Read Spurred On (The Quick and the Hot) for Free Online

“Animal hurt on the boundary.”
    The huff of worry burst from his chest unbidden. “Slide back and watch that gun. I’m mounting in front of you.” Without waiting more than a split second for her to listen, he dug his boot into the stirrup and launched into the saddle in front of her. To the guys he hollered, “Keep working. I’ll be back in a bit.”
    “Sure, boss!”
    “Yaww!” Hayden jammed his heels into the horse’s flanks, and the mare took off up the slope in the direction Zoe Beth had been heading. That she’d galloped back to the ranch for the shotgun spelled out how dire the situation was.
    Her crotch ground against his ass, and she anchored herself in place by gripping Hayden’s sides. Electricity shot from her fingers into his body. A hum began in his core.
    Turning his head to the side, he raised his voice to be heard over the hoofbeats. “Where?”
    She pointed west. Mind awhirl, he guided the horse. Sweet little woman was prepared to put an animal out of its misery. It took guts. He’d seen his older brother come back from the field red-eyed after putting down an animal on their pa’s ranch.
    Behind him, she tensed. Her thighs tightened around him. “Up there.” She pointed again, her words hot on his neck.
    His cock reacted instantly to her heat—twitching in his jeans and swelling to almost full length. He ground his teeth and scanned the land for the wounded animal. The fields converged here, sloping into each other. A thin strip of scrub brush ran along the lowest point—the only place where an animal could be.
    He spurred the horse forward. The burst of speed caused Zoe Beth to slip in the saddle. She wrapped both arms around him.
    His chest tightened.
    As they neared the area, she buried her nose against his spine. “See those low bushes? It’s there.”
    He slowed the horse, and they picked their way along the brush line. Zoe Beth’s face resting between his shoulder blades sent ripples up and down his spine. Her breath was coming fast.
    So she wasn’t as hardened as she let on. Inside, he smiled at that. He didn’t want her to be that hard.
    When he caught sight of the calf’s leg protruding from under the brush, Hayden reined the horse in. Zoe Beth loosened her hold and slipped to the ground as the mare danced to a complete halt.
    Hayden followed, but Zoe Beth had swung the shotgun up to her shoulder and looked down the sights before he’d reached her side.
    “Wait.” He wrapped his hand around the barrel, lowering the gun. “You’re sure this is the only way? Let me have a look.”
    She met his gaze, eyes watery, but no tears fell. She gave a short nod.
    He drifted toward the injured animal. Sure enough, a calf only a few days old lay on its side. Its eyes were closed, and it breathed shallowly.
    “It’s in shock.” He crouched before it, and Zoe Beth dropped to her knees at his side. So close. Almost touching. She reached for the calf and stroked the dark brown hide.
    “Could be sick,” he said.
    She shook her head, and silk strands of hair webbed around her shoulders. “It’s not. See?” She reached beneath the calf and pulled out what looked like a floppy appendage. A fifth hoof, growing out of its side.
    “Deformed.” The calf must have been born in the field and left behind when the herd grazed in another direction. Abandoned by the mother. It wasn’t unheard of.
    A tremor ran through Zoe Beth, bringing her shoulder tight against his. Hayden dipped his head and looked at her. Her freckles stood out starkly against her unusually pale face.
    He placed his palm over the back of her hand. “I don’t know if we can do anything. Your way might be best.”
    She stiffened and pulled her hand away. “No. Let me just—” She passed a hand over her face as if trying to wipe away her despair. “Do you think we can get it back to the barn? I’ll put it into a stall by itself and try to nurse it.”
    The dark flecks in her sea-green eyes yanked him in. Their