Almost Home (21 page)
Katherine sat up straighter in her seat, feeling
inordinately pleased by his assessment. She'd never thought of herself as a
risk taker. She was a list maker, a rule follower, not a reckless daredevil—at
least, not until now. "So you're saying we're alike?"
"Hell no. I'm saying you're as nutty as a
fruitcake, but…"
"But what?"
"I admire your spirit. And I think any man would
be proud to call you his daughter."
She felt a mist cover her eyes. "I think that
might be the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me. Thank you."
"You're not going to cry, are you?"
"Absolutely not," she said, turning her head
toward the window so she could blink away the tears.
A few minutes later Zach turned in to the parking lot
of the most famous racetrack in the country. It was still dark, but the sky had
begun to grow lighter and Katherine could make out the enormous grandstand, the
twin spires arising from the roof adding a sense of magnificence, importance, glory.
She couldn't wait to see the inside, the track, the infield, the luxury boxes,
but Zach bypassed the main parking lot and drove in as close as he could to the
stable gates.
"We'll walk it from here," he said.
Katherine hopped out of the truck, shivering as the
cold air hit her skin. The weather wasn't quite as clear as it had been in
at times. She couldn't imagine what her hair was going to look like by ten o'clock.
Judging by Zach's purposeful stride toward the security
gate, he wasn't at all concerned about the rain or his hair. He wanted to get
to his horse as fast as humanly possible. The security guard waved them
through, and Katherine had to hurry to keep up with Zach's long-legged strides.
She'd never been behind the scenes at a racetrack and
was once again amazed by the number of people working so early in the morning.
There were horses everywhere she looked, being walked, bathed, and bridled.
Young girls who looked to be barely out of their teens sat astride tall horses,
seemingly unaware of how frail they were compared to the enormous beasts they
were about to ride.
"Watch out," Zach warned, grabbing her hand
before she stepped into a pile of dung. "You've got to look where you're
going."
"I'm trying. There's so much to see."
"And it only gets busier the closer we get to the
there will be reporters and camera crews and trainers holding press
conferences. It's a zoo."
"Will you be holding a press conference?"
"I let Rogue do my talking for me."
He turned her toward barn number 41. "This is
Colin's barn. My trainer," he added at her look of confusion. "Let's
go find my big ugly baby."
Zach walked down the row of stalls, not stopping until
they got to the second stall from the end. A large black horse had its back to
them, but immediately lifted his head as if catching the scent of his owner.
"Hey there," Zach said softly.
Rogue turned around and came over to the doorway with
a whinny of pleasure. Zach patted his nose. "How you doing? They treating
you all right?" He stroked Rogue's neck. "Not much longer now. We're
almost to the stretch." He turned to Katherine. "Come meet my baby."
Katherine smiled at the excitement in his voice, the
joy in his eyes. The way to Zach's heart was obviously through his horse. She
stepped closer, getting a better look at the enormous black colt. He held his
head high in the air, his black eyes compelling and somewhat frightening. He
stood on long, slender legs, his muscled body as well honed as any runner's.
But it was his stance, his proud, arrogant presence, that made her stay safely
behind Zach's broad shoulders.
"Say hello, Katherine," Zach encouraged,
looking back at her.
"Hello."
"Come closer, he won't bite. Will you, boy?"
Just as he spoke, Rogue tossed Zach's hand off his
nose, obviously irritated about something.
Katherine took another step back. She couldn't help
it. Zach's big, ugly baby was somewhat frightening to a city girl whose only
pet was a spoiled house cat.
"No treats until you show Katherine how fast you
can run," Zach said.
Rogue snorted and stomped his foot.
"I don't think he's happy with your decision
about the treats."
Zach looked at her and laughed. "He's just
playing with me." His eyes narrowed. "You look a little nervous."
"That's because I am nervous. He's big."
"But not mean. I've been around mean horses, but
Rogue's a marshmallow at heart."
"He doesn't look too soft to me."
"You have to get to know him, that's all."
"He is awesome-looking."
"Ugly as sin," Zach said with a laugh. "You
don't have to pretend he's a beauty. But he can run when he wants to, and he'll
run for me. We understand each other. Don't we, boy?" He stroked Rogue's
nose, and this time the horse submitted to his touch. "His mother was the
daughter of Irish Queen. His father was the son of Canon Shot and grandson of
Bold Ruler. Although Rogue's mother never won a stakes race, his father won
several and his grandfather won the Preakness. Unfortunately, none of the other
horses sired by Canon Shot have lived up to their father's reputation."
"And that's important?" Katherine asked, not
quite able to keep up with the family tree.
"Very. Thoroughbreds are all about breeding. That's
what we do at the farm, we match our winning stallions with mares around the
country and around the world, trying to produce the perfect genetic mix. The
more races a horse has won, the more his value and the bigger the breeding fee.
Triple Crown winners are being syndicated for millions of dollars these days."
"So you planned Rogue's birth by matching up
bloodlines?"
Zach looked a little embarrassed by her question. "No,
I
picked him up at a yearling sale for
a song. His bloodlines are decent but not stellar. His legs are too long. He
got a reputation early on for being unpredictable, a troublemaker, and all the
other buyers stayed away from him."
"But not you."
"Not me."
"I don't understand,
Zach. You just said you breed horses for a living. Why didn't you buy one of
your own foals?"
Zach slid his arm around
her waist and brought her closer to the stall, a little too close for her
comfort, but she was reassured by the strength of his body next to hers.
"Rogue reminded me of
myself," he said. "Sounds stupid, I know. But when I saw him, I knew
he was the one. And I'll admit that his lack of breeding would only make a
sweeter."
"You believe in
breeding, yet you stick your nose up at it at the same time," Katherine
commented. "But then, it's not really about the horses, it's about you,
where you come from."
"Maybe."
"You want everyone to
know they were wrong about Rogue and wrong about you."
"If that happens,
fine. If it doesn't, whatever."
"You've invested
everything you have for 'whatever'? Sorry, I don't buy it." She turned her
head so she could look him in the eye. "I think this horse, this race, means
more to you than anything else in the world."
Zach's eyes darkened. "You're
right. Rogue's the
only thing that's ever
been mine, all mine." His hand tightened on her waist. "Yeah, he
means a lot to me."
Katherine caught her breath as Rogue decided to
investigate her presence a little more closely. His big nose brushed her chest,
and she had to force herself not to flinch.
"Did I tell you Rogue can be a little fresh?"
Zach asked, a teasing note returning to his voice.
"Like someone else I know."
"You can touch him if you want to."
Katherine licked her lips, sensing that Zach's casual
comment was far more of a big deal than he was making it out to be. This was
his horse, his love, his life. And she had a feeling if she wanted to have any
part in Zach's life, she had to somehow forge a relationship with this horse.
So she pushed all of her misgivings aside, all of the
reasons she had mentally listed for why she should not get near to a horse that
could crush her, kick her, and probably kill her. Because on the other side of
the list was Zach, and what he wanted was somehow becoming very important to
her.
She reached out her hand and touched Rogue's nose with
tentative fingers, pleased when the horse didn't immediately snap at her. In
fact, Rogue seemed to like her. She became bolder, stroking him with her hand.
It was all going so well until a fly landed on Rogue's
nose and he shook his head with an impatient, irritated snort. Katherine couldn't
help letting out a little cry. She jumped backward, causing the startled horse
to back up in his stall and rear up on his hind legs.
Before Katherine could say she was sorry, Zach was in
the stall, calming Rogue with soothing muted words.
Katherine walked a few feet away, getting the distinct
feeling her presence was no longer welcome.
When Zach stepped out of the stall, he looked nowhere
near as gentle.
"He spooks easily, Katherine," he said in a
cold voice.
She swallowed hard. "I'm sorry. He scared me a
little."
"You
scared
him."
"I didn't expect him
to jump like that."
He shook his head as if he
wanted to say something but was stopping himself.
"Go on, you can say
it. I'm a city girl and I don't belong here." She looked at him through
miserable, hopeless eyes, feeling like she'd flunked a very important test. "I'll
wait in the truck for you."
He sighed. "You can
stay. The reason Rogue needs to be here is to get used to folks like you acting
unpredictably."
"Are you sure?"
"Where you're
concerned—I'm not sure about anything," Zach said heavily, putting his
hands on her shoulders. "You make me want…" He gazed down at her
mouth, settling in there as if he didn't intend to leave any time soon.
"What—what are you
doing?" she asked, her nerves still on edge.
"I have no idea."
"You're not going to
kiss me, are you?"
"I don't know. Am I?"
Chapter
11
"
Z
ach,
there are people around," she said weakly,
because
in that moment she didn't much care if the entire world saw him kiss her. She
wanted to regain the closeness, the trust between them.
"Are there? I can't see anyone but you." She
felt a shiver run down her spine at the look of desire in his eyes. The early
morning air crackled between them. Katherine felt herself leaning forward. What
would be the harm in a small kiss, a brief caress?
The moment was shattered when a man called out Zach's
name.
Zach immediately turned. "Colin." Katherine
watched as a man walked over to join them. Dressed in jeans and a black leather
bomber jacket, he had light brown hair that was thinning on the top and the
sides, a brown beard that wasn't quite grown in, a ruddy complexion, and
smiling green eyes.
"I figured you'd be in for the workout,"
Colin said with a light Irish tilt to his voice.
Zach shook the man's hand. "It's not that I don't
trust you."
"It's just that you don't trust me." Colin
gave Katherine a big toothy smile that was very endearing. "And who's this
lovely lady?"
"Katherine Whitfield," Zach said, stepping
aside so Katherine should shake Colin's hand.
"Nice to meet you," Colin said. "I'm
glad to see Zach has something to distract him from driving me crazy."
"I wouldn't count on it," she said dryly,
remembering how fast Zach had turned away from her.