A SEAL Always Wins

by Holly Castillo

  Elena looked down at her half-eaten taco, her appetite gone. “Well, I’m happy for you.”

  “You could’ve fooled me.” Anya’s voice dripped with artificial sweetness.

  “Anya, you know Elena and I both want to see you happy,” Evie offered. “We just don’t want to see you hurt. I need to meet this Stryker guy. Elena has a better pulse on your relationship with him than I do.”

  “I think he’s a good guy,” Elena said. “I think if he’s everything Anya says he is, he really could be the one. I was just with them last night, and he was completely attentive to Anya.”

  “Speaking of last night,” Anya said, one eyebrow raised, “is there something going on between you and Phantom?”

  Elena’s half-finished lunch suddenly seemed to weigh ten pounds in her gut. “What do you mean?”

  “He’s different when you’re around. He seems to hang on your every word. And the two of you spend a lot of time together.”

  “Of course we do. I train his horses. And now I’m training him so that he can show. He has some big plans for the business.”

  “Are you sure that’s all it is? He seems to light up when you’re around.”

  He does? No, not Phantom. Maybe Anya was misreading what was actually a look of dread on his face. Elena ran her hand through her curls, smoothing them away from her face. “If anything, you’re seeing his excitement at working with the horses. He has a real gift with them.”

  “Oh.” Anya looked disappointed. “I had just hoped… Well. The two of you seem to be ideal for each other. You both love horses, you both have a bit of a wild side, even though Phantom rarely shows his, and I thought the two of you were working together really well.”

  “We are!” Elena replied, almost too fast from the startled expression on Anya’s face. “I mean, he’s been a great student. He’s going to be competing in his first show this weekend.”

  Evie had a skeptical look on her face. “You would tell us, right, Elena? If something was going on between you and this guy, I mean.” She waved a hand in Anya’s direction. “It seems love is in the air.”

  Elena chuckled. “There is no love to be found between me and Phantom. I won’t deny he’s a good-looking guy, and we do get along well. It’s in our best interest, though, to keep our relationship purely professional. Going beyond that could just make things difficult.”

  Evie groaned. “You might as well wave the white flag. I can see where this is heading.”

  Anya smiled. “You do like him!”

  Elena felt the heat of a blush in her cheeks. “Yes, I like him. But there’s no chance of anything happening between the two of us. He already has a woman. Happy now?”

  “What are you talking about?” The confusion on Anya’s face nearly made Elena laugh.

  “I saw the beautiful woman who came to the ranch the other day. Tall, graceful, with long, pale hair—she embraced him as if they hadn’t seen each other in years. She made him laugh. I could tell he loves her.”

  Dawning understanding brightened Anya’s face. “Of course he loves her! And it’s hard to say exactly how long it’s been since they’ve seen each other. Their schedules have kept them apart for a while. You don’t need to worry about her, though.”

  “I’m not worried about her. Like I said, I’m not considering a relationship with him. It won’t benefit either one of us.”

  “Of course, if you were interested in a relationship with him, I’m sure you’d be happy to know the beautiful woman you saw is Amber, his sister.”

  Elena had been taking a deep sip of her tea and sputtered, coughing as she tried to catch her breath. Evie patted her on the back roughly until she finally stopped coughing. “His sister?”

  “Yep. Glad it doesn’t mean anything to you, though.” Anya watched Elena with a smirk on her face.

  Elena chewed on her lower lip, absorbing the news before shaking her head. “He’s not interested. At all.”

  “I think you may be misreading his signals. Seriously, Elena, he’s different when you’re around. Happier.”

  Elena shook her head and pretended to be preoccupied with the ice in her glass. “No. My love life still revolves around a bowl of Froot Loops, milk, and ice.”

  “Ugh. You don’t still eat that, do you? I thought that was just a bad college habit.” Evie made a face.

  “I’m never lonely when I have that sweet treat to enjoy.” Elena forced a smile to her face.

  Anya didn’t seem to be buying it. “Are you certain there isn’t even the smallest spark between you guys?”

  Elena’s mind wandered back to the heated kiss they had shared in the barn. She could still feel his hand cupping her ass, lifting her so that she could hold him the way she wanted, feel him the way she’d craved. There hadn’t been a spark; there had practically been an all-out fire blazing between them.

  Thinking about it made her heart beat faster. Still, he had pushed her away and made it clear he didn’t want to continue as she did. “No. There’s nothing there. I’m not his type. And he isn’t mine. How’s your migas plate?” She asked Anya.

  “Wow. And I thought the guys were good about changing the topic. It’s great. Want some? I can’t eat all of it.”

  Elena waved her hand to signal no. “Is your new assistant the guy who showed up at the ranch the other day? Phantom said he’s a part owner at the ranch. If that’s the case, why is he taking you to work and staying at the clinic with you?”

  “Lobo is a part owner, but he also had experience working in a veterinary clinic when he was in high school. He offered to help me for a short while as I get things back up and running. And…it’s kind of a security blanket for me. I was pretty rattled by the break-in.”

  “I can imagine,” Evie said.

  “Speaking of being rattled, do either of you know Jonas Franklin?” Elena asked, already dreading her trip out to his ranch as soon as lunch was over.

  “Ugh. Don’t even get me started on him.” Evie groaned.

  “I try to avoid him at all costs. I still tend to his animals. I can’t turn them away because I feel responsible for them since I’m the only veterinarian in the entire area. But I try to avoid interacting with Jonas as much as I can. I don’t even ask him to pay when I’m out there. I just send him bills in the mail.”

  Elena gnawed on the inside of her cheek. “Why? What is it that you don’t like?”

  “I interact with him at the courthouse frequently.” Evie sighed. “He’s always meeting with Judge O’Connor. Usually it is because he believes he should legally be cleared to do whatever he wants on his land and shouldn’t need to get the appropriate clearances from the county inspectors. For some reason, he seems to have latched onto Judge O’Connor, and I have to deal with him more than I’d like. I’ve lost count of the number of times he has asked me out. And he constantly hovers around my workstation. I get the feeling he is trying to find any documents he can get his sneaky eyeballs on.”

  “He’s asked me out before too,” Anya said. “He wants to know everything he can about my schedules and the people that I work with. It’s like he wants to find out any secrets about his neighbors. There’s something off about him. That’s why I try to avoid him. Why are you asking?” Anya watched Elena with concern in her eyes.

  Elena tried to suppress a shudder as she thought about Jonas. “That man strikes me as being wrong in many ways. He’s asked me out, and I’ve told him repeatedly we aren’t compatible and tried, in the nicest way, to let him know he’s not my type. He still won’t take the hint. Both of you know what happened a few years back and how certain things bring it all back with a terrible feeling of helplessness. The last time I saw Jonas, he came up behind me and began to massage my shoulders. I thought I was going to hyperventilate.”

  Anya shook her head fiercely. “No man should think it is okay to initiate such intimate contact,
regardless of your past.”

  “I thought I might have been overreacting because of the attack.” Elena stared at the tablecloth, fighting back nausea at both the memories of her past and the knowledge she would have to encounter Jonas soon.

  Anya’s hand covered one of Elena’s hands, and Evie’s covered the other. Elena glanced up at her two closest friends and saw the way they were watching her—not with pity, but with support. They had taken turns camping out in the hospital room as she recovered from her injuries, making sure she never woke up alone. The moment she shifted in her bed, Evie or Anya jumped up from the cot the hospital had brought into the room and helped her with anything she needed. She couldn’t have asked for better friends.

  “I think he knows what happened to me and likes to put me in a position to make me uncomfortable. I think he gets some sort of pleasure from making others feel weak. I just have a bad feeling about him. I’ve decided to try to find another client that will cover the loss, and I’m going to drop him.”

  “Good for you.” Anya nodded firmly. “If he makes you that uncomfortable, the money isn’t worth it.”

  “Now you’ve made me curious to know more about his interactions with Judge O’Connor. I don’t understand why she tolerates him,” Evie said thoughtfully.

  Elena drew a deep breath. “Well, I can’t put it off forever. It’s time to go visit his ranch. Thank you both for joining me for lunch. This has been nice.”

  “Yeah, I better get back to the clinic before my guard dog sounds the alarm.”

  “Don’t you mean your guard wolf,” Elena chuckled.

  Anya smiled. “Lobo is a great guy. He’s a good addition to the team, and I’m incredibly grateful to him for helping me out until I feel a little more secure.”

  “At some point you need to invite me to the ranch,” Evie said, giving Anya a pointed stare. “I want to meet all these men you two keep talking about.”

  “Be careful what you wish for.” Anya chuckled. “If these guys decide they like you, they just might try to keep you.”

  * * *

  Sherman’s skills were still in improving. Elena took him though a more complex reining pattern, and he struggled with a few of the directional changes. She worked him for hours, determined to get him to fly through various patterns without getting set into any type of routine. When it came to higher-level championships, a horse and rider had to be ready for any type of pattern thrown their way.

  The sun had started to set by the time she finished bathing Sherman, cleaning the tack, and setting everything in order in the barn. She sighed wearily and ran a hand through her long, curly hair, dreading the unavoidable meeting with Jonas. She had to share with him the wins from the other weekend.

  “Elena! It’s so good to see you again. I regret that it has taken us so long to meet up.” Jonas walked toward her from the direction of the main house, and she hoped she would be able to get through her meeting with him quickly.

  “You’ve been a very busy man, Jonas. Your business must be doing well.”

  He smiled broadly but attempted to shrug as if her words meant nothing. “It takes a lot of work to get things to run fluidly in my business. I’m glad I caught you out here in the barn. I wanted to get your help with some transfer paperwork on a new horse I bought.”

  “Is it the bay mare? She’s absolutely gorgeous.”

  “I’m glad you approve! I think she may actually be a better competitor than Sherman.”

  Elena raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Sherman’s a tough act to beat. I look forward to working with her.”

  “Good, good. I look forward to watching you train her. Join me in the barn office so we can work on these transfer papers.”

  Elena drew a steadying breath and followed him to the barn office, an area Jonas seemed to rarely use. He shouldered open the door that seemed to be perpetually stuck no matter how often Elena worked on it. The hinges squeaked, and she made a mental note to bring her WD-40 with her the next time she came out.

  “So are you done for the day?”

  “Yes. Sherman got quite the workout today. He still needs training, but I’m fairly certain we’re going to have a top contender for the show. I wouldn’t take him if I didn’t think we had a good shot at winning the Grand Champion.”

  Jonas grinned at her as he sat down at the desk and clicked the button to power on his docked laptop. “I know you’re going to bring me the Grand Champion prize. You’ve yet to disappoint.”

  “Speaking of which…” Elena began, positioning herself close to the other door in the office that led to the tack room, giving her space from Jonas. “I brought you the ribbons for the wins the other weekend.” She pulled an envelope out of her back pocket. “Here are your winnings for the cutting event. There was no prize money for the reining event.”

  Jonas nodded and reached for the envelope, deliberately rubbing his fingers over the back of her hand as he took it from her. She pulled back quickly and fought the urge to wipe her hand on her jeans. She felt as if she had been tainted by his touch.

  “Let me show you something,” Jonas beamed, gesturing for her to walk around the desk to his side.

  She hesitated for a few moments, then forced her legs into motion and went to stand behind him. The computer had pulled up the log-on screen, and she stared at the puzzle depicted on the screen. “What is that?”

  “You and I have a lot in common, my dear,” Jonas said, still staring at the locked screen. “We both have a love of puzzles. In order to get into my computers, you have to solve one of my cryptic puzzles. All the answers are to be given in a question format to point to a location on the ranch. You have to use the clues provided in the puzzle to formulate the question.”

  Elena didn’t want to tell him she was impressed, even though she was. Not many people were so engaged in puzzles that they had the ability to create their own. Her eyes roamed over the graphics on the screen, and she began to see words hidden within the extensive artwork. Her mind worked quickly, gathering all the information and thinking about the layout of the ranch.

  The answer struck her, and she couldn’t resist blurting it out. “Where on the back eighty acres is the watering hole located?”

  Jonas lifted his eyebrows. “Impressive. I should have made it more difficult knowing your skills with puzzles.”

  “Did you create this log-on specifically with plans to keep me out? I have no desire to go digging around in your computer, Jonas.” Elena folded her arms over her chest, wishing she could leave. Her level of discomfort increased every extra moment she was near Jonas.

  “No, of course not. I simply hope no one else is able to break my puzzles as quickly as you.” He typed the question into the log-on screen and the internet screen popped up, showing an online form to request transfer of ownership through the American Quarter Horse Association. Jonas pulled out a pair of glasses to help him read the small type and began to chicken-peck at the keyboard. “Can you read the information off to me and I’ll key it in?”

  Elena wanted to tell him no. Just because she had finished her responsibilities for the day didn’t mean she wanted to spend her spare time with him. But she didn’t have a good reason to deny helping him, when she knew she wouldn’t hesitate to do it for any of her other customers.

  After ten minutes of painfully trying to read the information to him while he attempted to navigate the form, she lost her patience. “Why don’t I fill out the form? I’ve done it plenty of times in the past, and that way we can move through it quicker.”

  He glanced up at her. “Am I keeping you from something?”

  “You know me. I like to be as efficient as possible, and I think we’d use our time much more effectively if I filled out the form.”

  He nodded. “Very well. Have at it.” He stood and gave her the chair. It wasn’t until she was seated at the computer and working on the form
that she realized she had put herself in a vulnerable spot. He stood hovering over her and could easily take advantage in such a position.

  She decided to keep his mind on business and finish the form as quickly as possible. “How did you hear about this new horse?”

  “I have several connections that keep me updated whenever a talented horse comes on the market. My business dealings have had me so busy I haven’t been able to focus on building my horse enterprise as much as I’d like. Things are running smoothly, though, and this was too good an opportunity to pass up.”

  “Has the mare won in competitions already?” Her fingers flew across the keyboard, keying in the information rapidly.

  “Yes. She’s made it all the way to state quarter horse shows, but can’t move past that level. That’s where your expertise will come in handy.”

  Elena sighed with relief as she finished the application and clicked the submit button. She could feel Jonas close behind her and stood, turning to face him, her heart pounding in her chest. “All done. You should get the new registration certificate in the mail soon.”

  He smiled approvingly. “Good. Now, since you’ve finished up for the day, I can finally show you the display for all the trophies and ribbons. We’ll add the new ones you earned from the other weekend.”

  Elena nearly groaned. She didn’t want to be around the man any longer. He was still her client, though, and she needed to set aside her personal discomfort around the man. She would keep a safe distance and pray that he didn’t try to cross any boundaries with her—again. “Absolutely. Lead the way.”

  Jonas had a beautiful home. With a small entrance foyer that held a chandelier casting a warm glow through the space, it welcomed her inside. She had been in his home a handful of times and had always appreciated the simple and tasteful design. To the right lay the expansive living space, and she instantly saw the large display case full of trophies and ribbons set in a central spot in the room.

  “It’s beautiful,” Elena said, stepping farther into the room to get a closer look. “Did you have it custom-made?”