Wyatt
I had no idea what she was thinking, but I enjoyed staring at Sadie’s beautiful face in the dim, early morning light. The cold shower had sobered me up, but it hadn’t done much to cool my raging hormones. And all I could think about was how inappropriate I’d been with her. Hopefully, she knew that I was just joking. Hopefully, she knew that I didn’t have any intentions of trying to show her what pleasure was all about.
Though I had to admit to myself if she had taken me up on the offer, I wouldn’t have said no. I loved her, and I would never want to hurt her. But she was also sexy as hell, and when she’d lifted up her dress and showed me her ass, so juicy and supple, it had been hard to resist her.
I’d gone as hard as a rock right then and there. I’d had to rush to the shower because the more I thought about her and the closer she was, the more I needed to be with her.
“Wyatt, are you going to tell me what you’re wanting to ask?” Sadie implored as I just stared at her.
“Sorry, I was kind of falling asleep. It’s late, you know.”
“Well, you’re the one that got me to come over here. So, what’s your question?”
“So, I was thinking about something …”
“Yes?” she said softly.
“Do you think it’s a good idea?”
“Do I think what’s a good idea?” She licked her lips nervously.
“For me to approach Beau and ask him about funding my plan for the yearlings.”
“Oh.” She rubbed her forehead. “You wanted to ask me about your business plan?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Why? What did you think I wanted to ask? Did you think I was gonna ask you something sexual?” I grinned, knowing that was exactly what she was thinking as her face turned bright red.
“No, of course not,” she said quickly.
I chuckled. “Don’t lie to me, Sadie. The last thing you should do is lie to me.”
“Well, I mean, yeah, I did think you were gonna ask me something sexual because that’s what you were talking about before you went in the shower, and now we’re in bed.”
“I mean, I’m glad you didn’t share,” I said.
“So, what would your answer have been?”
“What would my answer have been to what?”
“If I would have asked you to do something sexual?”
“Wyatt, really?”
“Yeah, really.”
“Well, I guess it would have depended on what you would have asked me to do,” she whispered.
I pulled her close and kissed her on the forehead. “You’re crazy. You know that, right?”
“No, you’re the crazy one. And by the way, I think your idea is brilliant, Wyatt. I think you should be proud of it. And I think it could bring a lot of money to the ranch. Do you know how much people pay for a winning racehorse? A lot of money. Trust me, I know.”
“How do you know? Do you know these people that will pay a lot of money for a racehorse?”
“Not personally, but I’ve heard all about them.” She smiled. “And, hey, if I need to go out and find them and tell them to go to your ranch and buy one of the horses you’ve trained, I will.”
“I know.” I stroked her hair. “You really support me a lot, and I really appreciate it.”
“You’re welcome, Wyatt. I know you’re trying to do everything for the ranch, and I think it’s a great idea. You’re carving your own path, and that’s admirable.”
“You’re too sweet,” I said. “But I feel like no one listens to me. It’s like I’m invisible.”
“That’s not true, Wyatt. You’re not invisible.”
“Yeah. I mean, everyone knows that I’m here, but no one cares about what I have to say about the business. When I went to approach Beau, he basically dismissed me. But I’m not gonna take it personally. This is how it’s been my entire life.”
“Your family adores you.”
“Yeah, I’m adored because I’m the youngest, but no one takes me seriously. No one thinks I have a brain. No one thinks—”
“I do,” she said softly. “I know you’re brilliant, Wyatt. And no matter what you put your mind to, you’ll be a success.”
“Sometimes I think I should just go out on my own,” I said, expressing the thought that I’d never shared with anyone.
Sadie studied my face, considering. I could tell that she was thinking hard. “Where would you create your new business? And what would that be?”
“I mean, I’d be a rancher, of course. It’s in my DNA,” I said, with a smile, “but I don’t know where it would be. I’d like to stay in Montana. It’s my home. And I know the soil, and I know the weather, and I know …” I paused. “Well, you know.”
“Yeah,” she said, “I’d want you to stay in Montana too.”
“Even though you’re gonna be gallivanting all over the world with your husband-to-be?”
“I don’t know that we’ll be gallivanting all over the world. And it wouldn’t be forever.” She grinned at me mischievously.
“You’re too much. You know that, Sadie?”
“No, you’re too much, Wyatt. But I’d missed you if you were to leave Horseshoe Ranch.”
“I mean, you could come and work for me if I were to leave,” I said. “Hey, I’d hire plenty of ranch hands. Maybe you’d fall for one of them.”
But I felt sad even as I said the words. I didn’t want Sadie to fall for one of my ranch hands that didn’t even exist yet.
“Well, I don’t know,” she said. “I’ve got my family’s ranch and your mom.”
I stopped her. “Really? My mom? You’re not gonna come and help me on my ranch because of my mom?”
“Well, she’s like my mom.”
“And I’m your best friend. Where do your loyalties lie, Sadie?”
“Well, Wyatt, it’s not like you’re actually going to go to another ranch, right? Speak to Beau tomorrow and see what he says about your plan. I mean, how much money do you need him to invest?”
“Honestly? Three hundred thousand.”
“Three hundred thousand dollars?” Her eyes widened. “Whoa, that’s a lot of money.”
“I know, but to buy a good yearling with a good pedigree, I have to spend a lot of money. And I can’t just buy one. I need to at least invest in three.” Her eyes widened. “I’m also gonna need some help. I gotta hire a couple of guys to help me break them and do the training … Yeah, maybe it’s too much.”
“It’s not too much. And I have an idea.”
“What’s your idea, Sadie?”
“If Beau says no, I can always dip into my trust fund.”
“No way,” I shook my head. “You’re not putting money into this project, Sadie.”
“I believe in you. I trust you. We’ll split the profits.”
“No. Plus, I have my own trust fund as well, you know,” I reminded her. “I’m not a broke ass.”
“I know you’re not a broke ass, Wyatt. That’s why all the women love you.” She laughed.
“Well, that’s not why all the women love me. But, hey, maybe some of them. Some of them love me for my money. Some of them love me for my handsome face. Some of them love me for what they’ve heard about me down there.” I winked at her.
She giggled, then her giggle turned into a yawn. “I’m tired. Can we talk about this again in the morning?”
“It is the morning,” I said softly.
“You know what I mean. After we get some sleep.”
“Of course,” I said. “Thanks for coming over, Sadie.”
“It’s okay. You know whenever you call, I’ll be there.”
“I know,” I said. “And you know that’s the same for me as well, right?”
“I know.”
And because I wasn’t thinking, I gave her a quick kiss on the lips. I pulled back when I realized what I was doing.
“Night.” I closed my eyes and turned around. My back was to her. And all I could think was, Oh, my God, I just kissed Sadie on the lips.
I’d wanted to do more, but I knew I couldn’t. This was such a weird space to be in, and I just didn’t know how to feel. I could feel her body pressed up against mine, and I could smell her scent even though I wasn’t facing her.
I turned around even though I knew I shouldn’t. My arm fell across her waist, and she shifted slightly so that she was closer to me. Her hair was spread out on the pillow, and a lock of it brushed my nose. I meant to just move it away but I found myself stroking it with my finger just as she rolled toward me. Her head was now on my shoulder.
“Oops,” she murmured.
“It’s okay.” I looked into her eyes. “Go to sleep, Sadie.”
“But that’s not comfortable for you. I don’t wanna be lying on you.”
“It’s fine,” I said. And it was. I’d like the feel of her next to me.
And at that moment, I realized what she’d said earlier was probably true. We were getting too old to share the bed together. Things between us were changing. She was a woman now, and I was feeling things for her that I had never felt before. I could feel the warmth of her legs against mine, and my gaze was pulled toward the t-shirt that she was wearing. Her breasts pressed against the material, and I could tell that she had no bra on. My hand moved slightly on the t-shirt so that it was now resting on her stomach. She shifted again, and the t-shirt ran up slightly. My hand was now on her bare skin. I moved my hand so that I was rubbing her stomach. She giggled slightly as my fingers played with her belly button.
“What are you doing?” she murmured.
“Nothing,” I said. “Go to sleep, Sadie.”
“You’re tickling me!”
“No, I’m not,” I said, my fingers still playing on her stomach. I moved them up slightly so that they were now under her t-shirt and resting on her abdomen. She stilled as my fingers kept moving up. They were now on the underside of her breasts.
We both stilled then. One more move and I’d be covering her breasts and squeezing her nipples. I could hear her breathing heavily. She hadn’t told me to stop yet, and she hadn’t pushed my hand away. We both were wondering what was gonna happen next. I didn’t know what to do. I wanted to touch her so badly, but I was scared. I was nervous about what that would mean and what she would think.
She shifted again, and I moved my hand down. I could hear her breathing once again. My heart raced as I moved my fingers back up. This time my fingers didn’t stop, and I lightly grazed the bottom of her breast. She sucked in a swift breath of air.
I groaned because I couldn’t stop myself. I groaned because I needed to touch her.
My fingers topped her breasts, and she whispered, “Wyatt?”
“Yes, Sadie.”
“What are you doing?”
“What do you think?” I moved my fingers gently across her nipples. She breathed in deeply then and gasped as I ran them back across again. Her nipples were hard, and I could tell she was enjoying it by the way she moved on the bed so that she was pushed up against me.
“Sadie?” I whispered.
“Yes, Wyatt?” she breathed.
“Do you want me to stop?” There was silence for a few seconds, and I didn’t move my fingers because I didn’t know what she wanted.
“No,” she said.
That was all I needed, the only answer I wanted. I didn’t know what was going to happen next, but I did know that I was going to enjoy this moment and I was going make sure that Sadie enjoyed it as well.
Sadie closed her eyes, and I pulled her close to me, pressing my lips softly to hers. I wondered how she would react, and I was surprised when she kissed me back assertively. She tangled her fingers in my hair, tugging on it as she sucked on my lower lip. Pressing my body to hers, I deepened the kiss, slipping my tongue into her mouth. She whimpered against my lips as I slipped my hand down her back and cupped her ass.
I was wading into dangerous territory, but I couldn’t stop.
I ran my hand back up to her hair, pushing it back to reveal the soft skin of her neck. I kissed down her neck and then back up to her lips. She growled as she kissed me back.
I laughed gently. “What was that?”
“What do you think it was?” She kissed me again.
I reached up under her top and ran my fingers across her stomach and up towards her breasts, stopping before I reached her nipples again. I wanted to move them up further but something stopped me. Instead, I moved my hand down slowly, inching towards her legs. She stilled, her enormous eyes gazing into mine. I lightly grazed her thighs and moved my hands back up slowly in between the middle of her legs, teasing her but not being too aggressive.
With any other woman, my hands would’ve been in her panties by now, playing with her, touching her, caressing her, making her call out my name. But I didn’t want to do the things I did to other women to Sadie. I didn’t want to use my playbook of moves on her. She deserved more than that. As much as I wanted to touch her and feel her and be inside of her, I didn’t want to complicate our friendship. There was a line, and I couldn’t cross it.
I kissed her again, and something stirred in my stomach, a yearning, a desire like I had never felt before in my life. The way she looked at me, the way she tasted, the way she touched me, it all felt like it was the first time. I felt like an innocent.
And when she ran her fingers down my chest and squeezed my arms, and I wanted to protect her from the world. The way she touched me so tenderly, it was like I was her protector and her man. But I wasn’t, and I knew I couldn’t allow myself to feel that way. I pulled her closer to me again and kissed her. I was bordering on desperate now, desperate for her to feel what I was feeling and to know how badly I wanted to completely devour her.
But I couldn’t do that to my Sadie.
The way she gripped my hair and squeezed my arms and kissed me back told me that she was enjoying it just as much as I was. I pulled away from her and we both gasped for air as we stared at each other, her eyes twinkling.
I didn’t know what to say. This moment was unlike any we’d ever had before. And we’d had so many moments in our life, so many tears, so much laughter, so much joy. She was the only person in the world who knew my secret desires and hopes and dreams and plans for the future. She was the only person in the world that I told absolutely everything to, and I couldn’t lose that.
There were so many things I wanted to do to her, so many things I wanted to say. But I couldn’t use the same lines that I’d used on other women … even though now they didn’t feel like lines.
“Your eyes look like the sky,” I whispered. She burst out laughing. “What’s so funny?”
“My eyes look like the sky?” She raised an eyebrow at me. “I’m surprised you didn’t say ‘like sapphires.’ I mean, ‘my eyes look like the sky,’ how ridiculous is that? That’s totally not unique. I’ve heard you say that to other girls.” She giggled and pressed her lips against mine one more time. “You don’t have to compliment me or lie to me, Wyatt. This can just be our little secret.”
“What do you mean, this can just be our little secret? It’s not a secret, and it’s not little. And I wasn’t telling you a line.” I had used that line on many women before, but I hadn’t meant it when I’d said it to them. “I’m serious. Sometimes when I’m in bed and I wake up in the morning and look up at the sky and it’s a light vibrant blue and it just draws me in. And when I look into your eyes, they draw me in as well.”
She stared at me for a few seconds and then giggled again. “Seriously, Wyatt?”
“You don’t believe me?”
I was annoyed but how could I blame her? I almost couldn’t believe myself, even though it was true. I ran my hand across her face and through her hair and then down her arms. She shivered slightly as my fingers grazed her skin. I moved my fingers over to her stomach and played with her belly button, and she stilled slightly as my fingers slipped into her panties and touched her in her most tender and private of areas.
I hardened immediately when I felt how wet she was. This was the most intimate we’d ever been before. In fact, this might have been the most intimate Sadie had ever been with a man, period. Had she ever been touched like this by anyone else? Had she ever been eaten out? Had she ever had an orgasm? But even though we were best friends, that was none of my business.
Besides, if the answer was yes, I didn’t want to know.
I stroked her clit a couple of times, relishing the way she gasped. She looked at me through veiled eyes, almost shyly, and I knew I had to stop because, if I didn’t, I wouldn’t stop at all. I moved my fingers out of her panties reluctantly and kissed her on the lips one more time before quickly climbing out of the bed.
“I just remembered, I have something to do,” I muttered.
I got a glimpse of her on the bed, looking up at me with trembling lips and wide eyes, and I turned around quickly. If she stared at me like that for even a few more seconds, I wouldn’t be able to resist her. I would have to have her, and that would be the worst thing for our friendship. I could not do that to my Sadie, no matter how badly I wanted to claim her and make her mine.