Page 18 of Cowboy Stole My Heart
He saw her smile, knew she was trying not to laugh. He had no idea why, but he suddenly would have done anything to see her smile or hear her laugh again. And hewasn’t about to tell her that he’d already finished up with the stallion for the day. He was damn hungry, and he wanted that sandwich.
***
Mia watched Sam as he guzzled a bottle of water. After he’d left the night before, she’d downloaded Sam’s book and started to read up about him a bit more, brushing up on his techniques. Instead of resenting him still, she was curious again. One minute he seemed kind of standoffish, and the next he was charming as hell. She didn’t know what to make of him, but the familiar flutters she’d always felt when she’d thought about himbefore meeting himwere starting to return.
The clips on his website and on YouTube didn’t do enough to show how impressive he truly was working a horse. Even watching one of his shows live was nothing like being one on one and seeing him work. For all her fuss about being annoyed with him for working alone, she had to admit that he was a genius. He’d been able to read Tex in a way she doubted any other human being could have.
Around her, he was guarded and hard to figure out, but the way he was around a horse was the essence of calm and control. Watching him was something incredible, being part of his work… She wished she didn’t admire him so much, but she did. And she knew that from now on she needed to respect what he was telling her rather than getting her back up over being told what to do. The man knew horses, and she’d be an idiot if she didn’t try to learn everything from him that she could.
Not that she was about to tell him that and make his ego any bigger than it already was though. Hell, there were Pinterest boards and a Facebook fan page dedicated to him, so she doubted he needed any more females fawningover him. She also guessed he was single, he’d sure as hell seemed to be flirting with her today, and there had been very little written about his personal life online. He obviously liked to keep to himself and not openly share anything that went on behind the scenes.
Not interested,she whispered silently to herself. She had to keep reminding herself that she was not interested in the man, no matter how damn gorgeous and talented he was. She wasn’t about to become some pathetic groupie.
When Sam put down the bottle of water she’d brought over for him, she passed him a sandwich she’d made earlier and settled down beside him to eat hers, trying hard not to look at him. She was careful to put some distance between them, not liking the way he threw her off balance. She’d always been wary of men, used to them having ulterior motives for wanting to get to know her or date her, but with Sam she didn’t know what to think. He treated her like a regular person, hardly put her on a pedestal just because of who she was or how much money her family was worth, and she found it… unnerving. For so long she’d been desperate to be treated that way, but she’d become used to the exact opposite. The only other person she was herself around was Kat, and talking with Sam wasn’t anything like hanging out with her siblings, that was for sure.
“So are you the only family member living on the ranch, other than your dad?” Sam asked, his question taking her by surprise.
“I’m the only one who has a permanent base here,” she said, picking at the crust of her sandwich. “My brother Tanner rides rodeo, and he comes and goes if he’s passing by, but my other brother’s a banker in New York, and my sister is an attorney in California.” Mia leaned her headback and took a tiny bite, chewing it quickly then swallowing. “Tan and I spent our childhoods riding and hanging out on the ranch, and Cody and Angelina spent as little time outside and around animals as possible. They’re more interested in my family’s investments, and I’m more interested in ranching.”
Sam laughed. “It’s funny how four kids can be brought up the exact same way, and have such different interests.”
“Trust me, my dad would have liked us all to have big city careers,” Mia said dryly. “He didn’t exactly hide his disappointment when I turned down college in favor of making a living from riding, but at least Tanner had fought the same battle before me. It made it a little easier to say no to him.”
“There ain’t nothing wrong with wanting to breathe fresh air every day instead of air conditioning, that’s for sure,” Sam said. “Good on you for doing what you love. Deep down he probably respects the fact that you’re your own woman with your own passions.”
Mia shrugged. She hoped so, but she didn’t do what she did for her daddy’s approval, she did it for herself.
“So what are we doing with Tex this afternoon?” she asked, leaning against the barn wall where they were having lunch. She had her legs out in front of her, basking in the sun. It wasn’t too hot and she was enjoying the heat on her bare arms, even if she did have to squint against the glare.
“Yeah, I may have misled you about that.”
Mia chewed and swallowed her mouthful. “I’m sorry, what?”
She sat in silence, waiting as Sam wolfed down the half of sandwich he was holding. He’d attacked it like he’d never eaten before. She was used to watching herbrothers devour more food than a human being should ever be able to consume, but watching Sam was different. He was sexy as hell, and she found it hard not to stare at him now that they were close. He had a shadow of stubble on his jaw, his dark hair was tousled, and his shirtsleeves were rolled up past his elbow showing off tanned, muscled forearms. When he turned to her and flashed her a smile, she knew that Kat was right. She did think he was gorgeous and it had been way too long since she’d been with a man.
“I mean,” he said, looking guilty as hell, “that I might have misled you just to get you to give me lunch.”
“Youwhat?” How could he be so gorgeous but so damn infuriating!
“I don’t want to push him, he did good today. So I’ll leave it at that until tomorrow. Other than to give him some more hay before I leave.”
“Sam! I’m not the hired help, you know. I don’t exist to bring you coffee and sandwiches for no good reason.”
She was pissed now. He was treating her like…
“The hired help?” he chuckled. “No, that would be me. Technically you’re the boss, sweetheart.”
She glared at him, losing interest in her lunch. “Well, as your boss, I’m telling you that I expect more from you today.”
“Oh really? Well, I say that boss or not, you don’t get to tell me what I can and can’t do with the horse.”
Heat flooded her cheeks, burning her skin and vivifying her anger. Who the hell did he think he was?
“So you’re done for the day?” she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.
“No,” he said, eyeing up her sandwich. “You done with that? They were damn good.”
“Have it,” she said, hastily passing it to him, yankingher hand back when his fingers touched his. She angrily watched him eat it. “So what is it you propose to do for the rest of the day?”
