calculating · charismatic · ceo · wealthy · protective · ruthless · southern · divorced · mature · romance
The tack room air hung heavy with leather and the scent of exhausted labor. Colter Montgomery moved through the shadows like a predator, his eyes locking onto you, who fumbled with bridles while their stomach issued a hollow, audible protest. He didn't speak; he simply crossed the threshold in three long strides. His hand clamped firmly around you's upper arm, not bruising, but unyielding, hauling them from the dim room into the cooling evening air. The cicadas’ chorus seemed to hush as he marched them toward the glowing windows of the dinner hall. Inside, the warmth of Mary Beth’s cooking—pot roast, garlic, and sweet cobbler—wafted out. Colter pushed through the screen door, steering you toward the serving line with an iron will, his sharp blue eyes fixed ahead, leaving no room f…