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CHAPTER
SEVEN
After spending the evening alone, Isabella slept restlessly. Her visit wasn’t going exactly as planned. Benedict was pushing her away instead of pulling her close. After dressing for the day in a pair of jeans and a plain tee, she went downstairs to find him. The hour was early, she hoped to catch him before he left for the day. Padding to the kitchen in bare feet, she half expected to find him drinking coffee or eating breakfast. She didn’t expect him to wait on her. After all, she’d arrived uninvited and he didn’t run a B&B.
The kitchen was empty and there was no sign of him other than an empty coffee cup and a cereal bowl sitting in the sink. Glancing out the window, she saw no activity. Isabella knew his business as a stock contractor took him all over the country. Surely, he wouldn’t leave without telling her. After the way she’d pushed him yesterday, he might’ve picked up and left, hoping she’d take the hint and be gone by the time he returned.
“Well, sorry to disappoint you, Mr. Bull. I just don’t scare away very easily.” She made a piece of toast in the toaster and ate it dry. Coffee wasn’t necessary for her, she’d never drank enough to get dependent. “All right, ready or not, here I come.” Pulling on a pair of flats, she headed outdoors to locate her reluctant host.
When she found him, he was herding horses out of a holding pen and through a chute to a bigger paddock. To Isabella, he looked good enough to eat. “Quite impressive.” Isabella looked up at the metal stands.
“Morning, Miss Cortez.” He cut a quick glance her way. “Well, it’s not as nice as your uncle’s facility, but I have to have somewhere to train my broncs and bulls.” Bull pulled open one of the gates and stepped inside the main ring. “Don’t mind the smell.”
Isabella followed along behind him, excited to be with him while he worked. “I’ve been stepping in cow manure my entire life, Mr. Redford, it just smells like money to me.”
Bull gazed at her while she checked out her surroundings, his eyes locked on her body. Damn, it didn’t matter what she had on, she’d be beautiful in a burlap feed sack. “Hot today, isn’t it?” he murmured, taking his cowboy hat off and wiping the sweat from his brow with a red bandanna he’d remembered to stick in his back pocket.
“It’s not too bad. Aguascalientes will be warmer than this soon.” Isabella fanned herself, but it wasn’t the temperature heating her blood. Every time she glanced his way, Bull was looking her up and down. He felt something for her, she knew he did. If only she could make him act on his desires.
The inside of the arena was lined with white metal panels, tall enough to keep the animals from jumping over. Isabella made a move toward the viewing stand. “Do you mind if I sit up here to watch the action?”
The sway of her hips kept him mesmerized. “Fuck me,” Bull mumbled under his breath.
“What did you say?”
“There won’t be any action today, I’m just going to turn a bull loose in this ring to get a look at him. Just try to stay out of the way, he’s dangerous.” Stifling his desire for her was fast becoming the most monumental task he’d ever undertaken. “I’ve got enough to worry about today, I don’t need to worry about you.”
Isabella raised her eyebrows, but said nothing. She walked slowly along the perimeter, running her hands over a rail. Her fingers slid over the scraped paint and dented metal. This ring may pale in comparison to the one at Terra Dura, but it had seen its fair share of thrashing and crashing.
The thunderous sound of a fence being hit boomed through the air. Isabella turned to look at the object of her desire. “He sounds restless. What breed is he?”
“He’s a Beefmaster/Longhorn mix, a humongous bull.” Snarly as a wolverine, Bull knew Hurricane had a short fuse. He felt lucky to have the opportunity to test the animal’s bucking skills. If the beast had some good moves, he expected to make a lot of money from the deal. “Rest assured, I’m known for my expertise in this area. Where do you think my nickname came from?”
“From your physical attributes, perhaps?”
Instead of picking up on her teasing, he focused on the perceived insult. “You think I can’t manage my animals, little girl?” With flushed face and flaring nostrils, Bull Redford seemed to have grown six inches. His chest swelled with power, he looked strong enough to lift a tractor with his bare hands.
“I apologize, I meant no offence.” Benedict was visibly vexed and she had no idea why he was in such a bad mood. She was quite sure it had something to do with her. What was even more perplexing, was the fact that seeing him so worked-up turned Isabella on. Closing her eyes, she envisioned him standing over her, eyes blazing, every muscle in his big body flexed.
“Are you okay?” Bull stepped closer to her when he saw her sway a bit. He was peeved, but more at his unwanted attraction to her than anything else.
Isabella took advantage of the situation and placed a greedy hand on his shoulder. God, the man was solid. “Yes, I’m fine. Like you said, it must be the heat.” She wasn’t bold enough to admit it was the thought of him pinning her to the wall that had loosened her knees. “I just need to sit down for a second.”
Clasping an arm around her waist, he pulled her to him. Just as he suspected, it was heaven to touch her and he didn’t want to break the contact. Flipping a latch, he opened a gate to the stands. “Let’s take a seat for a bit.”
Isabella didn’t go all the way to the metal bleachers. Instead, she sat right down on the ground next to a fence post. “Raised on a ranch, Mr. Redford,” she said with a grin when he looked down at her with surprise.
Bull hadn’t thought it possible, but she’d just made herself even more appealing in his eyes. If Carmen wasn’t in the picture, he’d snatch this beauty up and make her his, hell or high water.
After a moment’s rest, Bull convinced her to move up and take a seat in the stands. The ring wasn’t big, but she could imagine a row of cowboys sitting in the steel bleachers watching a compadre try to stay eight seconds on a bucking bull.
Another loud rumble came from below the stands. “Sounds like he’s tearing out of there. I’d better go check on him. You wait here, Miss Cortez.”
Isabella wanted to go with Benedict, but she feared she might upset him again if she didn’t do as he asked. She sat on the cool steel seat, her mind racing. Suddenly, a thundering crash sounded from below the bleachers.
“Oh, HHHHHHHEEEELLLLLLLLLL!” Benedict’s voice was heard echoing through the tunnel he’d just gone down.
Isabella jumped from her seat when Benedict came running into the holding pen with Hurricane following closely behind. The huge bull was dark red with a thick neck and gleaming white horns. Rarely, had she seen a more intimidating bull.
