Had he? From the look in his eyes, she knew he was being truthful. How could they be moving so fast when her last relationship had moved at a snail’s pace? “When do you have to go back on the rodeo circuit?” she asked.
“I’m home until the first of the year, and then we begin practicing for the first opening show of the season - Denver in January. If you can’t make it to that one, I hope you’ll at least be able to get to one of the performances.”
“I intend to,” she said, and meant it.
He’d been taken aback by how well she could ride a horse, until she explained that she and her sisters had taken horseback riding lessons when they’d lived in Germany. She had also surprised him by how well she could cook, as evidenced by the breakfast she prepared at his place on Saturday morning.
“Tell me about the rodeo and why you love it so much,” she said.
He eased down in the chair in the room. After taking a sip of his coffee, he said, “The Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo is the longest-running Black rodeo in the U.S.. It was founded by Lu Vason. For years, Lu was my hero because he was a man who had a dream to honor Bill Pickett as the legendary cowboy that he was. And Lu worked to make that dream a reality.”
“Have you met Mr. Vason?”
“Yes. He only passed away a few years ago.”
“How long have you been on the circuit?” she asked.
“I started when I turned twenty. That means I’ve been doing this for fifteen years now, but like my parents, I loveit. The rodeo celebrates and honors the Black cowboys and cowgirls who helped build the American West.”
He paused, then added, “Unfortunately, their contributions are often overlooked today.”
“Then I’m glad you and the rodeo are still out there, telling their stories and the culture that goes along with it,” she said. “I can’t wait to see you perform.”
“I plan to hold you to it,” he said, placing his coffee cup aside. He stood, and when he came toward the bed, she handed him hers. He placed it next to his on the table.
“So, what are our plans for today, cowboy?” she asked.
He slid off his jeans, eased into bed beside her, and pulled her into his arms. “I thought we would enjoy each other some more, and then later go riding around my spread again. There are still parts of it that you haven’t seen.”
It amazed Dani just how much land both Richard and Wade owned - land that had been in their families for generations. “That sounds good to me,” she said, locking her arms around his neck.
He leaned in and kissed her. She smiled. She could get used to this.
CHAPTER 17
Haven and Skylar
Whenever Haven spent time with Skylar, she felt as if she was living in a wonderland, where anything was possible. After enjoying a delicious brunch at one of the restaurants at his resorts, Ricco drove them to an area where they embarked on a private tour of the Sedona Red Rocks. Then they continued the tour by jeep to Native American ruins.
Skylar suggested continuing the tour next weekend by horseback. When she told him that she couldn’t ride a horse, he merely smiled and said that he looked forward to teaching her to ride himself at his horse ranch in Southern California before the end of the year.
The magnitude of Skylar’s wealth no longer surprised her. After all, he was the man who had flown her from Arizona to California for a date. However, what made her feel warm inside was that he was talking about them seeing each other after her conference was over. Could their relationship mean as much to him as it did to her?
“Welcome back, Mr. Kingston and Ms. McGuire,” the doorman said hours later when they returned to the hotel.
“Thanks,” Skylar and Haven said simultaneously.
When the man was about to open the door for them, Skylar said, “Don’t bother, Bob. We’ll use the private elevator.”
“Yes, sir.”
Taking her hand, Skylar walked toward another set of tinted glass doors and, using his passkey, those doors slid open, revealing a semi-darkened hall with an elevator. “I never noticed that door before.”
He nodded. “This is my private elevator. I can go to every floor but no one can get on it without my personal passkey. Usually, I use it to bypass all the other floors and go straight up to my penthouse suite. You probably don’t remember, but we used these elevators last night. You were asleep, and I didn’t want to draw anyone’s attention as I carried you to your room.”
“Oh. Thank you.” She appreciated how far he’d gone to protect her reputation. Although the number of inquiries about their relationship had decreased, she knew there were people who were still watching them, trying to figure things out. She had an awful feeling that some of them were waiting for him to drop her like a hot potato when her stay at the hotel ended.
“I’m taking you up to my room. We need to talk.”
