Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 128313 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 642(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128313 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 642(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
“Hallie!” Leon’s loud voice broke through my racing thoughts—thoughts I couldn’t contain, hadn’t been able to for days now. I could still feel Jasper’s body heat as he moved before me, scalding me like a flame. I could smell the sandalwood and mint of his cologne.
And I couldn’t stop from imagining him crushing his lips to mine or showing me exactly what he did to women who spoke back to him.
“Hallie! Jesus . . .” Leon said, breaking through my Jasper-fueled haze again. When I looked at Leon, I realized I was just circling the track, Huxley keeping me safe with his steady pace.
“Sorry!” I said, and brought Huxley to a walk. Leon headed toward me from his place in the center of the ring. His eyes were narrowed as he assessed me. I smoothed my features. I didn’t think “I’ve been fantasizing about your boss and almost-brother and all the dirty things he could do to me in bed” would be a good-enough excuse for why my head had been in the clouds in today’s session.
“I’m distracted. I know. I’m sorry,” I said, and brought Huxley to a halt. Leon stood beside me, arms crossed.
“We don’t have time for distractions, Hallie. Every minute of practice is essential.” Leon’s head tipped to the side as he regarded me. “You’re not normally like this—you’re always focused. What’s on your mind?”
My heart stopped. Huxley moved restlessly beneath me, clearly feeling my distress. “I haven’t been sleeping,” I said, lying through my teeth. “I think it’s just catching up with me.”
“Are you following the training plan?” Leon asked suspiciously. The training plan. What to eat, when and how much sleep, and non-riding-related exercise we riders were to do to keep in top form.
“Of course!” I said with a little too much enthusiasm. I wasn’t. At all. Late-night jogs and confrontations with Jasper weren’t exactly “sticking to the rules.” Nor was the number of times I had fought touching myself while thinking of my boss.
My fucking boss. Who was most certainly, absolutely forbidden.
“Why don’t I believe you?” Leon said, a whisper of a smirk pulling on his mouth. Leon was a tough nut to crack, but he’d shown flickers of humor under his stern exterior during our sessions. I liked him. Loved training with him. My stomach rolled. I didn’t want to let him down.
I sighed and ran my hand down my face.
“Let’s call it for today,” Leon said, and I snapped my head up.
“No, really, I’ll get myself together—”
“Sage will be here soon,” Leon said, cutting me off. He ran his hand down Huxley’s blaze. “It’s not working today. No need to keep going when it doesn’t feel right. We don’t want Huxley”—Leon met my eyes—“or you unnecessarily stressed.”
I sank into my saddle, relaxing and taking note of Huxley beneath me. I closed my eyes and focused on my horse. Leon was right. Huxley was tense, and that was only because of me. I was off, and he sensed it, so the atmosphere was off.
“I’ll be better tomorrow,” I promised Leon, leaning down to hug Huxley’s neck in apology for being a dud of a rider today.
“Rest, sleep, we’ll reconvene tomorrow.” Leon patted Huxley’s neck and walked toward the jump to fix the pole as Sage entered the arena. I clicked my tongue, indicating for Huxley to walk on, and met Sage near the doors to outside.
“What’s up your ass?” she asked, clearly reading my face.
I blew out a long, frustrated breath. “Off day,” I said. I hadn’t told Sage of my run-ins with Jasper. It didn’t feel right telling anyone about Jasper being so broken by something. If I’d tried to explain about the fountain incident, it would need context from our night at the barn. So I’d kept things to myself.
“Why’re you having an off day?” Sage questioned, because of course she did. She knew me. Her eyes narrowed. “You don’t have ‘off days.’”
“Well, hell just froze over because I’m having one today.”
“Sage, when you’re ready!” Leon called from across the arena.
I clucked Huxley on, making my escape, when Sage leaned in close. “If you think I’m leaving it there, darlin’, you’re sorely mistaken.” Sage trotted Seraphina onto the track, and I left through the doors, letting the bite of the winter chill slap at my cheeks.
“Do you want me to take Hux?” Mila said out of nowhere, making me jump. “Sorry!” she said, holding up her hands.
“Not your fault, Mila,” I said. “I’m all over the place today.” I looked out onto the bridle paths that surrounded the property. “I’m going to hack out on one of these paths for a while, darlin’. I’ll turn him out in the field when I’m done.”
“You sure?” Mila asked, clearly also sensing something was off with me. At this point, I should have been wearing a neon sign that read, “Approach with caution, I’m having salacious thoughts about my boss.”