He wasn’t using his head, that was for sure. Or at least not his big head. He couldn’t remember ever feeling so close to the edge, and he sure as hell didn’t like it.
Not one bit.
He didn’t know what he was going to say to her. If she didn’t need his protection so badly, he would give her a fat chunk of severance pay and send her down the road. He would be doing her a favor, doing the best thing for both of them.
But he couldn’t do it. Not with her predator ex-boyfriend still on the hunt.
He’d talk to her, he decided. They were both adults. They could discuss what had happened, come to an understanding of why it couldn’t happen again.
Tory was a smart girl. She understood it wasn’t right for a boss and his employee to share a physical relationship. He’d talk to her tonight after she put Ivy to bed. Make sure they were both on the same page.
He just needed to work up the nerve.
Chapter Thirteen
Tory worried the rest of the afternoon. What could she possibly say to Josh? It was entirely her fault. The man was simply teaching her how to ride a horse and she had attacked him. She was so far beyond embarrassed she couldn’t believe it.
And yet there was a tiny secret part of her that wished he hadn’t stopped when he had. A tiny feminine part that wanted to take that wild, amazing ride all the way to the finish.
She wanted him now more than ever. Would he see the hunger stamped in her face the moment he looked at her? She prayed to God he wouldn’t. If he did, he would probably fire her on the spot.
Or maybe not. The way he’d touched her, kissed her, there was a chance he had wanted her as much as she’d wanted him.
Either way, it wasn’t going to happen. She would tell him that as soon as she saw him, explain that something she didn’t completely understand had happened but she wouldn’t allow it to happen again.
She thought about it the rest of the afternoon and the entire time she was making him supper, mentally preparing herself to face him. By the time she had the ham baked and the green beans with bacon cooked, she was ready.
Unfortunately, Josh didn’t come in to eat. After an hour of waiting, she fixed him a plate and shoved it into the oven, bagged up her portion, and put the rest of the food in the refrigerator. She took Ivy’s hand, and they walked back to the trailer.
By the time they had finished their supper and she had put Ivy to bed, she was sure Josh had decided to fire her. She would have to leave the ranch, find a place in another town, another state. She felt sick just thinking about it. She tried to mentally prepare herself, but kept clinging to the fragile hope he would let her stay.
She wasn’t willing to barter herself—offer sex in exchange for keeping her job. That was never going to happen, though the notion had an embarrassing amount of appeal. Still, there was a chance they could come to some kind of understanding. She should at least give it a try.
It was getting late. She’d give anything to talk to Lisa, tell her what was happening, get some best-friend advice. Lisa was her rock, the one person she could always count on.
Tory toed off her sneakers and was starting to get undressed when she heard Josh’s familiar three quick raps on the door. Her pulse kicked up. Hurrying across the living room, she stopped to check the peephole just to be sure, then pulled open the door.
Josh stood on the porch, his features grim. Her heart squeezed.
“You got a minute to talk?” he asked.
She swallowed, nodded, stepped out on the porch and quietly closed the door. The night was warm, a light breeze rustling through the thick green grasses. She could hear birds lifting off a pond close to the house.
Josh pulled something out of his back pocket and set it on the wooden table next to the door. Moonlight slanted down, illuminating the cleft in his chin and the planes of his handsome face. “I bought you a phone when I was in town.”
Thank God. Now she could call her friend. “You can deduct it from my—”
He held up a hand, silencing her.
“Thank you,” she said.
Josh looked down at her. They both started to speak at the same time. “I’m sorry about what happened,” they said in unison.
“It wasn’t your fault,” they both said.
“I’m sorry,” she said softly.
“Not your fault,” Josh said, but of course it was.
