willing to pay twenty-five thousand dollars.”
He stopped and stared at his sister. “You’re kidding.”
She shook her head. “I know you normally work with children, but Cyndi needs to be able to ride for this movie. When Kelly told me about it, naturally I thought of you. You are the best.”
Patrick hated it when his baby sister pulled this sweet act. Ever since she was a kid, she’d brought home all kind of strays. He still had two dogs and a cat that she’d rescued. But this… “I have too much to do.”
“I thought your dream was to enlarge the vineyard, to start a winery. Helping Cynthia Reynolds will bring you a lot closer to that goal.”
It would take a long time for Patrick to save that kind of money. But the problem was, could he get past his relationship with Cyndi? Hell, what was he talking about? It was a one-night stand.
“Tell her I’ll give her some time in the afternoon.”
Nora looked funny. “Patrick, she needs more than that. You’ve got to work with her full-time. And this has to be a secret. That means she should live out here.”
“So what exactly happened between the two of you last night?” Kelly asked curiously. “The man didn’t seem to be too happy to see you. And before you deny it, I saw the sparks between you two, but I wasn’t sure if he was going to throttle you or jump your bones.”
Cynthia paced the large farm-style kitchen. Although the room had obviously new maple cabinets and the countertops were tiled in a natural-colored stone, there was a homeyness about the place that was warm and inviting. But no matter how inviting, she wanted to leave, to convince Kelly to take her back to town.
“I never told him who I was last night. We only exchanged first names.” She tucked a wayward strand of hair behind her ear. “What’s the big deal? You encouraged me to share a few drinks and some laughs.”
Last night’s memories were still fresh in her mind, still stirred feelings within Cynthia. She couldn’t believe how much she’d wanted Patrick just hours ago. So much so she couldn’t keep her hands off him. Seeing him again this morning, she realized those feelings hadn’t gone away. Trying to work with Patrick Tanner would be a disaster.
“Are you saying that more happened between you two?” Kelly’s eyes were wide with hope and surprise.
“Since when do we—” Just then the back door opened and Nora walked into the kitchen.
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” she said. “Patrick and I needed to go over some things.” She released a long breath and looked at Cynthia. “My brother wants to talk to you. He’s outside on the porch.”
“Look, Nora, if this is going to cause trouble…” Cynthia began.
“No, he just wants to make sure that you’re serious about learning to ride. And to work out a few details.”
Cynthia nodded. Good. She would straighten this out. She’d tell Patrick Tanner she didn’t need his services and leave. There had to be dozens of instructors who could teach her to ride.
She walked out the door and found him sitting on the back-porch railing. His arms were folded over that gorgeous, broad chest. She shook away the mental picture of Patrick naked, then her gaze connected with his. “Look, Patrick, I’m sorry about last night.”
“What are you sorry about, Cyndi? That you spent the night with me, or that your little joke backfired?”
“It wasn’t a joke. You may not believe it, but I don’t make a habit of going to bed with men I just met.”
He didn’t look like he believed her. “No problem. We used protection.”
Seeing her pained look, Patrick wanted to take back his words.
“How come it’s only my behavior that’s being scrutinized?” she asked. “Is it because I left you first, instead of you leaving me?”
Her fiery question hit home.
He fought back. “How about because you didn’t mention that you’re Cynthia Reynolds? Was that the reason you wanted to leave it at just first names?”
“You ever think maybe my reason was that people act differently around me when they know who I am?” she asked. “You didn’t recognize me. It was nice being myself for a change. You didn’t seem to care who I was.”
Hell, she’d had him so hot he couldn’t remember his own name. “What do we do now?”
She shrugged. “I’ll just tell Kelly and Nora we can’t work things out. Although, I would appreciate it if you gave me the name of someone who can teach me to ride.” She glanced around, not really looking at him.
He could direct her to a half-dozen people, but he doubted she would get results in such a short time. “Nora said you only had ten days and needed to keep this quiet. That if the media gets wind of you taking riding lessons, you could lose the opportunity for this movie.”
“It’s not your problem. Tell your sister thanks and tell my sister that I’ll meet her in the car.”
Before Cyndi could pass him, he reached out for her. Mistake. The hot sizzle from the connection was unbelievable. What he was about to do was another mistake. “I’ll do it. But by my rules.”
Cynthia didn’t pull away, but she didn’t back down either. “What are the rules?”
“We’ll work from early morning until the afternoon. You’ll also be responsible for the care of your horse. There will be no media around, and you’ll move out here for the next ten days.” And he asked for a larger amount of money for his services than she had originally offered just to see how far he could go. He expected her to tell him to go to hell.
“And what if I don’t agree?”
“Then we say goodbye…this time.” Inside he wasn’t sure what he wanted her to do. He knew he didn’t need this distraction, but he still wanted Cyndi. Maybe during the ten days she’d be here, he would get her out of his system.
Cynthia stepped back. “I have one condition of my own. We keep this arrangement strictly business. What happened last night will not happen again.”
We’ll see about that, Patrick thought. “Agreed. Strictly business.” He shook her hand then released it before he broke his promise right here and now. “Talk with Nora and she’ll show you where you’ll be staying.”
He started down the steps toward the barn, then turned. “I’ll be busy most of the day, so you’ll be fending for yourself. But tomorrow I expect to see you in the barn at 6:00 a.m. If you’re not, I’ll figure you’ve changed your mind.”
“Oh, I’ll be there,” she tossed back, a challenging look on her beautiful face. “So be ready to live up to your reputation.”
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