Callie looked up at the sky. “You’re a horse. Do you mean to tell me you knew it was going to rain like the heavens had opened up?” She laughed. For all she knew, maybe he did. The dry ground quickly turned to ankle deep mud.
Her hands slipped on the hemp rope as she tugged on Liber’s lead. She assumed there would be thunder and lighting. There was static in the air, you could feel it and she didn’t remember it being this cold in past years. A chill ran up her arm as rain soaked through the layers of her thin dress. Her foot caught, and she stumbled forward twisting her ankle.
“Damn,” she swore as she fought to remain upright. The barn was only fifty feet ahead. She had to make it. By the time she came through the stable door, she was out of breath and limping. She led Liber into his stall, slid the latch closed and dropped to a pile on the ground.
Slowly lifting the hem of her skirt she tried to wiggle her ankle. “Ouch!” she cried to no one in particular.
“What happened?” a voice asked.
Callie snapped her head around to find Ellis behind her. “What are you doing here?” she asked.
He smiled, that cute smile where only half of his mouth quirked up. That hadn’t changed since they were children.
“Ahhh, yes. Your family owns the place,” she answered her own question.
“I thought you’d forgotten. Now, to a more pertinent question, why are you sitting on the ground in the middle of my stable?”
“I twisted my ankle in the blasted mud bringing Liber in. I tried to hurry. A lot of good that did us.”
Concern etched his face. “Are you all right?”
“I think I only turned it.”
Placing his cane to the side for a brace, he struggled to kneel. “It’s a good thing I was here. I took Brixton over there for a rambling canter halfway to London and back. The stable hands were off to supper, so I decided to give him a proper grooming myself.”
“Is this common for you to do your own grooming?”
“I grew up in this stable. If I am to run it properly for my father, then I must remember all the skills of the stables. That entails its workings on every level.” He began to unbutton the small closure at his wrist and slid his hand out of his riding gloves. She never noticed how strong and large his hands were. His hands were not those of a wealthy son of an Earl. There were tiny scars and calluses on his fingers. Working man’s hands. She liked that. Even though they must be expensive gloves, he tossed them in the dirt and reached for her ankle.
His eyes met hers. “I need to take off your shoe,” he stated. “Is that all right?”
She nodded and he wasted no time unlacing the boot to slide it off.
Ellis wiggled her foot. “Does this hurt?”
“Yes. But not terribly.” It did, but she wasn’t going to admit it. She could tell it wasn’t broken.
“I am going to call for the stable hands to bring the wagon back and take you to the house where you can get proper care.”
“I will be fine. I…”
Ellis cut her off. “I insist. It is the least I can do with all the time you spent with Liber these past weeks. You have turned him into a fine, manageable horse. I watch you work him. You have amazing skills with animals.”
“Not true.”
“It is. After you left, I sent one of the grooms to move Liber to a different stall. He stomped down so hard, the poor boy almost lost a foot. But not with you, you calm him.” He looked up and met her gaze. “But, you’ve always been special.” He reached up to tuck a wet strand of her blonde hair behind her ear.
Her lips parted to protest, but instead, for some unknown reason, she said his name. She felt him shifting, closing the gap between them. He watched her and it confused her even more. It wasn’t leering or harsh. There was more than idle flirting behind his eyes; he cared deeply for her. His look made her ache to be the girl he once knew. She remembered how he had once looked at her. With love.
Whisper-soft, his lips touched hers. He smelled of sandalwood, soap, and hay. Sensations swamped her and she closed her eyes. His kiss was so sweet, so unbearably sweet.
Can it be like this? No. She swore no man would ever hurt her. Touch her. If she let no one in, then no one could. No one had touched her since the night she was attacked. She pushed Ellis away.
“I am… so utterly sorry.” His face grew dark. “You must think me a complete cad and that I am taking advantage of your injured state to gain a kiss.” He closed his eyes and shook his head. A look of self-disgust etched his face.