Page 22 of Her Guarded Hero

“It’s really not as big as deal as those people made it out to be. I think sometimes people just believe what they want to believe because it makes them feel good.” She dipped her head and concentrated on her food.

“Ah, good ole self-delusion.”

“Are you a cynic?” Gunnar asked Dalton.

“You got to remember the Navy SEAL motto, The Only Easy Day Was Yesterday. I’m a realist.”

“While I like that kind of attitude when it comes to protecting my granddaughter, I sure hope you have a better outlook when it comes to your personal life.”

It was as if the room around him froze for just a moment as he was caught in his memories, but then it sped crazily back to life. Dalton nodded. “Yes Sir, personally, I know that my worst days are behind me.”

At that moment, the room stopped its crazy ride, and thudded to a stop, and there was Aurora’s smile. “I’m glad you have nothing but good things to look forward to, you deserve that,” she said.

* * *

“I think you lied Mr. Sullivan,” Aurora said archly. “You’re a lot more comfortable around horses then you led me to believe.”

She watched as he expertly saddled the brown gelding.

“Yeah, well, one of my former teammates has a ranch in Texas. I’ve spent some time there. Jack has horses and cattle. Any of us who came with him to visit his folks were expected to ride herd.”

“I’ve never done that, what was it like?” She wanted to get him talking, she liked his voice. It was smooth, dark and melted over her like warm honey. What’s more, he’d been so quiet when they’d left the house, it had taken her almost a half hour to get him to smile. It wasn’t until she’d started in on Erwin’s antics as a rodeo clown that he’d broken a grin. Now Dalton seemed to be behaving more like the man she’d met yesterday.

She watched his large hands competently cinch up the saddle and then gently stroke Teddy’s neck. “Jack’s parents are salt-of-the-earth people, they make you feel right at home, the same way Gunnar does. I’d ridden a horse a couple of times when I was in boy scouts, but this was something different. Jack is the only one of my teammates who wouldn’t give me shit, he patiently taught me everything I needed to know so I could help with the round-up.”

Dalton led Teddy out of the stall and presented him to her.

“I’d say Jack taught you well,” she smiled. “I’ll go get Aladdin and then we can go for a slow tour around the ranch.”

“Which one is Aladdin?” Dalton asked as he wrapped the gelding’s reins around a post and followed Aurora to another stall. She had put the big roan stallion in a larger stall that was separated from the other horses. She knew that the he was comforted having more space and less noise around him.

“What’s his backstory?” Dalton asked quietly as she pulled two baby carrots out of her pocket. She shouldn’t have been surprised that Dalton had known enough to ask that question, after all the man had proven to be very perceptive which was another reason she found him so damned attractive.

“I really don’t know. The new owners purchased him a month and a half ago. They were told that he was five years old with an even temperament. They bought him sight unseen over the internet from an Arizona horse broker, then had him trailered straight to Sacramento. Aladdin had bloodied himself on the inside of that trailer. They had to call a vet and have him tranquilized before they could get him installed in their barn.”

“Let me guess, when they called the previous owner, the telephone number was disconnected.”

“Give the man a cigar,” Aurora nodded. “All trace of their ads was gone from the equestrian web-sites. These are good people, they’ve hired a private detective agency, and haven’t had any luck. They paid a lot of money for Aladdin, but that isn’t what mattered to them. Their vet suggested he be put down, but the Beaumonts refused. They called me.”

Aurora reached over the stall door and held out the carrots. Aladdin eyed Dalton warily.

“Come on Gorgeous, I brought these just for you,” she coaxed. She tuned out everything and continued to croon to the big animal. Watching every twitch of his eyelid, every flex of his muscles. Finally, she saw him relax just a bit. “That’s it, come here, you know you want to,” she smiled softly when the red and gray stallion moved majestically forward and nibbled the carrots out of her open palm. She hovered her other hand over his muzzle. After a couple of seconds Aladdin lifted upwards and snuggled his nose into her hand so that she could scratch him.

“Aren’t you a love?” she asked.

Carefully she moved her hands along the side of his face toward his ear, stroking and lulling him into a sense of security. Each time she waited until he pushed against her hand so that she was confident he was ready for her next caress.

A loud crash sounded. Aurora yanked back her hand but before she could do anything else, Dalton had her around the waist and pulled away from the stall as Aladdin planted a powerful kick against the door, a plank shot at rocket speed across the aisle and embedded itself into the stall across from Aladdin’s stall. If Dalton hadn’t grabbed Aurora, she would have been maimed or killed.

Aurora strained her neck so that she could see what was happening to the terrified horse.

“Let me go,” she demanded as she tried to twist out of Dalton’s arms.

“Not until Aladdin is calm,” Dalton said grimly.

“He’s cowering in the corner. He’s not going to cause anymore problems.” She tried to push out of Dalton’s grasp, but it was no use. “Are you going to let me go, or not?”

“Not. It isn’t safe, Sunshine.”