When he did, the sight of them, the unexpected whip of anger that slashed through him, kick-started his brain. Not the honeymooners, he realized. The actress.
He had been told she’d be arriving later in the day, and taken off-guard, at a loss for what to say, he only smiled and quietly tipped his head in greeting. ‘Ma’am.’
The actress – Nina Keller, he remembered – returned the smile politely but she didn’t reply, only angled her face away, hiding the bruises once again.
It was her friend, or boyfriend, maybe, who leaned forward and took the phone he held.
‘Andyou are?’ he practically purred, batting his eyelashes exaggeratedly.
Okay,nother boyfriend, Mav deduced. ‘Maverick.’ He stood and stepped back, out of her space. And because he had already moved to help the Morgans, he didn’t change course. ‘Welcome to Hunt Ranch, folks. I hope you enjoy your stay. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to flag down any one of our staff.’
He caught up with the Morgans outside, began his tour with: ‘We have over one hundred horses here …’ But as he talked, gave the tour he’d given countless times before, his mind kept wandering back to Nina Keller.
He didn’t know why he’d been expecting some vivacious blonde who would need to be pampered. But he had been. So, the quiet, Bohemian woman with the sad eyes had surprised him. Intrigued him. But even as he thought of her, he remembered what she had been through and he reminded himself to keep his distance. He’d check in with Sierra, maybe have Riley or another one of their female staff check Nina Keller in for her stay.
He waited for the Morgans to get sidetracked by the horses, and as they stood at the fencingoohingandaahing, he pulled out his phone, shot a text to his sister.
Actress arrived early. I was already checking in the Morgans, but I’ll send Riley up to check her in instead. Make sure she has female staff when possible. She’s spooked.
It wasn’t exactly poetry, but he knew Sierra agreed with him when she replied only moments later with:
Will do.
‘You did that on purpose,’ Nina accused Markus the moment the cowboy walked out the front door.
‘Damn right I did.’ Markus raised one hand dramatically to his heart. ‘And this is the thanks I get?’ He leaned close, stage-whispered, ‘Did you at least benefit from my efforts?’
Nina only tipped her head, but she wouldn’t deny that she’d noticed the cowboy. Anyone would have.
She’d seen him the moment he’d walked in, his long-legged stride determined, his dark brown hair sticking out beneath an old LA Dodgers baseball cap, his blue eyes a little harried. She’d been helpless but to watch as he’d greeted the family. She’d even smiled when she’d overheard his conversation with the little girl, who had declared to the entire lobby that her name was June Morgan.
And Markus was right about one thing: the man – Maverick – certainly filled out a pair of old blue jeans. Still, she knew better than to encourage Markus, and so replied, ‘He has lovely eyes.’
‘I didn’t notice,’ Markus quipped, making her smile. ‘Did you see the stretch in those blue jeans though?’
Nina had. But, on principle, denied it. ‘No.’
‘They must have been a polyester, Lycra, denim blend. Hmmm.’
Nina knew that exact look. ‘Let me guess. A spring photoshoot. Cowboys. Denim. Horses.’ She swiped her hand across the space in front of them as if painting the picture. ‘A lone cowboy carries his saddle across a golden field in search of his trusty steed.’
‘Hell yeah. I can see it now, Neens.’ He pushed to his feet, all sense of playfulness gone. ‘I can convince one of the big brands to bite on this. Maybe Levi’s. Or Wrangler.’
Nina was half convinced he wanted to do it. Markus was one of the most sought-after photographers in LA, so he could pick and choose his clients. The other half of her knew: ‘And then you can get paid to check up on me.’
Markus patted her on the head. ‘Small perks, honey.’
On a mission now, he flagged down a passing staff member. ‘Excuse me!’
Nina groaned as the girl, whose name tag identified her as ‘Debbie’, stopped. She shot Nina an anxious glance, murmured, ‘Hello. Welcome to Hunt Ranch.’
Markus didn’t notice, and even if he had, he wouldn’t have cared. His philosophy in life was to go after every opportunity with both hands and then hold on to it in a vice-like grip until he’d sufficiently conquered it. ‘Who’s in charge here?’ he asked now.
The girl looked around uncertainly. ‘The Hunts – Maverick and Sierra. If you have a complaint, I’d be happy to find one of them for you.’
‘Oh no! No complaints!’ But Markus raised one eyebrow. ‘Maverick, you said?’ At six feet, Markus might have been only one or two inches shorter than Maverick, but he held one hand a foot above his head, said, ‘About yea high? Rugged? Handsome? Dodgers fan?’
Debbie laughed, immediately relaxing. ‘Yes. That’s Maverick.’
