Read Online Spurred On (The Quick and the Hot) by Em Petrova - Free Book Online Page B

to bloody his nose.
    Zoe Beth pulled out the chair opposite Hayden and slipped into it. Without looking up, she placed her napkin on her lap. Val smiled at her, but she didn’t glance at him either. Although Hayden could hardly blame her after the patronizing way he’d talked to her in the barn.
    The girl knew how to care for the animals, that much was evident. Did her father really think her so incompetent?
    “I made your favorite lunch today,” Mattie told Zoe Beth, leaning close.
    Zoe Beth patted the woman’s hand on her shoulder. “I smelled it all the way in my bedroom and couldn’t stay away another minute.” She raised her gaze and locked it on Hayden.
    When he looked into those sea-green depths, he felt a primal jerk at his insides. He gripped the table edge to keep from launching himself at her.
    Sweet Jesus, he wasn’t going to make it through a meal with her. He’d wanted nothing but to shove away from the table, grab her hand, and tow her outside. Where he’d press her against the nearest wall and ravage those plump lips while begging for another chance.
    As Mattie spoke with Val about an issue with one of the appliances, Zoe Beth leaned across the table. “I need to talk to you after lunch.”
    A cold finger rested on his hyperactive pulse. Of course she was going to tell him that it was a mistake—that she was glad they hadn’t finished what they’d started.
    He nodded stiffly. “Yes’m.”
    The plates were passed, and Hayden took his share though he didn’t enjoy the rich lasagna and garlic bread that was Zoe Beth’s favorite. His stomach was in knots. When Val engaged him in conversation about the prime bulls, Hayden fought to keep a clear head.
    Finally Val sighed at Hayden’s lack of response and talked to the ranch hand beside Hayden about the next cattle auction and whether or not they should look into a few more breeding mares.
    Hayden stole another glance at Zoe Beth. Her vanilla scent distracted the hell out of him. In fact he could conjure the smell of her need just as easily. Too well he recalled her taste.
    By the time all the cowboys finished their meals and started drifting away from the table, Hayden ached inside, and his arousal was out of control.
    How am I going to keep her from noticing my boner when I talk about what a mistake I made?
    He lingered at the table, pushing his food around his plate until Val dropped his napkin and stood. “I’ll be in my office if you need me, Meadows.”
    “Yessir. I’m heading out to the clearing now to oversee the men building the fence.”
    Zoe Beth gained her feet and started gathering plates into a pile. Once Val was out of the room, Hayden followed in her wake, clearing glasses.
    “You don’t have to do that.” Mattie waved. “This isn’t your job.”
    Zoe Beth glanced at him over her shoulder. “I’ll meet you outside,” she murmured low enough to keep Mattie from overhearing.
    Hayden set the glasses onto the counter near the dishwasher and left the house.
    Outside, he paced back and forth nine times before Zoe Beth appeared. He came to a sharp halt. Doffed his hat.
    “Zoe Beth…”
    “Listen,” she said, closing the gap between them so hastily his heart tripped with hope that she was going to jump into his arms. “You need to watch yourself.”
    “What?” Confusion sliced through his lust-filled haze.
    She drew so close he could have simply lowered his head to claim her mouth. The hairs on his body prickled with awareness. The need to lash her to his body and beg her with his tongue to give him a second chance boiled his blood.
    He clamped his hands into fists.
    When Zoe Beth took a step back, she helped him reclaim some of his sanity. He needed to keep his distance from her, or he’d land himself on the other side of the Cole Ranch boundary—on his ass.
    She raked her fingers through her silky hair and stole his mind all over again. “I heard the guys talking. You need to act normal.”
    He shook his head.