Ultimate Romance Collection. Rebecca Winters

be sent heat through his body, especially to his lower extremities.

      If he hadn’t needed to meet with Caldwell and his men first thing in the morning, he would have taken another ten-mile run around the ranch.

       Ten

      Three days later, while out riding Acer, Gavin came upon Layla and her excavation team in the south pasture. Most of them had arrived a couple of days ago but he hadn’t been around to meet them. He and his men had driven the cows to the north pasture where they would be kept during the winter months.

      Over the next few weeks, the cows would be fed to maintain their good heath during the cold spell. Unlike the south pasture, there was plenty of grazing land in the north and a small pond to help irrigate the area. The pregnant cows had to be separated and tagged and the process had taken a lot longer than expected.

      Just as well, he thought, as he brought Acer to a slow trot and then a complete stop at the top of the hill. He’d needed distance from Layla. With his grandmother in Cincinnati and him being out on the range for the past three days he’d assured their paths didn’t cross.

      But now he was back and as he looked down at the activity going on below, he couldn’t stop his gaze from seeking her out. At first he didn’t see her, but when the crowd dispersed somewhat, there she was, looking as beautiful as he knew she would be.

      He rubbed his hand down his face. Nothing about this seduction was working out like he’d figured it would. It seemed he would be the one to break before Layla. He just didn’t get it. They wanted each other. That was definite. So how could she keep fighting the attraction? Desire had to be eating away at her as much as it was at him.

      He hadn’t seen her since that night they’d gone to a movie. Seeing her now made him realize that after all those hot and steamy kisses, and copping one good feel of her thighs, she had gotten into his system. That was crazy. Women didn’t get into his system—ever. So how had she managed it?

      He fixed his gaze on her as if three days could have changed her. They hadn’t. Even from where he sat unobserved on Acer’s back, he could still see her flawless skin. She looked just as young as the members of her team. Her students. Wearing her hair in a ponytail, jeans, a pullover sweater and boots should have made her fit in. Yet there was something about Layla that stood out. Something that made his stomach churn and his groin ache every time he saw her.

      He never did make it into town just for that booty call. The only woman he wanted was Layla.

      Bottom line—she had stirred something deep inside of him that wouldn’t go away. At least not until he was inside of her, all the way to the hilt. It was only when his body connected with hers that he would be able to rid his mind of the belief that she was the only woman for him.

      Watching her team work, he remembered something else. Namely that phone conversation he’d had with Clete yesterday. The old man recalled seeing the marker. He’d known why it was there, since he’d heard talk in town about someone digging on the property. But according to Clete, he hadn’t moved it. That made Gavin wonder who had. Both he and Clete agreed the wind could not have blown it away nor could it have gotten washed away by the rain. Which meant someone had come on Gavin’s property and pulled it out. Why?

      Gavin hadn’t been receptive to the idea of Layla digging on the Silver Spurs. But if someone was intentionally setting her up to fail, they would have to deal with him. Flip’s camera had picked up something buried here. That made Gavin wonder if someone intended to unearth whatever was buried before Layla did so they could get the credit? His jaw tightened at the thought. Not on his property. And not on his watch. And not with his woman.

      His woman...

      How in the hell could he consider her his woman when he hadn’t bedded her yet? Besides, Gavin Blake never claimed any woman. But as he fixed his gaze on Layla, he knew that she was his. Bedded or not.

      Layla had been reading what looked like a report when suddenly, as if she felt him watching her, she tilted her head up and stared straight at him.

      * * *

      A lump formed in Layla’s throat. Beneath the brightness of the noon sun sat a gorgeous man on a beautiful horse. She’d seen the horse before. One day after arriving on the Silver Spurs, she’d noticed when one of the men had taken it out of the stall to groom it. She had been admiring the animal when the man, Curtis, told her the horse’s name was Acer and that he belonged to the boss. This was the first time she’d seen Gavin on the horse and the sight took her breath away.

      It had been three long days since he’d taken her to the movies and later walked her to the guest cottage, leaving her there and blatantly ignoring her since. Honestly, what had she expected? For him to have kissed her good-night regardless of what he’d said the night before? What he’d done was to toss the ball in her court. He probably figured she didn’t have the guts to play it.

      But it wasn’t that she didn’t have the guts. She didn’t have the time or the inclination... Oh, who was she fooling? Definitely not herself. If anything, not seeing him these past few days had made her realize that out of sight, out of mind didn’t work when it came to Gavin.

      “Who in the blazes is that?”

      Layla didn’t have to move her gaze from Gavin to know one of her students, Tammy Clemons, stood beside her looking at Gavin, as well. “That’s Gavin Blake. He and his grandmother own the Silver Spurs. They were kind enough to let us dig here.”

      “Um, maybe I should thank him. Properly.”

      A sudden stab of jealousy ran through Layla, and as much as she tried pushing it back, she couldn’t. Properly? She didn’t have to wonder just what Tammy meant by that. It was rumored around campus that Tammy often bragged about sleeping with her professors to get better grades.

      Layla knew not to believe everything she heard, but Tammy’s behavior made Layla think there was some truth in that claim. Especially since Tammy was here on this dig. Some said her latest conquest was Dr. Clayburn. That wouldn’t surprise Layla since the married man and father of two was known to have roving eyes. More than once she’d heard about his late night meetings with female students. Those meetings were something Layla was certain the college president had heard about but had chosen to ignore.

      Tammy’s grades should have made her ineligible for this team, but Dr. Clayburn had personally added her name above other more well-deserving students. When Layla had brought it to Dr. Clayburn’s attention, he’d gotten upset that she’d questioned him. He’d reminded her that he had the power to withdraw the school’s funding for the excavation.

      “That guy is what you would call a real cowboy. And I didn’t have to travel to Texas to get one.”

      Layla saw the twenty-one-year-old lick her lips with her gaze trained on Gavin. It shouldn’t matter to Layla. But it did. Why? She didn’t want to be Gavin’s bed partner so why should it bother her if someone else did?

      “Need I remind you, Tammy, that you’re here to work on this project?”

      Tammy frowned. “No, Dr. Harris, you don’t need to remind me of anything. Just like I’m sure I don’t need to remind you that although we’re dedicated to this dig during the day, the nighttime hours are ours to enjoy. And I intend to enjoy him.”

      The young woman stated the words so matter-of-factly that Layla had to take pause. Was Tammy the type of woman Gavin wanted? The kind who could handle both work and play without breaking a sweat? A woman who enjoyed the challenge of both?

      Layla was about to reply when a huge smile covered Tammy’s face. “He’s seen me checking him out and is coming down for me.”

      The thought that Gavin might be showing some interest in Tammy made Layla’s chest ache.

      She turned her attention back to Gavin. He was sprinting down the hill on the huge horse and she recalled something he’d once said. When