“Well, I better get out there.” Roni checked her phone, and realized it was close to eight o’clock.
When she got out to the stables she realized the horses had already been fed. She opened up Poohbear’s stall and started to take him out to the training arena so she could muck his stall while he stretched his legs. With no sign of her new boss, she figured he must be getting a late start. Their old manager, Gary, was known to start late more times than not. As Roni rounded the corner with Poohbear, though, there was the new stable manager already in the training ring with Jezebel.
Jezebel was prancing around him and tossing her head like she was annoyed. Poohbear neighed, and Roni instinctively put her hand on his neck to soothe him. The manager had his back to her, and his muscles looked like they would rip his shirt apart any minute. His jeans were tight in all the right places, all the way down to his cowboy boots. Roni felt herself break out in a sweat at just the sight of him.
Poohbear tugged on his lead, reminding her she needed to put him back. She turned them around and headed back into the stable. As much as she wanted to introduce herself properly to her new boss, she wanted to get control of her over-active hormones first. After putting Poohbear back, she grabbed a shovel and the wheelbarrow and headed over to Jezebel’s stall to muck it out. Her muscles argued over the strenuous labor, having grown accustomed to hours of inactivity while studying. Roni worked through it, and finished Jezebel’s stall just as he walked her back in.
“Thank you,” he said in a deep voice. He lacked the southern drawl, catching her attention that he must not be originally from the south.
“You don’t have to thank me for doing my job.” She hadn’t meant it to sound so bitchy, but having his total attention directed on her was disarming.
“Okay, then.” He led Jezebel into the stall and gave her a few extra pats along with a sugar cube.
Roni watched him, but he didn’t turn back to her until he had the gate locked on the stall.
“I’m sorry about last night.”
“No need to apologize. I’m Justin, by the way.” He extended his hand, and Roni looked down at hers before accepting.
“So, Roni, do you usually start at eight?”
“Gary wasn’t much of an early riser, so yeah, that was the typical start time. I can see you prefer to get an earlier start, though,” she said.
“I do. It’s better for the horses if they are fed and trained around the same time every day. Consistency is the key to breeding good horses.”
“Okay, well what time would you like me here?”
“I want to start feeding at six, and training at eight. You and Daniel can trade off who does stalls and who trains. I’ll also be around helping with the training. We have a new mare, Bri, and she’s not broken in yet so I’ll be focusing on her more. If you need help getting her in and out of the stall just let Daniel or me know.”
Roni tried not to let her irritation show that he thought she would need extra help. He’d have no way of knowing that she had grown up in the stables and had broken in her fair share of horses. Instead she nodded and dismissed the thought of asking him or Daniel for anything.
“Where is Daniel?”
“I sent him out to the local feed store. There’s a good multigrain feed I’d like the horses to start getting once a week. He should be back any time now but I’ll be doing training today.” He turned and went to the next horse, letting her know he was done talking. Roni rolled her eyes as she grabbed her wheelbarrow and headed over to the compost site towards the back of the property.
After she dumped out its contents, she went to start on the next stall. As she made her way around the training ring she tried not to glare at Justin’s back. Why were all good-looking men such pig-headed assholes? Roni spent the rest of her time mucking stalls, trying to work out her frustration towards her new boss. While at the same time trying not to picture his perfect butt in his blue jeans.
Chapter Three
Justin
Justin shut the final horse back in its stall after training. He rolled his shoulders to ward off the stiffness. His bear was restless to shift. It had been a while since his bear had been that way. He looked over at Roni as she stopped for a water break. The sweat was glistening on her face and neck, which made Justin groan. He knew he needed to start getting the horses acclimated to him in his bear form, but he didn’t want to do it with her nearby.
The horses could sense his bear, but it was another thing to see it. When Daniel came around the corner with a fresh bale of hay, he decided to have him help.
“Daniel, you got a minute?”
“Sure thing, boss.” Justin flinched at the word. He liked that he was the boss, but he didn’t like being called “boss.” Weird, he knew, but something about it seemed too formal for him.
“I want to work the horses one at time, but this time I’m going to be in my bear form. We’re basically just introducing them to me to see how they respond.”
“Okay.” Daniel tossed the bale down and tucked his gloves into his back pocket.
Justin pulled Jezebel back out of her stall and headed back to the training ring. He could feel Roni’s eyes on him the entire time. He knew he had pissed her off earlier by suggesting she get Daniel or himself to help her with the new mare. Her feistiness made him smirk. Justin also knew that the fact that he didn’t ask her to help him now was making her angrier.
Once Jezebel was in the ring, he let her sniff his hand again. He looked at Daniel and nodded to make sure he was ready. Daniel shrugged indifferently. Justin liked that about Daniel. He did what he needed to do and kept his head down. Justin took his shirt off and next, his boots and pants. He could still feel Roni watching so he kept his briefs on. Then he shifted.
It felt good to be in his bear form. He shook out his coat before focusing back on Jezebel. She whimpered and took several steps back. Daniel still didn’t move, though. Justin sat back on his haunches and held out his paw. Jezebel threw her head as if to say no way, but after a few minutes she took a tentative step forward. A few more and she was sniffing his paw. Roni had made her way over to the ring then, and was leaning up against the fence.
Justin got up on all fours and began to move around the training ring as well. Jezebel didn’t like it at first, but it wasn’t long before she became playful with him. Justin hoped the rest of the horses responded half as well as Jezebel did. He nudged his head to Daniel to take Jezebel back, and then headed to the fence where his clothes were. He knew Roni was still there, but he needed to be back in his human form. He shifted, and even though his back was to her he heard her gasp at his nakedness.
He tried to hold his laughter in as he pulled his pants back on and waited for Daniel to bring out another horse. He didn’t bother putting on the rest of his clothes or his boots since he would be shifting again. Roni diverted her eyes when he looked her way, and the scarlet color on her cheeks indicated she figured that part out herself.
“That went better than expected,” he said to break the ice.
“Why is it important for them to see you in your bear form? Will you be walking around like that a lot here?”
“Yes and no. I live here now, and part of that will mean I need to be able to be in my bear form. Also, for situations like that night, had you in fact been an intruder I may have needed to shift, and I can’t risk the horses hurting themselves if they see me shift like that. They need to be comfortable with it. As do you all. Some people have never even met a shifter.”
“I knew a couple in college. I’d never seen them shift, though.”
“Glad I could be your first,” he said with a smirk. A blush covered her face again, and she looked behind him at Daniel bringing out Poohbear.
“I bet Poohbear handles it better than Jezebel,” she said.
“Loser buys the first round tonight?” Justin challenged.
“You’re so on. I know Poohbear better than anyone. He’s got this.”
Justin turned to f
ace Poohbear and Daniel as they made their way into the ring.
“Ready?” Justin asked. Daniel nodded this time and leaned up against the fence.
Justin once again held out his hand to Poohbear who sniffed it. Justin looked right at Roni when he dropped his pants, and laughed a deep, booming laugh at her face before shifting. Once in his bear form, Poohbear lost it. Daniel lunged to grab his reins, but Poohbear was faster. Justin side-stepped him several times, and tried to get around the giant horse so he could find a window of a couple of seconds allowing him to shift back. The horse didn’t like that at all. Daniel finally caught the reins and tried to steady the horse with no luck.
Justin saw Roni climbing the fence, and before he could stop her she launched herself into the ring and ran to Poohbear. Justin wanted to grab her and toss her out of the ring, but if he advanced on Poohbear now Roni would definitely be injured. He could only watch in horror. The horse reared back just as Roni made it to him.
“Poohbear, you stupid male, you just cost me a beer!” Roni yelled at the angry beast.
Much to Justin and Daniel’s surprise, the horse listened. He dropped down and bowed his head in shame. Roni rubbed his muzzle and leaned her head against his. Justin couldn’t believe his eyes. She was like the horse whisperer.
“Try coming closer to him now with me here,” she said.
Justin shook his head. No way was he going to risk that. He took a step back to emphasize his meaning. Roni didn’t listen, and started to lead Poohbear over to him. Poohbear acted like a timid lamb as long as Roni was touching him. Justin was finally able to get Poohbear to smell his paw, and then Justin tossed his head to tell her to take him out. Justin shifted and got dressed to follow them into the stables.
“That was reckless, getting in the ring like that!” he shouted.
“It worked, didn’t it? Pooh likes women. More importantly, he likes me.”
“I don’t care. You could have gotten yourself killed.”
“He would never hurt me.”
“He’s an animal, you have no idea what he’s capable of!”
“So what does that make you?” she sneered.
Chapter Four
Roni
Roni had no idea why she had said what she’d said to Justin. Somehow they had managed to get off on the wrong foot, and they just kept spiraling down. When she wasn’t busy being pissed at him or annoyed, she couldn’t quit fantasizing about his body. The jerk had to go and make it worse by standing buck naked in front of her in all of his muscle-toned glory.
She handed the new mare, Bri, another sugar cube. The mare was a nasty bit of goods, which fit Roni’s mood perfectly. Justin had spun tires out of his driveway minutes after she had snapped at him, leaving her alone and in a rotten mood. Part of her felt she needed to apologize, and the other part wanted to kick some sense into him. Daniel came around the corner, headed out to his truck.
“Hey, do you know where the boss would have taken off to?”
“A bar called The Kamp over in Metairie. He invited me over for a drink. Wanna come?”
“Yes, please. Let me go grab my purse.”
Roni ran into the main house and grabbed her small sling purse. She looked down at herself covered in dust from the day, and decided to change quickly. A pair of skinny jeans and flowy tank top with her favorite leather flip flops would have to do. Daniel was waiting for her in his truck when she came running back to the barn.
“Sorry, a girl’s got to keep up appearances.”
“Hey, don’t let me cramp your style. Beer will taste the same when we get there.” He held his hands up in mock surrender before kicking the truck in gear. The ride over was quick from her parents’ home in old Metairie. She’d never heard of the bar before, but being gone at college so many changes went unnoticed.
When they walked in, the bar was pretty crowded for a Tuesday night. She scanned the room and found Justin at a table with a group of other men. One look at their size, and she wondered if they were shifters as well. Several of them had women plastered to their sides. Her heart dipped at the thought that Justin may have a woman.
His eyes locked on hers, and she felt another shudder pass through her body. His eyes seemed deeper, and they never left hers as she made her way over to him.
“Hey, could we talk? I think I owe you a beer,” she said, trying to ignore the table full of people now staring at her.
“Hi, I’m Emma, and this is my mate Jasper,” one of the women said as she jumped up and put her hand out. Roni shook it, but her gaze went right back to Justin.
“This is Roni, she works for me at the stables.”
Everybody gave her a greeting of some kind and she tossed a quick wave up. Her eyes were pleading when she turned back to Justin then. Standing there in front of all of his friends, she felt like a giant ass for what she had said. He knew she was starting to feel guilty, too. The longer he made her stand there, the angrier she got.
“Do you want your drink or not?” she huffed out, fully prepared to leave and walk home if he didn’t move in the next second.
“I’ve never been one to pass up a free beer,” he said, rising to his full height.
She turned to head towards the bar, and yelped when his hand found its way to the small of her back. It felt like it had branded into her skin, the warmth was so intense. It also sent a shot of desire straight to her core.
She led him to the far end of the bar where nobody else was sitting.
“Look, I’m sorry for what I said back at the stables. That was a shitty thing to say.”
He nodded to the bartender and held up two fingers, signaling for their drinks. Roni rolled her eyes, because he hadn’t even bothered to ask her what she drank. He also had yet to acknowledge her apology.
“Excuse me? You know I’m apologizing, but you could do some apologizing of your own. You’re kind of a jerk.”
He laughed a deep, booming laugh then, and several eyes turned their way. Once he had their two beers in hand, he passed her one, and then held his up for a cheers. She clinked her glass bottle against his and took a long drink. Roni had given up beer after her freshman year, but after the day she had, it tasted good.
“So,” she said, slamming her bottle down.
Instead of responding, he smirked at her. He still had a layer of dust on him from work, and his shaggy hair was starting to fall in his face. Roni caught her hand before she reached out to brush some back in place. His eyes went dark, and she heard a rumble come from his chest at her movement.
“Sorry,” she whispered, not really sure what she was apologizing for.
“Don’t,” he said, and then he grabbed her hand and placed her palm on his face. He leaned his head into it, and the rumble grew louder. His eyes seemed to glow.
Roni’s heart felt like it would beat out of her chest. Desire like she had never felt before was zipping through her body at warp speed to all the right places. For such a simple touch, she felt completely undone by it. His response apparently was much the same because he took a deep unsteady breath.
“What’s happening?” she asked.
No sooner did the words leave her mouth then he jumped off and pulled away. She already missed his touch. Tears swam in her eyes at what felt like rejection, but she hadn’t even come here to proposition him. Her emotions swirled.
“Thanks for the beer, and the apology. I accept both of them. Do you need a ride back to the house?”
She shook her head, not sure if she could speak without sounding upset. Roni sat down her beer and shoved past him to leave. One of the other women who hadn’t introduced herself from Justin’s group of friends waved as she walked past, but she didn’t return the gesture. Justin would probably go back and have a good laugh at almost having seduced the little rich girl.
Chapter Five
Justin
Roni didn’t come back down to the stables the next morning. He couldn’t say he blamed her. He had acted like a jerk yesterday. Last night at the
bar when she reached out to touch him, all he could think about was feeling her touch. When he laid her palm on his face, the mate bond surged to life, and he could feel it swirling around them. Just when he thought his luck in life was turning around, he ends up finding his mate in the absolute last place he can afford to find her.
Not only was Roni, or Veronica, as he preferred to think of her, stunningly beautiful, she was wealthy. He, on the other hand, barely had two pennies to rub together, working for her family, and living in their stable apartment. No way in hell would her family approve of him. To top it all off, he was a shifter. Not a lot of human dads wanted their daughters with shifters, especially broke ones.
Justin dragged his hand through his hair and tried to steady his nerves. He was anxious to see her. Ever since he had felt her touch the previous night, he had been craving more. His bear wanted to find her. Justin wanted to find her, too, but he also wanted to keep the dream job he had worked so hard to land as well.
Jerry strolled out of the barn then to join him in the training ring.
“Hope you don’t mind Roni sitting out. She just got back in from grad school, and I think jumping back into tough labor the next morning was too much. She’s out cold upstairs.”
“No worries. Daniel and I’ve got it covered. She feeling okay?”
“Yeah, just needs to catch up on her rest. How’d she get along yesterday?”
“Great. She’s a natural with the horses, they love her.”
“She’s always been that way. Roni has always preferred being out here mucking stalls than wearing dresses or going to parties. Most Friday nights when she was in high school you could find her hanging out with Pooh in there. Trained him all by herself from the time he was a pony.”
Justin could tell she had a special bond with Pooh, but he never would have dreamed she had trained him. The pride was evident in her father’s voice, which gave Justin a twinge of jealousy for his family. The only thing his family had ever seen in him was an easy scapegoat, the runt of the family. That’s why he had taken off when he turned eighteen and never looked back. Trust fund money be damned.
Growth of the Bear (Bear Kamp Book 3) Page 2
