Naked Hunger: Naked Cowboys, Book 8 Read Online Free

predators.”
    “I read that,” she told him, determined that he not think she was clueless. “Before I even contacted Pete, I did my homework. Although I did my internship in a large animal clinic, bucking bulls were never on our patient list.” She laughed. “They don’t raise too many of them in Kansas.”
    He stopped and turned to face her. “You’re from Kansas?”
    She laughed again, this time at the look on his face. “No, actually Montana. But I had a great opportunity with a vet in Kansas, so I took it.”
    “How did you end up in Texas then?” They were walking again, his hand at the small of her back, the touch just as incendiary as before.
    “The job in West Texas appealed to me more than any others. Especially since I had a chance to buy in.”
    “So what happens if you decide to move here and take over Doc’s practice?”
    “My partner’s already agreed to buy me out, so there’s no problem.”
    They moved along farther in the barn. As Ryan pointed out the different bulls to her, introduced her to some of the hands and explained more about his operations, she had to work hard to concentrate on what he was saying. In her thirty-two years, no other man had made her self-discipline and concentration waver the way Ryan Donovan did. Just being near him made the air around her sizzle and crackle. She wondered if he felt it too.
    The last thing he showed her was Brutus, the current king of the breeding operation, and the stall he’d prepared for the new addition.
    “I’m gambling here,” he told her, reinforcing what Doc had said. “But if it pays off, it will be more than worth it.”
    “What’s in the next building?” she asked as they reached the end of the concrete center aisle.
    “That’s where the hands and I stable our horses. You’ll be taking care of them too.”
    “Should we take a look?”
    He shook his head. “Most of them are out right now, working the pastures or riding fences. Next time.” He nudged her around to face him. “There will be a next time, right? You are going to buy Doc out?”
    “Getting close to it.” She wanted to give Pete her answer before anyone else.
    He let his gaze travel over her from head to toe and back up again, sending a wash of sensation over her.
    “You sure you can wrangle those big animals? Pete sometimes has to ask one of us to help.”
    She swallowed her immediate retort and dug up a smile. “Then I’m sure if I need it, you’ll give me the same help. Right?”
    “Yeah. Right.” He still didn’t move. “Just want to make sure you know your way around these critters.”
    “Trust me. Don’t let my size fool you. I did my internship with large animals, and most of them weren’t friendly. I can handle it.”
    At last he said, “All right then. Thanks for coming by.”
    They stood there for a long moment, gazes locked and neither of them acknowledging the electricity zipping around them that nearly turned the air blue. When he touched her elbow to nudge her forward again, it felt as if he’d kissed her skin with a branding iron.
    Not good. Not good.
    With a tremendous force of will, Sable pushed everything else out of her mind and concentrated on the things Ryan was telling her. She’d be caring for these animals. She needed to know everything about them, their environment and how they were cared for. When they finished checking everything out and he walked her back to where Pete waited, the cool breeze carried the fresh scent of his aftershave along with the earthy scent of the barn. It made all her senses tingle. She would have to give herself a stern talking to if indeed she bought this practice. After all, she’d be working with this man, and mixing sex and business could be a problem.
    Or not. She’d wait and see.
    “Thank you for the tour,” she told him, reaching for her best professional attitude.
    “My pleasure.”
    When he shook her hand, the same electricity shot through her. Only the slight narrowing of his eyes