There were always people around on Saturdays, the busiest day of the week. Although it was nearly seven, Jill was finishing up a lesson in the outdoor arena, and when he passed the door to the small arena he counted four riders. The barn, however, was quiet for the moment. Listening for any rustle that told him Rio might be somewhere there, he walked as quietly as he could along the empty row of stalls. It was time to bring in the horses and feed them, but the need to check on Rio was stronger.
He expected to find her outside. Over the past week he’d discovered she liked to hang on a fence and watch the horses. Her simple appreciation of the animals had made him see how, lately, immersed in the constant pressure cooker of running his business, he forgot that his love of horses was why he’d started this business instead of following in the riding dynasty his father had wanted to build.
At the end of the barn, he finally heard motion, and in a flash of surprise he saw Tully’s head bobbing in his stall. He was already inside? One step later, David heard Rio giggle.
“You two are goofy. How is it you’ve never made friends before?”
He’d never heard Rio’s voice so free of defensiveness. He didn’t want to ruin the moment, but curiosity and a flare of desire refused to let him walk away.
“You’re going to get yourself bucked right off, stupid cat.”
Laughter rippled from her again, and he couldn’t stay hidden. “There you are.” He stepped into her view.
Thirty-one, from a perch on Tully’s broad back, produced some indescribable baby cougar sound, and to David’s delight, Rio giggled again.
“What a horrible cat.”
“I warned you. You’re creating a monster.”
“She’s just angry because you’re interrupting her lovefest with Tully.”
“I’m dreadfully sorry to Her Majesty.”
The cat turned up her black nose and kneaded a circle around the horse’s back.
“Yes, be nice to your minions.” Rio stroked Thirty-one’s mottled fur. “This is a duke of your realm. He’s in charge of the laborers who bring you food. You don’t want them to conspire against you.”
“Are you all right?” he asked. “I can see you’re completely potty, but other than that?”
She pressed a kiss between Thirty-one’s ears. “I’m fine. I hope it’s okay I went and got the horse. I should have asked.”
“How about if, while you’re here, you just treat him like he’s yours? Get him any time you like.”
“Really?” Her eyes shone like cut sapphires.
“If Kate ever wants to ride again, I’ll find her someone else.”
The pure joy in her expression faded. “That’s not . . .” She sighed. “How did you know?”
“I didn’t. I took a guess just now. I know Kate talked about jumping him today.”
“She has every right to ride him. He’s your horse, for goodness’ sake. Why would I think I had a right to be proprietary?”
“Because you’ve always wanted a horse.”
Gratitude mixed with embarrassment. “I admit it. I did get jealous. Do you really think I’m, what, potty? Is that even a word?”
“Means barmy, crazy. And yes, I think you are. But so are a hundred percent of the other people around this place. Horses get under your skin. Besides, you do well with old Tully here. He knows a good partner when he feels one.”
“You don’t have to make up nice things to say.”
“I don’t say nice things I don’t mean.”
She stroked at the rich whiskey-colored hair on Tully’s neck. Thirty-one had curled up in a ball and now viewed the humans with a wary eye.
“What does it mean that when I got this petty, empty feeling while Kate was talking about riding him, all I wanted to do was come out and pet a horse?”
“Well, it’s a dire sign, I’m afraid. Means you really are a horse person at heart.”
Her face gave away her pleasure.
“But I shouldn’t have blown off your mother’s dinner. That was rude.”
“She’s fine. There’s no family meal rule around here.”
“It did help to come out here. It’s been a strange week, and the only person I’ve had a chance to talk with is the police chief.”
“The chief? Rio?” Concern flared in his chest.
“I’ve wanted to talk to you, too, but there hasn’t been a free minute. Bonnie and I each got a text message from Hector. He doesn’t know where we are, and the police know about the texts. Still, I feel terrible that we’ve put you in the middle of this. And now Kate and your mother are here, too. If there’s any chance you’re in jeopardy—”
He grabbed her arms and hauled her toward him, lowering his head until her eyes locked firmly onto his.
“This is where you belong right now. I utterly believe that. The Universe, God, whomever, provides sometimes without explaining His reasons. You and Bonnie are welcome guests. I don’t want you ever to think otherwise. Anytime you need me, don’t think twice, all right?” He released her and lifted her chin. “Promise?”
“Thanks, David. That means a lot.”
“Who did you go to for advice or help at home?”
“Bonnie. My boss at the diner. A couple of friends. But life wasn’t this uncertain. I handled things day to day. That’s all I could ever do.”
“And you’re good at it. Who taught you to be so responsible?”
She blew a rueful laugh through her lips. “Life. My dad taught me that working hard was the key to happiness. He just wasn’t home that much.”
“Will that crazy cat attack if I come near my—your—horse?”
Rio nuzzled the tortoiseshell fur. “You won’t hurt him, will you, sweetie?”
Thirty-one meowed like a siren but didn’t move. David grabbed another brush and took a spot beside Tully’s hindquarters. The big horse swung his head, glanced at the humans and the cat, and returned to munching hay.
“You’re not exactly a slouch at running things either,” Rio said.
“My parents taught me work ethic, too. Dad’s built his amazing training facility. Mum is a very hard worker; she herds around a staff of ten at her B-and-B back in England. She comes here for her holiday, though, and thinks it’s time to party. She’s in the throes of planning some whacking great get-together for two weeks from now. She doesn’t believe my finances won’t handle the strain of parties.”
“Maybe because, on the surface, it looks like you’re fine on money issues. It’s an amazing operation.”
The statement was curious not judgmental. David found it easier to talk to her than his own family.
“You can’t make money boarding horses. It’s impossible. But we do a lot of other things. We hold riding clinics—bring in big-name trainers to do special lessons. And the show is a huge moneymaker. Lessons and horse training are the bread and butter. But this is definitely a luxury sport. When the economy tanks, so do we. It’s been a struggle the past few years.”
It almost embarrassed him to admit that understatement. Very few people knew how dismal his books looked these days. Just the tax accountant he used in town. And Andy.
“I’m sorry.”
Her apology sounded slightly less than sincere. The funny thing was, he understood. His idea of financial uncertainty was almost certainly a joke to her.
“Don’t be. I know you understand true struggling.”
“Hard is hard,” she said quietly.
“Are you really doing all right?”
“Except for not knowing when I can move back to the city, I’m okay.”
“Are you eager to get back? To Minneapolis?”
“I’m eager to be done with Hector and to find Paul. As welcome as you make us feel, it’s not the same as having our own place. Paul would never be comfortable here, even though Bonnie is in heaven. When I told her about the insurance, she begged to move here permanently.”
“I’m glad she’s comfortable. What
are
you thinking comes next?”
“What I did with the insurance was a monumentally bad decision. I made the wrong choice: house payment rather than insurance premium. The insurance company doesn’t care that I was prepared to pay them four weeks late. So, I’ll need to pay off the property tax when that bill comes due. The city will demolish the house, and then I’ll have to get rid of the lot somehow since I can’t afford to build anything on it. That’s why my getting any kind of job was important, and why it’s important to get Hector caught so I can find us a place to live.”
“Why is he so fixated on Bonnie?”
“We’re all asking that.” Rio sighed. “He shouldn’t care about her, and he most certainly got his revenge on me. It doesn’t make any sense.”
“What about going out West? Have you given up on that?”
“For now. I certainly can’t afford that dream.” For the first time her shoulders sagged.
David’s heart sank for her. He set his brush back in the grooming box and gently stopped the motion of her arm. “You know you can stay as long as you like.”
“Yes. You keep saying that. But you don’t know what you’re offering. Even if they find Hector tomorrow, I don’t know how long it’ll take to find an affordable place to live.”
“Rio. It’s fine. And you’ve only just started at The Loon. Give it time.”
“Then there’s Bonnie who has to get into school somewhere. She’s mentioned enrolling at the local high school where Kim and Dawson go. Is that a good idea?”
“Why not? It’s a multi-district high school. Abby and Gray love it. Bonnie would have friends straightaway.”
“As far as she’s concerned, she’s moved to Disney World, Neverland, and Narnia all rolled into one.”
“And what about you? Where have you moved to?” He wrapped his arms around her.
She sighed, and her breath tickled the skin at his neck of his polo shirt. He shivered and she did the most extraordinary thing by running a finger along the shirt’s open vee, tracing it to his breastbone and back up to his throat.
“I’ve moved to Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory,” she said. “There are goodies everywhere, delicious treats. But there’s also danger if you take a misstep. And then there’s Willy Wonka himself—so much fun and yet a little baffling and intimidating.”
“Me? Intimidating?”
“Out of my league.”
“If that’s not the biggest load of rubbish I’ve heard in my life.”
He didn’t give her a chance to retort. He claimed her mouth with pent-up desire that flamed as if she’d touched the match to it herself. Her tongue clashed with his, and her head tilted to allow him closer. She represented everything he’d been running from for years, uncertainty, messiness, instability, and fear of rejection. But the yielding of her body brought more color, recklessness, and passion for survival than he’d felt in a very long time.
He dragged his mouth reluctantly from hers. It was still too early. Anyone could pop in and find them.
“Let’s not go back to the house,” he said.
“Why would you think for a second I’d do that right now?” She reached for another kiss.
“How’d you like to learn to ride bareback?”
Her eyes turned to blue moons of amusement, and she wriggled her hips against his. “Honestly? Is that what you call this in England?”
“C
AN YOU ACTUALLY
make love on a horse?”
David spluttered and tightened his arms around Rio, who rocked in front of him on Tully’s broad back.
“Technically? I expect so,” he said finally. “Never tried it, mind you. It’s never sounded appealing. It would require gymnastics that would, at the least, take my concentration off my partner. And if the horse shied . . . vital bits could be severely wounded. Look here. I meant it when I said this wasn’t a euphemism for sex. Why are you being so difficult?”
Meaning suggestive and as sexy as a nymph, he thought, in growing discomfort.
“Difficult is what I do best.”
He guided Tully away from the barn. He’d only intended to bring Rio to the far end of the pasture and back to calm his body from the kiss. A rational-seeming idea until he’d put it into practice. The reality was proving he’d made a gross miscalculation.
Rio squealed as Tully turned left. “His skin is slippery!”
“It slides over his muscles just like yours does. You’ll get the feel for it. Let your hips sway the same way they did in the saddle.”
Another mistake. Her pelvis loosened and rocked her sweet little bum straight into parts that were difficult enough for a bloke to keep safe in this sport. He placed his lips next to her ear.
“Feel how much more secure that is?”
She nodded. The joking stopped. In fact, they stopped talking altogether. Riding a horse was second nature to him, like a natural extension of his own gaits, and he spoke to Tully with unconscious cues, leaving far too much time to notice Rio’s every muscle contraction and movement. If he were smart he’d ride straight back to the barn. But the growing ache lower in his body was clearing making mincemeat out of his IQ. He guided Tully across the field and didn’t look back.
A
NY NATURAL RIDING
ability Rio possessed had disappeared the moment Tully took his first step. The security of a deep Western saddle was more evident than ever. Fortunately, what she lacked in leather beneath her was made up for by David’s body behind her. He surrounded her waist with his arms, braced her back with his torso, and framed her seat with his strong thighs and legs. Slowly, with the warmth from Tully’s back seeping into her muscles and the slow burn from David’s touch fueling an inner fire, she relaxed. Her spine undulated with his torso, and her seat slid back into the vee of his thighs.
“I think you’ve got it.” Low and hot his words rumbled into her ear, and shivers rushed them all the way to her stomach. “Want to go faster?”
She nodded, although the thought semi-terrified her.
“The key is to keep your hips moving just like this but faster to match the motion.”
“’Kay.”
She felt only a slight movement backward, maybe half an inch, in David’s right thigh. Like a carousel horse, Tully’s front end rose upward followed by a smooth surge forward. His hindquarters followed, lifting and pushing. He cantered onward without a single transition into the jarring trot Rio expected. A squeal of delight escaped her throat, and she gripped hard with her knees as her balance bobbled. David locked his elbows around her, and she took a glimpse down at his hands on the reins—sure, powerful, clever, tanned. The leather twined through his fingers like a complicated Mobius strip, but his grip was elastic and alive as if he held nothing more powerful than a kitten on a string.