Valerie would have preferred not to feed the horse, but she was here to conquer her fears, so she accepted the carrot and held it in her palm, fingers as straight and flat as she could manage. Saucy Lady lowered her head and soft lips played over the surface of Valerie’s hand. The sensation gave her goose bumps. Then the carrot disappeared, and the horse chewed, crunching it between her enormous teeth.
“Perfect.” Adam’s voice was warm, and close. “Now that you’ve made a friend, take a look at her foal.”
Valerie had been so intent on offering the carrot without getting bitten that she’d temporarily forgotten why she was doing it in the first place. Sticking her hands in her pockets in case Saucy Lady mistook a finger for a carrot, she peered over the stall door.
There, lying curled up in a bed of straw, was a baby horse. He was coal black except for a white blaze like his momma’s. He was so precious that she couldn’t help sighing with pleasure. “Does he have a name yet?”
“Absolutely. He’s a registered quarter horse. Officially he’s Saucy Lady’s Naughty Boy, but we won’t use the entire handle around the barn. We call him Bubba.”
“Bubba? He’s too little to be a Bubba.”
“He’ll grow into it.”
“Is his daddy black?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Do you own the father, too?”
“No. Saucy Lady was pregnant when I bought her, which sent the price up considerably. I was more than happy to pay it, though. She’s a proven brood mare. And a sweetheart, besides.”
Valerie had a million questions, most of them revolving around his decision to chuck his former career and go into the horse-breeding business. But asking those questions would reveal that she’d checked up on him before coming out here, and she wasn’t willing to let him know that.
Instead she settled on making comments that might encourage him to talk about it. “I can see why raising horses would be appealing. They’re beautiful, and this little guy is adorable.”
“I can’t even begin to describe how much pleasure I get from owning this ranch and working with quarter horses. It’s satisfying work and I love it.”
Which seemed to say that he didn’t consider his former job satisfying. She gave him points for figuring that out and doing something about it. Not many men would give up a position as head honcho of a family empire in order to pursue a different dream.
And he was also donating his time and resources to the rehabilitation cause. “By the way, I think it’s great that you’re donating your time to help Will’s patients.” She’d asked if the ranch visits would cost extra, but apparently Adam wouldn’t take money for any of it.
“Don’t make me out to be too noble.” Looking uncomfortable for the first time since they’d entered the barn, he stepped away from Saucy Lady’s stall. “I get a tax deduction out of the deal.”
“For me, too?”
He smiled. “I won’t claim a deduction for you.”
“Why not?”
“You’re a special case. I’m the one who pushed you in Will’s direction, which is not something I normally do. Maybe I’m splitting ethical hairs, but I don’t feel right taking a deduction this time.”
The idea of being a special charity case didn’t sit well with her. “I can pay. I’m a lawyer and I make decent money.”
He nodded as if she’d just confirmed something he’d been puzzling about. “I figured you’d have a job that took brains.”
“Why did you think so?”
“The way you spoke to me outside the bar. You had a commanding presence. It makes perfect sense that you’re a lawyer.”
“You should know. I’m sure you’ve worked with your share.” When that comment slipped out, she wanted to bite her tongue.
His silver gaze sharpened. “Been checking up on me, have you?”
She started to apologize. No, damn it. She had a right to know who she was dealing with. “Yes, I have.”
He crossed his arms over his impressive chest. “That gives you quite an advantage. I know next to nothing about you. I’m guessing you found a boatload of stuff about me.”
“Maybe that’s because you’re more interesting than I am.”
“Not by a long shot. I’m just more visible.”
“And newsworthy.”
He stared at the floor for a moment before looking into her eyes. “None of it matters for what you and I need to accomplish.”
“Not necessarily. I checked you out because I need to know whether I can trust you.”
He studied her for several long seconds, his expression unreadable. “You can,” he said at last. “I give you my word on that. But I suspect you’re not into trusting guys these days.”
She thought of Justin, the man she’d dated for a few months, and even slept with. When the chips were down, Justin had left her to save his own skin. But was she any better? She’d run out of the bar the other night without considering the welfare of her best friends.
The threat hadn’t been real, but at the time, she’d thought it was. She needed to forgive Justin, but still, she wished he’d stayed to help protect her. “I have been disappointed,” she said, “but courage is sometimes hard to come by.”
His voice was gentle. “I know. I’ve had to fight for every ounce of it I have. But for the record, I admire you for coming here when you clearly didn’t want to.”
“You’re right. I didn’t want to come. But you know what? I’ve fed a carrot to a horse. Now I have a little sliver of courage I didn’t have before. I’m already ahead of the game.”
He smiled. Even his eyes smiled. “Valerie, I do believe we’re going to get along.”
She liked that smile. A little tug of awareness caught her off guard, but she quickly suppressed it. She wasn’t in the market. “I’m sure we will.”
Three
Adam felt the subtle shift that told him she’d just retreated a little. She was protecting herself, and he understood that completely. He’d learned from Will that people reacted to personal trauma in many different ways.
Some tried to block the fear through mind-numbing substances. Others used sex for the same purpose. Apparently Valerie’s coping mechanism involved hiding in a carefully constructed shell. They were alike in that.
And it boded well for her success here at the ranch. Once she conquered her anxiety about horses, she’d love how they calmed her jangled nerves. He certainly did.
He glanced at her. “Ready to groom Rocket Fuel?”
“Yes.” She took a deep breath. “Lead on.”
“He’s down at the far end on the left. You go on ahead. I need to grab the supplies.” He’d sent her by herself on purpose. Rocket Fuel was the friendliest horse in his stable, which was why Adam often used him for the first session. Discovering that the horse wanted to greet her without Adam coaxing him into it should boost her confidence.
He took his time fetching one of the plastic caddies they used to hold brushes and currycombs. Then he grabbed a lead rope. They’d be doing this outside.
When he finally made his way to the far end of the barn, the sight of her tentatively stroking the gelding’s nose tugged at his heart. She was talking to him, too, although her words were pitched too low for Adam to hear. But Rocket Fuel’s ears had swiveled forward to catch the sound of her voice.
That was another thing Adam liked about her. When he’d first laid eyes on her, she’d screeched at him, which hadn’t been pleasant, but her normal voice had rounded, bell-like tones. He enjoyed listening to it.
She appealed to him more than any woman he’d met since his divorce. Hell, no woman had appealed to him since his divorce. Will had accused him of shutting down his libido, and apparently he had.
In any case, it was wide awake now. Valerie made a sweet picture as she got acquainted with Rocket Fuel, but she was also sexy as hell in those tight jeans. Slim as she was, she still had curves that sent a message straight to his groin.
He stopped staring at her cute little ass and focused on the interchange between her and Rocket Fuel. “Looks like you’ve made a friend.”
She ran her slender fingers down the chestnut gelding’s nose. “I’ll bet he flirts with all the girls.”
“He does, but he likes some better than others. He seems quite happy right now.” Adam would be, too, if she stroked him like that. He mentally gave himself a shake, exasperated by his one-track mind. This wouldn’t be an easy situation—not easy at all.
“His coat already looks shiny.” She moved away from the horse. “Are you sure he needs grooming?”
“If you were to ask him, he’d tell you he wouldn’t mind being groomed twenty-four-seven. Horses enjoy being touched as much as people do.” But until this very moment, he hadn’t realized how deprived he felt in that regard.
Like most men, he’d counted on sex to satisfy the need to be touched. Because he wasn’t hav**g s*x these days, he’d cut out that opportunity for human contact. He’d put his sensual needs on ice, but apparently they were starting to thaw.