth. I grabbed onto his shoulders and everything inside of me tightened. I wrapped my legs around his waist and worked myself over his erection.

“Ah fuck,” Blake moaned. He unlatched my legs and kept his gaze on mine as he unbuttoned my jeans and slid them to the ground. I stepped out of them and he slid his fingers between my legs. My eyes rolled into the back of my head as he pushed one inside, then another.

He pulled them out and stared at me when he put them in his mouth. The level of raw intensity in his gaze made me tremble. I’d never had anyone look at me like that before. Lifting me in his arms, I wrapped my legs around his waist and he walked us over to a pile of hay bales and gently laid me down. My breaths came out quick, my heart thumping in my chest. The anticipation was torture.

Blake brushed the hair away from my face, his arousal aligning with my opening. When he pushed himself inside, I cried out and dug my nails into his back, relishing the feel of him stretching me wide. His thrusts grew hard and fast. I was so close to the edge, I was about to explode.

He trailed his lips to my neck and bit down, his fingers digging in to my hips. “You feel so fucking good.”

I rocked my hips against his and cried out as my release exploded through every nerve in my body. Blake followed closely behind, grunting as his cock pulsated inside me. My whole body trembled and I ached for more.

Still connected, he rested on his elbows and gazed down at me. “You okay, princess? At first, I thought maybe I hurt you.”

I shook my head. “It was a good hurt. It’s been a while since I’ve been with someone.”

“Look, I’m sorry for everything I said the other day. I knew that if I had one taste of you, it wouldn’t be enough. Letting you go won’t be easy.”

I grasped his face and kissed him. “You don’t have to. I’m right here.”

“But for how long?”

“As long as you want me to be.” He didn’t look convinced, but I didn’t want to hash out the details while I was still enjoying the post-sex glow. “Hey, at least now I know what it’s like to roll around in the hay. It’ll be perfect for my song.”

His lips spread wide. “Are you writing it about me?”

I shrugged. “Maybe. You’ll just have to find out when you hear it on the radio.”

“How are you going to write your music? You don’t have your guitar.”

He had a point. Mine was still at the house I never wanted to go back to. “I’ll figure it out.”

He winked and slowly pulled out of me. “I got you covered, princess,” he said, getting to his feet. Slipping on his jeans, he handed me the T-shirt he had stuffed in his back pocket. “You might need this.”

“Hello? Blake, you in there?” Tyla called out.

“Shit,” he hissed. Grabbing my shirt and bra, he tossed them to me and rushed out of the stall. I quickly wiped off with his shirt and threw my clothes on while he distracted her. The rake was just outside the stall so I fetched it and pretended to work.

“Hey girl, what’s up?” Tyla said. I turned and smiled at her, knowing my cheeks were bright red. Blake walked by and winked before disappearing out the other side of the barn.

I wiped my brow on the bottom of my T-shirt and realized it was on the wrong way. “Not much, just helping Blake clean these stalls,” I said.

She snorted. “Uh-huh. I bet you were. You might want to tell that lie to someone who believes you. I can tell when a girl’s been thoroughly fucked.” She pointed at my clothes. “Your shirt’s on wrong and you have hay all up in your hair. All I can say is, it’s about damn time.”

Laughing, I said, “Don’t I know it.”

“What are you doing?” Blake asked, taking a seat beside me. He glanced down at the papers in my lap and leaned over.

“Hey!” I shrieked, covering them with my hand. “No peeking. It’s a new song. I can’t let anyone see it until after it’s done.” After the day I’d had with Blake, and riding with Tyla, I had never felt more inspired to write.

“Will you sing it for me?”