Chapter 35
thirty-five
. . .
Wren
“Look at her go,” Axel said as we sat beneath our favorite tree. “Just like her mama.”
“Well, she’s got a lot of her daddy in her, too.” I held out my arms as our little angel made her way the few steps from where her father sat to where I was. “You did it, baby girl!”
I wrapped her in a hug.
“Kind of ironic that she took her first steps right here under this tree.” He kicked the toe of his boot against mine. “The first time I kissed you was right here.”
“I remember it clearly. I tried to pretend I knew what I was doing, when I didn’t have a clue.”
“That’s because those lips were meant for mine.” He winked as he scooped up his little angel and tickled her as her head fell back in a fit of giggles. Her little light brown ringlets bobbed just above her shoulders, and her green eyes sparkled in the sunlight.
We both stood and made our way to Honey and Wrax. I climbed on and then held out my hands as he settled our little girl in front of me on my horse. Her pink cowboy boots were secured to her feet.
Axel climbed on Honey and looked over his shoulder. “Are my Horse Girls ready?”
“Always. See you in a heartbeat, Cowboy.”
A loud buzzing noise ruined whatever dream state I was in, and I sprang up, a little disoriented at first, before I realized where I was.
I turned off my alarm and glanced around the room.
I’d slept the best I had in several weeks. Axel had gotten a room at the hotel for us, and we’d left dinner early because I needed sleep. And for whatever reason, just having him here had relaxed me.
We’d barely gotten to talk before I’d fallen asleep wrapped up in his arms.
“Hey,” he said after I’d turned off the alarm. “How are you feeling?”
“I feel rested.”
“Good, baby, that’s what I wanted.” He stroked the hair away from my face. “One more day today.”
“Yes. And the best part is, you’re here for it.” I smiled up at him. “I can’t believe you came. I know your whole family was there, and I didn’t want you to miss out on anything.”
“I’m exactly where I want to be, Wren.”
A loud boom of thunder outside had us both startling. Axel moved to his feet and opened the curtains as we both took in the gray dreary day. It was storming this morning, which was never good for the show jumping phase of a competition.
I glanced down at my phone and groaned.
“What is it?” he asked.
“I missed about fifteen calls from Coach last night,” I said as I dialed his number.
“Wren. Jesus. Are you all right?” Coach Sharky asked over speakerphone.
“Yes. I went to bed early. I was pretty exhausted. Why were you trying to reach me?”
“I just wanted to make sure you were resting. I figured with Axel in town, you probably wanted to stay up and visit, and I was calling to remind you how important today is, especially with you sitting right on Jacques’s heels. I almost wish he’d waited to come visit you.”
I glanced at Axel, who smirked and winked at me, as if Coach Sharky being an asshole didn’t faze him.
“Well, seeing as I’m an adult, you need not worry. Axel is also very aware of how tough this competition is, which is why he’s here. And I couldn’t be happier that he surprised me.”
“Of course. Yes. But not everyone understands this world, Wren. Not the way that you and I do,” he said. “And now it’s storming out, which was not anything we’d planned for.”
“First off, Axel has been with me since my very first competition. I assure you, he knows the sport as well as we do. And different weather comes with the sport. Everyone will have to deal with it. Wrax and I have jumped in rain plenty of times. We’re prepared for whatever comes our way.”
“Yes. Of course you are. But Jacques has many years of experience on his side, and I’m guessing this won’t rattle him the way it will the others.”
Was this call supposed to be helpful?
“Listen, I need to get dressed and ready for the day. I’ll see you downstairs in forty minutes, just as we planned.”
“Sure. Yes, of course. You’ve got this, Wren. Jumping is your strength. Wrax has that power, and I think you two can take this all the way.”
I often wondered if Coach Sharky was aware of how much stress his pep talks caused me?
He was a fabulous coach in many ways. His training could hold up to any program anywhere. But the mental side of this sport was huge. And I liked to get myself in the zone by meditating and relaxing and not focusing on anyone else. I liked to tune out the noise and just ride.
I didn’t need someone calculating scores and predicting the future. Anything could happen in this sport on any given day.
Accidents happened.
Mistakes happened.
And amazing things happened as well.
I ended the call and sighed. “I’m sorry. He can be a lot sometimes. But it irritates me more when he makes comments like that. As if you being here isn’t what turned everything around for me. I’m even feeling physically better now that you’re here.”
“Yeah?” He ran his fingertips along my shoulder. “That’s a good thing. And don’t worry about Coach Sharky. He doesn’t bother me. I think he’s a little threatened by me, and that’s something he’ll have to work through because I’m not going anywhere.”
“I think he’s threatened by you, too.” I moved out of bed, and he followed.
We quickly got dressed, me in my riding gear, and Axel in a pair of jeans and a tee.
I had so much to talk to him about when this was over.
The last few days had brought me a lot of clarity.
But right now I was in the middle of one of the biggest competitions of my career, and I needed to keep my head on straight.
The final phase of the Hampton Classic had proven a bit disastrous for many athletes.
The rain had caused a lot of trouble for the riders and the horses.
The terrain was wet and slippery, and conditions would only get worse as the day went on.
I was going last today. I’d stayed in the stable with Wrax and Axel the last hour, since watching people slip and fall was not good for my mental game.
I sat with Axel and listened to music, and we walked Wrax around a bit. Axel went and got us some lunch, and we found a quiet place to eat on our own.
Coach Sharky was watching each athlete and sending updates, but I’d turned off my phone, as I wanted to focus on my event.
Not anyone else’s.
“Okay, baby, it’s time.” Axel handed me a bottle of water, and I took a sip before handing him my backpack.
“You should stay in here. It’s raining out there.”
He laughed. “I go where you go, Wren. Rain. Hail. Snow. Tornado.”
“Tornado, huh?” I wrapped my arms around him one more time.
“Abso-fucking-lutely.”
“All right. I’ll see you after.” I gave him a kiss before climbing on Wrax. I waved at him as I turned to leave the barn.
We made our way to where the athletes waited before going out into the ring.
Coach Sharky was there, and he hurried over to me.
“Jacques missed one jump. It’s really muddy.
If you stay to the right of each jump, it’s a little less sludgy.
Everyone is leaning left, so there’s been a lot of foot traffic on that side. ”
I nodded. “Stop worrying. We’ve got this.”
Because we did. Whatever today brought—we were going to be fine.
I leaned down and hugged Wrax around his neck. “It’s me and you, always.”
And when my name was called, I was at complete peace. I wanted to savor this moment.
All the years of work and sacrifice.
I glanced out at the stands, surprised by how many people had stayed to see this final event in the pouring rain.
My father and my brother were out there.
Coach Sharky.
And Axel. He’d been what I’d missed the last two years while I was out here competing and training.
It meant everything that he was here for this particular competition.
It felt like a sign in a way.
The rain was falling hard, and the blur of people in the stands stood in the distance like a painting.
And then I saluted the judges.
Everyone faded away. The blur of colors. The noise. The spectators.
The sound of the rain falling against the ground became a rhythmic melody that had me moving toward the first jump of thirteen. Wrax stayed to the right, almost solely on instinct and with very little guidance from me.
As we took the second jump, I was fourteen years old again.
Just a girl and her horse.
We moved skillfully through the slushy terrain, the mud impossible to avoid, as we took the third, fourth, and fifth jumps effortlessly.
Me and my boy.
I knew he was focused and leaned forward as we continued moving, the rain falling over us as he sailed over the ninth jump.
Four to go.
I knew we were okay on time, since we hadn’t had any issues with forward motion.
Ten.
Eleven.
We’ve got this, Wrax.
We made a sharp turn, and I was grateful for all the lateral hill work we’d done over the last few months, because Wrax’s legs were unstoppable.
Unwavering.
Twelve.
The rain made it difficult to see, only the outline of the final jump in the distance. All our training outside the arena had brought us right here.
We could handle unsteady terrain.
Unpredictable weather.
Obstacles and challenges.
We’d prepared for all of it.
It was almost as if we were moving in slow motion as he took flight over the final jump. I leaned forward, feeling the pull of my lips tug up on the sides.
Knowing that we had done it.
Just a small-town girl and the best horse in the world.
When his feet came down, tears fell from my eyes.
I knew no one would know with the way the rain was coming down.
But I knew.
I was overcome with emotion. This was more than a win.
It was a defining moment in my life.
I saluted the judges as the crowd moved to their feet and cheered in a way I’d never experienced.
I stroked the side of Wrax’s neck and leaned close to his ear. “You did it, my boy.”
I chuckled as he whinnied and shook his head.
I made my way toward the exit, and I saw Coach Sharky and my father, their faces beaming as they clapped and howled.
And a few feet off on his own was Axel. A wide grin on his face.
A mix of joy and pride.
And I was completely at peace.