Page 15 of Taming Mika

Color infuses her cheeks, and she glances back toward the arena, where Max is now gently scratching her horse’s withers without allowing slack in the reins.

Clearing her throat uncomfortably, Mika gives me a sidelong glance before raising her voice. “Great job, Max. I think we can call that a success for the day. Why don’t you take a break before switching out? Tell Hector he can get Titan ready for you next.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Max says, and she casts a quick glance in my direction before slipping from the saddle.

Her yearling jolts, jumping sideways when her feet hit the soft arena sand, but Max is ready for him, her grip on the reins firm. And, after a moment, she has him back under control.

“She looks like she’ll make a good rider, with a few more lessons from you,” I note, trying to keep the smile from my face.

“She’s already a great rider,” Mika says flatly, gesturing for me tolead the way back into the barn alley. “She just needs more experience working with the babies.”

“Ah.” Shifting to the side, I place my hand on the small of Mika’s back, guiding her ahead of me. I feel her tense instantly.

As soon as we’re out of the narrow viewing platform along the side of the arena, Mika sidesteps me. It’s the same maneuver she used to get away from me the other day. Clearly, whatever attraction I uncovered when we were in Cosmic Fate’s stall has no bearing on today’s meeting. If anything, she seems more guarded. This is going to be a bigger challenge than I anticipated.

Mika leads me to her office once more, and as she steps inside, she leaves the door open wide. I follow her in, leaving my bodyguards in the alley as I take the doorknob from her grasp and close it behind us. Then I compress the lock so no one will disturb us.

9

MIKA

“Ican put together a document of the race tracks we’ll go to and their corresponding acronyms,” I add as I round my desk to take a seat and spread out documents, trying to ignore the anxious tremble in my stomach. But that’s nearly impossible with Alfie’s arm almost touching mine.

Heat radiates from his body, and he’s so close as he leans in next to me that it feels like someone’s wrapped me up in a soft blanket. I can feel him even when he’s not touching me, and it sends my heart into overdrive. Suddenly, my pulse is roaring in my ears, and I swallow hard as my mouth goes dry.

“That would be wonderful,” he says softly. “But I’d still like you to go over the schedule with me now,” he insists, his hand sliding across the paper until it’s nearly covering mine.

I can feel the electrical current in the air. It’s the same buzzing energy that fills the space between me and Alfie every time he gets too near. As much as I hate to admit it, I know it’s because my body is highly attuned to his. I’m so intensely aware of him, it makes me dizzy. Inside, I’m trembling with nerves, though I refuse to let him see it.

It must be because of the rumors I keep hearing around the barn—the terrible things the men have said Alfie has done. Not that I’ve participated in any of the gossip. But after Alfie bought the barn—and came on to me so aggressively, I thought it best to get a better measure of who my new boss is.

From what little information I could drum up online, it would seem the rumors floating around the barn are likely true. Actually, as far as I can tell, Alfie’s far more dangerous than even the grooms realize. No evidence can back up his suspected involvement in the numerous violent crimes he’s been accused of initiating, of course. But that doesn’t make the news articles about him any less terrifying.

If he’s anything like the man I read about online, my new boss is likely one of the most powerful men in America. And one of the deadliest.

I’ve been telling myself I need to keep my temper under control when I’m around him. But that’s a lot easier said than done, especially when he blindsides me by showing up unexpectedly, like he did today. And I don’t quite know what to make of the fact that he walked in from the far pasture to avoid scaring the horses with his helicopter like I asked.And he did so just to hear about the racing schedule I have planned for this summer?

The considerate act is wildly at odds with the other, more dominant side to him—the very forward, demanding, sexually charged side that makes me feel like he’s more than willing to cross whatever boundaries I might lay down. It’s that side of Alfie Bonetti that terrifies me most—even more than the violent gangster. Because I seem to have absolutely no control over my own actions when that side of him comes out.

Still, I can’t bring myself to just walk away. I’ve worked a lifetime to get where I am now. I’m following my dreams, and I love the horses I train. So I have to find some way to make this work. I refuse to let any man take that away from me. Not even Alfie Bonetti.

I square my shoulders and prepare to stand my ground. Deliberately ignoring the tension building in the narrow space between our bodies, I turn my attention to the calendar. And I move my hand away from his, tapping the first brightly colored line.

“The blue highlighter is Cosmic Fate,” I explain, swallowing hard to stifle the lingering quiver in my voice. “I have her running several of the longer stakes later in the summer so she can get a feel for endurance races. She’s proven very effective at short distances, so I started her there this summer to boost her confidence.”

“Makes sense,” Alfie says, his warm breath washing across my face and tickling the hairs at the nape of my neck.

“I’d like her to get in a few more wins,” I continue, trying to gather my scattered thoughts, but it’s difficult to focus with him breathing down my back. “We’ll go to Saratoga next—before we take her out of state. If we keep her training sessions focused on endurance, she’ll be ready for the lengthier Triple Crown races by next year.”

“Mm-hmm,” Alfie acknowledges, the low hum of his voice vibrating from his chest and making goosebumps rise along my arms. But he sounds distracted, like he’s not actually registering what the calendar means, even though he asked for an explanation.

I track my finger along each of the details I point out, but while I keep my eyes fixed on the calendar, I can sense Alfie’s gaze lingering on my face. I doubt he’s even glanced at the paperwork. And though I know I shouldn’t, I can’t help but glance up at him to confirm my suspicion.

A shiver races down my spine at the blatant desire in his hazel gaze. He’s not even trying to hide the fact that he’s staring at me. The heat behind it makes my stomach tremble. My back stiffens as I realize just how close we are. When I turned my face toward him, it brought our lips dangerously close to touching. I straighten from leaning over my desk, and the movement puts fractionally more space between us. But before I can take a breath, Alfie closes that distance once again.

His hand rises, one finger curling beneath my chin as the pad of his thumb brushes softly across my lower lip, and tingling anticipation races across my skin. Excitement coils in my belly, warming me from deep within, as I try to crush the unwanted arousal, making my blood rush through my veins.

“Do you have any idea what I could do to you?” he murmurs, his voice so soft and sensual it’s almost a purr.

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