Take Me to Paradise (Sinners on Tour 6.5)

squirmed and bucked her hips until he was no longer inside her. Bummer.

“We have to get going,” she said breathlessly when he gave her tortured ribs a break. “We have to be somewhere at noon.”

“Where?” he asked.

“It’s a surprise.”

“Well, if it’s only half as good as this surprise has been, I’m in for a treat.”

Less than an hour later, Brian found himself face to face with an enormous dapple gray horse. He had wondered why Myrna had made him put on shoes and had changed out of her skirt before they’d left the hotel.

“And I’m supposed to climb on this thing?” he asked Myrna, who was already astride a sleek black horse and waiting for Brian to find his balls. Balls that had apparently fled the scene when faced with riding an unpredictable ton of muscle, teeth and pelt.

“You don’t like horses?” she asked.

He didn’t have the heart to disappoint her after she’d gone to all the trouble to do something romantic for him, so onto the horse he climbed.

“I do like horses,” he lied. He’d never actually been on a horse. He had stroked one’s nose at a petting zoo as a child and almost lost a few fingers for his trouble, but he didn’t tell Myrna that.

His heart was thudding like a jackhammer, but he managed to offer Myrna a brave smile from his perch on the saddle.

“And I thought you looked sexy on a motorcycle,” Myrna purred, eyeing him in that way that always made his belly tighten. If she was looking at him like that, he was guaranteed to get some in the very near future.

They rode toward the beach, sand sucking at the horses’ hooves, but the animals seemed to be used to it. Myrna rode with confidence—she’d obviously done this before. Brian just tried not to fall to his death. He was positive that if he fell out of his saddle, the horse would use him as a doormat to wipe the sand from its hooves.

“What are you doing back there?” Myrna called over her shoulder. “Come up here beside me so we can talk.”

Brian bounced in his saddle slightly, having no idea how to get the horse to go faster. It wasn’t like it had an accelerator. “Um, yeah, I’ll get right on that,” he muttered under his breath.

Myrna tugged the reins to pull her horse to a halt and waited for Brian to catch up.

“You don’t look like you’re enjoying this,” Myrna said.

“I’m trying to.”

“Have you ever been on a horse?”

“Not exactly, no,” he admitted.

“Why didn’t you tell the guide that when he asked?”

“Because he if he’d known, he would have tagged along, and I wanted to be alone with you.”

She tilted her head and shook it slightly, a tender smile curving her pouty lips upward. “Do you know how hard it is to get mad at you?”

“Why would you be mad at me?”

“Because you lied and put your life in danger.”

“I didn’t lie,” he said defensively. His horse shifted, and he slid sideways in the saddle. He yanked the reins to keep himself from falling, and the horse tossed its gigantic head in protest.

“Yes, you did. The guide asked if you had any experience riding, and you said you had tons of experience.”

“He didn’t say riding a horse, he said riding. I’ve taken a lot of rides in my life. You should know, since you’re my favorite mount.”

She leaned over and smacked his arm. “Brian Sinclair, you are impossible.”

He chuckled. “You know you like it.”

She glowered at him.

“Now show me how to work this thing before I fall off and break my neck.”

She gave him basic instructions on stopping and going, on turning, and on how to use the stirrups to distribute his weight rather than yanking on the reins as if they were a lifeline. Soon he was brave enough to urge the horse into a canter. And he was even having fun.

“Where did you learn to ride?” he asked Myrna.

“Oh…” she said, looking taken aback by his question. She tucked a stray strand of auburn hair behind her ear and avoided his gaze. “Farm-girl requirement.”

He knew her well enough to know when she was hiding something from him. “Are you sure there isn’t more to it than that?”

“I did ride a little when I was young. Growing up in the country, most of my friends had horses. I never had one of my own until…”

Brian lifted an eyebrow at her.

“Jeremy bought me one as a wedding gift.” She cringed as if she’d just spoke an absolute horror.

“Oh,” he said flatly.

“And after I got attached to her, he sold her to a feed mill as one of my punishments.”

“Punishment? For what?” He knew she liked to avoid all conversations involving the hell her ex-husband had put her through, but he thought sharing what had happened was healthier for her. And he was more than happy to have additional reasons to hate Jeremy Condaroy. The guy was at the very top of his shit list.

She shrugged. “I don’t remember.” She leaned into her horse and yelled, “Race you to that bent palm tree!”

Her horse dashed off at a sprint, and Brian’s mount took a cue from Myrna’s and raced after her. The sand blurred beneath him as sure and steady hooves closed the distance between the two horses. Brian could almost understand why some people enjoyed this—the wind in his hair was exhilarating—but he didn’t feel he had enough control of the enormous animal with a mind of its own.

Up ahead, a pair of riders approached. Myrna didn’t seem to notice as she was determined to be the first to reach the bent palm tree in the distance. Brian recognized the riders almost at once: Kev and Gail. Was it coincidence that they’d decided to ride horses on the same day at the same time and on the same beach where Brian and Myrna rode? Brian sincerely doubted it. He reckoned that Gail had been eavesdropping on his and Myrna’s plans for the day.

Annoyed, Brian yanked the reins to turn his galloping horse in the opposite direction. The animal apparently didn’t appreciate his rough treatment, but he did turn. Directly toward the ocean. The horse dashed into the oncoming waves and deciding at the last moment he didn’t want to take a swim came to a sudden halt. Brian went sailing over the horse’s head and landed with an enormous splash somewhere in the Caribbean.

Chapter Seven

When Myrna figured out who the pair of riders approaching and waving excitedly were, she cringed. What was with this Kev guy and his soon-to-be wife? She glanced over her shoulder to see if Brian had recognized their uninvited company. She wasn’t sure why Brian was racing directly toward the water, but her heart stopped for several beats when she watched his horse stop short. Brian flew through air and landed in the water with an impressive splash. At least he had a relatively soft landing. He was never going to let her plan an outing again.

She slowed her horse and turned her in the opposite direction, hurrying to check on Brian and make sure he hadn’t drowned. Even though he surfaced immediately, her heart was thundering in her chest and her palms had grown slick with sweat.

“Brian!” she called as she dismounted and rushed into the surf to check on him. “Are you okay?”

“I hate fucking horses!” he grumbled as he slogged toward the shore. Water flattened his dark shoulder-length hair and dripped from his strong jawline. His off-black cotton shirt and shorts were plastered to his body.

Myrna decided not to point out that it had been operator error that had sent him on a trajectory with a dip in the ocean. Or that she thought he looked sexy soaking wet.