a slow once-over, he smiled. “Let’s go find Cathy, have her give us a demonstration, and then get the fuck out of here.”
I noticed he walked down the very center of the aisle and didn’t look at any of the stalls. Of course, I didn’t either. I was too busy watching his ass. Until we got to Clover’s stall. I stopped there long enough to tell her we’d be back.
“You’re already in love with her,” Lucien said. Was that jealousy in his voice? No. I was obviously addled from too much blood rushing to my cock.
We found Cathy, and she brought Prince out of his stall. She rode him around the corral as Lucien and I watched. He was as obedient to her as I was to Lucien. He seemed content to keep to a slower pace, and he knew exactly what Cathy wanted with only the slightest guidance. I wasn’t sure if that was her skill with horses or a sign that he would be easy to control. I didn’t know enough about horses to do anything but trust her judgment.
I realized Lucien was watching me rather than Cathy and Prince. “You like him, don’t you?”
“I really do.” He was going to buy me two ponies no matter what, so I might as well enjoy it.
Cathy dismounted and led Prince back to the corral gate where we stood.
“We’ll take him,” Lucien said. “And Clover.”
“That’s excellent. I can have the papers drawn up for you later today and then—”
“I want to settle this now. I can pay cash.”
Her eyes widened. “You want to pay for them straight out right now?”
“Yes. I’m not sure when I’ll have time to drive back out here, so I want this settled.”
“All right then. Once I find someone else to brush down Prince, I’ll meet you in my office at the far end of the barn.”
Lucien insisted I stay by Clover’s stall while he took care of the payment. He was treating me like a princess, and that should bother me, but in truth, it felt really fucking good to have someone shower me with affection.
When Lucien came out of the office, he handed me some treats Cathy had given him so we could feed Clover.
“Do you want to give her one?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No, they’re for you. She’s for you.”
“She’s really gentle. I know horses aren’t your thing, but you might like her if you gave her a chance.”
“I… No thank you.”
I decided right then it would be my goal to get him to at least pet and feed Clover. Maybe I would never get him on a horse, but I wanted him to be comfortable with them. If I could be brave enough to be a mob boss’s boyfriend, he could pet a pony.
As Clover snatched up the last of the treats from my hand, Lucien’s phone rang.
“It’s Angelo. We’ve been here longer than I expected, so I better take it.”
“We can go. I don’t—”
He shook his head and answered the call. A few seconds later, he shouted, “He did what?”
I couldn’t be sure if he was angry or just shocked.
“All right. No, don’t tell him. What about Stefan?… What do you mean he didn’t show up… Fine, I’ll deal with that later… I don’t care what Devil said… No. Jesus Mary and Joseph. What the fuck was he thinking?… Where’s he taking them?… Fine. We’ll be there as soon as we can.”
“We’ve got to go.”
I gave Clover’s ears a final scratch and told her I’d be back to visit her as soon as I could. Then I ran to catch up to Lucien.
“Back to the office?” the driver asked.
“No, to the Weston house.”
“Yes, sir.”
Lucien’s expression remained grim as the car headed down the long driveway. I reached for his hand, lacing our fingers together. He’d taken time away with me when he shouldn’t have, and he was being so generous and treating me with such kindness. The least I could do was try to comfort him.
He didn’t pull away, but he also didn’t look at me. He stared out the window, but I doubted he was seeing any of the beautiful scenery passing by. On the way there, after we’d left the highway, I’d been intrigued by all the signs of spring, the new leaves, baby cows, birds flitting around in the trees by the roadside. Now I only noticed how much the sunny day contrasted with Lucien’s mood.
“Can you tell me what’s wrong?”
He shook his head. “Devil has