‘Here's the satnav,’ said Jamie, handing the small black screen to Anna. ‘I've put Tex's address in there, so you should have no trouble. Now, you've printed the plane ticket, haven't you, and your hire car form? Travel authorisation for entry into the States?’
Anna waved the e-tickets at Jamie. ‘Yes. Thank you so much.’ She had used Jamie's laptop to book her tickets for the following day. All she had to do now was go home and pack a few things. The taxi for the morning was all booked too.
‘You're more than welcome,’ smiled Yvonne, giving Anna a hug. ‘I really hope you and Tex sort things out. We both do. Jamie was only being a bit difficult under Tex's instructions.’
‘I know. I understand.’
‘Don't forget, you can have your job back once you and Tex have sorted yourselves out,’ said Jamie.
Drive for point-two miles and arrive at destination, announced the borrowed satnav. Anna gave a wry laugh. She couldn’t exactly get lost on this one way track to Moonshadow Meadows. Within a couple of minutes Anna pulled up outside the gates of the ranch.
It had been a long journey and she was exhausted. On reflection, perhaps she should have booked a motel. Given herself chance to freshen up. She looked down at herself. Trousers crumpled. Stain on her t-shirt from the juice she’d spilt on the flight. Glancing at her reflection in the rear-view mirror made her mind up. She looked dreadful. She needed to look her best. She turned the hire car around on the track and headed back towards Brenham town. She’d book in to a motel she remembered seeing, near that Italian restaurant Tex had taken her to. She wanted to make herself presentable. No wait, make that irresistible.
Something made him do a double take of the sedan that had just crossed the lights in front of him. Hell, what was he thinking? Just because the driver was blonde it didn’t mean it was her. Why would she be driving through town? The lights turned to green and Tex swung his brother’s pick-up round the corner, heading back towards the ranch. He must stop this. Thinking about her was becoming a habit. One that he needed to get out of.
He purposefully turned his thoughts to that evening and Carrie. Yes, that was better. He'd been into town and bought himself a new shirt and trousers, together with a pair of shoes. He wanted to wear something new. Something that he couldn't associate with anything or, rather, anyone. That way he would stay focused tonight. He was a bit out of practice wooing and romancing a female. The fact that it was Carrie shouldn't make it any less of an occasion. She would at least want to feel like they had gone through the motions of a romantic evening. Even Carrie, despite the obvious green light she'd given him, would want to feel like he was making an effort and that it wasn't just for sex. Although, to all intents and purposes, that's exactly what it was.
He just needed to go home now and put some clean sheets on the bed, shower, dress, put the wine in the fridge for later, and that would give him enough time to have a quick drink with Al at Finnigan’s bar in Brenham, before picking up Carrie. The table was all booked at the Colloseum Italian restaurant on South Market Street. Perfect.
Sitting outside the gates of the ranch once again, Anna felt rather more glamorous than she had earlier that afternoon. Even though it was early evening, it was still extremely hot. She had opted for the lightweight floaty dress she had worn for her first proper date with Tex.
Okay, this was it. She opened the gate and drove through onto the track, remembering to close it behind her. She could drive straight to Creek Cottage without having to go past the main ranch house. There was a little turning on the left a bit of the way up that Tex always took. As she turned the slight bend in the track and Creek Cottage came into view, she saw a quad bike parked out the front. Her heart gave a little flutter.
She parked outside and, as she stepped out into the hot evening, she paused at the bottom of the steps leading up to the porch. Surely he had heard her car. She’d just have to knock.
No answer.
She knocked again and tried the handle. The door opened and she took a couple of steps in, calling out his name.
Nothing. Totally empty.
Her heart dropped. She had been so geared up to see him and now that feeling transformed into major disappointment.
Perhaps Jamie had it wrong. Tex wasn’t here at all. She had tried to call his mobile but it had just gone straight to voicemail. She had been so sure he would come back to the ranch.
‘He’s gone into town.’
Anna jumped at the voice behind her. Spinning round, she was relieved to see Tex’s brother standing in the doorway.
‘Oh, Mikey. You startled me.’
‘Hey there, Anna. You okay? I didn’t know you were coming.’ He smiled at her in that familiar Garcia way.
‘Nor did I until yesterday,’ she smiled back at him. ‘Do you know where he is?’
‘Not exactly, only that he’s gone into Brenham.’ He wiped his forehead with a handkerchief. ‘Said something about meeting an old friend.’
‘You wouldn’t happen to know where he might go?’
‘Probably Finnigan’s. Come on, I’ll take you there.’
Tex looked across the table at Carrie as she chatted easily to him about their mutual friends. Bringing him up to speed with what everyone was doing, where they were working or living, who had divorced, and so on. Carrie was a very beautiful woman and she was wearing a particularly low-cut dress, Tex was appreciative of the way it showed off her full cleavage to the maximum and how it fitted round her slender waist and hugged her hips like a second skin. The slightly rounded hips swung from side to side like a pendulum as she sashayed across the restaurant to the restroom. No sign of a panty line, just a smooth, well-toned butt, thought Tex. Slender legs and high heels.
‘I don't think I'll have a dessert. Not good for the figure,’ she said as she sat back in her seat, running her hand seductively down the side of her breast and waist, pushing her chest out and smiling at him from under her eyelashes. ‘Mmmm? What are you thinking?’
Tex realised she was waiting for him to say something. Hell, he couldn't say what he was thinking – how Anna always had a dessert, said it was her favourite part of a meal. He smiled slowly, buying a bit of time, before coming up with, ‘I think your figure is very good as it is.’
Carrie tittered. ‘You could always ask for a closer inspection if you’re not sure.’
‘I may just do that,’ replied Tex, unsure whom he was trying to convince more. ‘Let's get a drink at Finnigan’s before we go back.’
‘We could just go straight to mine, it is closer.’
‘It's still early. We've got all night.’ Tex realised he was stalling. Why was he was putting the inevitable off? What was up with him? He really needed to stop thinking about Anna. He stood up and exhaled, as if exorcising the thought of her from his mind. Then smiling, he pulled Carrie's chair out for her and as she stood, whispered in her ear, ‘Mine will be better, I have some wine waiting for us after we call by Finnigan’s for a late drink.’
The bar was busier than Anna remembered. She scanned the room but couldn’t see Tex.
Mikey passed her drink. ‘Iced lemonade. You sure you don’t wanna beer?’ He then nudged her arm. ‘Hey, look there’s Tex… oh shit.’
Anna followed Mikey’s gaze to the table by the jukebox, her eyes coming to rest on Tex. Oh shit, indeed. Her heart flipped. Several times. She could feel the rush of adrenalin surge to the tips of her fingers. He was sitting opposite Al but next to him was a woman, and Tex had his arm casually draped round the back of her chair, his fingers resting lightly on her shoulder.
Al looked up, smiled at seeing his brother, then noticing Anna, she could see him offer the same expletive that Mikey just had. Tex looked round, his eyes locking onto Anna. Every sense in Anna's body told her to turn and run. The urge to flee was overwhelming.
Hurriedly and clumsily, Anna dumped her glass on the bar, sloshing some lemonade out as she did so, before making a dash for the door. It felt as if a black mass was surroundin
g her, closing her in, drawing her into a dark hole of emptiness. She needed some fresh air.
Outside, Anna took big gulps of warm night air. Resting her hands on her knees, she leant forwards slightly. Gradually her breathing slowed. Standing up, she tried to think clearly. Normally, it would be at this point she jumped in her car and headed off home, beaten into surrender. Not questioning. Never knowing what if. Could she face going home, never seeing Tex again, never telling him how she felt?
Taking a final deep breath, Anna pushed open the door to the bar. All heads turned towards her but she didn't look at anyone, only at Tex. He was standing talking earnestly to the woman at his table. They stopped talking and both looked at Anna. Then the woman picked up her bag and, accompanied by Mikey, walked towards the door. She smiled as she approached Anna.
‘He may have been with me in body this evening, but his mind, heart and soul have been with you, honey.’ Looking over her shoulder, Carrie smiled and waved at Tex, before linking arms with Mikey and leaving.
In just a few strides Tex was across the bar, standing in front of Anna.
It was now or never. Inhaling deeply, Anna spoke, sounding almost businesslike. ‘Can we talk?’
Tex nodded. Resting his hand lightly on her arm, he guided her out of the bar. ‘You need a revolving door.’ Just the touch of his hand seemed to burn right through her skin.
Despite the heat, she was aware that she was shaking slightly from nerves as she turned to face him. Oh how she wanted him to take her into his arms, tell her he loved her and that everything would be all right. Wasn't that supposed to happen now?
Tex was just standing there, obviously waiting for her to speak. His aftershave, that familiar citrus smell wafted in the air around them. She looked at his beautiful brown eyes, his thick lashes, his sexy mouth that she had kissed so many times, his face that she had caressed and felt against her own. She loved him so much. Whatever happened now, she wanted to remember him as he looked tonight. Beautiful. Handsome. Sexy.
‘That woman, in the bar. Is she…? I mean, are you and her … ?’ The words stuck in her throat.
Tex shook his head gently, his eyes never leaving hers. ‘I was attempting pain relief.’
‘Was it effective?’
‘Not one bit. I think I need open-heart surgery to stop the pain.’
Anna studied his face, working out what he was actually saying. A rush of excitement swept through her. There was still hope.
‘I saw Zoe. She said you had been to see her.’
Tex nodded. He touched her wrist. ‘She gave you your watch back then? Did she give you anything else?’
She cast her eyes down for a second. ‘Mark said he’d send the photos out to everyone if I didn’t go along with him. He was going to cause trouble for your restaurant. I had no idea he had tried to blackmail you too.’ She looked up at him now. She wanted him to believe what she was about to say. ‘I should have told you. I should have trusted you but…’
He put his finger to her lips and shook his head. ‘You don’t have to explain. I know exactly what happened.’
‘The message saying I didn’t want to see you. It wasn’t from me. Luke sent it.’
Tex raised his eyebrows, that he hadn’t figured out. He could hear the words catching in her throat but he let her speak.
‘He changed your number in my contact list. I didn’t know. I did try to contact you, I promise.’
He looked down at her hands as she nervously twiddled her fingers. There was no sign of the wedding and engagement ring she usually wore on her right hand. He lifted her hand and gently rubbed his thumb over the bare skin. So, she’d finally ditched the last remnant of her marriage. He let her hand fall away. He knew he wasn’t making it easy for her but he had to be sure this was what she wanted.
She spoke again. ‘Luke's gone back to California with Mark, and I've got a little flat in Chichester now.’
Another protracted pause as he looked intently at her before speaking. ‘So you came all this way just to tell me that?’
‘Yes. No, I mean.’ He could see tears begin to gather in her eyes. ‘Me and Mark are divorcing. I couldn't divorce him before. Mark said if I did he'd ruin your business. It wasn't that I didn't want to divorce him. I did. But I wanted to protect you. I'm so sorry. I should have told you.’ The words were tumbling out now. ‘I just wanted to tell you. To tell you that I'm sorry, I never meant to hurt you. I've missed you so much, so very much.’ The tears were falling.
He held back from taking her in his arms and comforting her. She still hadn’t given him enough.
She looked up at him, swallowed hard. ‘I love you. More than anything.’
Then he was holding her to him, his arms wrapping tightly around her, pulling her close to his body. She’d said what he’d wanted to hear. She sobbed into his chest as he stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head.
‘It's okay,’ he whispered into her hair between kisses, squeezing her, holding her, caressing her. ‘I love you more than you will ever know. I don't ever wanna let you go.’ He pulled away and tipping her chin up with his hand, cupped her face and wiped away the tears with his thumbs. Then he kissed her. Kissed her with a passion. God, that felt so good. So right. It seemed to go on forever.
Finally, Tex pulled away and looked directly into her eyes. ‘Tell me again.’
Anna laughed through her tears. ‘I love you.’
‘You don't know how many times I wanted to hear you say that.’ He kissed her again. Longer. More urgently. More meaningfully. ‘Come back to the ranch.’
‘I'm booked in at the motel up the road.’ She was teasing him now.
‘Well, we’ll just have to unbook you then.’ He released her from his hold. ‘Wait right there. Don’t move.’
He jogged back into Finnigan’s and came back out almost immediately, jangling some keys in his hand. He wrapped her in his arms again, taking time to breathe in the familiar vanilla scent, feel the curves of her body against his. She had come for him, and he knew finally he could give himself to someone. He squeezed her tighter and lifted her off her feet.
‘I love you.’
‘It’s a mutual thing.’ She kissed him.
Tex let out a groan and rested her down on the ground again. He nuzzled her neck. ‘Let’s stop by the motel.’
She pulled back to look at him. ‘Would be a shame to waste it now I’ve paid for it.’
When Tex swept her up into his arms and carried her towards the pick-up truck, she was grinning like the proverbial Cheshire Cat.
‘Officer and a Gentleman?’ She laughed. ‘Pah! Richard Gere, eat your heart out!’
Stable Mates
ZARA STONELEY
A division of HarperCollinsPublishers
www.harpercollins.co.uk
This one is for you, Mum! xx
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Dedication
Tippermere
The Residents of Tippermere
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Acknowledgements
Tippermere
Welcome to tranquil Tippermere, set deep in the Cheshire countryside. Home to lords and ladies, horsemen and farmers.
Set on the highest hill, keeping a close eye on the village and its inhabitants, lies Tipping
House Estate. In pride of place is the grand Elizabethan-style mansion, sweeping down in front of her are immaculate gardens, well-kept parkland and rolling acres that spread as far as the eye can see.
Follow the stream down to the flat below, and nestling between copses and lakes, you find Folly Lake Manor and the sprawling grounds of the bustling Equestrian Centre. The country lane in front wends its way between high hedges to the village green, the church and two village pubs. It then fans out into tributaries. Follow them further and you find a small eventing yard, a scattering of country cottages and rambling working farms.
Take the road north eastwards, travel on a few short miles and soon the elegant village of Kitterly Heath unfolds before you - a village whose origins were recorded in the Domesday Book. At one end of the ancient high street a solid 14th-century church stands sentry, with an imposing school at the other, and all around sprawl the mansions, old and new, that house the rich and famous…
The Residents of Tippermere
Marcus James – millionaire businessman owner of Folly Lake Manor and the Equestrian Centre at Tippermere. Recently deceased.
Amanda James – the grieving widow. Elegant and understated, delicate and demure.
Charlotte ‘Lottie’ Brinkley – disorganised but lovable daughter of Billy. Desperately seeking something, if only she knew what.
Rory Steel – devilishly daring and sexy three-day eventer, owner of a small eventing yard in Tippermere.
Tilly – head of the terrier trio that accompanies Rory everywhere.
The Little Shop of Afternoon Delights Page 96
