Read Online Unbridled by Beth Williamson - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Beth Williamson
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good—it helped her forget just how devastated she was.
A heated gust and a wuffle caressed her face. She looked up into the brown eyes of a large bay horse. Her tight throat loosened as she stepped back enough to get a good look at him. The white blaze in the shape of a comma near his ear made her breath catch.
“It couldn’t be.” She rubbed him behind the ear and the horse shook his head. “Oh my God. Rusty?” With a laugh she hugged his great neck and realized there was one living creature on the ranch she knew, one who recognized her.
Rusty had been her father’s favorite bay, an even-tempered gelding with an easy gait. She’d ridden him the very day her father brought him home when she was ten. It was amazing the horse was still there after so many years.
“You’re still here, boy. I’m so glad to see you.” He seemed to understand her joy because he allowed her to pet and glom all over him. Rusty was an anchor in the sea of confusion in which she swam. Horses had always had a calming influence on her. They seemed to have a way of listening whenever she had a problem or just needed to vent. “At least someone is glad to see me.”
He wuffled again and stuck his nose in the crook of her neck.
“Old friend?”
Alex’s joy at finding Rusty went south at the sound of Connor’s voice. “Yes, actually, he is.”
He stepped up beside her, and Rusty immediately leaned toward Connor, eager for whatever the man had to offer. Traitor.
“He’s a good horse. One of the best we have. I reserve him only for the VIPs.” He whispered in the horse’s ear and a carrot magically appeared in his outstretched palm. So now he was bribing the equines. Rusty delicately took the proffered orange treat and it disappeared into his great mouth.
“What do you want?” Alex kept her voice steady even as she wanted to get some distance between her and the man who confused her. She didn’t want to like him, but it seemed the universe had other ideas. Even standing there upset and reeling, she was still aware of him as a man, the tight jeans, the well-worn boots, and those hands. She loved a man with wide palms and calluses.
Connor Matthews was her type exactly. Damn. She had a rather vague but intense memory of kissing him too. Bourbon was not her friend.
He scratched Rusty behind his right ear, and Alex wanted to smack his hand away. “Just wanted to make sure you were okay. You took a lot of hits in there.”
Alex had taken more than a lot of hits. She’d just found out her father was dead; she had a brother and half ownership in a dude ranch. She felt like she had two black eyes and had taken half a dozen body blows.
“That’s an understatement. I was hoping to be alone for a while.” She couldn’t make it more obvious than that. The man confused her even more than she was already.
Connor’s hand stopped in midmotion. “You disappeared an hour ago and I was, well, worried.”
That was interesting. She wondered if he was worried because she had the ability to find out exactly what he’d been doing as the man responsible for running the ranch. “I’m a big girl; no need to worry about me.”
A semitruth. She was definitely a big girl, but she was far from okay and needed someone to worry about her. It should be someone who knew her, who actually cared about her. But there was no one left who did.
That thought made her heart pinch so hard, she gasped. It was true she knew plenty of people, but Alex was completely alone in the world. Again.
“I’ve arranged for you to have the VIP cabin. It’s a quiet, two-thousand-square-foot cabin on the west side of the property. There’s a lot of privacy and a gate with a combination lock. No one will bother you.” He pushed his black hat firmly down on his head. “You can find it down the path past the blue water trough. Gate combination is zero, five, zero, one, eighty-four.”
Alex didn’t watch him walk away. She didn’t want to nor could she bring
A heated gust and a wuffle caressed her face. She looked up into the brown eyes of a large bay horse. Her tight throat loosened as she stepped back enough to get a good look at him. The white blaze in the shape of a comma near his ear made her breath catch.
“It couldn’t be.” She rubbed him behind the ear and the horse shook his head. “Oh my God. Rusty?” With a laugh she hugged his great neck and realized there was one living creature on the ranch she knew, one who recognized her.
Rusty had been her father’s favorite bay, an even-tempered gelding with an easy gait. She’d ridden him the very day her father brought him home when she was ten. It was amazing the horse was still there after so many years.
“You’re still here, boy. I’m so glad to see you.” He seemed to understand her joy because he allowed her to pet and glom all over him. Rusty was an anchor in the sea of confusion in which she swam. Horses had always had a calming influence on her. They seemed to have a way of listening whenever she had a problem or just needed to vent. “At least someone is glad to see me.”
He wuffled again and stuck his nose in the crook of her neck.
“Old friend?”
Alex’s joy at finding Rusty went south at the sound of Connor’s voice. “Yes, actually, he is.”
He stepped up beside her, and Rusty immediately leaned toward Connor, eager for whatever the man had to offer. Traitor.
“He’s a good horse. One of the best we have. I reserve him only for the VIPs.” He whispered in the horse’s ear and a carrot magically appeared in his outstretched palm. So now he was bribing the equines. Rusty delicately took the proffered orange treat and it disappeared into his great mouth.
“What do you want?” Alex kept her voice steady even as she wanted to get some distance between her and the man who confused her. She didn’t want to like him, but it seemed the universe had other ideas. Even standing there upset and reeling, she was still aware of him as a man, the tight jeans, the well-worn boots, and those hands. She loved a man with wide palms and calluses.
Connor Matthews was her type exactly. Damn. She had a rather vague but intense memory of kissing him too. Bourbon was not her friend.
He scratched Rusty behind his right ear, and Alex wanted to smack his hand away. “Just wanted to make sure you were okay. You took a lot of hits in there.”
Alex had taken more than a lot of hits. She’d just found out her father was dead; she had a brother and half ownership in a dude ranch. She felt like she had two black eyes and had taken half a dozen body blows.
“That’s an understatement. I was hoping to be alone for a while.” She couldn’t make it more obvious than that. The man confused her even more than she was already.
Connor’s hand stopped in midmotion. “You disappeared an hour ago and I was, well, worried.”
That was interesting. She wondered if he was worried because she had the ability to find out exactly what he’d been doing as the man responsible for running the ranch. “I’m a big girl; no need to worry about me.”
A semitruth. She was definitely a big girl, but she was far from okay and needed someone to worry about her. It should be someone who knew her, who actually cared about her. But there was no one left who did.
That thought made her heart pinch so hard, she gasped. It was true she knew plenty of people, but Alex was completely alone in the world. Again.
“I’ve arranged for you to have the VIP cabin. It’s a quiet, two-thousand-square-foot cabin on the west side of the property. There’s a lot of privacy and a gate with a combination lock. No one will bother you.” He pushed his black hat firmly down on his head. “You can find it down the path past the blue water trough. Gate combination is zero, five, zero, one, eighty-four.”
Alex didn’t watch him walk away. She didn’t want to nor could she bring
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