The #1 Bestsellers Collection 2011(257)

He reached out, swiped her wet hair off her forehead and said, “Damn it, Gina, you don’t go riding without telling someone where you’re going. This is a big ranch. Anything could happen, even to an experienced rider.”

“I’m fine,” she mumbled and rubbed water off her face with her hands. Hunching her shoulders, she added sternly, “Stop yelling.”

“I haven’t even started,” he warned, still riding the rush of emotion that had damn near choked him when she rode into the yard. Didn’t she know what could have happened?

Rattlesnakes could have spooked her horse. Wildcats down from the foothills looking for food could have attacked her. Hell, her mare could have stepped into a hole and broken a leg, leaving Gina stranded miles from help. His heart was pounding, his brain was screaming and the temper he’d kept a close rein on ever since he’d discovered she was gone finally cut loose.

Grabbing her upper arms, he shook her until her head fell back and her wide, golden eyes fixed on his face. “What the hell was so important that you felt you had to ride out with a storm coming in?”

She blinked up at him and the rain fell like tears down her face. “Never mind. You wouldn’t understand.”

She might as well have slapped him. Fine. She didn’t want to tell him what was going on? Worked for him. But damned if he’d stand in the yard and drown. “Come on.” He turned and dragged her toward the house.

She struggled in his grasp but no way was she going to get loose. “I’ve got to see to Shadow.”

“Now you’re worried about the mare?” He shook his head. “One of the men will take care of her.”

“Will you just let go, Adam?” she argued, dragging her heels trough the mud. “I can walk on my own. I take care of myself. And I can take care of my own horse.”

“Yeah?” He looked her up and down. “Looks like you’re doing a hell of a job there, Gina. Nice one.” Then he glanced over his shoulder, pointed and said, “There. Sam’s got Shadow. He’ll rub her down and feed her. Satisfied?”

She looked, too, and watched her mare being led into the warm, dry stable and it was as if the last of her strength just drained away. She swayed in place and something inside Adam turned over. She’d thrown his life into turmoil and now she was making him yell like a maniac and he never yelled.

“Come on,” he muttered and took hold of her again, leading her behind him and he didn’t stop until he’d reached the front door. He threw it open, stomped off as much mud as he could from his boots, then stepped into the house. “Esperanza!”

The older woman scuttled into the hall from the kitchen and immediately raced toward Gina. “Dios mio, what’s happened here? Miss Gina, are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” Gina said, still trying to get out of Adam’s tight-fisted grip. “I’m sorry about the mess,” she added, waving one hand at the rainwater and mud sliding across the once-gleaming entryway floor.

“No matter, no matter.” Esperanza threw a hard look at Adam. “What did you do to her?”

“Me?”

“No,” Gina interrupted quickly, briefly. “It wasn’t Adam. I got caught in the storm.”

Still, Esperanza shot Adam a death glare that clearly said, you could have stopped this if you’d tried. Whatever. He wasn’t going to stand there and defend himself while Gina froze to death.

“I’m taking her upstairs,” Adam said, already heading for the wide staircase. “We’ll want something hot in, say, an hour? Maybe some of your tortilla soup, if there is any.”

“Sí, sí,” Esperanza said. “One hour.” Then she clucked her tongue as Adam swung Gina into his arms and started up the stairs, taking them two at a time.

“I can walk,” she complained.

“Swear to God, don’t you say another word,” he snapped. At the head of the stairs, he glanced back to see Esperanza making short work of the mess he and Gina had left behind. Time for another raise for his housekeeper.

Gina, apparently unaffected by the fury pumping through him, slapped one hand to his chest and said, “Damn it, Adam, I’m not an invalid.”

“No, you’re not. Just crazy,” he said, sparing her only a quick look before continuing down the hall to the master bedroom. He walked inside and never paused until he reached the connected bath. A huge room, with miles of white and green tiles, it boasted a double sink, a shower big enough for an orgy and a hot tub with a wide bay window that overlooked the spectacular back gardens. Now though, rain sluiced down the glass, making the view blurry and the distant horizon nothing more than a smudge of gray and black.