Page 37 of Virgin's Stolen Nights with the Boss

‘Yeah,’ he said.

‘I mean...’

She opened her mouth to explain that her head was not tired—that it hadn’t been for most of her life, and certainly not since her father died. That she meantphysicallytired, and that felt like a blessing.

‘It doesn’t matter...’ She put up a hand, as if to say it was too hard to explain, but...

Elias nodded.

‘Yep.’

He’d kill to be tired tonight.

Instead of hard for Carmen.

CHAPTER EIGHT

‘YOU’RESUREABOUTTOMORROW?’ Blake checked as Carmen headed out for her evening walk with Capricorn. ‘I can get someone in...’

‘No need.’ Carmen shook her head. ‘I wouldn’t know how to...’ She paused to recall one of the many new expressions she had learnt. ‘How to “man the line”. It all sounds very chaotic.’

‘We wouldn’t have you manning the line.’ Blake grinned. ‘There’s always a lot of other stuff to do, though, and—’

‘Well, I’m sure Laura’s busy enough without training me on the job at a semi-final.’

‘Fair enough,’ Blake said. ‘I’ll see you bright and early tomorrow.’

‘I’ll be up long before it’s bright,’ Carmen said with a smile.

But as soon as she walked away she let her smile drop.

Elias hadn’t been at the yard today, and she had missed seeing him far too much for comfort.

So, no, she didnotwant to be at the polo semi-final tomorrow and get caught up in this intriguing sport. Nor did she want to watch Elias compete...

Carmen attempted to switch off that thought but it wasn’t as easy as turning off her smile. Her mind kept flickering towards it as she took Capricorn out a little deeper into the sea, pleased that the mare was really enjoying it.

‘See?’ Carmen said as she stood waist-deep in the ocean next to the gentle horse. ‘It’s nice for your legs and that big belly...’

Capricorn had certainly got a lot bigger in the past couple of weeks.

Today had been Carmen’s first taste of a really hot Californian day, so it could well be the case, she told herself, that the weather was to blame for her pensive mood now. She wore denim shorts and a yellow bikini top, and for once was without her phone.

She was sick and tired of the pressure from her brothers to get the legal ball rolling over the house, as well as exhausted by calls from Maria, pleading her case.

‘Carmen, I know was absent, I know that I hurt you, but I came back. I was there for your father and I’m trying to be here for you now. You’re the one who’s left...you’re the one in America...’

‘Nice?’ she said to Capricorn, scooping water over her back.

Yet even with Capricorn’s antics Carmen struggled to smile.

It wasn’t just her family issues niggling at her...

She looked at her arms and, though they were still slender, saw that her biceps were certainly coming on. Taking sets of four or five horses out for hours each morning and wrestling their different temperaments along with their reins was good for her.

‘Maybe Icouldman the line,’ Carmen grumbled, suddenly upset with herself for refusing Blake’s offer, knowing it had confused him, and no doubt the other grooms too...

Whywouldn’tshe want to go and watch the game they’d spent hours of every day preparing the horses for?

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