Elle James - Protecting the Colton Bride

“Yeah, well my father doesn’t really give a damn about the horses. It was just a project he took on at my suggestion until I left.”

“Can’t you buy them from him?” Daniel couldn’t wrap his mind around throwing away some of the best horseflesh in the nation.

“If I had the money my grandmother left to me.” She shook her head. “But I won’t get that until I’m married. It’s a stipulation of her will. Even then, I’d have to purchase them through a third party. My father would never sell them to me. He wants me home, and this is his leverage.”

“Didn’t you say he was sick?”

“Yes, but I can never tell how sick he is. He always tries to manipulate me and make me live according to his standards. I don’t want to go back, but I don’t have another choice. I have to go home. I can’t let him sell those horses. They’re top breeders...and...my friends.”

Daniel gathered her in his arms and stroked her head. “It’s okay. We’ll think of something.”

She rested her cheek against his chest, her fingers curling into his shirt. “There’s nothing to think about. I have to go. The sooner the better.”

He tipped her face up. “When is he selling?”

“He gave me one week to get home or the horses go on the auction block.” Her eyes filled with tears.

“Well, that gives us a week.”

“One week isn’t enough.” She shook her head. “I don’t see any other way. If he sells them as breeding stock, they’ll go high. I won’t be able to buy them. I barely have enough money to pay next month’s rent. So you see, I have to go home.” She took a step back and stood in front of him, her shoulders slumped, the first tears sliding from the corners of her eyes. “I thought he was bluffing. But I can’t bet those horses on a bluff.”

The anger he could handle. But as the tears slid down Megan’s cheeks, it felt like a large fist had clenched around his heart and squeezed. He pulled her against him again and held her close, resting his cheek against the top of her head. “I have a little money saved.”

She laid her face against his chest. “I can’t take your money. This isn’t your problem. It’s mine.”

“Well, don’t do anything today. Give us some time to come up with some solutions.”

“I’m out of solutions,” she said, pressing her face into his shirt.

“Just promise me you won’t leave right away. Can you do that?”

“It’ll take time for me to organize my apartment, shut off my utilities and inform my landlord. But once I have all that done, I have to drive to California.”

“Just hold on for a day or two. We’ll think of something.”

Her arms slipped around his waist. “I don’t expect you to take on my problems. You’re my boss, not my fairy godmother.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, I’d look pretty silly in a dress, carrying a fairy wand, and I’m not such a great boss at that.”

“Why do you say that?” She looked up at him through watery green eyes. “You’re great.”

“Because a good boss doesn’t go around kissing his employees.” He stared down at her damp cheeks, his belly flipping. “Right now, I want to be a very bad boss.”

Her eyes flared with desire. “How so?”

“I want to kiss you. Again.”

She sucked in a breath and bit down on that lip before saying, “I told you, I quit. That means you’re not my boss.”

He leaned his forehead against hers and sighed. How he wanted to kiss her. “I’m not accepting your resignation.”

“You don’t have a choice,” she said, her lips so close.

Daniel could almost feel how soft they were. He wanted to kiss her so badly his lips tingled. The warmth of her breath feathered across his mouth. His hands shook with the effort it took to resist.

Then he pushed her to arm’s length. “I can’t screw this up. If we find a way to save your horses without you moving back to California, you’ll still be my employee. I don’t want to risk losing you as an assistant.”

Megan sighed and dropped her arms. “Okay, boss, I’ll be here for another day, but I’ll only be able to work half a day tomorrow. I have a lot to do to get my stuff packed for the move.”

“Don’t start packing yet. We’ll come up with a solution. In the meantime, I need you to call the vet lab and see if they came up with anything from the sample you took in yesterday.”

“They won’t have had time to process it,” Megan argued.

“Then research other breeding programs. The Kennedy deal might not happen.”

“Why? You have a fine program here. You’re a rising star in quarter horse breeding.”

Daniel snorted. “As far as the Kennedys are concerned, that isn’t enough.”

“Why?”

“I don’t want to go into it. Just do that research for me, will you?”

She popped a salute and gave him a crooked smile. “Yes, boss.” Then she turned and marched into the barn office.

Daniel let go of the breath he’d been holding since the urge to kiss Megan again had nearly pushed him past reason. He had to come up with a plan to help Megan get those horses or he’d lose her. After working with her for only four months, he knew she’d be impossible to replace. In more ways than he’d ever imagined.

* * *

Megan entered the office, closed the door behind her and leaned against it. Her face burned and her heart hurt so much she could barely think straight. She’d wanted to kiss Daniel. She’d almost thrown herself at him. After yesterday’s kiss, she’d thought there might be something between them. But today he’d pushed her away. Apparently he wasn’t as infatuated with her as she was with him.

Since the first day she’d come to work with Daniel, she’d known he was special. The man was quiet and dedicated. He loved horses as much as she did. His Cherokee ancestry didn’t hurt, either. He was tall and handsome. That dark, dark hair and even darker brown eyes made her crazy with longing. Maybe she should leave. Staying at the Lucky C and falling in love with Daniel would only set her up for a whole lot of pain.

The irony of it all was that all problems would have been solved if he’d professed a secret love for her and asked her to marry him. She’d have the man of her most sensual dreams and meet the stipulation of her grandmother’s will. She’d inherit her grandmother’s sizable financial holdings upon her marriage. That money would be enough to purchase the horses from her father and she’d never be subject to his threats again. Her life would be her own to live the way she saw fit.

Megan drew in a long, steadying breath and let it out on a sigh. If wishes were horses, beggars would ride. She held out no hope for another solution to her situation. But two more days with Daniel were better than nothing.

She sat behind the desk and thumbed through her contacts to find the number for the vet lab in Tulsa and called. When she reached one of the lab techs, she explained she was calling for the Lucky C Ranch.

“Oh, we’re so glad you called. We had a lull in samples, so we were able to get right on the one you left last night. I’m surprised that horse is still standing. The sample you left us indicated she was poisoned.” The tech gave her the scientific name of the poison, which Megan wrote on a pad.

“It affects the animal’s nervous system, making her jumpy and overstimulated.”

“How would a horse get hold of something like that?”

“It’s not like it grows around here. Either it was present in the food she was fed, something brought it into her environment or someone gave it to her.”

Megan’s gut clenched at the final option. They fed all the breeding horses the same feed, and Halo was the only one to show any symptoms.

“Okay, I’ll let the boss know. Thank you for the information.” Megan hung up and stared at the phone for exactly two seconds. Then she pushed to her feet and ran out to the stalls.