Chapter Three
CHAPTER THREE
With her trunk still in the back of her truck, all Heather had to do was drive back to the barn and load Apollo. As she walked through the many rigs she didn’t see anyone, but as she passed Courtney’s impressive trailer she heard a noise. Walking around to the back she found the ramp lowered, and when she looked inside she was shocked to see a groom holding King Henry while Courtney pushed a syringe into the horse’s neck. Quickly ducking out of sight Heather started to creep away.
“Bitch! Come back here.!”
Heather’s heart jumped.
She’d been seen.
She bolted away, but as she ran to her truck she could hear the crunching of gravel close behind her. Looking over her shoulder, to her horror she saw Courtney had already caught up.
“Nosey bitch!” Courtney hissed, grabbing her by the hair.
“What are you doing? Let me go.”
“You say one fucking word and your horse will get messed up real bad, you hear me. One fucking word!”
“But I’m leaving,” Heather gasped as Courtney slammed her against the trailer. “I won’t even be here.”
“That won’t stop you making a call. I know where your barn is in Smoky Hill, and I swear, if anyone finds out about this you’ll be sorry. You hear me?”
“Okay, okay!”
“Stupid fucking cow,” Courtney growled, shoving her to the ground. “Remember, it will be your horse I’ll hurt if you don’t keep your fucking mouth shut.”
As she turned and marched away, Heather waited, shaking and scared, until the nasty girl had disappeared, then staggered to her feet. But her fingers were trembling so badly she could barely lift her key fob from her pocket. Finally hitting the button to unlock the doors, she climbed behind the wheel, closed her eyes and tried to catch her breath.
“Heather?”
Jumping, she jerked her head around and was shocked to see Blake climbing into the passenger seat.
“You scared me,” she exclaimed, staring at him. “What are you doing here?”
“Lookin’ for you. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“It’s clearly not nothin’. You’ve been cryin’ and you look a mess. Talk to me.”
“I can’t. I have to get Apollo and—”
“Nope, you’re not goin’ anywhere until you tell me what’s goin’ on.”
“I want to—but I can’t.”
“What do you mean you can’t? Heather…I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this upset.”
“Please, you don’t understand. I have to leave.”
“Okay, take a breath and try to relax. I won’t stop you, but let me drive you over to the barn and help you with—”
“No! In fact you need to get out!”
But to her shock he leaned over the console and wrapped her into his arms.
“Whatever is goin’ on I’m here for you,” he said, lowering his voice.
“You don’t understand.”
“No, I don’t, and it doesn’t matter. Tell me or not, it’s up to you, but it doesn’t change the fact that I’ve got your back.”
“Blake, I don’t know what to do. It’s Courtney,” she stammered, suddenly unable to hold back. “I, uh, I saw her do something and she’s threatened to hurt Apollo if I say anything. She grabbed my hair and pushed me against the trailer really hard, then onto the ground.”
“She did what?”
“That’s why I have to go. I don’t care about me, not really, but I’m terrified she’ll do something to Apollo if I stay.”
“Heather, listen to me,” he said firmly, shifting to stare at her. “That girl isn’t goin’ to hurt you, or Apollo, or anyone else. I’ll make sure of it.”
“But—”
“You’re much safer here where I can watch over you. And don’t forget, the barns have video cameras and security guards patrollin’ at night. If you go back to the ranch you and Apollo will be much easier targets. There’s only Lucas there.”
“And Butch.”
“Well, yeah, and Butch is a helluva watch dog, but you’ll still be more vulnerable there than here.”
“I don’t know…”
“Do you trust me?”
“Of course I trust you.”
“Then believe me when I tell you, the worst thing to do is run from a bully. It’s like facin’ your fears. You have to stand your ground. But you leave Courtney to me. I give you my word I won’t let her—or anyone else—hurt you or Apollo. Come back to the barn with me. I know you’re not showin’ but Tracy and Julie are and I need to be there for them.”
“Actually…”
“What?”
“You’re right. I should face my fears. I’m still a bit shaky after what Courtney just did, and I am nervous about riding in that big ring, but I should.”
“Heather, that’s great. You’ve done wonders with that horse and it’s time you showed him off. But before we go there’s one more thing.”
Before she could ask him what it was his fingers were in her hair tugging back her head, and his lips were devouring hers in a long, luxuriant kiss.
“There,” he murmured, pulling back and releasing her. “I’ve been wantin’ to do that for months.”
“Blake…I don’t know what to say,” she whispered. “Wait, yes I do. I’ve been waiting for that since I drove onto your ranch and saw you leaving the barn with a bag of feed over your shoulder.”
“No kiddin’? Well, Heather, the feelin’ was mutual. When you stepped out of that truck on that first day I damn near had a heart attack.”
“Really?”
“Hell, yeah. I guess Courtney did us a favor, though I’m furious at her for what she did.”
“It was horrible, but finally being with you like this was worth it.”