A SEAL Always Wins

by Holly Castillo

  “Rules too?”

  “They’re very simple. Promise me that you’ll go into this with an open mind and that you’ll ask any questions you have, no matter how crazy they may seem.”

  “That could prove dangerous,” he said softly, reaching out a hand toward her.

  Unexpectedly, the fear she thought she conquered reared its ugly head, and she flinched. She wanted to growl in frustration. She knew her stress made her hypersensitive to everything around her, which had prompted her reaction. His smile slowly faded, his expression back to inscrutable. What was he thinking? “And if I agree to those rules, will you agree to mine?”

  Elena chewed on her lower lip. What could his rules possibly be? “Within reason, of course.”

  “Only one. You must promise to answer all my questions honestly.”

  Elena gave him a relieved smile. “That will be easy enough. I’ll pick you up at seven Saturday morning. Be ready for a long day.”

  His smile returned. “I look forward to it.”

  Chapter 3

  “Sherman is more than ready for this show, trust me.” Elena patted the horse on the neck as she dismounted. She had just finished running through a complex reining pattern, and Sherman had flown through the maneuvers effortlessly.

  Jonas Franklin smiled at her. “There is no one I trust more, Elena. I just wish I could be there to watch you compete.”

  She forced a smile to her face and swallowed back her unease. Jonas always hovered, and more often than not, he invaded her personal space. Though he always seemed surprised when she tried to reestablish boundaries between them, she was fairly certain he was intentionally getting too close for her comfort.

  Jonas’s ranch was one of her regulars, one she had picked up not long after moving to Hebbronville. While the contract with the Bent Horseshoe Ranch had been good, she couldn’t survive with just one client. She had five that she had cultivated over the years, but if she could, she would drop Jonas in a heartbeat.

  “What classes are you entering again?” Jonas asked, following her to the barn. She could feel his eyes on her as she walked, and she had to repress her shiver of disgust. He was old enough to be her father, and yet he made no attempt to hide his interest in her. On more than one occasion she had turned down his request for a date, letting him know as gently as possible she didn’t think they had enough in common and she didn’t want to make things awkward between them as she continued to work with him. Obviously, he argued, but she held her ground.

  “Cutting and reining. Those are the two classes I’ve been working on the most with Sherman.”

  “Excellent. It will be nice to add some new trophies to the showcase.” Jonas took a few quick strides until he walked alongside her. “You haven’t seen the showcase I built for the trophies. You ought to come inside and take a look.”

  Elena shook her head. “I appreciate the invite, Jonas, but I have a lot of work to get done to be ready for the show.” She stopped just outside the barn, where she transitioned Sherman from a bridle to a halter and tied him up in the stanchion so she could begin bathing him. She turned her back on Jonas as she began to undo the cinch on the saddle.

  His hands landed on her shoulders, lightly massaging. “You work too hard, Elena. Take a few minutes for a break with me.”

  Elena swallowed the bile that rose in her throat and fought the fear that clawed down her spine. She couldn’t help but compare the situation to the one that had gone so horribly wrong a few years ago. The attack had started similarly, with the ranch hand lightly caressing her shoulders and arms as he tried to make a move on her. When she’d tried to put a stop to it, the ranch hand’s anger had exploded. She hadn’t ever witnessed Jonas angry, but she had no doubt he could easily hurt her if he wanted. She couldn’t stop the trembles that started in the pit of her stomach and worked their way out into her extremities.

  She turned slowly and gently pushed his hands away from her shoulders, bracing herself for any negative reaction. “I appreciate your concern for my well-being, Jonas, but I don’t need a break. I’m fine. I have a lot to get done before it gets too late in the day. Some other time I’ll have to take you up on your offer to see the showcase.”

  Jonas’s smile became tight for several moments before he stepped back from her and shrugged. “Suit yourself. You’re welcome at the house anytime. You know that. I’ll leave you to your work and wish you the best of success at the show. If I wasn’t so busy with my work, I would enjoy going with you.”

  Elena said a silent prayer of thanks that he wasn’t available. She doubted she could handle spending a day with him. “I’ll bring you the winnings when I get back,” she said, forcing a cheerfulness into her voice that she didn’t feel.

  “I look forward to it, Elena.” His eyes traveled over her from head to toe, a smile still on his face. Then he turned and took off toward the house, whistling loudly.

  Elena turned back to face the horse and rested her forehead against the saddle, letting out a long, shaky breath. With trembling hands, she began to take the saddle off Sherman and forced her mind to the list of things she needed to get done to be ready for the show. One thought remained strong, though. As soon as she could, she would drop Jonas Franklin as a client.

  * * *

  Early Saturday morning, the tiny Mexican restaurant in Falfurrias was busy for such a small town. Since they were hauling a horse trailer behind them, the drive-through hadn’t been an option, but fortunately things moved quickly inside. Elena found a spot to wait for their to-go order where she could keep an eye on the horse trailer, and Phantom leaned against the wall, watching her.

  They hadn’t talked much on the drive so far, and he had enjoyed the opportunity to study her while he pretended to watch the countryside flying past them. He could tell driving a horse trailer was second nature to her as she maneuvered with ease and skill. He knew she had been up for hours already, heading out to the owner’s ranch to pick up the horse and load the tack, then driving out to the Bent Horseshoe Ranch to pick him up. Even so, she seemed to be full of energy, her bright smile greeting him at exactly zero seven hundred hours that morning.

  ‘Beautiful’ seemed too simple a word to describe her. He couldn’t remember the last time he had paused long enough to really appreciate a woman’s beauty. He had always prided himself on being mission-first. Women were nothing but a distraction—or so he had thought.

  When he had first become a SEAL, he had enjoyed the attention of women in between missions. After years of a living such a lifestyle, he had grown tired of women who seemed more interested in claiming they had been with a SEAL than in actually getting to know him. He began to long for a woman who wanted to spend time with him for reasons other than great sex.

  The cashier called them back to the front to grab their order. Elena cast a sideways glance at him with a smile that made him nearly stumble off the curb. Her smile took her beauty to another level.

  “One of my favorite things about going to a horse show early in the morning is treating myself to good tacos. I’m addicted to the tacos from this little place and get them whenever I’m outside Hebbronville. There’s nothing better with a good cup of coffee.”

  They climbed into the truck, and she got them back out onto the highway. “Is that the way to get into your good graces? Bring you a good breakfast taco?” He watched the small smile lingering on her lips.

  Elena laughed, a beautiful, soft sound that seemed to punch him in the gut. She was unlike any woman he had ever met before. Her confidence and determination continued to impress him, and he liked the way she was ready to fight for what she wanted. He struggled to understand her reaction to him the other day, though. The way she had flinched away from him had taken him by surprise.

  He had been reaching for a loose curl that hovered over her cheekbone when she’d jerked away from him so fast he’d thought she was going to turn and r
un. Her hair had looked so silky, falling in curls about her face, and he couldn’t resist the urge to touch the strand to see if it really felt as soft as it looked. Her reaction had told him so much more about her than he’d expected.

  His hands curled into fists in his lap. Someone had hurt her in the past. The idea sickened him. He hated the thought of her flinching from him again.

  “The fastest way to get into my good graces would be do as you promised and go into this horse show with an open mind. You’re going to see lots of things you’ll have questions about, and you promised you’d ask.” Her eyes were twinkling as she cast another sideways glance at him, and he struggled to swallow his bite of a carne asada taco.

  “Why are you so fixated on my horses? I thought you supported other ranches around here as well.”

  Elena gave a half-hearted shrug. “I do. None of them can match the quality of your horses, though. The previous owner of your ranch saw me competing with one of my friend’s horses at a state quarter-horse show. I placed Reserve Grand Champion, and he hired me based on that. The first competition he and I went to, we took home the blue ribbons in every class we entered.”

  “You’re well known in the industry by now, I take it.”

  A rueful smile touched her lips. “Not as much as I’d like to be. Daniel—the previous owner—started out with grand plans to take the horses all the way to the national level. Honestly, the more time that went by, the more I could see just how overwhelmed he was by the amount of work ranching requires. He had gotten into the business with lofty dreams. Don’t get me wrong—he was making money. But he was all over the board.”

  “I take it you never went to the national level, then.”

  She shook her head, her dark curls bouncing around her face. “No. He had far too much on his plate for such a lofty goal. I put together the schedule and paperwork and everything he would need to make it happen, but he couldn’t do it.”

  “That explains why he sold the place,” Phantom said with a nod, putting the pieces together.

  Elena nodded as well. “It broke his heart. But he had to. The good thing is that he walked away with a profit in his pocket. When I heard he’d sold the ranch, I thought he’d take all the horses with him. But he’s decided to ease back slowly and is focused on figuring out cattle, first. He went on to buy a smaller ranch out near Corpus, and I hear he’s doing really well for himself.”

  “So you’d like to be better known in the industry. What does that mean to you?”

  Her lovely dark-tanned cheeks turned a shade of pink as she gnawed on her lower lip. It was a nice, full lower lip, one that he imagined would feel amazing in a kiss. He tore his thoughts off her lips and focused on her eyes. In the bright morning sunlight, the golden flecks shimmered, and he realized looking at her eyes was no safer than looking at her lips.

  “I’ve had a dream ever since I was a little girl. I want to take horses to the National Championships. I want to be known far and wide as the best trainer possible for show horses.”

  “Is Hebbronville really the best place to get known for such a thing?”

  Elena shook her head. “No. But it was a place to get started. I’ve been able to compete in a lot of shows with your horses, and I’ve picked up a lot of business that way. I even have clients in Laredo and Corpus. I suppose I’ll have to move closer to them now. But I’ve fallen in love with Hebbronville. The people, the town…everything about it. So, for the moment, if I have to do a little bit of traveling, that’s okay with me.”

  Phantom was just beginning to get to know her, and she had already brought a certain amount of excitement and energy to his life he hadn’t felt in a long time. The idea of her moving away brought disappointment he didn’t want to examine too closely. He liked the thought of her being nearby.

  “What about you? What have you been doing since you left the world of racehorses?”

  He had been a sixteen-year-old kid when he had made the decision to become a Navy SEAL. Uncle Jon had been one and sacrificed his life in the line of duty. Phantom had looked up to Uncle Jon for guidance and direction in his younger years because his father had been so consumed by the day-to-day operations of their multimillion-dollar racehorse facility.

  It would have been easy for Phantom to sit back and enjoy the money his parents had set aside for him, slide into the job waiting for him and continue the family traditions. He didn’t want to live the life his parents designed for him. When Uncle Jon passed serving his country, Phantom immediately knew what he wanted to do with his life.

  “I suppose you could say I work as a consultant. Some people say I have a knack for strategy and placement. Until now. Returning to a life working with horses is as close to a dream as I could ask for.” As a tactical member of the SEALs, strategy was his specialty. He had to remember his cover, though, and emphasize his new role.

  Elena glanced over at him, a slightly shocked look on her face. “You gave up working with racehorses to become a consultant?”

  “Don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing more exhilarating than the feel of a powerful steed racing around the track, carrying you at a speed you can only begin to imagine. It just wasn’t the life for me back then.”

  “I can see you as a consultant. You’re so calm and level-headed.”

  “Are you saying I’m boring?”

  Elena sputtered for several moments. She swallowed hard and looked over at him, and he couldn’t contain his teasing smile any longer. She laughed, the beautiful laugh he had started to crave. “Well, if the shoe fits…”

  His smile broadened. “For that, I won’t be getting you tasty tacos anytime soon.”

  They carried on an easy conversation about his life working with racehorses and her life growing up showing quarter horses, and it surprised him how much they had in common. He discovered they had experienced many of the same challenges and thrills while training those incredible animals, as well as the heartbreak of losing one to old age or disease. Soon they were pulling up to the arena in Edinburg, and the sound of horses calling to one another from different stalls and horse trailers filled the air.

  Phantom helped Elena unload the horse she had brought, and they tied it to the trailer with a net of coastal hay to feed on while it got used to the new noises and smells. “That’s a nice-looking horse,” Phantom said, glancing back as they walked toward the front offices of the arena to begin registration.

  “He belongs to Jonas Franklin, who has a ranch about forty-five minutes outside Hebbronville. I’ve been training his horses almost as long as I’ve trained yours. He would have joined us today if business hadn’t kept him occupied.”

  Phantom silently thanked the rancher’s business for that. He didn’t want to share Elena with anyone else today.

  Chapter 4

  “Elena!” a woman standing near the registration office called and hurried over. As they drew closer to the offices, Phantom realized with a jolt that his time alone with Elena was about to come to an abrupt end.

  The woman embraced Elena in a swift hug. “I had hoped I would see you here today.” The older woman’s gaze turned toward Phantom, and she looked at him with speculation.

  “Dolores, this is Phantom. He’s one of the new owners out at the Bent Horseshoe Ranch.”

  The older woman raised her eyebrows. “How exciting! And such an interesting name too.”

  Elena turned to him, her eyes dancing. “I’ll leave you to get acquainted. I’ve got to get registered.”

  Phantom nearly groaned out loud. Dolores reminded him of the gossipmongers he’d had to deal with when he worked with the racehorses many years ago. He smiled instead. He had to get out and network. It was part of the role he had accepted when he agreed to the assignment in Hebbronville.

  He briefly turned his attention on Dolores. “It’s a nickname. I earned it in high school.” The name had come in high school, but
only really took hold when he became a SEAL.

  “Sounds like a fascinating story. Care to share?”

  “I’ll have to some other time, Dolores. I’m here to learn as much from Elena as possible.”

  “You couldn’t be in better hands. She’s one of the best in the industry. She’s got real talent and can take your horses all the way to Nationals, if you give her a chance.”

  Phantom appraised Dolores with new appreciation. She obviously had Elena’s best interests at heart. “That’s what we’re hoping for. Maybe I’ll see you at the next horse show?”

  “Absolutely. My David and I travel to these all year long. We bring several horses with us. We have the large hauler parked at the end of the lot. You’ll recognize us every time.”

  His first attempt at networking had proved successful. He nodded to her and excused himself and headed for the offices. Laughter and chatter greeted his ears, though it all fell silent when he stepped into the room. Elena had been the center of attention as she filled out the registration forms, a mixed crowd standing around her. Upon Phantom’s entrance, all attention focused on him.

  Elena glanced up from her paperwork and smiled at him, and his stomach did a flip-flop. Exquisite. He latched onto the word that accurately described her. How had he missed so much about her when he first met her? Because your mind was wrapped up in the mission. You were focused on what needed to be done. He had been just days from leaving on a mission to take down a Mexican drug cartel when he had found her with the horses in the barn. In hindsight, he could have handled their first meeting far better.

  “My friends, this is one of the new owners of the Bent Horseshoe Ranch in Hebbronville. He likes to go by the nickname Phantom, and I’m sure he’d get a thrill out of telling you why he has such a moniker.”