Page 18 of A Fortunes of Texas Christmas (Fortunes of Texas)

Robin glared at the man still astride the big gelding. “You said you could ride a little.”

He shrugged and dismounted easily, handing her the reins as he straightened his clothing and buttoned up his jacket. “It’s been a while.”

Her brows shot up. “Liar.”

He chuckled. “Seeing you’re such a fan of online gossip, I’m surprised you didn’t pick up on the fact that my father is Luc Beaudin...a three-time Olympian and show-jumping silver medalist. I was raised around horses and could ride before I could walk—much like yourself, I suspect.”

Robin felt like an idiot. She’d been so determined to make him look foolish, and all she’d done was prove she was petty and mean-spirited. “I’m mad at you. You belittled me and my work in front of my employer yesterday.”

“I know,” he said. “And I apologized, if you recall.”

“It was a crappy apology,” she said.

“I know that, too,” he admitted. “But I’m trying to make it up to you. If you’d give me a chance.”

“Why should I?” she defied, caught between a barrage of emotions she didn’t want to think about.

“Because we’re attracted to one another, and I’d like to find out where it might lead.”

She harrumphed. “I know exactly where you think it will lead...to a proverbial roll in the hay. And I think I’ve made it clear that I’m not interested in anything casual with anyone.”

“In my experience, everything starts off as casual.”

Robin glared at him. It wasn’t the beginning she was concerned about. Or the middle. It was the end. Because Amersen had a reputation for having one casual relationship after another, and she certainly didn’t want to be another notch on his bedpost, no matter how much her libido was betraying her and telling her to go for it. It would be incredible, she was certain. Great sex and a good time. But she also knew it would be foolish.

She grasped the horses’ reins and walked toward the stables, hitched them both to their adjoining stalls and began untacking Blackjack. Amersen was beside her the moment she released the gelding’s cinch, and he pulled the saddle off the horse’s back before she had a chance. He was so close she could smell a faint trace of his cologne. Or maybe it was pheromones simply gone haywire. Whatever—every part of her was attuned to every inch of him.

“My ride, my responsibility,” he said quietly. “Horsemanship 101.”

Robin stood aside and watched as he grabbed a brush from the bucket by the stall door and used it on the gelding. She did the same with Butterfly, and ten minutes later, both animals were rigged with their horse blankets and led back into their stalls. Robin quickly made up their feed, and once they were fed, she closed the stall doors and turned back to Amersen.

His gaze was intense and burned right through her. She was sucked deeply in, feeling herself sway toward him almost involuntarily. He had a kind of magnetic energy she was inexplicably drawn to and couldn’t resist. And then she was lost. All out of resistance.

She stepped forward and touched him, placing a hand on his chest, feeling the electric connection from the soles of her feet to the roots of her hair. As much as she wanted to fight it...as much as her head told her she was crazy to be within two feet of him, Robin couldn’t help herself.

His hand came up and he touched her hair, twirling the strands between his fingertips. “Ask.”

“Ask?” she echoed on a whisper.

“For this,” he replied softly, coming closer. “Ask me to kiss you, and I will.”

There was so much arrogance and self-assurance in his words, she wanted to slug him. But she couldn’t. The heat from his body ensnared her, making resistance impossible. He wouldn’t, she realized, ever take anything she wasn’t prepared to willingly give. He had integrity. He had values. In some part of her mind, she compared him to Trey and realized that her ex had been just a boy compared to Amersen. He was a man in every sense of the word. He was strong and successful and very much in charge of everything he touched. Including her. But Robin sensed he lived by a code...only taking what was given freely. He wouldn’t coerce her. And as she pressed closer, Robin realized he didn’t have to.

“Okay,” she whispered, all out of fight. “Kiss me.”

He stared into her upturned face, and she memorized every handsome angle—his strong jawline, dark blue eyes, perfectly sculpted mouth and five o’clock shadow. He was breathtaking. And in that moment, hers to kiss.

His thumb moved over her nape, drawing tiny circles as he continued to stare into her eyes. She wanted to close her lids but didn’t dare break the visual connection. Never in her life had a man looked at her in such a way. There was unmistakable heat and an electric intensity and pure, basic desire.

He moved and pressed his body against hers, drawing her closer. And she melted. Her hands crawled up his chest and curled into his shoulders and she parted her lips, waiting, anticipating, longing for his kiss so much Robin wondered if she hadn’t lost her mind. She didn’t do this...she didn’t let a little harmless flirting turn into something more. Not ever.

But as his lips touched hers, Robin realized this wasn’t like anything she’d experienced before. Sure, she’d been kissed and touched and more. But never with such scorching-hot intent. His mouth moved over hers slowly, instantly drawing a response, making her want even more. And then his tongue was in her mouth and the kiss deepened and she was clinging to his shoulders, rolling her tongue around his with pure, unadulterated hunger. He anchored her head and went in deeper, his tongue so seductive against her own she experienced a hot surge of longing down low, making her moan and then press her hips toward him. He was hard and clearly as turned on as she was.

“Give me half an hour,” he muttered against her mouth. “Half an hour and I’ll have you screaming my name.”

He wouldn’t need half an hour, she was sure of it. As it was, she wanted to pull down his fly, wrap her legs around his hips and let him plunge deep inside her, taking her wherever he wanted. Over and over. Until they couldn’t think. Couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t stand. Couldn’t do anything but feel sweat and heat and pleasure.

Except this wasn’t the place, she thought as some faraway sound, like a screen door flapping, dragged a tiny part of her brain back to reality. Her parents were in the house. It was still daylight. They could easily be seen acting like a couple of horny teenagers.

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