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“Give me a minute?” he asked after he dismounted the last practice bull. It had been a good ride, which only reminded him again why he was here. Buck nodded, waved, and went back to his conversation with the guys pulling gates.
Tristan appeared lost in whatever she was working on, and didn’t raise her head as he approached. If he had the time, he’d stand right where he was and watch her. He could watch her for hours. She tilted her head as she studied what was in front of her. At that angle, the way her neck rounded open, he could sink his teeth into her, run his tongue—what was he doing? He came up here to tell her he wouldn’t be joining her for dinner tonight, not fantasize about what he wanted to do to her neck or any other part of her body.
“Hi,” she said as he walked closer and she noticed him. “The last ride was your best so far.”
“Thanks.” He didn’t think she was paying that much attention. “Uh, listen…”
“Buck wants you to focus less on me and more on bulls. Is that what you’re trying to figure out how to tell me?”
Damn, she rattled him. “I guess. But not entirely. There are workouts he wants me to do after we’re done each day. I didn’t get one in last night, or this morning.” He regretted his words as soon as he spoke them. He made it sound as though it was her fault, and it wasn’t. The responsibility rested solely on his shoulders, and in his usual fashion, he’d shirked it.
“What did he say about ‘post-workout activities’? Anything?”
“Hmm, let me think about that,” he smiled. “He did mention something about getting in the hot tub when I finished.”
“I see. And what about meals? I doubt Buck would be happy if he knew you skipped both breakfast and lunch today. What about after your workout? Think Buck would care if you ate then?”
Oh, man, the visuals she was giving him with her questions. How the hell was he supposed to concentrate on bulls now? He might as well tell Buck he was done for the day.
Tristan closed the book in front of her and stood. “Come here, cowboy,” she motioned him closer. “If you promise to do everything Buck tells you, I’ll deliver supper to the hot tub later. Sound good?”
Hell, yeah, it did. “Uh huh,” were the only words he could think to say out loud.
“And if you’re a really, really good boy, I’ll join you.”
Bullet almost bit his tongue as he watched her walk away. He never rode shotgun, but there was no question, Tristan had taken control of the wheel.
On the walk back to her cabin, Tristan stopped herself from looking back at Bullet at least a dozen times. She opened her door and quickly closed it behind her, resting her back against it.
Who was she? She barely recognized herself. Exactly when had she become so wanton? And she wasn’t the only one surprised by her behavior. Poor Bullet had been tongue-tied.
The thought of it made her giggle. Bullet was clearly used to being the seducer, not the other way around. Warmth spread over her when she thoug
ht about the effect her words had on him. She only hoped that, once he got back to the practice pen, he’d be able to focus. At least she’d given him incentive to.
After rinsing her face with cold water, she took her sketchbook and walked outside, going in the opposite direction from where Bullet and Buck were working. She saw a large boulder, a little higher up, that would make a perfect place for her to sit in the sun and sketch.
She settled on the rock and opened the sketchbook containing the Lost Cowboy designs. She turned page after page and studied the chaps she’d worked on most of the morning.
She usually sketched just the clothing, as opposed to the clothing on a model or mannequin. But this time, she’d drawn the chaps on a faceless cowboy. Face or not, her model was Bullet.
It wasn’t necessary to sketch the upper half of the body; the chaps were for the lower half. But she hadn’t been able to stop herself. She added detail to the shirts the cowboy wore, so when she showed the designs to her daddy, he wouldn’t wonder. She really didn’t care about the shirts though, just what was under them. She’d drawn them snug, so the outline of the cowboy’s pecs, flat six-pack abs, and powerful arms was evident. She even took the time to draw hands. In every sketch, they were Bullet’s.
Tristan fanned her face. Perhaps she should’ve considered taking a cold shower before she left her cabin. She slammed the book closed and set it on the rock. For the rest of the afternoon, she’d focus on the women’s collection and try to keep the sexy-as-all-get-out cowboy off her mind.
Piper had outdone herself with the picnic supper she packed for Tristan and Bullet. Grapes, strawberries, dry salami, and different types of cheese were tucked in the basket, with a baguette and a terrine of foie gras drizzled with a port wine sauce. She’d even included a bottle of Pinot Noir and two glasses. For dessert she gave them chocolate truffles covered in raspberry dust.
Tristan hadn’t felt hungry until Piper began describing the basket’s contents. Now she was famished. She ran into Buck earlier, after he’d finished with Bullet, who told her Bullet’s workout would take approximately ninety minutes.
Piper promised they’d have complete privacy afterwards. The spa staff was gone for the day, and the ranch employees weren’t allowed to use the spa if guests were in residence.
“Here,” she said, handing Tristan a key. “It locks from the inside too,” she winked.
Bullet closed his eyes and did the final set on the glute machine. Imagining Tristan naked and waiting for him in the hot tub was all the incentive he needed to keep going. Rather than feeling tired, each set he finished only energized him. One step closer to his goal. And tonight, his goal was Tristan.
He’d done as she’d told him and listened to every word Buck said. At the end of the day, he was rewarded with “great work today,” and a pat on the back from the cowboy.
As tempting as it was to let the shower’s hot water beat down on his sore shoulders, something, someone more tempting was waiting on him. He scrubbed away the sweat and grime from his day’s work as quickly as he could, wrapped a towel around his waist, and walked through the locker room door that led to the hot tub.
