Jailbait by Emily Goodwin Read Free Book Online Page A

tenses, then lets out a breath. “He died last February.”  
    “Oh, fuck. Sorry, Pepper.” I internally kick myself. Instead of reminding her of what we shared, I bring that up. “I know you loved that horse.”  
    “I did,” she replies in a tight voice. I watch her fidget the reins between her fingers, keeping her eyes locked on the barn a good 100 yards ahead of us. My phone buzzes in my back pocket. I grab it, declining a call from Alcott. I’m sure he knows about the mugging from a few hours ago and is calling to either chew me out for not stopping it sooner…or thank me for not letting it go any further than it did.
    “Your dad,” I start. “How’s he doing?”  
    “Good.”  
    “That’s good. Is he home?”
    “No.”
    The sound of crickets and horse hooves on the brick driveway fill the silence. We take a few paces.
    “Well, this isn’t awkward or anything,” I say and Pepper smiles.   “It doesn’t have to be.”  
    She tips her head down, and her emerald eyes meet mine. The reins go slack in her hands, and Spartan turns his giant head to sniff me. Pepper doesn’t say anything back, and we continue to the stable in silence.  
    The barn door requires a passcode to get in. If I hadn’t spent hours out here with Pepper before, I’d be surprised. Then again, her horse probably cost as much as a house.
    “Want help?” I ask Pepper as she leads Spartan into a stall. She pulls the door closed before I can step foot inside.  
    “No, thanks. I got this.” She keeps the horse between us, and begins to take off the saddle. I look around the stable; it’s the same as I remember. Big, clean, and ostentatious. Obscenely so. A minute later, Pepper puts the tack away and we’re left standing in the middle of the quiet barn aisle. She folds her arms in front of herself, clasping her hands on her elbows.  
    “Thank you,” Pepper begins. “For before.” She reaches up and pushes her thick, dark hair out of her face. It’s a tangled mess, in its natural wavy state. It’s a version of Pepper the world doesn’t get to see very often, and was my favorite version of her. I felt like I was seeing something top-secret, something so rare and beautiful the rest of the world couldn’t handle it. “I don’t even want to think about what would have happened if you weren’t there.”  
    “Don’t think about it. I was there.” I step closer and take my time studying Pepper’s face. I hold her gaze for a moment, and then she takes a turn looking me over.  
    “You just left,” she whispers, and for a moment, I think she’s talking about the day I left years ago.
    “Yeah,” I shrug. “I did all I could do. Didn’t want to get caught up in the legalities of it all.”  
    She takes in a breath, and I can’t help but watch her breasts rise on the inhale. She looks at the ground and exhales. “I’m glad you were there.” She says it like she’s not sure.  
    “Pepper,” I start, and she looks back into my eyes. She bites her lip and closes her eyes in a long blink, and it’s borderline erotic watching those lashes come together. I reach out and touch her arm. Goosebumps break out along her skin.  
    I want so badly to bring her to me, wrap my arms around her, and bury my tongue in her mouth. I want to forget all the bad shit that happened between the last time I saw her and now, and just feel .  
    “You look…different,” she says softly. “A good different. All grown up.”  
    The corners of my lips pull up in a smile. “I would say the same to you, but the difference is better than good. I never thought it was possible for you to get any more beautiful, yet you are.”  
    A bit of red flushes her cheeks and she drops her gaze, shaking her head. “You were never shy on the compliments.”  
    “I’m speaking the truth.” I wrap my fingers around her arm. She leans into my touch and everything fades away. I’m thinking with my dick and I grab her around the waist and smash