Page 13 of Shine On Oklahoma

What if he knew she was?

“All set,” Dax said, giving a final tug onthe cinch.

She turned to look at him, at his sweet smileand big blue eyes. He had the kind of face that made you thinkthere ought to be trumpets announcing his arrival every time hecame around. The kind of face that would soothe the mostinconsolable shrieking infant, or the most obnoxious adult. Sheloved his face. It wasn’t the face of a con-man or a liar. Hedidn’t have a dishonest bone in his big beautiful body.

He smiled at her and rubbed his thumb over animaginary smudge on his cheek. “What? Have I got something on myface?”

“Yeah. There’s handsome smeared all over it.”He wasn’t up to anything. Not her Dax. Never, not in a millionyears. Maybe he really believed he’d been disinherited. Maybe hedidn’t know better because lawyers were slow and next week wasThanksgiving.

He dropped to one knee, patting the other.“Step on up.”

“You know I’ve never ridden a horse in mylife, right?”

“Yes, I do know that. You’ve told me fivetimes this morning. You seem to keep forgetting this was youridea.” He patted his thigh again. “Step on up.”

She put her hands on his shoulders and onefoot on his thigh.

“That’s right. Now, grab onto the pommelinstead of my shoulders, and swing your leg over. And don’t worry,I’m not gonna let you fall.”

She didn’t. She put her foot back on thefloor and looked at the dark brown mare with the super-model mane.Patting the horse’s neck, she said, “I feel like I should introducemyself before presuming to climb all up on your back.” The mareturned and gazed back at her with huge brown eyes that wanted tosuck all the badness right out of her soul. “Hi,” she said. “I’mKendra.”

The horse replied with a soft nicker. Thenshe faced front again and gave that mane a shake. Kendra sent Dax alook, eyebrows raised. “I think she just said, ‘don’t hate mebecause I’m beautiful.’”

Dax laughed. “She said her name’s SweetCaroline, and she’s happy to have you onboard.”

“So she’s a flight attendant?”

“Up you go.” He grabbed her butt and lifted.“Swing your leg over.”

It was a shame she’d stopped understandingEnglish the second his big hands closed over her cheeks. His touchsent heat and memory sizzling through her whole body and she froze,every bit of her focused on feeling it. Relishing it.

It had been a long time. She still wantedhim. She didn’t think that part of it had ever really ended. It hadbeen so good, the sex between them. Long, lazy nights of slow,tender lovemaking. Steamy interludes of passionate pleasure. Thetouches. The looks. When they’d been together everything had beenintimate between them. Even mundane things.

“Swing your leg over,” he said, bending tospeak close, his breath warm on her ear, and neck. She shivered andclosed her eyes. “Kendra?”

“Oh, uh, yeah.” She only spoke troglodytenow, but it was better than nothing. She pulled herself up andswung her leg over, moving her butt, regrettably, out of hisdelicious hands and onto a much harder and less fun saddle. Herheart was beating fast as she looked down at him.

He met her eyes, frowned a little. Sure, hesaw it all. “You’re blushing like a sunburn,” he said, “It’s notlike that’s the first time I’ve had your backside in my hands,Kendra Lee.”

“That’s the problem, Dax Beauregard.”

He winced and sucked air through his teeth.“You’re one of only two people alive who know my middle name. Let’skeep it that way.” He handed her the reins, closing her hand aroundthem just so, and placed her other hand on the pommel. And then heleft his hand on top of hers for a few extra beats, and she sworeshe felt it tighten a little, and maybe his fingers moved in themost subtle, most minuscule caress.

He cleared his throat, took his hand away.“Use the pommel for grip and balance, never the reins. They areonly for communicating with the horse, not to keep yourself fromfalling off. Okay?”

“Got it.”

He checked to be sure both her feet weresecurely in the stirrups, made a few adjustments to get them justthe right length, and finally turned and got on his own horse, amottled dark gray mare that turned blue when they rode outside andthe slanting sunlight fell on her coat. She had a vivid black maneand tail.

“Who’s the other person,” she asked. “Whoknows your middle name?”

“My mother,” he said.

“Caroline.” Then she frowned. “Is this horseI’m riding named after your mother, Dax?”

“You remember my mom’s name?”

She lowered her eyes, and clamped her legstighter when the horse gave a harmless hop. When she was sure shewasn’t going to fall off, she said, “Your mother is kind ofunforgettable,” she said. “But even if I’d never met her, I’dremember. I think I remember everything you ever told me.” She usedto love the way he would talk to her, back when he thought she wasreal. Back when he thought she was good. He’d tell her things abouthis childhood, about his life, about things that mattered tohim.

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