Taming Talia by Marie-Nicole Ryan Read Free Book Online Page A

stable. Two horses, Midnight and Natalia’s mare, possibly a dapple gray. Difficult to tell without a source of light.
    Stopping long enough to soothe each animal, he hoped they would tolerate the length of confinement a blizzard required. He walked deeper into the stable and found the cow the ranch kept. A cow that would require milking in the morning. Never one of his skills. Had the fiery Natalia ever ventured to milk one?
    He quickly located grain for the horses and feed for the cow and chickens. Water would be more of a necessity for the animals. Could he melt enough to keep them alive for who knew how long?
    No point in messing around. They wouldn’t require feeding until the morning. Best locate the rope and find his way back to the house…and Natalia Montrose.
    Whether she was an innocent and apparently neglected wife or a cold-hearted bitch who ordered the death of her husband didn’t really matter at this stage.
    Survival did.
     
     
    Outside, the wind continued its incessant howl. Pacing the length of the kitchen, Natalia covered her ears. Would it never stop?
    How long had Jared been gone? It seemed like hours and hours had passed, but when she walked into the central hall and glanced at the long case clock, it showed eleven o’clock. He’d been gone a mere hour. Pulling her shawl tighter around her shoulders, she shivered. The embers still glowed in the fireplace and put off a small degree of heat.
    At least she was warm enough. Jared was out in the freezing cold, a man of action charging to the rescue—not a financial counselor. Maybe she was safe while he was taking all the risks, but she didn’t want to think about spending days or weeks alone and stranded by the storm. If something happened to him…
    She clenched her fists and rushed to her bedchamber. Throwing open the doors to the chifforobe, she pulled out the denim trousers she hadn’t worn since she’d married, along with a heavy flannel shirt. No, Reginald wouldn’t hear of her riding about their land in breeches. It was full riding habit or she could just stay inside and embroider.
    Quickly, she pulled off her skirt and shirtwaist. Fortunately, this one had buttons in the front. Sarita wasn’t needed to unbutton it. No, her dear friend was probably lying in the snow somewhere, dying or dead. Natalia’s throat closed with the thought of losing her only friend. Why hadn’t she asked her to spend the night instead of sending her home?
    The answer was obvious. No doubt, Sarita noticed the heated interest arcing between Natalia and the muy handsome Jared and left them alone on purpose, never suspecting her decision might prove fatal. And maybe she just wanted to get home to spend a warm evening in her husband’s arms.
    Once Natalia was dressed for the extreme weather, she strode to the kitchen. You can do this . You have to do this . Jared should be back by now . Using her shoulder, much as Jared had, she planted her feet and set her back into shoving open the door. With a loud groan, the door opened enough for her to slip though.
    Madre de Dios. The snow was now to her mid-thighs, and drifts were higher than her waist. Well, it wasn’t going to get any easier. She used her hands to scoop a path in the snow in front of her, attempting to find where Jared tied one end of the sheet rope. The wind was blowing from the northeast, and icy pellets pelted her face like stinging nettles. There was no turning back now. Jared was out there somewhere, and he’d definitely been gone too long.
    When she made it to the wrought-iron porch support where he’d tied one end of the guide line, she saw it was covered by at least a foot of snow. By now he should’ve tied his end to something in the stable. Yet it wasn’t as taut as she’d expected. Was he truly lost?
    If she followed its knotted length, what would she find? The living, breathing man who stirred her beyond anything she’d ever imagined or a frozen lump who’d given his life to care for