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“No. I think in ninety-nine percent of cases, people shouldn’t date their colleagues.”
“And you think you and Millie are the one percent?”
“I know we are.”
Takis paused. “Want to know whatIthink?”
Chuck started to feel anger rise up in him. He didn’t need this. He’d tried his best to act in the way he felt was right. He’d done everything to make sure that Millie had been safe, and he’d given her all the tools to manage the relationship that she might need.
If he was going to do it all again, he’d probably do it the same.
“Go on. You tell me. What do you see?”
“I see a lonely, broken man, taking advantage of the very first Little who arrived at his ranch.”
“You’re wrong, Takis.”
“She was in your care, Chuck, and what you did was wrong.”
This wasn’t going anywhere. “If you need to fire me, then just do it,” Chuck snarled. “Millie is more important to me than anything else in my life. She’s more important than this ranch. She’s more important than my livelihood.”
Fuck. Sheismy livelihood.
“If she’s so important,” Takis virtually growled at him, “why did you put her at so much risk? You knew she was new to this world. You knew she was vulnerable. And you threw her straight into the fire.”
“I care about Millie,” Chuck roared. Before he knew what he was doing, he was stabbing his finger into the center of Takis’ chest. “I’d never let anything bad happen to her. Throw her in the fire? I’m keeping her from that fire! I’m protecting her from it!” His voice was rising, his anger becoming more and more obvious. He should stop this, it was getting dangerous. But he couldn’t. “She needs me. And I need her.”
Takis glared at him. “You had better be careful, Chuck. You’re about to cross a line.”
Chuck glared right back. “Oh yeah?”
*
Millie was staring into the eyes of terror.
You can do this, Mill. You could be good for him. He could be good for you.
The dark shape at the other end of the corral paced back and forth like an impatient prize fighter.
Millie knew that right now, Chuck was facing up to his fear. He was telling Takis about their relationship. She’d decided that while he was being brave for her, she was going to be brave for herself. Now was the time, for both of them.
She’d been working steadily with Thunder for the past few days. She’d kept pestering Chuck about working with the horse, and he’d finally told her the sad story of the animal’s past.
He’d come from a ranch in Texas where he’d been badly mistreated. Thunder came from the old tradition of breaking horses, shattering their spirit so that they would obey their masters, rather than conditioning them so that they learned to think of people as collaborators.
His old keeper didn’t just break Thunder, though. Heabusedhim. Whip scars were still visible on Thunder’s flanks. Of course he didn’t trust humans. Why would he after what he’d been through?
Millie took a small, almost imperceptible step toward the stallion.
The dark horse snorted, throwing his head up in the air, but he didn’t move. He was watching her. Waiting to see what she was going to do.
Around her, she heard the drone of crickets. She smelled the fresh scent of the ranch. The sun warmed her skin. She was part of this world, of nature, just like Thunder was.
Millie took another step.
“I know you’re scared,” she said softly. “But I’m here to help. I won’t hurt you. I promise.”
The horse shifted his weight from one foot to the other. Millie could see the tension rolling off of him in waves. She held her breath, waiting for him to make a move.
