“You silly thing,” Samira said. “What was that all about?”
The man behind her spoke with a deep husky voice. “I think it was spooked by a gust of wind. Dumb animal.”
Samira turned and looked at the man strewn on the grass. He’d planted his hat back on his head now, obscuring his face again, but Samira noticed he had a beard – which she hadn’t realized before.
“He’s not a dumb animal. He’s got feelings and fears – just like us all.”
The cowboy shook his head as he scrambled to his feet. He was tall and muscular – simmering with sexual allure. “Well, I sure do appreciate you helping me, ma’am.”
The tension between them buckled, and Samira’s adrenaline turned to lust. “No problem. In future, you need to show him who’s boss. Okay?”
He nodded under his hat. Samira glanced at his strong hands and was assaulted with a flash of those gorgeous fingers caressing her desirous body – helping her forget her worries.
She was desperate to see his face – to look into his eyes – but the wide brim of his hat obscured his features. She was overwhelmed with a ripple of lust from being this close to such a handsome and mysterious stranger. An intense sensual energy emanated from him – one that she hadn’t known since… No. She pushed away her desire. He wasn’t to be trusted. Why he was following her? What did he want? Was Mr. Langdon testing her somehow? She opened her mouth to ask him, but he snatched the horse’s reins from her and started to walk away.
“Thanks again,” he muttered.
“Wait,” Samira said.
He halted but didn’t turn to face her. “Yeah?”
“What kind of a cowboy are you? One who can’t even control a horse…”
She watched the muscles in his back flicker under his shirt. “I’m just a farm hand, ma’am. No one.”
He glanced back, obscuring his face with his shoulder and his hat – studying her with dark eyes. Then he tugged the reins of his now-docile horse and they walked together across the meadow.
Samira stood glued to the spot, watching him leave and suppressing the desire to run after him and demand answers – as well as suppressing the desire to run after him and kiss him wildly; ride him hard.
She let him go. He’d been following her every day for three weeks now, and she realized it would be better to approach him like a wild horse – gently and subtly. Now that they’d broken the ice, maybe she could find out who he was and what he wanted.
One thing was for sure, she hadn’t felt such an intense attraction for anyone since she’d lost her beloved Ivan. And truthfully, she couldn’t wait to see this guy again. Her heart pounded with excitement. How funny would that be? Having an illicit affair with the guy her fiancé had hired to follow her…
She shook her head and turned back to the creek with the intention of sitting down and forgetting him for now. But as she halted at the edge of the water – the same place she stood every day – the earth suddenly collapsed, causing her to fall abruptly. She clawed the air and cried out in shock as her body plunged toward the water.
“Help!” she screamed.
Time slurred as she swooshed downwards. Her heart thrashed painfully as a riot of fear rushed into her mind. Why the hell had the ground given way like a trapdoor? It had been solid yesterday!
She screamed as her body crashed into the icy water, and she was immediately struggling against the current, gulping down lungfuls of air and kicking her legs to try to stay afloat. But she couldn’t swim! The water dragged her under and she panicked as she realized the bottom of the creek wasn’t in reach. She was going to drown!
No... She had too much to live for…
With all her might, Samira tore her way back up to the surface, kicking like a phoenix rising – but her muscles were tiring and the fast-moving water crashed painfully against her body, pulling her in too many directions at once. She thrashed her arms and legs desperately, feeling her body sink deeper into the abyss as her face dunked under the gushing flow.
Her vision blurred at the edges and she tried to shout – but her mouth filled with ice-cold water – then she could no longer fight against the torrent, as the world turned black.
Chapter Two
Oblivious to everything around him, Ivan led his unruly horse away from the woman he loved – feeling raw emotion pounding in his heart. What the hell was he doing walking away from her when all he wanted to do was wrap her in arms and kiss her for eternity? He smiled affectionately. She hadn’t changed at all – still as feisty and beautiful as ever. She looked amazing in that white dress, with her long bottle-blonde hair flowing free.