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A few of the horses stuck their heads out of their stalls to investigate. I could hear the rustling of hay being pulled from the hay nets hanging on the walls. A soft nicker came from the nearest stall as a beautiful palomino gelding, who I knew to be Apollo, stuck his head out for scratches. Travis gave the horse the attention he wanted and gestured for me to proceed without him.
I knew where Stardust’s stall was—two down from the middle tack room. I made my way over and smiled as I looked over her door. The mare was face deep in her feed bucket, happily munching on her grains.
Heat enveloped me, and I didn’t need to turn around to know that Declan was at my back. A shiver ran down my spine, despite the warmth filling the barn, as I drew in a deep breath of his pine and leather scent.
If he didn’t step back soon, or if I didn’t move away, I was about to tear off my jacket and make a fool of myself. I needed to pull myself together.
I reached for the latch on Stardust’s stall at the same time as Declan. His hand landed on top of mine.
I froze.
His hand didn’t move.
My heart pounded in my chest, and my breath seemed trapped in my lungs as I waited for him to shift his hand away. When he didn’t, I slowly turned. My gaze locked on his cerulean eyes, the ones that had haunted my dreams for the past few months.
Declan’s eyes darkened, and he glanced down at my lips. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think he wanted to kiss me.
Except, Declan was one of the hottest men alive, and I was an unworldly small-town vet with a whole lot of baggage. Believing he might be interested was wishful thinking on my part.
The rough sound of a throat clearing startled me, and I pulled my hand away, looking down at my boots. Heat crept into my cheeks, and since I couldn’t stop it, I prayed everyone would pass it off from the heat of the barn.
“Sorry,” I mumbled.
Declan was still far too close to me. I chanced a glance at him and saw him glaring at Travis over his shoulder.
I shifted my weight to my other foot and, with a shaky hand, tucked a strand of hair that had escaped my ponytail behind my ear.“Is there something wrong?” I asked, hoping to break the awkward silence.
Declan whipped his head back around and smiled sheepishly.
“My apologies. Shall we?” He gestured toward the stall and opened the latch.
I slowly pushed open the door, and Stardust lifted her head, giving a soft nicker. My puffy jacket made a swishing noise as I moved, and the mare flinched at the sound.
I set my bag down on the floor and turned around to leave the stall so I could remove my jacket. “Oomph,” I groaned as I hit a solid wall of muscle.
Strong hands grabbed my upper arms, keeping me from falling backward. Heat flashed through my core, and I bit back a smile at the delectable curve of Declan’s lips.
Every time I looked at him, I wanted to swoon. My knees got weak and heat pooled between my thighs. In all the times I’d been around him, I’d never been this close to him for this long. I wasn’t quite sure what to do with myself.
“Was there something you needed, Doc?” His low accented baritone scraped along the rough edges of desire flooding my body.
He called me Doc. He never called me Doc. He was always professional and called me Dr. Brooks. When had we gotten to using nicknames, and why did I like it so much?
“Oh, um.” Damn, why did I get so tongue tied around him? “I need to take my coat off. It’s making too much noise, and Stardust is having a negative reaction to it.”
With hands that were barely steady, I reached for the zipper, and Declan sidestepped to allow me to exit the stall. Once the coat was open, Declan’s hands brushed against my shoulders as I shrugged it off. Then he took the coat without a word and hung it on one of the hooks on the wall.
“Thank you,”I whispered, and then cleared my throat. We weren’t on a date. I was here to do a job and needed to pull myself together.
“Anything for you.”The corners of his mouth turned into a smile that took my breath away.
Oh. My. God. The man had everything going for him, especially his panty melting, sexy smile that made me want to tear off my clothes.
I reentered the stall and focused on Stardust. My bag was nearby, and I pulled my stethoscope out. Travis joined me like he always did, to assist me. He and Declan had asked from the beginning if they could be with me every step of the way. Warming the device in my palms, I stroked the mare’s neck and spoke calming words, making her aware of my presence. She relaxed into my touch, and her examination went quickly.
The barn door flew open, and a gust of wind blew inside, making me shiver. The howling wind beat against the door as it closed, and the comfort of the barn was once more intact. Boots thudded down the aisle with purpose, approaching the stall we occupied.
“Everything okay?” Declan asked the newcomer.
