crap out of me.”
“Certainly not the first time I’ve landed on my ass, but getting bucked off is never fun.”
He smiled. “Way to take one for the team. Are you sure you should move?”
Eden grimaced then pressed down on his hard thigh to rise to her feet. Heat shot through her as muscle flexed beneath her palm. “I’d know by now if something was broken.”
Standing, he kept an arm around her back to steady her. “If you say so.”
“Eden, honey, are you all right?” Her grandpa limped closer, leaning on his cane.
She forced a smile. “I’m fine, Gramps. Just tell me I don’t have to do that again.”
“Didn’t you hear the crew cheering?” He let out a hoot and grinned. “You were spectacular.”
“Definitely impressive.” Blake let his arm fall to his side as Eden stepped away. “You’re going to make me look bad in my scenes on horseback.”
She brushed dirt off the buckskin dress then glanced up at him. “Don’t you have a stunt double?”
“I do, but I prefer to act in all my own scenes whenever possible.” He grimaced. “Max would probably like to see me crash and burn, just so he could get a little more time in front of the camera.”
“If you attempt to ride one of these beauties,”—she waved toward two of the Pintos eyeing them from a safe distance—“my money says you’ll land on your ass in under ten seconds.”
“Do I get a saddle?”
She narrowed her eyes against the bright sunlight. His stance had taken on a cocky edge, but she’d still back any of her horses against a city boy. “Sure.”
“You’re on.” He reached out to grip her hand in a firm shake. “I may not be as good as you are, but I’m not a novice when it comes to horses.”
Her fingers tingled, and she pressed her hand to her chest as soon as he released it. “We’ll see about that. What’s the wager?”
The blue of his eyes deepened. “If I win, on my first free day you give me a tour of your spread…on horseback. If you win, I’ll muck out the stalls in the barn.”
She covered her mouth to hide a wide grin, picturing his casual perfection covered in manure. “Can I post a picture on social media?”
“You bet.”
Her grandpa chuckled. “I think you’ve been had, Eden. Blake told me he grew up around horses.”
She shrugged. “My guess is you’ve gone soft in Hollywood. The next time I’m working with Apollo, I’ll give you a shout, and you can show me your stuff.”
“Which one’s Apollo?”
“The stallion I rode. Seems only fair.”
His eyes sparkled. “I’m up for the challenge.”
“But right now, I have work to do just as soon as I change out of this costume and back into my jeans.”
Blake frowned. “Maybe you should check in with John before you disappear.”
“The director?” At his nod, she shrugged. “If the camera crew didn’t get the footage he needs, it’s not my problem. I did my job. See you later, Grandpa.”
“Bye, Eden.”
Turning, she headed toward the barn. Behind her, Blake spoke in a low voice. Not low enough since her hearing was excellent.
“Is she always that…uh, straightforward?”
“You bet. Our Eden doesn’t mince words or suffer fools.”
She grinned at her grandpa’s response. Mr. Hollywood Hottie probably wasn’t used to being questioned. She couldn’t wait to see him shoveling horse shit. As she neared the barn, a large gray gelding galloped up, and their ranch foreman swung down from his back to walk beside her.
“Nice outfit. What, no feather in your hair?”
Eden rolled her eyes. “Funny, Zane. Did you catch my performance?”
“From a distance. I saw you bail off Apollo.” His brown eyes held concern as he surveyed her slowly. “Looked like it hurt.”
“I’ll have a few new bruises.” She paused at the side door. “Did you need something?”
“Huh? Oh, no. I have some paperwork to do. I left Roman and Jack looking for stragglers out near the foothills. We’re moving the herd further north tomorrow.” He scowled. “The production company is trampling all the grass in the area where they’re filming. By the time they finish, the cattle won’t be able to graze there for months.”
Eden met his irritated gaze. “Then moving them is probably smart. Is that where Cookie and Cracker disappeared to?”
“Yeah, I took the dogs with me early this morning.” He resettled his Stetson on dark hair threaded with a few strands of gray. “I looked for you, but…”
“I was probably meeting with John Stafford, the director, or maybe the woman in charge of costumes.” She ran a hand down the soft rawhide dress. “This is pretty much all I get to wear for filming. I tore off a couple pieces of fringe in that fall, but at least I didn’t rip a hole in the skirt.”
“I still can’t believe you agreed to be in the movie.” He snorted. “Those people are nothing but a bunch of prima donnas, and they don’t give a crap about the land.”
“Probably not. Kara Fox is definitely the needy sort, and the director has an ego that won’t quit, but most of the crew seem pretty nice.”
“I saw you talking to Blake Benedict. Are you going to do his stunts for him, too?” Zane’s tone dripped sarcasm.
She grinned. “He told me he can ride.”
“Doubtful. The dude looks like a sissy to me.”
Eden couldn’t help wondering what Zane had been looking at—Blake’s rock-hard shoulders and impressive biceps or his truly fine ass. Maybe he’d earned his abs in a gym instead of working out the old-fashioned way, but he was still eye candy with a capital C.
“I bet him he can’t stay up on Apollo for ten seconds, so we’ll find out if he has any skill.”
“Good God, I’m certain he won’t last five.” Zane cleared his throat, his gaze holding steady on hers. “Uh, a buddy of mine scored tickets to see Kent McCord up in Billings this weekend, and now he can’t go. He said I can have his seats if I want them. I don’t suppose you’d like to go with me?”
“Kent McCord?” Eden pressed a hand to her chest. “Seriously?”
“Yep. Are you interested?”
She’d kill to see Kent McCord, her all-time favorite country performer, but Billings was a good two-hour drive…
Zane stepped closer. “It’d be a long trip home after the concert. I was thinking we could stay over and come back Sunday morning.”
Her love of country music in general and Kent McCord in particular battled with the awkwardness of an overnight date with Zane. If they could go as friends, she’d say yes in a heartbeat, but common sense told her he’d expect more. Dating their foreman had been a colossal mistake, but he’d been so damn persistent…
She let out a sigh. Now, he refused to believe they didn’t have a future together. The whole situation was beyond uncomfortable, and she couldn’t afford to jeopardize what little balance she’d managed to establish with him—no matter how badly she wanted to go to the concert.
“As much as I’d love to, I can’t. The movie crew is filming over the weekend, and I told the director I’d be available. I appreciate the invite,