“They seem a little short to me. Of course, it’s been a while since I’ve ridden, so maybe they’re fine. I just thought…”
Her voice trailed away when he placed a hand on her leg, just below her knee. Intensely aware of that touch, himself—and unable to forget how it had felt to touch that same leg in the pool, all bare and wet and supple—he kept his gaze focused on the stirrup.
“It does seem a little short. You’re longer-legged than you look. Take your foot out and I’ll adjust it for you.”
She obliged, making no response to his comment about her long legs. “You seem to be familiar with horses,” she said instead.
He grinned up at her from beneath the brim of his hat. “If you’re asking if I know how to adjust a stirrup without endangering your safety, the answer is yes.”
Her lips twitched with an answering smile, just a hint of the teasing they had shared before. “That doesn’t surprise me. Every fearless adventurer knows how to handle a horse.”
He grimaced a little as he tugged on the leather strap to make sure the stirrup was fastened securely before moving around to the other side. Should he admit that his adventures had been limited to summers and weekends on his uncle’s ranch, or continue their frivolous pretense that he was some larger-than-life movie hero? Because it was so rare that he got to be anything other than a routine-bound, responsible family physician, he opted for the latter—at least for a little while longer. “So we do.”
Jason patted Sweet Pea to keep from startling her as he circled around her; even the gentlest horse would occasionally kick when surprised, he’d discovered the hard way as a kid. Pablo followed cooperatively with only a light tug on his reins. Pablo lowered his head to sample a clump of grass while Jason removed Madison’s foot from the other stirrup. “Nice boots.”
“Thanks. I used to have some real Western boots, but they wore out years ago and I didn’t have time to replace them before this trip.”
“These work fine with the narrow toe. At least you didn’t wear sneakers or heels. Or worse, clogs,” he said with a shake of his head. One of the other women guests had worn open-back shoes, despite the guidelines everyone had been sent for the day’s activities. Though she’d pouted a bit, she would be riding in the wagon with Lila and a couple of older guests during the trail ride, since clogs were hardly safe in stirrups.
“I knew better than that. A friend of mine from my high school days owned horses, and I went riding with her fairly often. I always loved riding.”
He smiled up at her again. “So do I.”
Their gazes held for a few heartbeats, and his fingers tightened spasmodically on her denim-covered calf.
“How does that feel?” he asked her.
She blinked a couple of times before saying briskly, “Oh. The stirrup. That’s much better, thank you, Dr. Jones.”
Amused, he let his fingers trail down the side of her leg. “You’re most welcome, Madison.”
He found that he liked the sound of her real name on his lips more than the teasing nickname he’d given her before, even though he still grinned every time she called him Dr. Jones. Maybe that was because she was exciting and interesting enough on her own, whereas he required a disguise to change into someone more interesting than an ordinary family practitioner?
Her laugh was as warm and easy as the ones they had shared before, making him hope he was right that she was just being discreet in front of the other wedding guests. Surely there would be a chance sometime that day for them to have a few minutes of privacy, he thought optimistically.
“Problem with your stirrups, Maddie?” BiBi called out from atop the sorrel she had been assigned. Carl and Corinna sat in the saddles of a paint and a gray, respectively. The women, Jason noticed in amusement, looked much more at ease on horseback than Carl, who was known to have a weakness for sports cars and motorcycles.
“I can help
you, Maddie,” Allen Burleson offered quickly, nudging his chubby chestnut toward her. “I know how to adjust a stirrup.”
“Thank you, but Jason’s already fixed them for me.” That quickly, Madison’s manner had changed again. The smile she gave Jason was impersonal and her tone was identical to the one she had used with Allen when she said, “Thank you, Jason. That feels much better.”
He nodded. “You’re welcome.”
He could be circumspect, he reminded himself again as he turned to swing himself into Pablo’s saddle. If that was the way she wanted to play it, he was up for a little stealthy dalliance. That just made it all the more fun, all the more refreshing from his usual routine. Smiling to himself, he touched the brim of his hat in a courtly gesture to her and rode off to join a couple of his acquaintances at the other side of the arena. He would see Madison again later.
Madison was somewhat relieved that Jason rode some distance behind her during the trail ride. While it might have been nice to watch him—he really did look sexy as all get out on horseback—it would probably have been too hard to keep her attention on her own riding, and on the conversations going on around her.
The ride took them through a softly rolling pasture where the green grass was just fading into autumn tan, across a shallow, babbling creek no more than a couple inches deep and which the horses had obviously crossed dozens of times before. They went through a stand of trees filled with birds and squirrels and into a pretty clearing where the chuck wagon was setting up for the alfresco lunch. During the leisurely trek, the well-trained horses were sometimes single-file, occasionally side-by-side. The placid horses assigned to the inexperienced riders plodded docilely along the trail, intent on their destination, resisting any attempts to guide them onto a different path. The more spirited horses responded somewhat better to their riders’ handling of the reins, but Madison suspected that the truly experienced riders, like Jason, quickly grew bored with the slow pace and firmly established path.
The casual noon meal was served with the efficiency of a formal banquet. Folding stools appeared from a wagon so the guests wouldn’t have to sit on the ground. Two long folding tables held a variety of foods for carnivores and vegetarians alike. Madison filled her metal tray with a selection of grilled veggies and a grilled chicken breast, added a dollop of spicy mustard sauce, then carried her food and a plastic tumbler of lemonade to a cluster of stools where BiBi, Carl, Lila and Tommy were already seated. They invited her warmly to join them, and she pulled up a stool, joining their conversation about the wedding plans and the Polanski’s impending parenthood.
Madison rather hoped Allen would find another place to sit. She’d just as soon eat in peace without having to respond to his constant overtures. He wasn’t obnoxious or pushy, just somewhat wearisome, she thought a bit guiltily. Or was that only because she simply wasn’t interested in him in that way?
Her internal radar kept track of the man who had grabbed her attention in that way. Jason made no effort to join her for lunch, choosing instead to sit with a group of men who appeared to be telling hilarious jokes judging from the boisterous bursts of laughter coming from that direction. Mickey, the ranch employee who’d seemed to bond with Jason, joined that group and was soon adding to the noise level with his own barking laugh.
“Sounds like a party going on over there.”