His self-distraction had worked so well that he hadn’t heard her approach. She stood before him, her small hand clutching a large glass filled to the top with ice and the familiar amber liquid. Today, she wore her hair pulled back from the face, gathered into a barrette at the nape of her neck. Small tendrils had already worked themselves loose during the hour or so he’d been here. He took a long drink of his tea to prevent himself from reaching out and stroking it behind her ear.

Georgia watched with fascinated eyes as Ryder drank his tea. He tilted back his head, his strong throat working as he emptied the glass. A small streak of paint marred his forearm, drawing her gaze to the rest of his well-built body.

“Wow, that was really good.”

Her gaze followed his tongue as he licked his lips. Immediately, thoughts of tracing those lips with her own tongue flooded her mind. Was she a naughty librarian or what? She took his glass and turned away, away from temptation. “So what exactly do you do on the Ace in the Hole?”

“We mostly breed and train cutting horses.”

She refilled his glass and took a seat at the small breakfast bar. When he sat down across from her, his knees knocked against hers. She cleared her throat. “No cattle?”

“We raise some cattle, mostly to feed our hands, and we also sell a few locally. It’s not the bulk of our income by any means.” He tossed a look her way. “You should come over sometime. I’ll show you around.”

She looked into his dark eyes, surprised when she didn’t see any flirtatious glimmer. He was completely sincere in his offer. “I’d like that.” She blinked at the excitement that shot through her. The freedom to run the small-town library like she wanted had been the main draw to the area, but Georgia had always wanted to see the rugged west so to speak. Now, she was being offered a way to do just that. “I’d like that a lot.”