“Did you see?” I asked as I walked toward him, ready to give him a hug.
“It was a great round. Congratulations.” Whitt backed up a step and put his hands in the pockets of his vest. I halted in mid-stride, reins in one hand and my helmet in the other. I opened my mouth to ask him what the fuck was going on, when I heard someone behind me.
“Great round, Reece!” Steffy gushed and stepped up to give me a hug. “You going to introduce me?”
“Steffy, this is Whitt Dailey…my boss. Whitt, Steffy Burke.”
Whitt held out his hand, smiled politely, and looked like what he was—rich and remote.
“Excuse me,” I said. “I need to get back to the ring for the jump off.”
Whitt nodded, that small cool smile I hated still in place. After adjusting my helmet, I put my foot in the stirrup and sprang lightly onto Satin’s back. This should be a fantastic moment. My horse had qualified for the jump-off, and my lover was here to see it. Why did I feel like such shit then?
As I turned to ride toward the entrance, Whitt called out, “Good luck.”
We had anything but that. The breeze that had been mild only moments before we entered the ring suddenly kicked up. Going into the triple combination, never an easy series of jumps for us, a plastic bag blew across the far end of the ring, distracting Satin so she misread the first obstacle, taking the top rail. I tried to make the adjustment to get her to the next fence, but it was all wrong. Instead of letting her crash through it, I pulled her up, tipped my hat to the judge and retired.
Hurt and now angry on top of it, I swung off her back and led her straight back to where I had the truck and trailer parked. I stripped off my helmet and then my jacket. No matter my frustration, I made myself carefully store both items so they were protected from dirt. Unlike some people, I couldn’t afford to replace things whenever.
“You okay?”
It was Whitt behind me. I continued to keep my back to him. Childish, but that was how I was feeling at the moment. I wanted to spin on him and demand to know why the fuck he cared.
“The bag distracted her. Rather than turn the entire round into a disaster, I pulled her out.”
“Reece—” he began, but I cut him off.
“Not now, Whitt. I’m sure you have someplace else you need to be. You’ve made that pretty obvious. I guess I’ll see you back at your place.”
I sensed he was still behind me, but I didn’t turn around, afraid he would see how hurt I felt, and I couldn’t let him. I couldn’t let him know how much power he had to hurt me. The silence stretched, and then I heard the fading crunch of gravel as he left. My eyes and throat ached.
I was hurt all right, but I was also angry.
By the time I had returned to the farm and put Satin back in her stall, I had worked that anger pretty high. I found Whitt in his office, glued to something on his laptop. Without waiting, I stomped over to his desk and braced my arms on the top.
“Exactly why the hell did you even bother to come to the show today?” I demanded.
He leaned back in his chair, his expression shuttered. “I came to watch you ride. Is there a problem?”
“Hell yes, there’s a problem. I’m sleeping in your fucking bed, Whitt. We’re lovers, but you can’t even treat me as if I’m anything more than the shit shoveler in your barn out in public? What’s with that? I could have used a little bit of support, a feeling that you actually gave a rat’s ass about what I was doing.”
“I’ve told you I have reasons to keep our relationship private. I thought you understood, thought you agreed with that. I need to close this deal with Maitland. You’ve heard his reputation.”
“He’s a bright man. You think the fact you like to fuck men would make a difference to him when it comes to business? Well, I think you’re wrong.”
“I can’t afford to take that risk. People’s jobs depend on my being able to convince him to do this deal.” Whitt ran shaky fingers through his hair. Faint circles darkened the area below his eyes, and I realized how tired he was, but I couldn’t let it go.
“You think he’ll be impressed that you’re not being open and above board with him? Because that’s what you’re really doing.”
“I have my reasons.”
I leaned toward him. “I think you’re chicken.”
Whitt shook his head. “At the moment, I don’t care what you think. I have to trust my instincts.”
I made a snap decision. “Then it shouldn’t bother you that I’ll be gone a couple of days.”
His gaze shot back to mine. “Where? The deadline for me to go hunting with Maitland is getting too close for you to just take off.”
“Don’t be so insecure,” I snapped. “I’m leaving in a couple hours. I’ll be back by Monday afternoon.”
“We have an agreement.”
“And I’m fulfilling it. But like you have your business, I have mine. And being able to prepare my horse for the Maysburg show was part of it. After the disaster this afternoon, I need another shot to boost her confidence.”
His clear gray gaze held mine until I heard the vibration of his phone on the desk. We both looked at it.
“You should answer it,” I told him and turned away, more discouraged than I could ever remember being.
From behind me, I heard him say, “Drive carefully.”
17
Whitt
I awoke early, before the sun was even up. Habit had me reaching for Reece’s warm, solid body, but the bed was cold. Empty. I closed my eyes, not wanting to think about how things were getting so screwed up. I tried to grab onto the indignation I’d felt yesterday afternoon when Reece accused me of being a coward.
He didn’t understand.
I needed the focus of my deal with Maitland to be on business, on the inherent advantages of taking over the recycling company and adding it to his paper empire. It was a first step in getting Maitland to take his holdings green, a way to position his business for a future that worked aggressively at conserving natural resources rather than depleting them.
If news of my relationship with Reece became fodder for the press and the public, the attention would be on me, not on the deal.
One thing Reece said, though, had struck a chord. I didn’t want Maitland to feel like I was keeping things from him in any way. But damn it, didn’t I have a right to a private life?
I kept that anger and indignation wrapped around me like a cloak as I started my day. In keeping with my routine, I went to the barn in the morning. Ricky was there cleaning stalls when I arrived. Would this be what it was like when Reece’s job was done? I didn’t want to think about that.
“You riding this morning, Mr. Dailey?”
“Yeah. Since I’m going out on my own, I think I’ll take Mac.”
“That’s probably a smart idea. You want me to get him ready for you?”
“I’ll do it. It’s relaxing.”
Ricky laughed. “If you say so.”
The way most of the pasture fences were constructed around the area, it was possible to travel a network of grassy lanes and farm roads without having to jump or open and shut all but a few gates. That suited me perfectly. I wanted a long, lazy ride.
I made almost a complete circle and headed back toward my farm at an easy, ground-covering walk when I spotted Sherry Rowland doing some work outside. Reece had mentioned the place had a neglected look to it, and he was right. I wondered if I should offer to get my landscaping crew to do some work for her, but I wasn’t sure how well that would be received.
I waved to her, surprised when she left off what she was doing to walk to the fence. I halted Mac and dismounted to be polite.
“Good morning,” she said cheerfully, her gaze looking back along the lane. “Did you leave Reece behind somewhere?”
“No, it’s only me. Reece has taken his mare to a show in Lexington.”
Sherry studied the gelding I was riding. “Isn’t that Reece’s lesson horse? Is Bondage lame?”
And there it was, the problem I truly faced without Reece here. I might have fooled myself at the stable, but the fact was I didn’t yet have the confidence I needed to take my own horse out by myself.
I walked over to the fence, and leaned on the top rail, Mac standing placidly by my side. “No. But since this is the first time I’ve ridden on my own, I thought Mac would be an appropriate babysitter.”
Sherry laughed. “I suppose, but if I were you, I’d make sure you get comfortable riding Bondage on your own.”
Something in her tone made me do a double take. “What do you mean?”
“This is the same kind of stunt Reece has pulled with other clients, taking off to look after his own horses, disappearing for one or two days at a time.”
Although her words touched a sore spot, I felt as though I needed to defend him. “Wouldn’t it be a bit unfair to expect him to be on the job twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week?”
“Talk to Jordy Edgerton, the latest one Reece ditched.”
None of this jived with what I had seen and experienced with Reece. Sherry painted a picture of a man who was irresponsible and uncaring, but Reece had been anything but that. Still, he had taken off at the last minute, dismissing my concerns about how close we were to Maitland’s invitation to hunt.
“I don’t see him doing that to me, Sherry,” I protested. Some of what I was feeling had to be showing in my expression.
She tilted her head and studied me with an intensity that made me want to squirm.
“You have a personal stake in this,” she finally said. Not a question, a statement.
I couldn’t deny it, but neither was I going to admit it. My silence was enough.
“Whitt,” she said, “You should be careful. You know how conservative Quinn Maitland’s reputation is…”
I threw Mac’s reins back over his head. This conversation didn’t need to continue, especially not in the direction it had taken.
“There is nothing to worry about.” I gave Sherry a tight smile. “Reece works for me. I have a contract with him. That’s as personal as it gets. Besides, you recommended him to me, so he must be trustworthy.”
Without waiting for her to comment, I swung into the saddle and collected Mac’s reins.
“I should get home.”
Her gaze narrowed. “I know I recommended him but be careful. Call Jordy Edgerton and get his side of the story. You might find it substantially different than Reece’s.”
The rest of the ride back to the barn, my thoughts went back and forth like an endless tennis volley. Reece claimed his client had dumped him. Sherry claimed he’d run out on him. Reece was unfailingly professional with everyone from what I had seen and treated animals and humans with overwhelming kindness. Sherry had gone out of her way to help me, even recommended Reece to me.
And that was strange when I came right down to it. Ever since she’d recommended him, and I actually hired him, she had talked behind his back.
After untacking Mac and rubbing him down, I turned him out in the pasture and watched him roll before I wished Ricky a good day and headed to the house. I was no closer to clearing my confusion by the time evening rolled around.
The house was way too quiet without Reece and Ripper moving around, and my bed was going to be way too big and lonely again tonight. What if he didn’t come back? Well, that was stupid. He would have to come back. He’d left a horse behind.
Had he left me behind too?
I used the computer to locate Jordan Edgerton’s phone number. Doubts gnawing at me, I finally tapped the digits into my house phone and waited for an answer. When the line was answered by a man who sounded just a little older than me, I introduced myself.
“This is Whitt Dailey. I hired a trainer I believe you used to use…Reece Wilder.”
“What is that two-faced son-of-a-bitch up to now?”
From there the conversation went downhill. Everything that left Jordy Edgerton’s mouth simply reinforced the negatives that Sherry had voiced to me. Reece was unreliable. He used people for what they could give him. All he wanted was the right financial backing.
“That horse he’s riding? Satin? He found her for me,” Jordy told him, “but kept her under wraps because he wanted her for himself. The only horse he showed me was the gelding I ride. As if that wasn’t enough, then he started entering the same classes as me at the last minute, refusing to withdraw even when I said I would reimburse his entry fees.”
I finally ended the conversation, staring out the French doors to the barn. The lights were still on, so Ricky must be finishing for the evening before he headed to his apartment.
The entire day had left a bad taste in my mouth and growing doubts about Reece. All I had were his word against what appeared to be an ever-increasing number of people who painted a very different picture of the man I thought I knew.
The man I had allowed into my house…and my heart.
18
Reece
The entire drive back from Lexington, all I could think about was sharing Satin’s success with Whitt. From the disaster of Saturday, Satin had turned in perfect rounds in every class I entered on Sunday, and I had the checks from the stakes classes to prove it.
Sure, what I had was probably pocket change to Whitt, but it was big money for me. If she could turn in the same kind of performances at the Maysburg Autumn Classic Horse Show, I’d be over the moon.
I had gotten a later start than I intended because I had taken time to look at a couple jumper prospects that were for sale and a quiet, rangy hunter I thought might make Whitt an even better mount than Bondage or Trixie. It was late in the afternoon before I backed the trailer to the barn. Ricky came out to help me unload.
“You just missed Mr. Dailey,” Ricky said in greeting as I rounded the back of the trailer. “He worked Bondage in the ring and took him in a loop around the pastures.”
I glanced up the hill to the house.
Ricky clapped me on the back. “Why don’t you head on up there. I’ll take care of Satin, get her settled in, then move the truck and trailer.”
I grinned. “Thanks, man. I owe you.”
“I’m sure I’ll need a favor sometime.”
It felt good to stretch my legs. Ripper was in absolute agreement, sniffing all his favorite spots as though he had been gone a lifetime rather than two days. As always, we came in through the back. I kicked off my boots and padded through the kitchen toward Whitt’s office. At this time of the day, it was where I felt sure I would find him.
I was surprised when he wasn’t there. After a glance into the den showed he wasn’t there either, I dashed up the stairs to the master suite. I found him stretched out in his whirlpool tub, a glass of bourbon dangling from his hand. A lock of dark hair had fallen over his forehead.
For once, he looked totally and completely relaxed…and heart-stoppingly handsome.
“Hey,” I said softly, afraid to startle him.
His gray eyes opened and focused on me, a flash of welcome there that he quickly squelched.
“How did it go?” he asked.
I looked at the tub, big enough for the two of us. “Mind if I join you?”
“If you like.” He took a sip of his drink, his gaze never leaving me as I stripped off my clothing. Having him watch me was enough to make my dick stand at attention. Whitt licked his lips and scooted up to make room for me.
I eased myself into the swirling water, closing my eyes and sighing with pleasure. “God that feels good.”
His glass clinked on the ceramic tile surrounding the tub.
“So? How did she do?”
I opened one eye and smiled. “We won the high point award. I took the stakes classes I entered, so I’m now a few thousand dollars richer.”
His hand curled around my calf beneath the water’s surface. “That’s fantastic, Reece. You must be ecstatic.”
If there was some flatness to his tone, I chalked it up to him being tired. I couldn’t think of any
other reason he would be ensconced in his tub with a glass of bourbon in his hand unless it had been a shitty day.
“I am. I’m also ecstatic to be back home.” Our gazes held. My heart pounded. “I’m sorry I was such a dick about the show Saturday.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“I took my frustration out on you. That’s not cool.” Without giving him time to answer, I switched positions in the tub, so I straddled his thighs with my knees. I leaned forward and took his face in my hands, right before kissing him with everything I was worth.
I had missed talking to him, missed sleeping next to him, and missed making love to him.
With my hand, I brought both our cocks together and began stroking them. Whitt groaned against my lips.
“Did you miss this too, baby?” I whispered.
“Yes.”
“You want me to fuck you good like I did before?”
“Fuck, yeah.”
I laughed a little against his lips, ignoring his silence as I kissed my way across his chest, tonguing his nipples while he moaned. Man, he was sensitive.
“Turn over for me, Whitt. I can’t wait.”
“Me either. There are lube and condoms next to you.”
I located the supplies, prepped him and covered my cock. We both shouted as I pushed inside him, sinking into his tightness while I stroked the muscles in his back and leaned over to kiss the back of his neck. The heat and bubbles from the whirlpool combined with the desperation that poured through me. I wasn’t going to last long, but I sensed Whitt wasn’t either.
I stretched my arms out over his, twining our fingers together as I had before. His grip was nearly painful. His face was turned sideways on the cool tile bordering the tub, his eyes closed, and his brow furrowed.
Dr. Perfect: A Contemporary Romance Bundle Page 48