She disappeared, leaving me in bed like a man struck by lightning—stunned, breathless, and still feeling the charge humming through my veins.

What the hell had just happened?

Gracie. That's what. Gracie, being too damn sexy for me to think straight.

I never imagined she'd be shy—not Gracie, not with all that sass she'd always had—but the way she'd moved, confident and bold one second, then soft and feminine the next... It was like watching the sunrise after a storm. Beautiful, disarming, and impossible to look away from.

Gracie had this way of commanding every part of me—mind, body, soul—without even trying. I was completely wrecked, and she didn't even stick around long enough to see the aftermath.

I did feel a little guilty having that happen under her parents' roof. My dick however had no such guilt, and I could feel the blood vacating my brain and heading south again. It would quite happily sneak into her bedroom and return the favour... taste her.

With a groan, I flopped back onto the pillow, staring at the ceiling. Sleep? Not a chance. My brain was too wired, and I was rock hard again. And now that had happened, my hand would never be any good.

"Her parents are across the hall," I grumbled to myself and forced my eyes shut only for it to all replay.

The alarm I'd set on my phone just in case I overslept was going off as I blinked awake.  And even with hardly any sleep and full-on jet lag, I woke happier than I'd done in a long time, and I knew why and it most likely the reason I was starting my day with a monster erection. I lifted my head. "Down, boy."

I smiled to myself, flung back the sheet and headed off to the bathroom. After a shower, I slipped on the same clothes, resigned to going commando for the day because my boxers had been... let's say, compromised. Before heading to the kitchen, I ducked out to the truck and shoved my boxers into the glove compartment, making a mental note to grab them later. The last thing I needed was Sam stumbling across them. He would never let me live it down.

When I stepped into the kitchen, I was greeted by the smell of freshly brewed coffee and the sound of Riley Jo chatting a mile a minute. She was fussing with the coffee pot, her energy already at full throttle.

Gracie, on the other hand, looked as easygoing as a porch swing on a breezy afternoon. With no makeup on and her hair pulled into a braid, she was glowing—like she hadn't been the reason I was up half the night. Now, she was perched at the kitchen table, lips crimped between her teeth as she watched me.

"Morning, sleepyhead, get off to sleep okay last night?" she teased, throwing me a wink. "Wasn't too hot for you?"

She wanted me to think about last night—like I needed encouragement. But two could play this game. "Slept like a baby."

"A baby, huh? Funny, you don't look well-rested," it took only half a second for her to shoot back, grinning wickedly.

An uncomfortable pressure built behind my zipper and my dick needed to learn the difference between her teasing... and a call to action. "It might have taken me a little longer to drop off."

Gracie hummed, her grin turning into a soft laugh as she leaned back in her chair.

Riley Jo turned with a bright smile. "Mornin', Wyatt! Coffee?" She didn't wait for my answer before pouring a mug, her words running together like a freight train. "Figured you'd be up soon. I told Adam we're out of eggs, so he's off to the barn to collect some. I love fresh eggs—don't you? You want cream and sugar?"

I accepted the coffee with a nod, still feeling half-dazed. "Just black, thanks."

Gracie flicked her head and pulled out the chair beside her, patting the seat. "C'mon, doctor, park it right here."

I slid into the chair next to her, feeling the heat in my face still lingering from last night. My knee brushed hers under the table, and I swear, it felt like another damn lightning bolt. She didn't seem the least bit fazed, though. In fact, she looked like she was enjoying every minute of this.

And when her hand went to my thigh, she leaned into me, pressing her lips to my ears and spoke so only I could hear. "I'm bettin' you were lyin' awake just thinkin' about me."

Her purr rooted me to the spot, and she just giggled, settling back into her chair whilst half my blood supply went back to its vacation spot, but thank God my chair was far enough under the table because I wasn't in any shape to stand. This girl was gonna send me to an early grave—I'd stroke out for sure, and the obituary would probably say something like 'death by Gracie.'

At least her mama hadn't seemed to notice.

I cleared my throat, but when her hand slid up my thigh and gave a squeeze, I about swallowed my tongue.  I picked up my mug and focused on Riley Jo, her ever-present coffee mug in hand, was leaned up against the counter, eyes flicking between the two of us like she was watching a show. She took a long sip from her mug, clearly savouring the moment. Then, without skipping a beat, she dropped the bomb in that sweet Southern drawl of hers.

"You know," she began, voice casual as a Sunday morning, "it's the strangest thing... this house is only twenty years old, but those floorboards sure do creak like it's been around for a hundred years."

What was she goin' on about?

Oh shit... floorboards.

Had she heard Gracie last night?

I froze, mug halfway to my lips, as every drop of blood in my body decided to relocate to my face. My ears? Pretty sure they were glowing like the tail lights on a pickup.

On the plus side, it dealt with my erection problem.

A quick glance at Gracie had her ducking her head behind her coffee cup like it was her last line of defense.

Riley Jo, totally oblivious—or pretending to be—kept right on talking. "You'd think we wouldn't have creaky floorboards, but I swear, I heard somethin' last night."

I blinked, now sure what happened last night was written all over my face.

And she wasn't done. She was like a stealthy prizefighter, getting in hits left and right and I wasn't prepared. "Did you two hear anythin'?"

Her eyes landed on Gracie, and how I didn't choke on my coffee; it was a miracle. 

"And you know," Riley Jo went on, leaning casually against the counter. "I reckon I'll have Adam take a look at those floorboards. Structural issues, you know?"

She said structural  like it carried the weight of a Sunday sermon, and I swear my stomach hit the floor. Gracie still wouldn't meet my gaze. I didn't blame her.

Gracie finally muttered, "Thanks for the subtlety, Mama."

Riley Jo grinned, the very picture of Southern charm, all sunshine and mischief. "Oh, anytime, sweetheart. Just tryin' to keep this house from fallin' apart, you know. Heaven forbid we start hearin' other things creakin' around here."

Right on cue, Adam strolled in, a basket of eggs under one arm like he'd stepped straight off a farm postcard.

"Ah, look, breakfast," Riley Jo chirped as Adam handed over the eggs and leaned in to kiss her.

"Morning, Wyatt," he said, his voice light, but his sharp eyes flicked over the room, taking in Gracie's quietness and my poorly disguised panic.

I cleared my throat, trying not to sound like a man on trial. "Mornin'."

His brow arched as he glanced between the three of us. "Something wrong? What did I miss?"

Riley Jo hummed and patted his chest as if smoothing over whatever storm she'd just unleashed. "Oh, nothin'. Just lettin' Wyatt know I sent you out to fetch these eggs." She turned, her voice bright as a bell. "Now, who's hungry? I'm makin' omelettes!"

Gracie snorted softly into her coffee, and I swore I saw the corner of her mouth twitch with a barely suppressed grin.

Me and her would have a serious chat after breakfast.

With the awkward breakfast finally behind us, it was decided I'd head home to change and then come back to go riding with Gracie. It had been a while since I'd been on the back of a horse, and I was looking forward to it.

As we stepped outside, Gracie was humming to herself, her mood as light as the morning breeze. She nudged me with her elbow, grinning as she glanced up. "I thought you were gonna have a heart attack back there."

"Uh-huh," I muttered, still recovering.

"She's just messin' with you," she teased, her laughter soft but full of mischief. "She won't tell on me."

She moved in front of me, stopping my reply cold as my eyes dropped to her mouth. Whatever I'd wanted to say vanished, and instead, I leaned down, brushing a kiss against those lips I couldn't seem to quit.

"You were right in there," I murmured, also not able to contain my thoughts either.

"What?"

"I was lyin' awake thinkin' about you." The words lingered between us, and her cheeks flushed pink as her smile grew wider.

"I knew it," she said, one arm slipping around the back of my neck as her other hand brushed against the stubble on my jaw.

"How long will you be?"

I just had to change my clothes and check in with Grandma. "An hour. Two tops."

Her gaze shifted as her finger lingered. "You need a shave," she mused, biting her lip.

I caught the look on her face and raised an eyebrow. "Tell me what you're thinkin' to put that look there."

Her cheeks darkened, but her grin turned wicked. "Oh, just thinkin' maybe you need to keep these whiskers. I reckon I'd like to know how it feels... between my thighs."

My brain short-circuited and now it was all I could think about.  But wait up, my head flipped in another direction. "How do you—"

Before I could finish, she pulled away from me, doubling over laughing, clutching her stomach.

"Gracie—"  

Her laughter only grew as she wiped her eyes. "You should see your face right now."

My brown tightened.  I knew she hadn't been with anyone before me but it didn't stop the primal asshole in me rearing up.

"Don't go lettin' your head work overtime," she said, shaking her head with an amused smirk. "Trust me, I'm well-versed in the theory. I'm just ready to put it into practice."

I blinked, still catching up, and she chuckled again.

"I read, Wyatt. A lot. And, y'know, the kind of books I'm talkin' about," she added with a sly arch of her eyebrow. "And you're a guy. Guys think about sex all the time, so I figured now that we're together, well..." Her grin widened. "We can do it."

I also shouldn't be shocked by her bluntness.  I pulled her closer, my arms wrapping around her waist. "You do know there's no rush, right?"

Her lips parted slightly. "Wait... so you don't want to have sex with me?"

"Of course I do," I said, the words coming out before I could think better of them. "But it can wait. That's the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow."

Her eyes widened in surprise, and I pressed another quick kiss to her lips.

"But I will warn you," I added, attempting to look stern but probably failing miserably, "last night cannot happen again. I want your parents to keep on liking me."

She rolled her eyes dramatically. "Pfft. They like you more than me!"

I laughed, kissing her again before stepping back. "I gotta go."

Just as I turned to leave, something clicked in her eyes. "Oh!" she exclaimed, stopping me. "I almost forgot—thank you for the gift. It's beautiful."

Her expression softened, and I grinned. "You liked it?"

"Of course I did," she said, her voice brightening. "I mean, it's a snow globe with the Empire State Building inside! Mama's told me so much about New York—I've always wanted to go. Now, I've got my own little piece of it."

My grin grew as I nodded toward the truck. "Well, that's only part of it."

She blinked, tilting her head. "What do you mean, part of it?"

"I mean," I said, shrugging, trying to be casual even though I was just as excited as her, "if you want to, we can go see it for real. We can head to New York and check out all the places your mama told you about."

Her reaction was instant. She let out a squeal loud enough to wake the dead. "You're kidding! Wyatt, are you serious?"

I laughed, her excitement contagious. "Dead serious. It's already booked—I cleared it with your parents. We leave tomorrow morning."

Gracie's jaw dropped, and for a moment, I wondered if I'd finally managed to make her speechless.

"Tomorrow?" she finally managed, her voice barely a whisper.

"Tomorrow," I confirmed, grinning as I opened the truck door and climbed inside.

She stood there, her mouth opening and closing as she tried to process it. Finally, she gave her head a little shake and rushed to the window, leaning in to kiss me. "Thank you."

I smiled against her lips. "Go on, stand back so I can get going. The sooner I leave, the sooner I'm back."

She stepped back and pulling off; I kept glancing back at her through the rearview mirror.

It was gonna be one hell-of-a-trip.

I would make sure of it.

Heavens to Betsy. New York.

I slowly made my way back to the house, walking up the porch steps with my face aching from smiling so much. Tomorrow. New York. With Wyatt.

It didn't feel real. I'd never been one to dream about traveling—I loved it here, always had—but New York was different. Mama's stories about the city had been larger than life. She used to talk about how Daddy chased her there, how he'd proposed at that horse sanctuary she loved so much. And now I was actually going.

The sound of a truck snapped me back to reality. For a second, I thought Wyatt might've forgotten something, but that wasn't his truck. I squinted.

It was Nix.

He parked, hopped out, and came striding toward me like he was on a mission. There was something in his face—a mix of urgency and excitement.

"Do you not check your phone?" he called out, his voice carrying over the gravel.

I frowned, confused. "Not this morning. Why?"

He stopped at the bottom of the porch steps, waving his phone like it was on fire. "Because, Gracie. You're blowin' up!"

"What?"

He grinned, bounding up the steps. "Someone filmed your set the other night. The whole thing's gone viral. Everyone's talkin' about it!"

My stomach flipped. "Wait... what? Viral? No way."

"Yes way," he said, thrusting his phone toward me.

I took it, staring at the screen. Sure enough, there I was, centre stage, only lit by the light of everyone's phones. The video was crisp and clear, and my voice—I barely recognised it.

And then I saw it. The views. Wow!

My mouth fell open. "Oh my God."

"I know, right?" I'd never seen Nix this excited. "This is huge, G. Like, big-time huge. People are already talking about it. Blogs, radio stations. Someone even said Holler, the online community music magazine, was doing a special on new artists on the scene this week, and guess what? You're on their radar."

I gawked at him. "Are you serious?"

"Dead serious. This is it, Gracie. Our shot. Our break."

I handed the phone back. My head felt like it was spinning. "But... how? Who even filmed this?"

"Doesn't matter." He waved me off, grinning from ear to ear. "What matters is people love it. They love you."

I shook my head, trying to wrap my mind around it. Viral. Famous. Me?

Nix clapped a hand on my shoulder, his grin splitting his face. "Just let it sink. This is only the start."

I stared out at the driveway, the weight of it all settling on me. Wyatt's surprise, New York, and now this? My chest felt like it might burst.

Could the day get any better?