Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 75705 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75705 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
There was only so much I could say to her right now, so I gave her another heated look and then took the ball back to the field to play, handing it to the empire to reset.
I tried to focus on the game, but my mind was still on her.
This time, when I glanced over, I saw her staring at me.
The asshole from earlier was nowhere near her, probably taking the hint that maybe his attention was best spent elsewhere or maybe going off to the emergency room for a testicle retrieval.
I really didn’t care. What I did care about was that no other man dared go near her, and even if they did, I was pretty sure she wasn’t even going to notice.
“Get your fucking head in the game,” Luc came over and growled at me.
“The second you score as many goals as I have, then you can talk shit. Till then, sit your ass on your horse and do your goddamn job,” I said before getting back to work.
The second chukka was finally over, and it was time for my team to take a quick break, get some water, and regroup while the spectators went out on the field for the divot stomp.
At the last minute, I turned around and went back towards the VIP section.
Luc could handle the pep talk. I may have been captain, but that didn’t mean I did the whole warm-hearted speech or pep talk.
There were more important things to handle.
Stella looked so pretty in her blue sundress. Charlotte was on one side in a similar pink dress and Amelia a little further away in a green one.
Thankfully, Stella was just far enough away from them that I could talk to her without anyone overhearing. I hoped she had done that on purpose.
She kicked in a rather large divot and stomped it flat when I reached her.
“Are you having fun?” I asked, pulling up right beside her.
“I really am,” she said, looking up at me, her eyes still wide. “I had no idea polo could be so…” Her voice trailed off, her cheeks reddened a little, and so did her chest.
“So…what?” I prompted.
“Forceful?” she asked, thinking about it. “I didn’t know how violent it could be and how…” Her cheeks were a bright red as she grasped for the right words.
“Finish your sentence, baby girl.”
“Hot,” she said, her gaze on the ground in front of me.
I threw my head back with a laugh as I reached down for her.
Amelia, Luc, and Charlotte were all staring at me, but it didn’t matter.
They were too far away to hear me, so they could think whatever the fuck they wanted.
“I know what you mean, and I’ll tell you what.” I reached down and ran my hand through her soft hair.
She pressed her cheek into my palm, looking up at me so sweetly.
Something about watching me had changed something in her.
I liked it.
“You keep watching me, thinking all of those filthy thoughts that I know are going through your mind right now, and when this is over, I’ll show you how hot this can really make me.”
I sat back on my saddle and watched her face turn bright red for a moment before I turned and trotted away.
I had so many plans for her as soon as this game was over, but there were two more chukkas to go, and I was going to send the Englishmen back across the pond with their tails firmly tucked between their legs.
The game flew by. I was suddenly in the zone.
I could still feel Stella’s eyes on me, taking me in, probably objectifying me, but it somehow fueled me.
I wanted to win more than ever.
Not just for the sake of winning, though usually that was enough, but because I wanted to show off for her.
I wanted to show her exactly what I was capable of and that I had no problem going to war with men half my age and making them look like pathetic children playing a man’s game.
I might have been older, but I was still in my prime, and she needed to know it.
By the time the game was over, my team had scored fifteen goals.
Ten of those were from me personally, and the other five were from Luc.
The English had scored none.
In most places, that would be unusual for a polo match, but between Luc and me, we owned this field. Nobody was scoring on my grass.
Now it was time for me to take my prize.
Usually, I’d be with my team, cleaning up in the locker rooms. Or if I had a bad game or didn’t feel like talking to anyone, I’d go to my own private stable, clean up in my own suite, and be back in time for the award ceremony.
Today, I had a better idea.