Page 21 of Virgin's Stolen Nights with the Boss

‘How long does she have to go?’ Carmen asked.

‘Eight weeks,’ the vet responded.

‘Is she a maiden?’ Carmen asked, and the vet glanced over.

So too did Elias. Capricorn, like some first-time pregnant mares, did not appear to be as advanced as she actually was. Clearly Carmen knew her stuff, but what had Elias frowning in slight bemusement was that the vet, who was generally a man of few words, responded to her readily.

‘She is, and though she’s hiding it well the foal’s a good size.’ He carried on talking about position and size, answering all of Carmen’s intelligent questions.

Elias could not quite work out what was happening, nor could he hide his increased bemusement at the exchange. Of course the staff often liaised with the vet, and treatments were discussed amongst the team, but this was more than that. There was a certain arrogance to this stable hand—a confidence and a level of experience not quite fitting with someone applying for such a casual role.

And clearly he wasn’t the only one who’d noticed—the vet was opening up like a California poppy to the morning sun.

‘Capricorn used to be the star here,’ the vet explained, ‘but then she went lame. She’s obviously bored, though, so some gentle walking might do her good?’ he suggested. ‘Perhaps try her on the water treadmill.’

‘She’s not keen,’ Elias said. ‘Thanks to that bastard—’

‘Who?’ Carmen asked, but he ignored her question. ‘What about taking her down to the beach?’ she suggested. ‘It would be easy on her joints.’

‘For sure,’ the vet agreed. ‘Win-win.’ He nodded to Elias. ‘Right, let’s see Dom, then.’

Carmen was left outside the stable for that consultation, and amused herself by scrolling through her phone, looking at new pictures of little Josefa and reading about the upcoming Jerez Horse Fair.

It would be the first time since her childhood that she’d missed it. Her heart twisted when she thought of the Romero marquee, where her father and brothers would invite favoured guests—the golden ticket that everyone wanted.

Carmen had usually managed to escape that part—she’d always been too busy at Horse Fair time to attend corporate events and had thankfully been excused. She’d stop by, though—briefly—and her father would smile in delight and introduce her and her beloved horse Presumir, who would be beautifully groomed and looking her best—

‘Carmen!’

She looked up and from his impatient stance realised it mustn’t be the first time Elias had called her name.

‘If you can drag yourself away from your phone, go and saddle up Winnie.’

‘Sure.’

‘She kicks,’ he warned.

‘You’re giving her Winnie to try out on?’ Laura checked, frowning at Elias as they walked past. ‘She can be a bit feisty.’

‘Good,’ Carmen said. ‘So can I.’

Unfortunately for Elias, Carmen handled Winnie brilliantly.

So much so that he decided he’d be asking the vet to give his favourite polo pony a once-over—because his usually temperamental mare, who loathed anyone riding her except him, was as docile as a lamb and followed every one of Carmen’s instructions.

Damn, she rode like a dream!

For once he wasn’t admiring the horse, but the rider. And there was a smile on Carmen’s flushed face when, having watched her put the mare through her paces, Elias could not find a single fault.

‘Where did you work before?’ he asked.

‘An event venue in LA.’

Elias refused even to blink. ‘I meant what stables did you work at?’

‘A few places back home in Spain...’

Carmen wasn’t the first casual worker to be evasive.

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