Chapter Three
“Easy,” I soothe the filly. “It’s just me.”
The filly’s ears flick, her dark eyes swinging to me from behind the stable door. She turns her body toward me, nostrils flaring to make a soft huffing sound as she makes herself taller, everything about her screaming her curiosity.
“Look at you,” I praise her, “so brave.”
Her jaw works, grinding her teeth, and she takes a step closer to me only for her ears to pin back at the sound of a voice that echoes through the stables.
“Get back where you belong,” Cal’s harsh bite has both of us responding, the horse in fear and me in anger.
“Cal, please,” that rasp sends awareness running through me. The woman. The one I still don’t know the name of.
“What?” Cal laughs. “You think you can just do what you want now? You don’t belong out here, woman. Get back in the kitchen and fix my lunch.”
The filly behind the stable door rears up, her hooves colliding with the door as she comes down.
“Easy,” I say, but it’s not as soft as it should be when dealing with her. We need consistency, and this is not consistent. No, what she is picking up from me is rage. So much fucking rage.
Cal rounds the corner, and I have to hold myself back from tearing toward him and throwing him through the damn wall, but only because she chases behind him, reaching for his arm.
“Enough,” he spins on her, his hand snatching up her arm.
Her face twists in pain, and I can’t stop myself; it’s a baser instinct.
One minute I’m still with the young horse, the next I’m in front of him.
My fingers curl into the collar of his stupid denim shirt, and I yank him so hard that he’s thrown off his feet.
I let go and watch him fall to the ground, landing with a hard thud on the gritty stable floor.
He’s up a moment later, squaring up to me, shoulders back, teeth gritted, “What the fuck!?”
“You lay your hands on a woman?” I growl, my chest pressing against his. He’s slightly shorter than I am, but not by much. He’s thinner though, smaller, so he has to puff his chest out and shove his shoulders back. My breaths come in short and heavy pants, my nails biting into my palms.
“Stop,” she whispers, “Please.”
My eyes flick to her face, to the desperation in her eyes and the way her bottom lip trembles. But I don’t back down; Cal does.
He steps back, forcefully making himself relax as a lazy smile tips up his mouth. “Shit, Knight. Sorry about that.”
My eyes narrow, “The fuck is going on?”
“You never seen a dispute?” He chuckles, “Nothing to worry about, Silas. Just a bit of a disagreement, isn’t that right?” He looks toward his wife, and she nods, fiddling with her hair and looking at the floor.
“Nothing to worry about,” he continues.
I meet her eyes, and she subtly shakes her head, begging me to stop.
Behind me, the filly paws at the ground, her fear and anxiety making her respond, wanting out. Part of me wants to open the gate, let her go and be free. Escape from here.
“I’m not sure you’ve met my wife,” Cal continues as if everything that just happened was a dream. “This is Juniper, or Juni as she likes.”
Juniper. Juni.
That’s so damn fitting for her.
“Why don’t you come over for dinner?” Cal asks, “We can discuss the training for the Appaloosa, make a game plan.”
“Sure,” I agree with a bite, “When?”
“How about tonight?” Cal grins, “Juni can put together something delicious for us, I’m sure.”
“I can,” she rushes, “Anything you don’t like?”
“No,” I tell her directly.
“Well,” Cal slaps my shoulder, “there we have it. Meet up at the main house at about seven? Should be good for then.”
“Alright.”
“See you then,” Cal steps by me, but Juni doesn’t. She remains in the same spot, her dark eyes holding mine.
We don’t say a word, not a single thing, but I hope she can see I am here. I don’t know the woman, don’t know her from a stranger on the street, but it doesn’t lessen the need to help her. She just needs to want to be helped.
As silence settles in the stables, Cal long gone, Juni seems to release a heavy breath, dropping my eyes to look toward the filly in the stall. She’s calmed a little now that Calvin is gone and is staring toward the two of us, ears pointed up.
“She’s such a pretty girl,” Juni whispers, “Too good to be around here.”
“Have you named her?” I ask.
“I like Dottie,” she says softly, “I think it suits her.”
“That’s what you should name her,” I agree, “Give her something.”
“Cal doesn’t like to name the horses,” she tells me. “Says giving them a name makes you attached and they’re just here for business. They’re not pets.”
“Yeah, well Cal is a fucking prick,” the words slip out on a bite. “Shit, I shouldn’t have said that.”
She chuckles, the sound of it melodic, light like a summer breeze swishing through the trees or long grass. “It’s okay. It’s quite refreshing, actually.”
“How so?”
She shrugs her shoulders before she begins to fiddle with a loose thread on her shirt. “No one says what they really think around here.”
“Does he do that a lot?” The question is prying, but I can’t help but ask.
“Cal has a temper,” is how she chooses to answer, her words careful, “It’s just easier for everyone to stay on his good side.”
“That’s no way to live,” I can’t stop looking at her, tracing her features, looking for clues. Her eyes are such a dark brown, they almost appear black from beneath the shadow of her hat, and they hold so much weight. She wets her plump lips and gives a gentle shrug.
“That’s just how it is.”
“Juni,” Her name tastes sweet on my tongue, like honey and sugar, “If you need help, I can—”
“Juniper,” Cal’s stern voice calls for her from outside the stables.
“I’ve got to go.” She brushes past me, the smell of her wrapping around me. Fresh and sweet—mouthwatering.
My fingers curl into my palm, and I purposely keep myself facing away so I don’t watch her leave. She rushes out of the stables and toward her husband, taking her soulful eyes and pretty scent with her.
“Just you and me, Dottie,” I say to the filly, returning to her stall. “Do you like that name?”
Her ears flick.
“Yeah, I agree. It suits you.”
I remember how my brothers teased me when we were growing up about talking to horses. They can’t talk back, Roman had laughed, but he had been wrong; he just didn’t know the language. Now he’s older, he understands it better, so does Remy, but not quite like I do.
“What should we try to do with you today?” I lean my elbows on the top of the stable door, keeping my distance but pushing just slightly more into her personal space.
Gentle nudges and consistent behavior are the surest ways to get a horse to trust you.
She backs up a little, but her posture remains relaxed, curious.
We are nowhere near me being able to go inside that space with her, but I want to do that soon, give her a good groom and thorough look over to check her general health.
She’s got a good weight to her and her coat looks shiny, but appearances can be deceiving.
I don’t know where she’s come from or who Cal purchased her from, nor do I have access to her genetics.
I could have Darcy, Knight Falls resident vet, come down, get a few tests done to check for any genetic issues she may have, but not yet.
It’s too soon for anyone to attempt to get inside there with her.
I reach my hand over the door, giving her a part of me to get used to. She doesn’t shy away from it and takes a tiny step closer, close enough I feel the huff of her warm breath brush across my knuckles before she smacks her lips against my hand and retreats.
Small steps are progress.
I spend the rest of the day with her, turning her out into her own private pasture for her to graze, but she remained close to the fence where I stood talking to her.
At six, I returned her to her stable, topping off her food and gave her a treat, which she had taken from my hand, and then I left her to get ready for dinner with the Scotts.
I’d usually have said no to dinner, not wanting to be anywhere near Calvin; Juni, however…
I shake my head. She’s fucking married, I shouldn’t want to be anywhere near her, yet I’m drawn to her, like a damn moth to a flame.
It’s to figure out what the hell is going on here, I tell myself, but I know it’s deeper than that. I want to get these horses out, but a part of me wants to get her out too.