Stabled (The Stables Trilogy #1) by Penny Lam Read Free Book Online Page B

in front of her, cast from the window, went dark. The clang of the door opening and shutting jolted her, adrenaline spiking through her system. She heard a few clicks.
     
    Whoever it was waited. Maple held her breath as much as she could. Her body was frozen, her muscles clamped tight to keep from making noise. Inside she was cursing her curiosity, which was about to cost her a job before twenty-four hours were up. It wasn’t just fear of being fired. She was scared of J.B.  Scared of him in a way she’d never feared Tony. J.B., despite his intoxicating, sexy appeal, seemed capable of anything . She’d seen it in those dark, celebratory paintings. Hidden in those broad, angry brush strokes was something inky and dangerous.
     
    It takes one to know one.
     
    Was that why she was so curious about this? Did she need to know what a man like J.B. was so determined to hide?
     
    Painfully slow, she shifted her body so that she could peek around the corner. Standing in shadows was J.B. He had his cowboy hat on, despite the darkness. It masked his features. His body was clear enough, though. The strong, muscular shoulders and lean waist. Tall, seeming even larger from her angle. A giant. His hand was pressed against the stable door. Holding it shut like he was trying to lock something dangerous inside.
     
    She scooted, as slowly and silently as she could, back an inch to the protective side of the stable.
     
    Soft footsteps crunched as she watched J.B.’s dark figure walk at a clip back to the house. He was all black shadow, cut against the light of the moon. Like a monster. Or a demon. Her body was reacting like that was exactly what he was, with clammy skin and quivering limbs.
     
    When she was sure he was in the house, Maple crawled on hands and knees to the window. Slowly, afraid despite knowing she was alone, she tried to look through the window. It was pitch black inside; all she could see were the vague hints of stalls. She slid along the front to the door. The clicks she’d heard were locks; a deadbolt and a padlock.
    What kind of stable required this level of lockdown? The entire building was unusual, she saw, her eyes barely picking out the odd details. It wasn’t open anywhere-- no exposed slits for air. It was built tight and secure, more like a house or storage. She heard a hum and investigated, discovering an air unit attached to the side. Climate controlled. A water pump. It only looked like a stable from a distance.
     
    The only thing Maple could come up with was that this was where J.B. painted. All signs pointed to it; the size would make a decent studio and artspace. The climate control. Even the locks; if he wanted to protect his art, she supposed. Though out here, who was he protecting it from?
     
    It didn’t sit right. Something argued with the assessment in her mind. It was the way J.B. had cut her off when she asked about it. The fierce, wild look in his eyes. He’d told her it was forbidden. He’d also told her about his art. Why wouldn’t he have just told her if this was where he worked?
     
    Damn it. Her late night excursion had been meant to calm her down. To soothe her into sleep. Instead, Maple’s mind was whirling around, more full of questions than ever.
     
    As a carrier of a secret, she knew she should respect this one. But she was Pandora, and this box was begging to be opened.
     
    You know how that turned out.
     
     

 
    Chapter Six
     
     
    “Wait, wait, wait. J.B. told you about his art ?” Raúl was helping her muck Bonnie’s stall. He’d finished work early and come to help her with Bane. J.B. had been right, she had more than enough work in the one stable when she was on her own.
     
    Maple was tired. Bone-ache tired. But she’d been tired before, and she knew how to push through it. It didn’t hurt that her body was still keyed up from the night before. The jolt of adrenaline when she remembered almost being caught slinking around the forbidden stable was more