Chapter 5 Samantha #2
“Okay, I guess.” Clara’s furrowed brow tells me she’s going to be a little sensitive about any rough parts of her riding.
I’ll make sure to tread lightly. It makes me almost positive I should start her on Dara.
She’s only ten, but we know almost nothing about the horses we inherited.
She’s either been jumped at some point, or she’s a natural.
She lines herself up, stays straight, and she naturally finds the base of every jump.
“Wait,” Hannah says. “So. . . Clara will be riding Dara?” She smirks. “That’s hilarious.”
“I think it’s cute,” Natalie says.
“As do I,” I say, “And Dara’s lead changes are easy and natural—you should always pick the horse who’s the best fit. Names aren’t that important.”
“That won’t be her show name anyway, right?” Natalie asks.
“I need to look into the rules,” I say.
“Wait, now that Clara’s taking Dara, and you’re putting me on Riona. . .” Natalie groans. “Riona kicks out when she changes leads, doesn’t she?”
I laugh.
Natalie had a bit of a reputation when she was younger for being good at staying on even when she was on a horse with a bit of spice. “Only if you let her dive in, and only if you don’t run her through enough transitions on the flat to remind her what her job is first.”
Natalie’s not really upset. She’s usually up for a challenge. “Fine, fine.” She’s smiling broadly, so I’m pretty sure she’d ride Teagan the Kerry bog pony if it meant Clara could ride. That’s what being a mother is—wanting the best for your children even more than you want it for yourself.
I already have that with these girls. I have to remind myself of that sometimes. I don’t have to physically birth a child to love one.
“What about the new ones?” Hannah asks. Can either of them jump? And what are their names?”
“The grey’s name—” I laugh. “Is Speckles.”
“So an idiot who didn’t realize that grey horses lighten every year named her,” Natalie says.
“Or maybe a kid,” I say.
“Way to make me feel like a jerk,” Natalie says.
Like Drew, Speckles is nearly white. She just has a grey mane and tail. It’s a really pretty combination, actually. Striking. “And the other horse he gave me—I’m not making this up—is named Rudolph the Red.”
“Whoa,” Natalie says. “As in the famous reindeer?”
I shrug.
“What do you mean?” She points at my pocket. “Ask Richard.”
I can’t help my pained look.
“Don’t tell me you aren’t even talking now?”
I sigh. “We’re texting sometimes, but. . .”
“Wait, Richard, my mom’s rich boyfriend?” Hannah frowns. “Why are you texting him?”
“Oh, please.” Natalie laughs, and if there’s any unhappiness or awkwardness in it, I can’t hear it.
“He’s hardly my boyfriend. We didn’t even date long enough to call him my ex.
We had two bad dates, and one wasn’t even a proper date.
Your father got upset about it, but Richard was never my boyfriend, and I didn’t even want him to be.
Now he’s courting Samantha, but apparently he’s bungling it. ”
“Courting?” Clara rolls her eyes hard. “What decade were you born again, Mom?” She giggles. “Oh, right. The late nineteen hundreds.”
“Rude. That’s rude.” Natalie’s smiling, though, but even Clara doesn’t distract her. “Just text and ask him about Rudolph’s name. Maybe that’ll get you two talking again.”
I can’t really tell her that I’m avoiding him because I lied.
Then it’ll turn into a whole thing. She’ll tell me I did it on purpose, to torpedo any chance I had, and I’ll wonder whether I did, for the twenty-third time, and then I’ll debate whether I can ever trust a man again, and round and round we’ll go.
“You three should be tacking up, not interrogating your trainer,” I say.
One solid scowl and even Natalie scurries off.
Half an hour later, we’re all riding, this time with me on Scout.
He’s made even better progress than Liam.
I’m actually thinking of taking him to the show myself.
It might be fun, and it would be good for his brain.
Liam’s only five, but Scout’s seven, and it’s time he had a real job to do.
Thoroughbreds need direction and consistency, and now that he has both, he’s really thriving.
“He’s looking great,” Natalie says.
I make her hold his reins while I set a small course. “I’m going to put the three of you in a jumping round, but I may try cross-country with this guy if he holds up for the next few weeks.”
“Oooh, can we watch?” Hannah asks. “I really want to.”
“You should,” I say. “You learn the most by doing, but watching others also teaches you a ton. You’ll also see that even your trainer isn’t perfect. We’re all learning and improving our connections with the horses all the time.”
My phone buzzes, and after Clara goes around the little cross rails I set for the warm-up, I answer the call.
“Hey there.” It’s a man with a German accent.
“Hello.” I get all sorts of calls now that my number’s listed for the horseback riding company.
“I know this is a little last minute, but our other plans just fell through, and I saw that you offer Irish countryside rides. Any chance you could take my friend and me out for a ride? We ride pretty often back home.” His accent makes me think he’s just here on a quick holiday, or maybe for business.
“Sure,” I say. “What time did you have in mind?”
“Soon,” the man says. “The sooner the better.”
“I can help,” Clara says. “No school today.”
That’s the best thing about the weekend—the kids help out a lot.
I finish up the lesson with the three of them, getting Clara around the lines even better than I expected. She and Dara look beautiful together, just like I hoped they would.
By the time the two men arrive, Clara and I have not only gotten the other horses put away, but we have our four horses ready to go. “If I get good at this, could I run tours by myself sometimes?” Clara asks, her eyes wide and bright.
“Of course,” I say. “That’s the goal.”
Her smile makes my chest expand. “That’s so cool.”
“Didn’t you ride Liam already today?” Clara asks. “Can you ride them twice?”
“I just flatted him around in the new arena,” I say. “It wasn’t much of a ride, and for the babies, it’s really good for their brains to be ridden for two short rides, especially when one of them is just a trail ride. His brain needs to see and be around the most things we can expose him to.”
She nods slowly. “And I’m riding the new horse? Is she safe?”
I smile. “I’ve ridden Speckles several times. She’s great, but she gets a little nervous when her new best friend, Rudy, moves too far away. I figure you can work with her on that.”
Clara nods.
“And we’ll put our two surprise riders for this afternoon on Earl Grey and Rudy.”
The men arrive, clearly businessmen from Germany, and they sure look like they already know how to ride, checking their own girths and rubbing Rudy and Earl on their noses, chatting comfortably between themselves in German.
I wish I’d paid more attention in high school, because then I might have some idea what they’re saying.
I do catch Richard’s name.
“Did you say Cavendish?” I ask.
They both freeze. The one who called me, a short man named Heinrich, turns. “Do you know him?”
“We’re friends.” I shrug. “He’s got one of my horses at his barn still. He had three, but I brought two of them back last week. I’ll grab the last one next week, now that our new stalls are all finished.” But now I’m even more curious. “How do you know him?”
“We came into town to meet with him,” the other man says. “We’re hoping he’ll use our shipping containers in the future.”
Weird. “Well, good luck.” The trail ride’s pretty uneventful, right up until we reach the River Blackwater. As we round the bend and the riverbank comes into view, so too does something else.
Or rather, someone else.
Richard’s on his mare, Cachacco, and he’s holding the reins to another horse, a bright and shiny chestnut gelding. “Fancy running into you out here.”
The German businessmen are smiling, and I realize I’ve been played. “Now, we did as you asked.” Heinrich grins. “You will look over our contracts?”
Richard smiles. “You still have to pony her horse back, or I’m not looking at anything.”
The Germans look legitimately distressed.
“Do they even know how to get back to Fortwilliam?” I ask. “Richard, be reasonable.”
“Oh, please. It’s half a mile that way, in a straight line.” He points. “A four-year-old child could get back safely.”
The Germans are talking a mile a minute, and then Heinrich turns to me. “My friend here, Michael, has been a trainer in Germany for twenty-five years. We promise to get your horses and your little girl back safely.”
Ah, my heart—I wish I had a girl of my own. “Clara, what do you think?”
She’s beaming about the whole thing. “I think you should go on the date.” She drops her voice to a hiss so Richard won’t also hear. “Or I’ll rat you out to my mom.”
Which is how, two minutes later, I’m riding a new horse down the river bank, hoping we don’t startle any birds as we walk through the rustling leaves.
I’ve been on this horse for less than a minute, so I’d rather not find out how stiff his bucks are quite yet.
As we move, I test his suppleness—pretty good, especially for a trail ride with a new rider.
He’s responsive, and he’s a beautiful mover, even at a walk.
He has impulsion and energy but smooth, even steps. His ears are alert.
“When are you going to tell me why you made this so hard?” Richard’s eyebrow is quirked. “Is this some kind of game to make sure I know you’re worth the effort?”
I sigh. This is when I should tell him. “I—”
Three geese explode out from behind a fallen log, honking and winging their way up and out over the river.
I should have asked my horse’s name, so I could shout it along with Whoa while I haul back on his reins. Once we get the horses stopped, Richard’s laughing. “You did that on purpose, just so you didn’t have to answer.”