He’d been fighting a hard-on since the moment she arrived at the stables.
“Ease her down to a lope.” He shouted the command.
Bianca gave him a curt nod. He monitored the way her knees and body moved as she slowed Sunshine’s gait.
Checking the time, he grimaced and called out, “All right, bring her in. That’s all the time we have for today.”
Bianca slowed Sunshine’s pace more, and they slowly plodded his way. When they reached his side, he had already moved away from the fence. He gripped the reins to steady Sunshine while her rider dismounted. “Come on down. I think you’re ready for a trail ride.”
“Finally! It’s about bloody time,” Bianca exclaimed. She took her feet out of the stirrups, leaned forward, and swung her right leg over Sunshine’s back to dismount.
But she had overcompensated with the force, and gasped as she lost her grip on the saddle horn. Before she could tumble to the ground, Mav caught her around the waist, shifting her into his arms.
“Bollocks,” she hissed, twisting her upper torso and grabbing his shoulders.
He shifted her body in his hands; the move brought her figure into full contact with his body. Maverick stared, his gaze fixed on her face, as he lowered her down slowly, one inch at a time. Her body slid against him, leaving a trail of fire in its wake. Stirred, he gripped her tighter, then one of his hands lowered and cupped her bottom. He squeezed the globe as she descended, her gaze wide.
A wildfire burned through them.
The pulse in her neck fluttered wildly. She wet her lips as she stared at his mouth, and it made his groin tighten. And her pupils dilated as desire took over.
She felt phenomenal pressed against him. Her body was soft in all the right places. When her feet touched the ground, her hands still clung to his shoulders. Her nails dug into his flesh.
Christ, he yearned to suck on the rapid pulse point. Nip her plush bottom lip between his teeth, and work his way down with his mouth to those plump globes.
Her gaze was fixed on his lips, her breathing erratic, and her skin flushed.
Fuck. She wanted him.
And to be honest, all the razzing and needling had been a way of deflecting his interest, given their caustic back and forth. Because he wanted her with a fierceness he didn’t quite understand. He physically ached to taste her. Wondered if she remained an impervious ice queen during sex, or if the right partner could strip away all the pretenses and find the passionate woman underneath.
His hands slid up her supple back, his intent clear as day.
She swallowed, her breath sped up, and she licked her bottom lip again. But she wasn’t pushing him away. Instead, her fingers curled into his chest like she wanted to hold on.
He swore beneath his breath.
As he lowered his head, everything inside him tightened. His blood pumped fast and furiously. And he hungered—for her.
“Ah, Maverick. We have an issue…”
The sound of Trevor’s voice broke them apart—or, more aptly, she jumped back out of Mav’s arms. Embarrassment flashed over her face. Her chest rose and fell with her breathing. Mav kept his gaze on Bianca as he spoke to Trevor. “What’s the problem?”
“Dolly threw a shoe and is limping on that leg a bit,” Trevor explained.
Fuck.
“All right, I’m on my way. Let’s get Sunshine back in her stall,” Mav instructed Bianca.
“I can take care of her while you see to the other horse. I know how to care for them. I’ll get her brushed down, tack stowed, and everything. You can double check the work I did after you’ve finished with Dolly,” she offered, taking Sunshine’s reins.
“Fine. Much appreciated.” He nodded and opened the paddock gate.
Sunshine and Bianca plodded past him, not stopping to wait for him, and walked into the stables. Mav stared for a moment, getting the lust raging through his system under control, before he headed in with Trevor.
And he wondered what would have happened if they hadn’t been interrupted. The princess was likely far too vanilla for his darker tastes. He could picture her running away, screaming at the top of her lungs, the moment he broke out the handcuffs and butt plug.
“Gentlemen. If we could all take our seats, we have a lot of ground to cover today and just a short time to do it in.” Amber worked to bring the conference room to order later that day for their department head meeting.
Maverick liked Amber. He had no problem with the job she was doing running the place. Although he did miss his buddy Colt, he had never seen the man happier than he was with Avery.
Mav leaned back in his seat, and glanced at the people in the room.
Noah and Duncan stopped their argument the moment Amber corrected them, and slid into their chairs. Noah removed his Stetson and rested it on the table. His bronze hair stuck up in spikes, like he couldn’t be bothered to tame it. As a widower and single father to twin boys, he tended to always be running. Duncan no longer kept his black hair military short like he had in the Navy, and was sporting a beard left over from winter.
Lincoln was already in his seat. He glared at Amber with an obvious chip on his shoulder, and there was a tic in his jaw. Mav had no idea what was up with them, other than that he would rather drop into a nest full of cottonmouths than get between those two.
At least the meeting this afternoon was only for department heads and not a full staff meeting. Those tended to get much livelier.
“Noah, what’s the status on the herd? Anything we need to do as we head into our busy season?” Amber asked with a pen in her hand poised over a legal pad.
“Actually, we’re busy enough that I think we should expand the herd. We have enough in the budget, and the space to add an additional twenty. There’s an auction coming up at the end of May on the outskirts of Denver which I think we should attend,” Noah said, and handed her a thick file.
“We can add that to our schedule. Are you sure we need that many?” Amber asked, glancing through the information.
Noah rolled his shoulders and said, “Yes, I do. We have some of our older stock coming up on retirement by the end of this year. I have listed the horses that will be heading to our retirement stables and farm. If we bring in another twenty this summer, we won’t overload the older horses, and can begin to prep for the turnover in the fall. And we should consider adding another twenty next year as well. I’ve got all the numbers on that for you.”
“I agree with you. Are we experiencing enough growth with the demand for trail rides that we need to build more stables and really increase the herd?” Amber cocked her head.
Noah shook his head. “No, I don’t think so, not yet. Mav, what do you think? Do we need additional stables?”
“We aren’t there yet, Amber. And I would tell you if we were. But I do agree with Noah that some of our elderly stock need to be given some freedom from having to work in their remaining twilight years. With our current slate of seasonal and year round staff, we can handle the additional twenty or so horses with no problems,” Mav said.
“Okay, good to know. Noah, where are we with vaccinations and the like?” Amber asked.
Noah replied, “Right on schedule. I’ve got my team checking hooves, reshoeing all the ones that are worn, loose, or otherwise. By the time our summer season begins, our horses will be ready for the deluge of tourists and in tip top shape.”