Chapter 7
Garrett
“I think my father likes you,” Sarah said as we rode out toward the river.
“Why do you say that?”
“He wouldn’t have let me take any other man out to the river. I honestly didn’t think he was going to say yes.”
“Maybe he just knows that I’ll be able to keep you safe,” I responded, not even believing my own statement. “Or maybe you’ve got him wrapped around your little finger?” I laughed.
The truth was, Sarah was probably much tougher than I ever could be in the wilderness. Although I had started to really enjoy working outdoors and being at the Miller ranch, it had been Sarah’s home growing up. She knew more about horses and the wilderness than I could have hoped for. I constantly felt like I was fumbling around and doing everything horribly.
“I’ve got my gun, don’t worry I’ll keep you safe,” she said without turning to look at me.
She seemed to have softened up to me and I wasn’t going to complain at all. I wasn’t exactly sure why Sid and Meredith were agreeable to me going out to the river with Sarah, but I wasn’t going to refuse the offer. Except for one quick trip into the city, I had been stuck at that ranch for months. I just needed a different view.
My body had adjusted to the long hours and difficult work, but I was excited to get the rest of the day and the next morning away from physical labor. Gone were the days of spending a Sunday morning curled up on my couch with the newspaper. I hadn’t spent a single morning sleeping in since I had arrived at the ranch.
“How far away is the river?”
“It’s about a two-hour ride, we basically need to go up over that mountain right there.”
“What? We are going over that? Oh, shit.”
It was an actual mountain. Not a small hill or even a large hill; the land structure that Sarah pointed out was an actual mountain. It was starting to make sense why only the two youngest and strongest horses could make the trek and why Forest had gone over with me the importance of staying in control of Buckjoy while I rode. The path looked extremely dangerous and I felt very undereducated in my riding skills to be taking on such a big and dangerous path.
“We couldn’t drive there?”
“Not to get to the part of the land where the river is the most beautiful. It’s actually easier to ride than drive since there’s no roads.”
“I feel like I’m being punk’d right now. You’re not messing with me, are you? One time Forest told me the only way to bale the hay was for me to physically roll it. I spent three hours trying to roll that son of a bitch before Forest came over with the baler and did it in two minutes.”
“Oh, my God. I can’t believe I missed that,” she laughed. “So you’re telling me you’re gullible?”
“Well, I’m glad you did miss it. It wasn’t a very masculine moment.”
“You seriously thought you had to hand bale the hay? Oh, man, you really have never worked on a ranch before, have you? I’m surprised you’ve lasted this long.”
“I’m more of an office job guy,” I said mistakenly. “But I need the money and I need the job, so I’m more than willing to learn what has to be done,” I said as I tried to cover up my mistaken comment.
For a brief moment, I had forgotten that I was on Sarah’s ranch for protection and I wasn’t the man she thought I was. My FBI back-story never had me working in an office. Instead, I was a farmer’s son who lost his parents and was heading to a new job in the northwest. I quietly hoped that Sarah wouldn’t catch my mistake.
We rode in silence as we followed a winding path up and over the mountain. I wasn’t deliberately being quiet, but I felt like it took all my concentration to work with the horse and stay on the path. Luckily, Forest had been showing me the tips and tricks to riding and occasionally Sarah would tell me to pull my feet in tighter or hold the reigns tighter. When we finally reached the peak of the mountain, Sarah stopped the horses and we let them take a break.
She grabbed her camera and took a few pictures while I stood and held onto the horses. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to be doing, but I knew enough to hold the horses and prevent them from getting away from us.
“Grab that pop up bowl in my satchel and I’ll fill it with water for the horses,” she said.
“Sure thing,” I said, just happy to feel like I was being of some use.
“You’re doing a pretty good job riding; I can see you’re a quick study.”
“Yeah, more like a lucky study. I swear I forget everything until I get my hands in there and do it myself.”
“I’m the same way. I’d much rather learn by doing something than by having someone tell me what to do. You can imagine how hard that made business school for me,” she laughed.
Again, with that laugh, I couldn’t turn away and stopped walking mid-step to watch her. Sarah’s entire face lit up when she laughed; it was like a sneak-peek into the real her on the other side of the giant wall she tried to keep up most of the time. I loved it. I wanted to see it more and more and found myself trying to think of something else that would make her laugh. But I also liked actually talking to her, getting to know her, and learning what made her tick.
“So, what did your father say when you asked to bring me out here with you? He probably didn’t like the idea all that much.”
“He’s not as unreasonable as you might think. And I did promise him separate tents. Plus, if he wants to sell off this land and get a decent price for it he’s going to have to show just how damn beautiful it gets out here.”
“Then separate tents it will be. I am truly grateful to your father and wouldn’t do anything to go against his wishes.”
“Nothing?” Sarah said with a mischievous smile.
“Well, almost nothing,” I said.
The look on her face was so mischievous that I couldn’t help but think that she was thinking about something naughty. I could only hope. And yes, if Sarah made a move on me, I would have to forget about Sid Miller and just enjoy the moment with Sarah. But I wouldn’t make a move on her. Of course, I couldn’t help teasing and flirting, but if we were going to take it further than that, Sarah would be the instigator and not me.
She continued to take care of the horses and went around to check each of their hooves while they drank their water. It was mesmerizing to watch her work with the horses, even with Buckjoy; they loved her and seemed more than willing to comply with anything she asked of them. It was clear that Sarah had the confidence that animals needed in order to trust her. Even though Buckjoy wouldn’t let Sarah ride him, he allowed her to look at his body and check how he was holding up on our journey so far.
“So teach me more about taking care of the horses. Why are you looking at their shoes?”
“Come here,” she smiled.
I got up and tried to hold back the moan that my body felt. Riding for an hour had used different muscles in my body than I was used to and I was already feeling extremely sore. I did my best to straighten up and walk normally as I made my way to Buckjoy and Sarah.
“Okay, stand right next to his body and let your hands slide down to his hoof. You want to give him a warning of what you’re doing and then gently lift it up so we can look at it. Move slowly so he doesn’t feel threatened by you.”
Sarah stood next to me and allowed me to lift Buckjoy’s right front hoof up. I looked at it and didn’t see anything that seemed unusual. He was calm and balanced on his other three legs while I took my time looking around to make sure he was all right. I didn’t really know what I was looking for though and I didn’t want to tell Sarah I had no idea what to keep my eye for.
“Okay,” I said as I started to put it back down.
“Wait, look right there,” she said as she pointed to a small needle looking thorn that was poking into the middle of his foot. “We need to remove that before it gets pushing in any further.”
She had her body pressed up against mine as she looked at the animal and all I could think about was how delicious she smelled. I wasn’t sure if it was her hair shampoo or some sort of lotion on her body, but either way, she smelled so distracting that I thought I had misheard her.
“Um, remove?”
“Yes, it’s long enough. Just gently grab it and pull firmly and see if it will come out on its own. Go slow so you don’t scare him. It will hurt, so I’ll hold onto his reigns to prevent him from running off. But be ready in case he tries to kick you.”
I felt my body tense up at the idea of inflicting any sort of pain on Buckjoy. I had come to love that horse and knew he was still a wild animal. I was afraid. It wasn’t the same kind of fear I had for the men who might try to kill me because of my testimony, but I was afraid I would cause harm to this horse that I cared about. Then Buckjoy would be angry with me and try and cause me harm.
“Um, just grab it? Won’t he get angry?”
“Trust me. He’ll be angrier if that thing gets pushed into his hoof any further. Do you want me to do it?”
“No. I can.”
I already felt like Sarah was better at every task there was around the ranch, I couldn’t show her that I was weak in this area as well. I needed to touch it out and just do it. I held my breath and grabbed a hold of the thorn then pulled it out quickly. Buckjoy moved a little as I pulled the thorn out, but otherwise he stood relatively still and didn’t seem to be in pain at all.
“See, he’ll trust you even more now because he’s not going to be in pain later.”
“Does he know that I was helping him and not hurting him?”
“I think so. He was probably feeling that thorn in his hoof a bit and now he knows it’s gone. That’s how you build trust in animals. Take care of them and make their lives easier and they’ll appreciate it.”
“Have you always loved animals?” I asked as we finished checking Buckjoy and then sat down.
She paused for a moment before answering. I watched her face as she seemed to go through several emotions before deciding exactly what she wanted to share with me. The time she took in answering a question was one of the things I liked about Sarah. She didn’t just give the first answer that came to her mind, instead, she took the time to think about what she wanted to say. I wish I was more like that.
“There was a time when I hated it here. All I could talk about was going off to college and then never returning. But as soon as I got to college, all I could think about was getting back home.”
“How did you end up in New York?”
“Really it was all my father. He didn’t want me just returning home after getting my fancy degree. He kept saying he wanted me to do something with myself. But I think it was just because I had been such a rotten teenager.”
We both laughed. I couldn’t imagine Sarah being rotten. She was kind to her parents and kind to all the men that worked on the ranch. Even when she was slightly annoyed with me, I could tell she was still kind under it all. She didn’t strike me as the kind of girl who had been wild at any point of her life.
“Well, I bet your family is glad to have you home now.”
“I’m not so sure about that. They are having financial troubles with the ranch and the more I try to help, the more he pulls away. My father doesn’t want to show me his books or let me really help him. He just wants to do it all himself.”
“I would think with your background you probably have some great ideas for how to make the ranch more financially successful.”
“You’re just trying to butter me up because you’re stuck with me all night,” she teased.
I wasn’t just trying to butter her up. It was clear that she had a vision for the ranch that was bigger than what was going on at the moment. With her background in business and marketing, I would have hired her in a second to help me with my firm. Her father could certainly use her skills with his ranch as well.
“I think my father still sees me as a little girl. Every now and then, I see a look in his eyes that shows me he understands I’m all grown up, but most of the time I feel like he sees me as a teenager. One who is all about flirting with the boys and not at all interested in farming or ranching.”
“Well, you certainly aren’t a little girl,” I said.
My eyes scanned over her body and lingered on all the parts that proved she was very much an adult. The curve of her hips, her perky breasts and pouty lips — all had my body wanting her. Craving the thoughts of her that came at night and enjoying the ones I was having at that very moment it was distracting to me to even allow my thoughts to linger on her.
I couldn’t help but think of what it would be like to lay on our stretched out blanket and make love atop that mountain. Certainly, there was no one for miles and miles, her father would never know; no one would have to know. But I stayed in my spot and let the thought move past me as I refocused on our conversation.
“Stop doing that,” she said with a smile.
“Doing what?”
“Looking at me like that.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I lied.
“Garrett, you’re looking at me like you’re undressing me with your eyes,” Sarah said as her face blushed.
“I was?”
I couldn’t help but smile as her face continued to flush and she looked away. Sarah was a beautiful woman and I wasn’t ashamed at all to have her know that I wanted her. There was a delicate tightrope I was walking though. Her father was the only reason I was at the ranch; if Sid wanted to kick me out at any moment, he had the authority to do it. I would likely be sent up to Alaska to wait out the rest of my time until the trial, and that idea sounded horrible to me.
“Well, stop it. And we better get going before the sun sets. I need to get those photos.”
She quickly changed the subject and we both got back on the horses to head down the other side of the mountain. I had thought it would be easier going down the mountain, but it was much scarier for me than going up had been. I didn’t feel in control of the horse at all and panic started to set in.
I had to maintain control over Buckjoy and slow him down constantly. His wild side kept wanted to run as fast as he could down the mountain, and that surely would have ended badly for me. Forest had reminded me to go slow, but even when I tried to pull the horse to get him to slow down, Buckjoy didn’t want to listen.
It was funny to me how much I identified with Buckjoy. He was a horse, logically I knew that, yet I felt like I was him. I felt like a wild stallion that was cooped up at the Miller ranch and just waiting for my time to run free. I couldn’t blame him and I even wanted to let him run a little bit just to get it out of his system.
As a CEO, I hardly ever had to actually stay in one place for very long. I had the freedom to travel where I wanted to and do what I wanted with my day. I actually probably worked over 80 hours a week, but I did it from the comfort of luxurious locations, airplanes, and even sitting in my bed. My old life wasn’t perfect, but it was my life and I missed it.
The months I had spent at the Miller ranch had already made me appreciate what I had before. I was more grateful than ever for the successes in my life. But my time had also made me realize how much I despised myself for risking everything to get involved with a dangerous man like Frank Gordano. I knew he was dangerous. I knew I was putting my business at risk; yet I did it anyways. I felt like I was unstoppable and I was pretty damn lucky that the FBI decided they could use my information instead of charging me with the crimes that I also had committed. I could have easily been in jail instead of riding a wild horse down a mountain with a beautiful woman by my side.
“Hold the reins tighter or he’s going to start running,” Sarah yelled at me as Buckjoy moved ahead of her on the trail.
“I’m trying; he’s just not that interested in listening to me right now.”
I started to become afraid as Buckjoy moved faster and faster down the trail. He was in his own world now and my hold on him didn’t seem to control him like it did when we were on the flat ground. My heart was beating a million miles a minute and I knew with any wrong move, both Buckjoy and I would go tumbling down the side of the mountain. The ride was no longer just about fun; I felt like my life was actually in danger.
“You’re in charge Garrett. Don’t let him be in charge.”
Sarah’s words and the words of her father from a few weeks earlier were both in my head as I sat up straight and took a deep breath. I pressed my legs into the horse and pulled the reins back firmly to signal that he needed to slow down. I didn’t let up, I continued to grip his body with my legs and hold the reins firmly to show that we needed to go the pace that I set for him. Soon Buckjoy slowed to a gallop and then to a walk. Relief ran through my body and my hands started to shake from the adrenaline that had been rushing through me.
I tried to hide my shaking hands from Sarah as she caught up to me, but I knew she saw them. Our eyes met and she nodded her head in agreement that things were better. I certainly would have wished that I could handle such an event without even the slightest bit of fear on my face, but I couldn’t. I had genuinely been scared for my life.
“That was scary,” I said.
“Yes it was. But he’s listening to you now. Stay in control and we’ll be to the river shortly. See it over there?” she pointed to what looked like miles and miles away.
“Oh, God,” I moaned.
“You’re going to sleep good tonight,” she teased me.
“I sleep better here than I ever have my entire life. There’s something to be said for working your body to exhaustion. It has no other choice but to sleep.”
“I know. Isn’t it funny? I think it also has something to do with being outside all day. Our bodies were meant to work with the sun and the second the sun goes down; all I want to do is sleep. Yet, back in the city, I would stay up until one or two in the morning almost every single night.”
“Yeah, me too. I would work all day and then feel exhausted, but the second I got home I couldn’t sleep.”
“Well you also didn’t need to get up at four o’clock for breakfast,” she laughed.
It was true. Back home, I hardly ever ate real breakfast and when I did I had the luxury of eating it whenever I felt like it. I couldn’t remember a time where I had ever woken up before five o’clock in the morning and even on those days it was because I had a plane to catch.
We continued down the mountain and I breathed a huge sigh of relief when we finally got to the flat land at the bottom. Sarah stayed in front of me through the second half of the downward trail. She was probably afraid I was going to lose control of the horse again, but then again, so was I.
In my normal life, I was one hundred percent the alpha male in every situation, but on the ranch, I certainly wasn’t able to have that position. Sid Miller, Forest, and even Sarah held more clout on the ranch than I did. They knew more about running the business, caring for the animals, and surviving in that environment. It was humbling to have a new perspective and I was enjoying letting others take the control for a little bit; even if I felt cooped up sometimes.
Sarah rode ahead of me and my eyes were glued onto her ass. The gallop of the horse had her round ass moving up and down in a rhythmic motion and my body throbbed just thinking about what she would look like naked. For a brief moment, I closed my eyes and thought about the touch of her naked ass against my hands and how delightful it would feel. I remembered the gentle touch of her lips against mine, and how much I had wanted to continue that moment once I knew what she tasted like.
When we finally arrived at the river, it was nearly time for the sun to set. We quickly secured the horses and Sarah got started on taking photos. She looked like she was in her natural element as she analyzed each angle and took several photos. When she moved near to the river, I paid close attention because she was walking out on some rocks that seemed very slippery to me. I moved close to her and stood next to the river as I waited to help her back to the shore when she was done with her photos.
“Careful,” I said, almost under my breath as I walked over to where she was standing.
“I just need one with the water and the sunset. I’ve got to get just the right angle.”
Just as she said that, Sarah’s foot slipped and she started to fall. I quickly jumped into the water and grabbed her before she went all the way in. Only one foot of hers was wet, but I was soaked all the way up to my waist.
“Well, that wasn’t a smart move,” she joked as I held her up on the rock and she looked down at me halfway in the water.
I helped her to the side of the river and she held her hand out for me as I climbed out of the water. It was cold and I started to shiver almost instantly when the cool air hit my skin.
“Some would say it was a brilliant move. I saved you from getting wet and looked like a total hero doing it,” I joked.
“But now you’re soaking wet and it’s going to get cold tonight. We better get a fire going and get you out of those clothes.”
“The words I’ve been waiting to hear for months,” I joked. “Yes, let’s get me out of these clothes. Perhaps you should get out of yours also, you know, just to make me feel better.”
Although I was very much joking, I had fantasized about Sarah wanting me. I had fantasized so much about her that I thought she could read my thoughts when I looked at her. Some mornings I would even avoid eye contact with her all together because I was sure she would see the dirty thoughts that were going through my mind.
“You’re still sleeping in your own tent. I don’t care how many times you save me.”
“You’re such a stickler for the rules.”
“Can you start a fire?” Sarah asked as we both finally made it to dry land.
She wasn’t asking me to actually start the fire, but simply wondering if I had the skills necessary to start a fire. Oh, how I wished I could have surprised her and told her I knew exactly how to get a fire going from the middle of nowhere without a lighter. In that moment, I wanted those backwoods skills that would have totally impressed her, but alas, I didn’t have such skills.
“Nope.”
“Not surprising, for a city guy like you. Let me teach you.”
It was getting tiring having Sarah always have to show me how to do things, but I was in her world and that was just how it was going to have to be. If she was ever to fly in one of my private jets, I’d be glad to show her how to fly one. I laughed under my breath at the thought. I was never going to be able to show Sarah my jets, I wouldn’t even be able to tell her who I really was. As soon as the trial came, I would go back to my world and never see Sarah, Sid or my friends at the ranch ever again. It was the sad truth of my situation.
“Sorry, I’m not really the best ranch hand in the world, am I?” I laughed.
“You know what, I don’t think knowing how to do everything makes someone good at working on the ranch. I think being willing to let others show you and humble enough to know when you need to learn is much more important,” her warm smile had my full attention but then she gently put her hand on my arm and my body also stood at attention for her.
My blood pumped quickly to my throbbing member and I swiftly moved my arms to cover the evidence that I was aroused. Simply sitting and watching Sarah start a fire had my body throbbing. Well, actually it had likely been the look in her eyes and the touch of her hand, but I knew I couldn’t control how much she excited me. Or maybe it was that I hadn’t had sex in over three months. My body longed to feel the explosion of pleasure that a woman could bring.
Sarah quickly had the fire going and then stood there looking at me. I looked back at her, wondering what it was she was waiting for. Did she see the excitement in my pants? Was she waiting for me to comment on why I was so damn excited by her?
“Your pants,” she said firmly as she held out her hand. “We need to dry them.”
Oh, shit.
The thick fabric of my jeans was the only thing preventing my pulsing member from springing to attention and showing Sarah just how much I longed for her. I couldn’t exactly take them off and just stand there in my wet boxers; it would expose me too much.
“I’ll set up the tents and then you can have them,” I offered.
“No, just hand them to me now. They will need time to dry and it would be better for us to get that started right away.”
Panic rushed through me at the thought of being exposed, being vulnerable. I looked at Sarah and then at her hand that was outstretched. She was so firm in her request. In the outside world, I would have simply said no and went about setting up the tents. But then again, in the outside world I wouldn’t have been jumping into a river and getting my pants wet in the first place. In the outside world, I wouldn’t have a hard on simply from a woman touching my hand. Nothing about my old life applied to that moment and I had to think of some other solution to avoid the embarrassment that was quickly becoming a reality.
“How about I just set my tent up real quick?” I said as I grabbed the tent from the pile of our things and walked toward where I wanted to put it up.
Sarah grabbed the tent from my hand and threw it onto the ground. She pulled me close to her and looked me in the eyes as her hands started to unbutton my jeans. I didn’t know what she was doing, but I knew I had to stay right there and see where this was leading.
“I said to give me your wet pants,” she said with a grin.