Then again, he would have no idea what was happening until it was too late.

I turned and whistled.

I heard her coming minutes later, and with him still running ahead, I dropped back until I was trailing by another thirty feet or so. I felt her coming up behind me, her hoofs clopping against the rock beneath us. When she drew next to me, I reached up and jumped, curling so I fit snugly on her in one smooth motion.

She was watching Brody ahead of us. The bass was blaring, and he was swinging his arms in rhythm. He was jogging, but he looked as if he was almost dancing at the same time.

I nudged her with my legs. I wanted her to go forward.

She didn’t. She swung those dark eyes back to me, and I read her message.

You want me to follow him? Really?

I frowned, nudging forward with my legs again. I nodded. Yes, come on.

Her nostrils flared out, but she dropped her head and started forward. This canal edged around a cut into the mountain before joining the river again behind us. Most fish didn’t travel this way, but every once in a while you might get lucky with a small one slipping through.

As we kept on, Shiloh gave up her search and lifted her head. The trees above us on one side of the ravine caught her eye. Her body tensed, and I knew she wanted to make a run for it, see if she could stand up and catch some of the leaves. There were a few branches hanging low over the side, so when Brody kept going ahead, I let her stop. She reached up, but couldn’t catch the leaves with her neck stretched out.

I knew the next step, and I shifted my weight, flattening myself on top of her.

She waited until I was anchored to her, my arms and legs completely around her, and then she slowly stood until she was on her back two hooves only.

She stretched up as far as she could reach and—success. Her giant lips caught one of the branches. Instead of nibbling some of the leaves from it, she snapped the branch off and lowered herself back down.

I started laughing. She looked like a giant dog with a large stick.

Her eyes shifted back to me.

Refusing to feel admonished by her, I nudged her forward again. Brody was almost out of eyesight.

Her entire body shook once before she began forward. She worked her way around the branch, eating the leaves as she walked and I laid on her like I did when she would graze. Except, I didn’t lay on my back. I was on my stomach with my feet resting on her back haunches and her head propped my head up, my chin resting in my hands.

As Brody traveled the length of the ravine, he never looked back.

I wanted to yell at him. There were animals around that could kill him, but he only kept going. His breathing started to get winded, so I wondered when he would eventually slow to a walk.

Not that I was complaining.

His shorts slipped low on his hips. He’d pulled off his shirt, knotting it through a loop on his shorts so it bounced behind him.

It was still cold at night, but apparently, he couldn’t feel it. If he kept this up, he could get sick. But then I watched his back and the slide of his sweat working its way down around his muscles.

I chewed on my lip, wanting to be the one to touch his back.

It was shaped perfectly. Broad and muscular shoulders, which flexed with every swing of his arms. The skin tightened and slid over them, forming a small ravine of its own that ran down the length of his spine. Every inch of him was strong, hard, smooth. There were bruises over him, but they only accentuated his muscles, giving him a hard and dangerous look.

I never knew the male physique could look like this. He reminded me of the herd’s stallion. His own muscles rippled under his coat, and it was the same with Brody.

A throbbing started between my legs, and I shifted uncomfortably on Shiloh.

This was the longest run I’d seen a person do in my life.

He needed to go back to the cabin, shower, and be safe. He shouldn’t be out there, and he shouldn’t be depending on me to watch over him.

I swung my legs beneath me, sitting upright on Shiloh again.

That was why he was out here and running like he didn’t care. Because he didn’t. The asshole knew I’d find him.

He was using me and torturing me all at the same time.

Shiloh glanced back to me. She sensed my anger and began shifting around on her feet. She knew I wanted to do something. She was waiting for me to decide, and then I did. I kicked my heels into her stomach, and she took off.

He must’ve felt her hooves pounding through the ground before he looked back, finally, and his eyes bulged out. We were drawing down on him and at a fast pace, but right before she would’ve trampled him, I nudged her, and she swung left.

He fell off the trail, and I jumped off her.

I glared at him, standing above him on the trail. He had fallen down a few feet and was already pulling the headphones off.

“You’re an asshole.” My hands found my hips.

That throb only intensified. My lungs felt like they were going to burst.

“Yeah?” He smirked. “How so?”

His lips twitched as he stared up at me for a beat before he hopped up so he was standing in front of me. He was close, very close. I glanced straight ahead. I was on eye level to his chest, which looked just as good as the back of him. All dips and ridges between his muscles. The sweat was there, too, making his skin almost glisten.

I swallowed tightly, moving back a step. “I don’t remember my brothers running without their shirts on.”