Love in the Vineyard (Tavonesi #7)(40)

Zoe grinned. “Animals offer unconditional love. Unlike brothers.”

Natasha watched as Tyler and Brandon walked toward the barn, chattering and gesturing to Zoe. “The boys look like miniatures next to those huge horses.”

Adrian must’ve read the alarm in her eyes. “She’s a safety-first master, or perhaps the word in English is mistress,” he told her. “They’ll be fine.”

Mistress. It wasn’t a word anyone used anymore. Did men still have those sorts of relationships? And what would Adrian think of such a relationship? She shook her head. What was she doing? She must have listened to one too many historical romance audiobooks and her imagination was running away with her. It didn’t matter since she wasn’t going to be any sort of woman except a gardener. That she could handle.

“They won’t be small for long. Children grow up so fast,” she said in a wistful voice that surprised her.

She’d had to grow up way too fast. Her irresponsible foster parents had robbed her of her childhood. That wasn’t going to happen to Tyler.

“You’d think that with lots of younger sisters and brothers I’d have noticed how fast children grow. But I was too busy growing up myself, I suppose. I have little experience with children these days.”

He motioned toward the fenced field behind the ranch house, and the corners of his mouth lifted in a sexy irresistible grin. “Want to see Ryan’s pride and joy?”

How could she refuse? She nodded and felt the sand of certainty begin to slip out from under her.





Adrian noticed that Natasha wore the same soft white cotton shirt and jeans that she’d worn the day they’d hiked Mount Saint Helena. And the same too-small tennis shoes. And the same rush of carnal desire whipped through him as it had that day. He talked it down.

Slow, Coco had said. Go slow.

“Liza’s Ryan’s great love,” Adrian said. “Next to Cara, of course. But I think Liza’s more than a close second.”

Natasha knit her brows, and Adrian cursed his weak facility for English. And for women. They reached the back paddock, and he guided Natasha over to the shade of a large oak.

He pulled a carrot from the pocket of his shirt and whistled. The happy little donkey came trotting over.

“Liza, meet Natasha.” He turned and offered the carrot to Natasha. “Want to give it to her?”

Natasha looked uncertain.

He grasped her hand. And his thoughts stopped. Liza nudged him with her nose. How long he would have stood there with his thoughts stalled by the rush of energy shooting through him, he couldn’t have said.

“Open your palm flat, like this.” He unfolded Natasha’s fingers and laid the carrot across her palm. But she stepped back, away from him and away from Liza. The look in Liza’s eyes was likely mirrored in his own. But he saw fear in Natasha’s.

“She won’t hurt you. Here, watch.” He took the carrot from Natasha and snapped it into two pieces. He placed half in Natasha’s still outstretched hand and half in his. With his palm flattened, he offered the carrot to Liza. Her soft muzzle against his palm reminded him of the warmth that had shot through him when he’d taken Natasha’s hand in his.

He was really, really losing it.

“See? Completely harmless. You try it.”

Natasha might be safe from Liza, but if she had any inkling of the near-uncontrollable urges he was fighting down, she’d do more than raise her eyebrows.

Natasha stepped close to the fence and extended her hand. Liza gently took the carrot. But instead of chewing it, she leaned over the fence and gave Natasha a hard butt with her head. Natasha’s foot caught in the grass as she stumbled back.

Adrian caught her in his arms.

And though he shouldn’t—had told himself countless times he wouldn’t—he dipped his lips to hers.

She opened to him, and driving want turned into a soul-crushing kiss.

The loud bang of the back door to the ranch house had them separating. But the tremble in her lips had him wanting to dive back for more.

Adrian looked in the direction of the house and saw Ryan coming down the steps. Natasha smoothed a hand to her hair. He put a respectable distance of about two feet between him and Natasha, but two feet didn’t do a damn thing to diminish the pounding in his veins.

“I heard I have two prospective Major Leaguers on my property,” Ryan said in his smooth Texas drawl. “If I can trust my scouting reports.”

He looked from Natasha to Adrian. A man knew when sexual chemistry sizzled in the air.

“Ryan, this is Natasha,” Adrian said in the steadiest tone he could command. “Her son Tyler and his friend are down with Zoe in your barn. And as fascinating as your donkey refuge operation is, I think they’re dying to have a round in your batting cage.”

Ryan extended his hand and Natasha shook it, a full blush still blooming on her cheeks. Adrian liked it when she blushed. It promised that she didn’t have every emotion bottled up and under control.

“It was good of you to invite us,” she said.

Ryan’s lips curled up at the corners, and his eyes crinkled with his grin. “You’re not one of those overprotective mamas, are you?”

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Well, if you were, I’d have to dial down the speed on the pitching machine even more than I’d planned. How old are your boy and his friend?”