Page 19 of Hunted Hearts (Black Heart Security #6)

T he moment Theo caught the low voice at the conference room door and heard the word “delivery,” his gut tightened. He already knew what it was—the one thing he’d told the veteran from the program to flag him for the second it showed up.

It couldn’t have arrived at a worse damn moment.

Juliette’s slender fingers were cool against his palm, but she didn’t resist as he laced their hands and guided her toward the side door. The hallway was hushed, the muted hum of the ranch giving way to the faint whisper of wind outside.

Through the window, Theo spotted the truck idling in the gravel drive, its chrome catching the weak sunlight filtering over the mountains. Beyond it, the peaks rose jagged and pale with a dusting of snow gleaming like the calm before another storm.

If this surprise he’d planned went well, Juliette’s tears would dry up, and he couldn’t think of anything he’d rather see than a smile on her beautiful face.

He paused in the mudroom. Coats hung on a row of hooks running the length of the wall.

Below that stood every variety of footwear from muck boots to cowboy boots with embossed leather for honky-tonkin’, and even a pair of shiny dress shoes one of his brothers had kicked off. They lay haphazardly, forgotten.

“Theo, you’re scaring me.” Juliette tilted her head up to him, her wide gaze filling him with more protectiveness than ever.

He skimmed the pad of his thumb over the curve of her cheek. “Nothing to be afraid of.”

He grabbed his heavy oilskin jacket off the peg and draped it over Juliette’s shoulders. The cloth swallowed her small frame and made her shoulders droop under the weight.

But one look at her wearing his coat had his guts twisting and his cock growing hard.

Unable to stop himself, he lightly pinched the point of her chin and leaned in slow to press a tender kiss on her plump lips. She tasted of mint and salty tears, something that she would not be shedding again. Not if he had his way about it.

And he would. Starting now.

He glanced down to see she was wearing her own shoes and nodded. Taking her by the hand again, he led her outside into the brisk air.

The driver of the truck, a neighboring rancher who’d driven about thirty miles to make the delivery, pushed off the side of his vehicle.

Theo strode forward to clasp his hand in a firm handshake. “Frank. Damn good of you to do this for me.”

The man was gnawing on a toothpick that wobbled as he smiled. The lines on his weathered face told stories of their own, something Theo could appreciate.

When he stepped back, he slipped his arm around Juliette. “This is Juliette.”

He felt her holding her breath, as if waiting for the rancher to recognize her as a celebrity. But he only extended his hand, and she took it with a warm smile.

Theo twitched his head toward the trailer hitched to the truck. “Let’s get her unloaded.”

He followed Frank to the back of the trailer. When Frank unlatched the door and swung it wide, soft light spilled over the animal inside.

The mare stood poised and unbothered, a deep, burnished bay with a sleek black mane. She flicked an ear toward them, and her dark eyes were steady and intelligent, without a trace of skittishness.

Frank slipped the lead rope over her head. She stepped down from the trailer with slow, graceful confidence, her hooves landing on the gravel with muted crunches that spoke of how lightly she trod.

Watching her, Theo felt some of the tension coiled in his chest ease. He’d chosen the horse right, it seemed. But he would reserve his final verdict about the gift until Juliette gave her input.

“She’s calm as they come.” Frank said. “Figured she’d suit your pace.”

“What a beauty.” Juliette drifted forward and held out her flat palm for the horse to nose.

He watched her face as she gained the mare’s trust enough to lift a hand and stroke her mane.

She flicked her stare to Theo. “You didn’t tell me you were having a horse delivered.”

“She’s not mine.”

A small pucker appeared over her brow.

“It’s your horse, Juliette.”

Her jaw dropped. “You bought me a…horse?”

He shifted his shoulders in an awkward shrug, hoping to disguise the fact that his hands were shaking. “I had to keep up with the gift war between us, after all.”

She flashed a smile that warmed her eyes.

He swallowed hard. “I wanted to give you something special. I love riding, and I thought you might like to ride too.”

“I’d love to.” Their gazes caught and held for three heartbeats, then four.

When Frank scuffed his boot on the gravel and directed his gaze to his feet, Theo pulled himself out of the moment with Juliette. He turned to the man and clapped him on the shoulder.

“It’s a fine horse. We’ll take good care of her.”

“Knew I couldn’t go wrong sending her to the Black Heart. I hear great things about that sister of yours. Word is she’s got a gift for training.”

Theo nodded. “I haven’t seen Willow in action for a long time. I’ve been out of the country.”

“Heard that too. I served as a Marine back in the day. My wife still has the photo of me in uniform on display.”

“How lovely,” Juliette said with a tender smile.

Frank turned his head to stare off at the veterans’ lodge. “What you boys are doing here…it’s good. We vets gotta stick together.”

Theo clapped him lightly on the back. “That we do.”

For the first time since his return to the Black Heart, he gave more consideration to what his brother Oaks had built with the therapy program. Frank was right—it was important work. Something that Theo should be more involved in.

“Does the horse have a name?” Juliette stroked its mane.

“My wife called her Serenity.”

A soft smile stretched across Juliette’s face, and her eyes seemed hazier than they were a minute before. “That’s a perfect name. Thank you for bringing her. I can’t wait to get to know her better.”

Frank nodded. “I’d best get on home. If you ever want to do more business, give me a jingle.” He shook their hands again and patted Serenity’s flank before closing up the trailer and hopping in his truck.

Alone with Juliette, Theo felt her stare on him.

“Theo…”

He raked his fingers through his hair, wishing he had his cowboy hat to pull low over his eyes. “I know it’s a big gift and all. But you got me the earbuds. Engraved with my name. ”

“And you got me the dispenser and supplements!” She narrowed her eyes at him. “How did you even know I like horses?”

“During my research I found a few photos of you on horseback.”

She laughed, a melodious lilt that caught on the breeze and seemed to wrap around them. “Of course those photos are out there. I’m not surprised. I think you’d find some baby photos of me if you dug hard enough.”

His lips twitched into a crooked grin. “Can you lead Serenity into the barn? We’ll introduce her to her new home.”

With skilled ease, she caught the lead rope and started toward the big barn. Inside was warm and dry, smelling of straw and horses. The mare’s ears flicked lazily as she took in her surroundings without so much as a snort of protest.

“She’s not skittish at all,” Juliette murmured, glancing over her shoulder at Theo as he held the door wide. “Feels like she’s been here before.”

His heart caught. For a moment, he thought it sounded like Juliette was talking about something other than the horse. Because he felt it from the first minute she stepped foot on the ranch—Juliette belonged.

To cover the confusion snaking through him, he cleared his throat. “That’s the kind of horse Frank breeds. Steady, well-trained. Nothing rattles them. We’ll make her comfortable here in no time.”

Theo moved to a stall he had prepared earlier in the day. A thick layer of bedding lined the floor, and the hay trough was full. A fresh water bucket gleamed against the wall.

Juliette led the mare into the stall, unhooking the lead and letting her wander a few steps, nose twitching as she inspected her new space. The mare gave a soft huff, then lowered her head to sniff the hay before taking a slow, measured bite.

“She likes it,” Juliette said softly. There was something deeply soothing about the quiet rhythm of the horse’s chewing and the soft rustle of hay. A sense of calm wrapped around them.

“We’ll give her a few hours to settle.” He hung the lead on a hook. “Tomorrow, we’ll walk her around the property, let her get used to the sights and sounds. No saddling until she’s had time to feel at home.”

Juliette nodded, running her hand along the polished wood of the stall door.

“I used to take riding lessons when I was a kid. But I never had my own horse. We didn’t even have pets.

My parents…had obligations. Parties, events.

And I was too busy practicing scales to ever think about things like this.

” Her lips curved faintly, a trace of wistfulness in her tone.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve been around a horse. I didn’t realize how much I missed it.”

Drawn by some invisible cord stretched between them, Theo drifted closer to her. Just touching the small of her back sent warmth flooding through his chest.

“She’s yours now. We’ll ride when she’s ready.”

Juliette turned her head to look up at him, her eyes illuminated by more than just the watery light filtering through the windows. “Thank you, Theo.” She blinked rapidly, but a tear slipped free anyway.

Before she could swipe it away, Theo brushed the drop from her cheek with the pad of his thumb.

Like it was the most natural thing in the world, she slid her arms around him and buried her face against his shirt. He felt her soften against him, and goddamn if his heart didn’t feel it too. Every wall he ever built threatened to crack.

“It’s…a wonderful gift.” Her voice broke just slightly.

He drew her closer, and they stood together in each other’s arms. For a moment, the danger circling them, the chaos waiting outside these walls, faded away.