Let Love Find You (20 page)

Arriving at the farm, she left the hired coach in front of the center stable, the three buildings not being that far apart, and warned Alice to stay in the vehicle to keep warm. She was actually worried that the driver might get tired of waiting for them and drive off, leaving them stranded, but he wouldn’t do that as long as his coach was still occupied.

A worker came around a corner, saw her standing by the coach, and asked her business, then pointed her toward the stable on the right. Was Devin grooming his horses again? She hoped he was more decently dressed this time! She supposed she was lucky he was even there. She hadn’t thought to ask if he came here every day or just stopped by a few times a week. It would be highly annoying to have gone through all that subterfuge this morning and find it was a wasted effort.

She remembered the heat inside the other stable she’d visited. This one was very warm, too, she noticed as she closed the door behind her. It felt good only for a few moments. Yes, Devin definitely spoiled his horses. She was sure they would be quite comfortable out in one of his many fields, at least until the snow came.

She saw Devin immediately this time, pitching hay from a pile that had been dumped in the aisle. No jacket again, but at least he hadn’t discarded his shirt yet. He’d rolled up his sleeves, though, exposing his muscular forearms. The loose white shirt, which was tucked into dark gray pants, was unbuttoned halfway down his chest, far more than was proper. He was such a handsome man, it was impossible not to find him attractive. Was that why her heart picked up its beat at the sight of him? Or was she just preparing for battle? He
did
challenge her, more than any other man ever had.

When he saw her approaching, he set the pitchfork aside and began buttoning his shirt up to his neck. As her eyes swept over his body, she noted he was wearing fancy riding boots today, instead of the muddy work boots he’d worn before.

She’d heard he was staying with his relatives in London, so she’d assumed he merely rode out here to see to his farm, but perhaps he actually lived in that run-down house on the property. Either that or he must keep extra clothes here. She couldn’t imagine him riding in London in those work boots he’d worn the other day.

She slowed her step as she reached him. He was putting on his jacket, which had been draped over a railing. He’d taken a step closer to her to reach for it. She saw now that it wasn’t just the subdued lantern light casting his face in shadow; stubble was on his cheeks. He must not don the mantle of a gentleman unless he was actually in London.

But here, working alongside his employees, he blended in amazingly well. Did he do it deliberately to put his men at ease? Some servants tended to get overly stiff in the presence of their employers. Yet why did Devin even pitch in here, when he seemed to have more than enough men in his employ to do the
work for him? Did he just enjoy working with horses himself? And why the deuce were all these questions about him occurring to her?

Finally recalling how angry she’d been with him and why, she said, “I’ve a bone to pick with you.”

“It’s a wonder I have any left, so many have been picked from me lately. Why don’t you leave the rest alone and let’s just get down to business.”

As if he hadn’t said a word, she railed, “You have
no
idea how many lectures I had to sit through because of that last remark you made about Lord Robert in front of my cousin. That was—”

“Good.”

She blinked. “Good?!”

“And we’re not discussing that boy anymore. Or do you just want to be a mother instead of a wife?”

She gasped. A few years difference in age was so irrelevant. Why would he even stress that point? But when she opened her mouth to tell him so, she ended up gasping again. He’d closed the distance between them and was towering over her. She thought he was actually going to touch her or shake her, he looked so annoyed.

“Not one more word from you about it,” he said coldly. “If for some reason Brigston buckles under and courts you all the way to the altar, it won’t be only your bed he sleeps in thereafter. He has no intention of settling down with just one woman, wife or no.”

Wide-eyed, she wondered if it was the setting and his work attire that made him say things so unfit for innocent ears. She was already acquainted with his bluntness even in a social setting, but he’d just gone far beyond that. He’d looked like
a stableman, earthy, too masculine by half, not the owner of this farm, before he put on his finely tailored jacket. Did that make him forget, however briefly, that she was a lady and that he ought to guard his words around her?

Then, as if he hadn’t just growled at her, he added in a normal tone, “But you’re smart enough to realize Lord Kendall is the better choice for you, or you wouldn’t be here today. Correct?”

She was
not
conceding he was correct about Robert. However, she was definitely done discussing the matter with
him
after he’d just intimidated her to silence. What a churlish brute, to use his size to win an argument!

So she nodded, albeit stiffly. But just so he knew it wasn’t his advice she was following, she added, “Besides, my brother has already assured me he’ll kill Lord Robert if I even glance at him again.”

Devin stepped back, then actually laughed. “I knew I liked your brother.”

“I
WAS HOPING LORD
Kendall would be here today,” Amanda remarked casually as Devin led her out of the stable and into the center one where he was keeping the horse he’d arranged for her.

“Be glad he’s not. I’ve bought you some time.”

“What d’you mean by that?”

“Did you want him stopping by for tea with your sister-in-law this week, forcing her to tell him you’re not ready for a ride in the park—and why? No, I didn’t think so. So I let him know about an exceptional Thoroughbred stallion in France that I heard about, and he’s hied off to buy him. That should give you a week or two to master this.”

“Was it true, about the horse?”

“Yes, I was considering buying him m’self.”

Another good deed on her behalf? This one she could at least thank him for and did.

He opened a stall to show her a sorrel mare, sleek compared to the other horses in the stables. He even began saddling it,
telling her, “I had to borrow this sidesaddle from a neighbor. You’re the first lady who’s been to my farm that’s had a reason to want to ride here.”

She waved a hand to encompass everything she’d seen. “Why did you buy all this, when your family already owns a farm in Lancashire?”

“I didn’t buy it all. Just the house and one stable was here, along with the fenced pastures. The house was in a sorry state, which was why the property was being sold at such a ridiculously low price. I added the rest.”

He didn’t actually answer her question, but another one occurred to her. “Didn’t want to fix up the house?”

“What for? I don’t plan to live in it.”

“But why two farms?”

Though he wasn’t looking at her, she couldn’t help noticing the grin on his face when he answered, “Baldwins have kept horse farms running up in Lancashire for generations, producing excellent riding mounts and carriage horses. Most of my ancestors just left the handling of the horses and the breeding decisions to trainers.”

“But not you?”

“No. My uncle Donald didn’t either. Like him, I find that I love working with the horses m’self. But my aunt and uncle, who raised me, were just waiting for me to finish school to turn the farm over to me so they could retire to London. It only took me a few years to get the operation running so smoothly it wasn’t taking up much of my time anymore. And they ended up missing me. It was actually their idea to start up this farm. My uncle knew the previous owner and that it could be had for a pittance, and it’s close enough to London so I can live with them again. But like you, I didn’t see a need for two farms
producing the same kind of horses. Then my uncle mentioned the racetrack nearby. That was like a magical word to a young man my age and settled the matter instantly.”

She’d been watching the way the muscles in his leg moved as he bent to strap on the saddle, and she wished his pants didn’t stretch so tightly on his legs when he did so, but his remark snapped her eyes back to his face. “Ah, so that’s why.” She laughed. “The two farms are completely different.”

He nodded. “Donald bred fine riding mounts, not racers. My goal is to breed the finest racers London has ever seen,
and
race them.”

He was actually easy to talk to—when he wasn’t trying to tell her what to do. But she actually found this subject exciting. “Have you succeeded?”

He led the mare out of the stall. “Not yet, at least not to first place, but then I knew it would take time because I was going to tackle a completely different breeding program. I even devoted six months just to testing all the stock, which is why I built that track out back.”

“For speed?”

“Not just speed, endurance, too. A good racer has to maintain the speed to the finish, not just give a good burst of it at the start. The mares all have what’s needed, I just haven’t found the perfect proven champion yet to complement them—well, I have, but his damned owner keeps raising his price on me.”

“A champion stallion? You don’t see too many of those on the track.” Not when mares raced, too, but that was an indelicate subject she couldn’t mention. But she knew of at least one stallion that raced—and won every time. The owner had even joined her and Julie in Julie’s coach one day at the racetrack because he was an old friend of her aunt’s.

Devin chuckled, agreeing with her. “Takes a
very
good rider to control one, but then if the racer was gelded, I wouldn’t want him.”

He held out his hand to her. It took her a moment to realize he wanted to help her up onto the horse. She took a step backward. It wasn’t a small mare standing there. She wasn’t ready! Did she even remember how to sit on a sidesaddle?

He waited, but when she still wouldn’t take his hand, he led the horse to the back of the stable and opened one of the tall double doors, saying, “I thought we would ride over to the track, but we can walk instead.”

She could breathe again. A reprieve. But what the devil? If she still couldn’t get on a horse, this was never going to work! She followed him quickly, taking deep breaths. She could do this, she had to do this,
everyone
did this, she told herself.

A few more saddled mounts were tied off at the back of the stable, and he’d grabbed one of those as well. She almost had to run to catch up with him as he headed for the small racetrack.

“She’s very gentle and well tempered, my Sarah,” Devin was saying about the mount Amanda was to ride. “If you fall, I highly doubt it will be her fault.”

Amanda snorted under her breath, hearing the amusement in his tone as he said that. He was trying to put her at ease, but she didn’t appreciate his idea of what might do so.

“
Your
Sarah?”

“Her mother was my first horse when I was a child, so I’m very fond of her. They were both good producers of mounts suitable for children—or beginners like you. Do you remember any of your riding lessons?”

He glanced back at her as he asked that. She was still
smarting over being given a horse even a child could ride, even though she knew she should be grateful instead. Was she so nervous she was going to take offense at everything he said today?

“I was too busy thinking about going fishing when I had those lessons,” she mumbled. “So, no, I didn’t pay much attention to them.”

He actually turned about to face her, taking a few steps backward. “Fishing?
You?
”

She lifted her chin. “Why not me?”

He grinned. “I just can’t picture you putting worms on hooks. So you like to fish, do you?”

It took a moment, but she grinned as well. “Yes, Rafe taught me how. I used to fish with him, or with my friend Becky, all the time when we were children.”

“Do you still?”

She smiled. “It’s odd. I never minded searching for bait when I was a child. Rafe and I would get up in the middle of the night and go outside to turn over rocks just to find the worms. But now . . .” She shuddered delicately. “No, I haven’t been fishing in ages.”

“But you’d still like to fish if you didn’t have to catch the worms?”

“Of course I would, it was such fun.”

“So, another interest you didn’t know you had. I’m sure Kendall wouldn’t mind baiting hooks for you.”

He’d turned back around, facing forward. She thought she heard him add, “Neither would I,” but she was probably mistaken, since he began giving her some pointers about how to control a horse, what to do in different situations, glancing back at her every few moments to make sure she was listening.

He finally admitted, “I’ve never tried to teach anyone how
to ride, but there’s really not much to it, all things considered. It will probably all come back to you once you give it a try.”

He’d led the two horses inside the fenced-in track to the grassy area at the center. The track was smoothly surfaced, hard-packed dirt, if a little muddy from the last rain. It really was a miniature racetrack. Devin was holding out his hand to her again. She stared at it. And stared. This was the telling moment. He’d dared her to do this. Where was her indignation at that to spur her into taking his hand? She couldn’t feel any indignation because fear was rooting her to the spot. She couldn’t move!