Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 84982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 425(@200wpm)___ 340(@250wpm)___ 283(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 425(@200wpm)___ 340(@250wpm)___ 283(@300wpm)
“Who does Bloodline belong to then?” I asked, curious.
“Shephard Ranch,” he replied, grinning.
“Pharaoh?”
“Shephard Ranch.”
“Nemesis?”
“Shephard Ranch.”
“Do you and King not have a horse?” I asked.
He shrugged. “I’ve not come across one I want to purchase yet. When the day comes, I will. King has had horses in the past, but currently, he has no horses that are racing. He has a former champion who is retired.”
I smiled, then realizing who that was. “King’s Cowboy.”
Sebastian nodded. “That’s him. Nice and spoiled in his own little corner of the stables.”
“What about Georgia Outlaw?” I asked. I knew the colt was under two years old, and I’d seen him being worked with by King and Miller on occasion. His dark brown coloring was almost chocolate.
“I guess he could be considered King’s. King’s Cowboy sired him before he was retired completely. However, King didn’t put his name down as owner. Shephard Ranch is listed.”
I dismounted and gave Zephyr one last bit of love before handing the reins to Miller, who had climbed over the fence.
“We got them all?” I asked Sebastian.
He nodded. “Yeah, I am taking Sword out later, but that will be it. I had Derek take out the boarders earlier. We don’t have any of them racing soon, and when one is, their owners will pay for the exercise riders. We won’t worry about them right now.”
“Okay, well, if that’s it, I’m going to head out,” I told him.
He nodded. “You good with early tomorrow morning?”
“Yeah. I’ll see you at seven.”
The earlier, the better. I needed to have plenty of time to get ready for my night out.
Unable to help myself, I did a scan of the area on my way to the car. I could lie and say I wasn’t looking for Thatcher, but I was. His not being here was strange. He normally showed up when Zephyr was involved. If he was making a point to stay away from me, then sending me the stupid cookies defeated the purpose. Somehow, he’d managed to make me hate my favorite treat. The sight of them now reminded me of the fact that Thatcher pitied me. He didn’t want to touch me, but he was sorry about it. Like he wanted to ease the pain by giving me cookies. Being a virgin did not mean I was mentally a child.
• Twenty-Six •
This man was insane, and I was getting wet because he was spewing psycho crap.
Capri
Sitting in the first row hadn’t been expected, and Tyron had kept that a secret until we arrived. Esther almost kissed him; she was so ecstatic. Jaiden held her back.
Tyron put his hands on my waist, stood behind me, and wrapped an arm around me. He even pressed a kiss to my temple more than once while we listened to the live performance. I tried not to be frustrated that my body didn’t ignite or even tingle a little. But I felt comfortable. Leaning into him, swaying to the music. It was nice.
And if it hadn’t been for the way I’d lit up from Thatcher earlier in the week, then I wouldn’t have been disappointed at all. In fact, I’d have thought this was heading somewhere.
During the ride back, his hand slid over my leg and stayed there while he drove. We dropped off Esther and Jaiden at her apartment, then headed to my house. I’d already decided I was inviting him in. I was twenty-seven, not sure if heaven and hell were even real things anymore, and tired of following all these moral rules that had been forced upon me all my life. I might never get married. I might never fall in love.
But I was a grown woman, and having sex for pleasure and fun was normal. I was ready for it. With Tyron, who was safe and comfortable. His erection in his jeans as he’d rubbed up behind me tonight told me he was interested. Hopefully, my virgin status didn’t turn him off. I wasn’t sure if that was just a Thatcher thing or all grown men thing.
He parked in my driveway, and I turned to look at him.
“Want to come inside?” I asked.
The corner of his lips curled. “Yeah, I would.”
That was easy. See, I was already crushing this new way of life. Why had I waited so long?
I opened my car door and got out. As I walked around the front of it toward Tyron, my eyes darted back to a small orange light in the yard. It was near the porch, but still in the darkness, just out of the glow from the outside lights. What was that?
“What’s wrong?” Tyron asked.
I narrowed my eyes as the light moved. Was there a dark figure there too? It shifted. The shadow. It was barely visible with the orange light.
Was that a cigarette?
Swallowing, I felt my pulse at the base of my neck as my heartbeat began to pick up. Trickles of fear and uncertainty stopped me from saying anything. I wasn’t sure if I was imagining this or if there was someone out there. Someone smoking.