The Damaged Heroes Collection [Box Set #1: The Damaged Heroes Collection] (BookStrand Publishing Mainstream)

by James, Sandy

  “Do you remember when I told you that Sterling Remington wanted to put a horse in my barn?”

  “Yeah. You thought he’d changed his mind. I remembered that when I saw the TV show,” Sam said before she picked up her cup and sipped her coffee. “What happened?”

  “He got sick. Evidently, he rewrote his will right before he died to leave me Seth.”

  Sam chuckled as she put her cup down. “Mighty thoughtful of him. So you own the guy now?”

  “Ha ha,” Katie replied in a flat voice. “Aren’t you hysterical? Mr. Remington left me Seth as a groom for one season, and I got Spun Gold as payment. Unless Seth works hard, he won’t get a dime of his inheritance. And I’ve got to decide if he gets it or not. He’s not supposed to influence me, so we’re not supposed to get too… close.”

  Sam nodded her understanding before she got up, grabbed one of the coffee pots standing on the drink station, and refilled her cup. She settled herself back into her seat and grew serious, taking on that motherly tone she liked to get from time to time. “Katie, this guy is bad news. You thought Mike was bad, Seth is worse. He spends money like there’s no tomorrow. He wrecked a bunch of cars.”

  “Crash,” Katie whispered. But she already knew all those things about Seth.

  “Yeah, Crash. He also had a fiancée. Some blond bimbo named Muffy or Fluffy or some other rich girl name.” Sam grinned at her own ironic sense of humor.

  “He was engaged?” Her Seth? Engaged? Katie’s heart beat a wild rhythm in her chest as her thoughts tumbled and churned. Engaged? What else was Seth hiding?

  Sam’s smile evaporated as her features took on her obvious concern. “He hasn’t really told you much, has he? Look, I understand that Mike was the fifteen second failure in the sack...”

  Katie laughed, happy to have the momentary distraction. “He had other... shortcomings, too.” She held up her fist and then extended her pinkie.

  Sam laughed loud enough for people to turn and stare. “Okay. Way too much information!” She quickly turned sober again, fast enough Katie could hardly keep up with her friend’s changing moods. “Why’d you sleep with Seth?”

  Katie glanced away, not wanting to see condemnation in her best friend’s eyes. “It’s complicated.”

  “You sound like a broken record. Tell me, damn it!”

  “It was after Brian’s accident. I didn’t want to be alone, and he was just supposed to stay and... you know... hold me. But I thought it was a dream at first, and then I didn’t want to stop.” Katie realized her tale made it sound like she’d been a passive player in the game. She immediately corrected that ridiculous notion. “I knew what I was doing, Sam.”

  Sam reached for the sugar. “At least tell me you used some protection.”

  Katie could feel the heat spread across her cheeks again. “It only happened twice—”

  “Twice? C’mon, Katie! You’ve gotta stop this!” Sam sounded as incredulous as she looked.

  “I know, I know, but... Sam, I love him,” Katie finally confessed. “I really love him. What am I gonna do?” She tried desperately to stop the tears gathering in her eyes.

  “First of all, you’re gonna stop sleeping with the guy,” Sam ordered as she picked up her spoon to stir her coffee.

  Katie nodded her agreement. “You’re right. I have. I mean, I will. He seemed different on the ride here. We used to talk about everything, but after last night—”

  Sam threw her spoon on the table. The resulting clatter brought a few more rude stares. “You slept with him last night too?”

  “Sam, shh.”

  Her tone and her volume didn’t change too awfully much. “What are you guys, a couple of rabbits?”

  “I didn’t sleep with him last night. Well, we were about to. Chris came to the farm and almost caught us and... Well, it kind of cooled things off. I had to tell Chris some of the story.” Katie wiped away her stray tears with the back of her hand. “If anyone finds out he slept with me, he could lose his money. You can’t tell anyone, Sam.”

  This situation kept getting worse and worse. She knew Chris wouldn’t spread the story, but if anyone else figured any of it out, Seth would be front page news in the span of time it took for a satellite to bounce the story all over the country. And Katie was positioned to get nothing but a broken heart out of the whole affair. Seth would lose his inheritance; she’d lose Spun Gold.

  “I won’t tell anyone, but Katie, you’ve gotta get this guy out of your head,” Sam said as if the task was something easy or even possible to accomplish.

  “I love him, Sam. The Seth I know doesn’t sound like the guy you heard about. Maybe he’s changed. Maybe—”

  “Maybe he’s cozying up to you to get his money. Where does rich lawyer man come into all this?” Sam asked before sipping her coffee and letting her intense gaze drill holes through Katie’s fragile composure.

  “Ross is the lawyer overseeing the will. I still haven’t figured out why he got College Mascot.”

  “Yeah, right.” Sam rolled her eyes. “You know damn well why he got that horse, Katie. He likes you. A lot. You’ve got this rich hunk of a lawyer head over heels for you, but you go and sleep with a guy who’ll disappear soon.” She frowned. “I’m sorry, Honey. I didn’t mean to make it sound like—”

  Katie shook her head and gave a pathetic chuckle. “Don’t be sorry, Sam. It’s the truth. Seth doesn’t love me. I sure know how to pick them, don’t I?” The tears spilled over her lashes again, and she was helpless to stop them. “First I fall for the White Knight who loves ‘em and leaves ‘em. Then I fall for Richie Rich who’ll do the same damn thing. What am I going to do?”

  Sam put her hand over Katie’s. “I know what you’re gonna do. You’re gonna run your stable and treat him like any other employee. You’re gonna protect yourself, and I don’t mean condoms. Katie, you’re gonna protect your heart. Even if you do love the guy, you’re not sleeping with him again.”

  Katie nodded, but all the sage advice was easier said than done.

  Sam clearly knew her well enough to understand what Katie’s silence meant. “I mean it, Kathleen.”

  “I understand, Samantha.”

  * * * *

  By the time the women returned to the room, Seth and Brian were deep in discussion over one of Brian’s racing moves as they played, rewound, and then watched the same tape several times.

  “I still can’t believe you found a hole there,” Seth said pointing at the screen.

  “They parted like the Red Sea,” Brian said with a laugh.

  “Sounds like you guys are having a good time,” Sam said as she walked over to plant a kiss on her husband’s forehead. He patted her growing belly in return. The gesture seemed so intimate, it made Katie’s heart clench in envy.

  “I’ll leave the tapes for you,” Seth said to Brian. He turned to Katie. “Ready to go, Boss?”

  She gave a resigned nod. “We really should be leaving. Is there anything I can get for you two?”

  “No, thanks,” Brian replied. He patted the sack lying next to him, but Katie caught some mischief in his gaze. “The tapes are great. Thanks, Seth.”

  Katie’s eyes flew wide and she watched intently to see if Seth caught the implication of Brian using his name. Seth didn’t bat an eyelash. Sam appeared to be having problems suppressing a laugh as she turned her head and faked a small cough. Men could be so dense.

  “Anytime. You’ll make the calls?” Seth asked.

  Katie watched an enigmatic look pass between the two men and quickly realized just what was being conspired. “Oh, no. Hell, no! He’s not calling the race officials. Seth, you can’t drive—”

  “Sure he can,” Brian interrupted. “He’s had a ton of qualifiers, and they’ve waived the six-month rule before. You can’t keep having cowboys like Josh Piper drive your horses or you’ll end up in the poor house. Plus, no one really wants to sit behind Spun Gold since he threw me. Seth should drive him.”

  “Thanks for all the
support, Brian,” Katie mocked. It dawned on her that Brian had not only accepted him, but the guy liked Seth.

  “No problem, Kiddo.”

  They exchanged farewells, and Katie and Seth found themselves back in her truck making their way out of Indianapolis.

  Katie briefly debated telling Seth about The Tattler, but quickly brushed the idea aside, sure very few people would even see the ridiculous show or recognize Seth if they did. She had more important things on her mind. “Seth, look. I’m going to have Mark Masters drive Spun Gold this week. It’s for two-year-old horses that are still maidens.”

  “Maidens?”

  “Haven’t won a race yet. Mark is really good with temperamental horses. If things don’t work out, we’ll talk about a P license. Okay?”

  Seth appeared to be mulling it over for a moment. “Fine, but I’m letting Brian go ahead and talk to the officials. I’ve got more than twenty-five qualifiers under my belt, and they might let me get my P license if Brian calls in some favors. If Mark screws up, then you’ll let me drive Gold in the first leg of the sires stakes?”

  “Fine. But only if Mark screws up.”

  Chapter 23

  “Let’s get chores done,” Katie told Seth when they arrived back at the farm.

  She watched him check the training board. He made a couple of notations for Spun Gold before turning back to her. “I’ll get the turn outs. You check water buckets.” His voice held too much authority to please Katie.

  “Who died and made you emperor?”

  Seth just smiled at her as he led the first horse out of the barn.

  As she filled the water buckets, Katie noticed Gold had managed to push a large portion of hay deep in his water again. She smiled, thinking the horse was as much trouble as his trainer. She jokingly scolded the horse as she took the pail off the hook. Walking to the end of the barn, she heaved the dirty water out toward the grass. Unfortunately for Seth, she hadn’t realized he would be turning the corner at the same moment, and she drenched him in a dirty mixture of water and hay. His hair, face, and shirt were soaked, and bits of hay clung to his cheeks and forehead.

  Katie dropped the bucket and tried to sputter an apology before she started to laugh.

  Seth picked a wet cloverleaf from his face and flicked it toward her. “If you thought I needed a shower, all you had to do was tell me.”

  “I’m... I’m sorry. ” Katie tried to apologize between gasps of breath. She laughed so hard her sides ached. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying desperately to bring the ridiculous giggles to an end. “Really... I’m sorry.”

  With a growl, Seth ran to the hose Katie had dropped on the floor, picked it up, and aimed the nozzle at her.

  “Don’t!” Katie tried without much success to quell her laughing fit. “Don’t!”

  Seth pulled the nozzle’s trigger and sprayed Katie before she could jump at him to grab the hose. When she had it firmly in her grasp, she turned it on him and sprayed his back as he ran away. Chasing him down the length of the barn, Katie continued to drench him with water.

  Once he reached the wash stall, she ran out of slack, but Seth was newly armed with the wash stall’s long hose. The duel commenced, leaving them both dripping wet.

  “Truce!” Katie squealed.

  “You put your hose down first.”

  “You first.”

  “Look, Boss, you started this whole thing. Remember?”

  “Yeah, but it was an accident.” Like a criminal caught by the law, she held her hands up in surrender, pointing the nozzle away from Seth. “Okay, fine. See? I’m putting it down now.” She bent down to place the hose on the floor.

  The second she released the nozzle, Seth sprayed her again. “Oops. Accident. My fingers slipped. Sorry.”

  Katie ran over and grabbed the hose out of his hand. “Yeah, I’m sure it was an accident.” She looped the hose around the wash stall’s hanger as Seth went back to wrap up the hose she’d abandoned.

  Katie stood in the middle of the aisle, feeling the water dripping from her. “Just look at me.”

  “Oh, I’m looking. I’m looking.” His gaze raked her from head to toe, and he gave her an exaggerated growl.

  She glanced down and felt her face flush hot as she realized her shirt was plastered to her body like she was a participant in some wet t-shirt contest. Thank heavens she had on a tank top underneath. “Pervert.”

  Seth laughed at her.

  She twisted the hem of her shirt. “Come on. Let’s go out in the sun and get dry.”

  Grabbing a clean horse blanket off the rack, Katie took Seth’s hand and led him to her truck. She jerked the tailgate open and crawled into the empty bed where she spread out the blanket before plopping down in the middle.

  Seth stood in the grass and watched as she took off her shirt to reveal a tight pink tank top that clung to her chest. She smiled, hoping he was still looking. The lecherous smirk he shot her way sent a shimmer of warmth through her. He didn’t look too shabby himself with his shirt clinging like a second skin.

  Keeping her hands off him wasn’t going to be easy.

  Katie wrung her t-shirt out and hung it over the side of the truck to dry in the sun and then pulled off her boots and socks. She finally stretched out on the blanket to sunbathe. “You coming?” She patted the space next to her.

  He snorted a laugh. “You actually said that to me with a straight face.”

  “Said what?” Her face flushed hot. “Oh my God, you’ve got a dirty mind.”

  “I’m not the one tossing out invitations like that in broad daylight.”

  Seth jumped into the truck bed and took off his shirt and boots before he joined her on the blanket. Katie took one look at his muscular body and sighed in appreciation. Then she desperately hoped Seth hadn’t heard her. He might be the most handsome man she had ever seen, and she couldn’t help but admire that body. But his ego sure didn’t need any more stroking, and it was embarrassing to think she behaved no better than some hormonal teenager.

  Lacing his fingers, Seth put his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. “This is nice. I can’t remember the last time I got to relax.”

  “Oh, come on. I don’t work you that hard.”

  “I’m talking about before I came here. I couldn’t go anywhere without some freakin’ cameraman following me around. If anyone knew who I was—”

  “They don’t. You just fit in here—like you were born to it. Even if they did know your real name, horsemen protect their own. They might stab each other in the back sometimes, but God forbid an outsider go after one of us.” She stretched her arms over her head as she enjoyed the warmth of the sun, hoping he didn’t notice she was getting another eyeful of that muscular chest. Her self-control was tenuous at best as her fingers itched to reach out and touch him.

  “You know what the best thing is? I can be myself. People don’t expect me to automatically screw up.”

  “Well, maybe. I mean, we do expect you to screw up,” Katie teased.

  Seth rolled over and tickled Katie’s ribs, and she howled in laughter. “Stop,” she gasped, but he gave her no quarter. Between laughs she finally squealed, “You’ll make me pee my pants.”

  “Ugh. Okay, I’ll stop.” Seth raised his hands in surrender. Then he lowered his palms to hover above her breasts. “Besides, there are other things I’d like to touch.”

  She hesitated a moment as desire warred with common sense. Finally, she brushed his hands aside. “Just like a guy. Always thinking with your...” She fixed her eyes on his groin.

  Seth’s chuckle sang like a melody floating in the air. Looking up at him, all Katie could feel was need. His dark hair had a kiss of late afternoon sunlight, and he was so tan and downright... gorgeous. It seemed the most natural thing in the world to give into her desire. Katie leaned up, splayed her fingers through his hair, and pulled him down to her. Their mouths danced across each other, soon to be joined by the caress of their tongues. Seth finally raised his head
and stared at her. Those hazel eyes of his were hypnotic.

  All Katie could think was how much she wanted him to make love to her. Her body warmed, desiring something she couldn’t have. All he had to do was crook his finger, and she’d follow him straight to her bed. Hell, she’d probably rip his clothes off before he shut the door. She never thought she would turn into the type of woman who ran after a man with her tongue hanging out. Embarrassment washed over her. I’m getting to be worse than Rachel.

  Seth wiggled his eyebrows. “You know, there’s nice big pile of hay in the barn. Isn’t that what hay is for? Rolling in?”

  Katie smiled at his charm and pulled him back into a deep kiss. When his tongue pushed into his mouth, she sucked on it and was rewarded with his throaty growl. As her tongue swept into his warm mouth, he returned the favor. She lost herself in his kiss, in his touch, in the love she felt for him. It had never been like this with Mike.

  Mike. Just thinking about him was akin to having a bucket of ice water thrown over her. She’d always been a fool where men were concerned. “Seth, we can’t—”

  “I know, but, God, I want you, Katie. I want you so bad.” The words sent a shiver through her. She wanted him too.

  She was seriously reconsidering her answer when Seth pulled himself away from her. With a groan, he grabbed his shirt before jumping out of the truck.

  Katie sat up on her elbows and called after him. “Don’t forget to pick up Gold’s water bucket and fill it.”

  He hit her in the face with his wadded up, damp t-shirt.

  * * * *

  Chris took a table at Cyber Café and pulled a chair up to one of the available computers. Ever since his talk with Katie, he’d been deeply curious about the man who shared her stable.

  The story seemed almost too ludicrous to possibly be true. Why would a guy with that much money want his son to do manual labor all summer?

  Chris felt protective of Katie in a brotherly fashion, and knowing she’d become deeply involved with Seth Remington caused some major concern. It was plain Katie loved the guy. The fact was written all over her face every time Chris saw them together. But if what she told him was true, Seth would be packing his bags at the end of the season, and they would probably never see him again.