Waking up Next to a Sexy-Arse Cowboy

I open my eyes and try to remember where I am. I fear I’m in paralysis brought on by acute alcohol poisoning, but then my arm twitches and I’m all good.

The first blurred memory comes, and I cringe—it’s me seducing Tobias and ending up in his room by forcing myself on him.

I wince at the thought of him rejecting me, fighting me off like another of his desperate delusional stalkers.

When I turn, I’m shocked to see him sleeping on top of the covers next to me—a sure rejection there.

If he liked me, he would at least have wanted to feel my body against his under the covers.

He’s as far away from me as he can physically get. I’m actually surprised there are no pillows placed between us by the way he is hanging off the edge.

Oh my, I have been such a desperate loser, and I am never drinking again!

As his eyes flicker open, I cover my face with my hands and lie on my back looking up at the ceiling. I wish the bed would swallow me up.

“I am so sorry,” I cry.

He smiles as he pulls himself onto his side to face me. “No worries, it was an interesting night.”

“That no one can ever know about,” I add. I move onto my side so I am mirroring him. I still find him super attractive, even in the morning hangover light.

But I am not a woman who runs after a man—I can take a hit and move on like the best of them.

He smiles but doesn’t speak. I wish he would tell me what he is thinking right now.

“I was a little strong last night, wasn’t I?”

He smirks and falls onto his back. “I told you that you would regret it. You need to lay off the prosecco, princess.”

“Well, thank you for being such a gentleman. I guess you really are one of the good ones.”

He pulls himself out of the bed, and I watch as he crosses the hotel room in his shorts. My heart races as I peer at his body on show.

I prefer it in real life, rather than those pictures I have screenshotted. I suddenly remember the Instagram post I put up, and I jump out of the bed in search of my phone.

“You looking to delete this?” he asks as he turns his phone to me. He grabs mine playfully off the side.

“How did you—?”

“You tagged me and I started following you back last night, so now I get to see all your posts.”

I throw my hands over my face again.

~The shame!~

“I think it’s cute,” he says as he replays the story. “It’s the most romantic thing anyone has ever tagged me in, but the love heart could be a bit higher and straighter,” he laughs. “Unless you were aiming for my crotch.”

I pull my phone out of his hand and laugh. Yes, that was definitely a drunken mistake. I’m glad he sees the funny side, though.

“Do you mind if I take a shower before I head out?” I ask.

He nods as he continues to look at the story on his damn phone.

“I’ll give the others a call and see where they all ended up,” he shouts as I enter the bathroom.

I come out of the shower in my towel in search of my clothes. “My clothes?” I mumble.

“I washed your shorts as best I could under the circumstances. You might have to wear my T-shirt home to cover them.”

I pull the damp denims out of his hand and head back into the bathroom. His T-shirt is long and will cover the shorts, so I should be okay. If I can get to Lee’s car, I have spare clothes, anyway.

“Lee had to head back. I told them I’ll take you home.”

“What?” I reply. “They just left me here?”

“No,” he assures. “I told them to head home, and I will bring you back. Makes sense—you’re here with me anyway.”

After he has his shower, he wafts past me and I can smell his woody shower gel. The smell of him alone makes me horny as hell.

He looks super sexy as usual, and I look like a hot mess with no makeup and my wild, untamed hair. I tut as I try to tie it back as best I can—I don’t even have a brush!

“Here,” Tobias says as he puts one of his caps on my head.

“Isn’t it like sacrilege to wear a guy’s cap in these parts?”

He nods. “Unless they allow you to.”

“Then I’m honored. Maybe it will be my claim to fame on TikTok.”

“Please don’t keep mentioning my TikTok. I told you, it’s not me, it’s all for show.”

“Like being an actor?” I laugh.

“I guess. Anyway, come on. I wanna show you somethin’ before we go back.” He pulls his cap on and takes my hand in his as he swipes his bag off the bed.

We have been walking for about ten minutes when he stops.

“Shall we eat first?” he asks as he examines the diner’s menu on the wall.

My mouth waters at the smell that escapes when someone opens the door.

We’re seated at a small table and order straight away. He goes for the eggs while I take the traditional pancakes.

“I miss my full English breakfast on these hangover days,” I say.

He sits back in the chair across from me and watches me as I spout rubbish. He is definitely a people watcher, and he’s got his intent eyes on me while I talk.

“Will you be moving back to England?” he asks as he shifts uncomfortably in his chair.

“Probably. I have over two years at uni to get through, but I don’t know if my heart’s in the course. I had hoped to leave in a few months.”

“Why’ve you come if your heart’s not in the course? The fees for that place are astronomical. Most people would kill to go there.”

I suddenly feel embarrassed by my comment—I know he wanted to go there and couldn’t because all his money had to go to his family ranch.

I sigh. I don’t know how to answer him—I guess I am a spoiled princess.

If I had a way to transfer the money for him to use, though, I would in a heartbeat. He is such a good guy, and he deserves it a whole lot more than me.

“I don’t know! I’m just confused at the minute. You wouldn’t get it, and I don’t want to argue with you.”

His eyes smile as his hand comes across the table to mine. “I’m sorry if I made you feel like you should be embarrassed because you have money. We come from different worlds, and I guess I know as much about your world as you know about mine.”

“Well, my world is pretty simple,” I say. “Mum died when I was two, dad couldn’t cope so dragged me away to a foreign country. I grew up with babysitters and when he got rich, babysitters became live-in nannies.

I knew my dad loved me, but his need to prove himself was his priority. Then he met a gold digger he wants to marry but the spoiled brat he created is in the way, so he ships her off to his homeland for years and signs her up to a course she has absolutely no interest in. That’s my life in a nutshell, what about you?”

Tobias sighs loudly. “Sorry, it sounds pretty rough.”

I nod in agreement. The waitress puts our food down in front of us, and I look to Tobias to tell me his story.

“Go on then, what’s your story in a nutshell?”

“Same, really,” he laughs.

I stare at him, and he sighs hard before giving in.

“Well, I knew from a young age I wanted to be an engineer. My dad convinced me I could do it and always cheered me on with my dreams. Then my mama got sick the year I was applying to the university course. I pulled my application because I was needed on the ranch. When she died, a part of my dad died too. He went into a deep depression and let everything go.

By the time we found out how bad it was, the bills were too much for us to deal with. We all had to get loans out to cover them, but it barely touched the sides.

When Tanner started on TikTok and was getting sponsors offering him money, I saw an easy way out. I was working the ranch and the oil field. I was working twenty-hour days and it was killing me. TikTok gave me some breathing space. Then came the cowboy shows and big money to be won. I hate it, but it’s helped us keep the family ranch afloat.”

“And what about the band?”

“Well, obviously my internet following allows us to promote our music and get gigs like last night. We get decent bucks for the big shows and have more in the pipeline for next year.”

“And university for you?”

He shakes his head. “Not on the cards now. I still owe a bunch of debt and there’s no way that will be going anywhere this side of my twenties.”

I feel like I’m getting to know Tobias—I am really enjoying talking to him and learning more about his dreams and his life here in Tennessee.

After we finish and he insists on paying, we head to the place he said he wanted to show me.

“What is it?” I ask as we stop outside a huge building.

“The Country Music Hall of Fame. You can’t come here and not visit this place.”

“But I don’t like country music.”

“You looked like you were enjoying it last night.”

“That’s more modern stuff. I like your stuff.”

“It’s all country, princess,” he laughs. Then he grabs me by the hand and pulls me toward the entrance.