Romance: Seducing The Quarterback (27 page)

“Have you ever saddled a horse?” Paul asked her, his face
expressionless.

“No,” Sarah answered softly.

“Here, watch me,” Paul took hold of his horse’s reins and
led him out of the stall. He led him over to Sarah and held out the reins,
gesturing her to take them. Sarah looked between Paul and his horse, and balked
at the idea of taking the reins.

“Here,” Paul took hold of one of her hands and laid the
reins in them. “He won’t be any trouble- I promise.”

Sarah felt reassured by his words, but still intimidated by
the animal. She watched as its muscles twitched every now and again, and it
moved its head according to where Paul moved. Sarah couldn’t help but think
that if this huge animal had a mind to take off, she wouldn’t be able to hold
it back.

Paul never moved far. He merely retrieved a saddle and
blanket from a rack outside the stall and returned to the side of his horse.

“Now watch, and listen carefully,” Paul told her.

Sarah took in all the information as Paul instructed her on
how to properly saddle a horse. She made mental notes, and reviewed them
several times in her head. Finally, the horse was saddled, and Sarah hoped that
he would take the reins from her. The horse was getting livelier as he sensed
that he was going to be ridden, and he had begun to take steps back and forth,
and it was making Sarah nervous.

“Did you get everything?” Paul came to stand beside her.

Sarah nodded, and hoped that he would take the reins from
her.

“Good,” he gave a nod. “Now watch me and listen again.”

Sarah watched, with some confusion, as Paul instructed her
on how to properly unsaddle a horse. Paul even racked the saddle when he was
done. Then, he came to stand by Sarah, and much to her relief he took the reins
from her hands.

“Your turn,” he said softly as he ran his strong hand over
his horse’s neck.

“What?” Sarah uttered, panic gripping her.

“Saddle him up,” Paul said, and merely looked down at her.

“But…” Sarah felt fear creep into her body as she looked up
at the large, powerful horse beside her.

“I’m right here,” Paul sighed, slightly annoyed. “I’m not
going to let him hurt you. Now saddle him up.”

Sarah blushed, and felt a slight surge of irritation at
Paul, but moved over to the rack to collect the blanket and saddle. She
staggered a bit under their weight, but eventually managed to get them back
over to the horse. She made a motion to place the blanket over the horse’s
back, but the animal released a sound of protest, and slightly tossed his head.
Sarah retreated as the horse began to stamp its feet.

“You’re okay,” Paul said soothingly to the horse, and placed
his hand on its back, stroking slowly. The horse released another noise, but it
did calm down. Paul looked at Sarah over the horses back and nodded once,
gesturing for her to try again.

Sarah took a deep breath and gathered her courage. She moved
close to the horse’s side, and gently laid the blanket over its back.

“Well done,” Paul mouthed at her from over the horse. Sarah
couldn’t help but smile at his slight praise, and she proceeded with the rest
of the saddling process. When she had finished, she stepped back.

Paul took hold of the saddle and made sure it was secure. He
knelt down and checked the buckling, and then stood back up. He draped the
reins over the horn of the saddle, and then fitted one of his boots into one of
the stirrups. The horse took a few eager steps forward and back as Paul mounted
him. Paul shifted from side to side; making sure his saddle was secure.

“Very well done,” he gave Sarah a nod as he took up the
reins, steadying his horse.

“Thank you,” Sarah said breathlessly, still shaken from the
whole encounter. Paul looked down at her, and she thought she saw his lips curl
up in a tiny smile.

“Ready?” Sarah turned as Peter came up on his horse behind
her. He extended a hand and she took it, allowing him to help her up onto the
back of his saddle.

“Here we go!” he said as he urged his horse onward. Sarah
tightened her grip around Peter’s waist as the horse began to settle into a
brick pace, and he chuckled. Sarah looked over to Paul beside them. He was
facing forward, deliberately ignoring them.

Soon, Peter began to tell her about each place they came to.
The property was truly beautiful, and Sarah couldn’t help but be impressed. She
loved the small stream that ran not too far from the house. She imagined going
there to cool off on warm days. She loved the vastness of the place. She could
picture herself running through the fields and the trees by the stream. She
smiled to think of building a life here.

At length, they came upon the large herd of their cattle.
Peter explained that they mostly took care of themselves, but one of them was
usually there to keep an eye on them in case of predators, or if one of them
needed medical attention. For the time, Caleb was out there, and he rode his
horse in between the cows, making sure all was well. Sarah understood now why
they needed such a vast amount of land.

Even so, and as overtaken as she was by the beauty of the
land, Sarah found her eyes wandering quite often to Paul. He was the very
picture of dignity. He sat tall and strong on the back of his horse, his
shoulders broad. His green eyes constantly swept over the land, always
watchful. Every now and then, he would look over at Sarah as she watched him,
and he would lock his eyes with hers for several seconds at a time until she
had to look away from the intensity of his gaze.

Peter continued to talk to her, describing various elements
of the landscape as they appeared. He explained to her what they called each
place so that she would better know her way around the place. Sarah took
everything in silently, working hard to remember the names of everything she
saw. She was overwhelmed with the beauty. After a while, Peter directed his
horse in another direction away from the herd.

At length, they came to the base of the nearby mountains,
and Peter explained that that was the end of their property line. So, after
taking a look around that area, they turned back to head home. The sun was
beginning to sink in the sky, and various shades of pink, orange and blue
filled the horizon.

Sarah leaned her check against Peter’s back and relaxed. She
let her eyes travel over the various landmarks on the large ranch, and
remembered what each of the places was called. The stream gurgled off in the
distance, and Sarah felt her senses lulled into a calm relaxation. She allowed
herself to look over at Paul, and saw him relaxed for the first time. His eyes
traveled over the land, and every now and then came to land on her. Sarah found
that his gaze was as piercing as ever, and she still could not bear his eyes
upon her without looking away.

As the barn came into sight, Sarah felt Peter subtly urging
his horse to move faster. It was barely noticeable at first, but soon enough
they had sped to a healthy trot. Sarah was getting nervous, and she held on
tight to Peter’s upper body. Beside them, Paul’s horse kept pace easily.
Suddenly, Peter kicked his horse, and it took off at a full gallop.

Beside them, Paul did the same. In no time, he had far
outstripped them. Sarah gaped at the speed of his horse as they continued
toward the barn. In front of her, Peter laughed, but still urged his horse to a
faster pace. Sarah held on for dear life, and she was immensely relieved when
they at last slowed down to safely enter the barn.

Once they were inside, Peter led his horse over to his
stall. Sarah shook violently, and had to work hard to release her death grip on
Peter’s torso. She was trying to figure out how to dismount when Paul came to
stand beside Peter’s horse. He held up his hands in a silent offer to help her
down.

Relieved, but still slightly leery of Paul, Sarah tentatively
put her hands on Paul’s shoulders and allowed him to take her by the waist. He
effortlessly lowered her to her feet, and she stood in front of him. Her hands
remained on his shoulders as she looked up at him, her mouth slightly parted as
thoughts and nerves raced through her mind. His green eyes bored into her blue
ones as he looked down at her.

“Thank you,” Sarah said softly, and she removed her hands
from his shoulders as Paul removed his from her waist.

Paul gave her a single nod, and then moved away from her.
Sarah watched as he moved back toward his horse’s stall and began the process
of unsaddling his mount. Beside her, Peter was going through much the same
process. It did not take long, however, and soon Paul was headed back inside
the house, and Peter came to stand beside her.

“Let me show you where the well is,” Peter placed a hand on
the small of her back and led her out of the barn. Behind them, Caleb was
returning to the barn, and Peter waved him a greeting as he led her out.

Peter led her to a small pump with a trough beneath it, as
well as a small ladle. Peter stepped up to the pump and showed her how to draw
the water up and into the trough. Then, he used the ladle to bring the water up
to his mouth. He offered the ladle to Sarah, and she copied his actions. With
their thirst quenched, Peter led Sarah back into the house.

In the time it had taken them to get from the barn to the
house, Paul had already laid out four bowls on the table, and was in the
process of filling them with a rich smelling dish. In addition, a small loaf of
bread was set out on the table. Peter gestured for her to sit at one side of
the square table. Caleb followed shortly behind Sarah and Peter, and soon they
were all seated.

They joined hands and said a short prayer for the food. When
they were done, Sarah took her first bite of what appeared to be a stew, and
she was overwhelmed by the rich, wonderful flavor. She could hardly believe
that this bunch of men would be able to cook such an incredible meal.

At length, Peter and Caleb began to talk about various
problems and occurrences with the various animals on the ranch. Peter of course
mentioned the race between himself and Peter.

“Well, I might have won this time,” Peter began. “It’s just
that Ben had a whole extra person to carry.”

“Oh sure,” Caleb scoffed. “Somehow I think Storm would have
won that race with
two
extra people on his back.”

Peter laughed at the comment, and across the table Paul gave
a small smile. Sarah watched him, and he eventually looked up across the table,
and straight at her. The smile fell from his face, and it was immediately
replaced by his signature intense stare. Sarah blushed and looked back down at
her food.

Caleb and Peter continued to converse, and Sarah finished
her food. When they were all done, Paul began to collect the dishes, and Sarah
rose to help him. When all the bows and cutlery were off the table, Sarah
followed Paul outside to the pump. Sarah helped Paul to clean the dishes, and
when they were clean, they both carried them inside and Paul showed her which
cabinet they belonged in. Caleb and Peter were still engrossed in conversation.

Paul appeared to think for a moment, and then turned to face
Sarah. Sarah instinctively took a step back as he looked down at her.

“I’m going to take care of the animals,” he told her, his
voice low so that only she could hear him.

“Okay,” Sarah breathed.

“Would you care to join me?” he asked, raising a brow.

“Oh,” Sarah blinked. She looked over at Peter and Caleb, who
paid them no attention. She looked back up at Paul, who waited patiently for
her answer, his green eyes always upon her.

“Yes,” Sarah finally said softly.

Without a word, Paul stepped out of the house and made for
the barn. Sarah hurried to keep up with them, and gathered up her skirts so
that she did not trip over them. By the time she made it to the barn, she was
breathless, and Paul was already in the process of taking the bridle off his
horse of the night.

Sarah watched, entranced, as he gently stroked over his
horse’s face and neck. He softly sang to the horse as he ran his hands over its
muscular neck and shoulders, then further down his body. Sarah couldn’t take
her eyes off his hands, and it took her a moment to realize that they had
stopped moving.

Sarah looked up at his face, and blushed to realize that his
eyes were once again upon her, as piercing as ever. This time, though, she was
determined not to look away. So, the two of them stood there, silently taking
each other in for several moments.

“Come here,” Paul finally broke the silence.

Sarah nervously approached him. He turned for a moment,
always keeping one hand on his horse, and retrieved a brush from the shelf. He
placed it in Sarah’s hand and then guided her hand to brush over the horse’s
wide, strong back. Sarah struggled to breathe evenly as she felt Paul’s chest
so close to her back. She shook at his proximity and the feeling of his warm,
calloused hand over her own as he showed her how to brush the horse.

“This is Storm,” Paul murmured in her ear as he ran his free
hand over the horse’s body. Sarah watched it, mesmerized.

“Peter said he was unfriendly,” Sarah said softly.

“Storm is a lot like me,” Paul said, softly speaking into
her ear. “He just doesn’t take to a lot of people.”

Sarah nodded, and continued to brush Storm’s dark bay coat.

“If you give him a chance though,” Paul closed his hand over
hers, and Sarah’s breath caught in her throat. “He’ll warm up to you just
fine.”

Sarah turned her head to look up at Paul. His eyes were
practically burning, and Sarah felt that she would melt under his stare. For a
long moment they stood there, Sarah looking up at him over her shoulder.
Sarah’s body shook and she felt certain that she might faint. Finally, Paul
lowered his gaze away from her and set his jaw.

“Here,” he released her hand and backed away from her. “I’ll
tend to Storm and Rosie- that’s Caleb’s horse. And you can handle Ben and your
horse. You know how to brush now. Do you know how to take off their bridles?”