Chapter Six
Hallie
A few days later
“Shit!” I hissed as the pole fell to the ground with a dull thud.
I closed my eyes as Huxley cantered around the track, letting the familiar rhythm of his steady motion calm me down.
I inhaled through my nose and out through my mouth, but nothing helped.
All I could see in my mind’s eye was Jasper, skin slick with sweat as he caught his breath from his run.
All I could feel were his dark eyes burning into mine as I sassed a “Yes, sir.” Heat had flared within them as he’d tried to read whether I was being insolent or not.
I held my attitude back just enough to keep some respect, but all I could think of was what if I had been defiant?
Something told me that Jasper Knighton wanted to be pushed.
“Hallie!” Leon’s loud voice broke through my racing thoughts—thoughts I couldn’t contain, hadn’t been able to for days now. I could still feel Jasper’s body heat as he moved before me, scalding me like a flame. I could smell the sandalwood and mint of his cologne.
And I couldn’t stop from imagining him crushing his lips to mine or showing me exactly what he did to women who spoke back to him.
“Hallie! Jesus . . .” Leon said, breaking through my Jasper-fueled haze again. When I looked at Leon, I realized I was just circling the track, Huxley keeping me safe with his steady pace.
“Sorry!” I said, and brought Huxley to a walk.
Leon headed toward me from his place in the center of the ring.
His eyes were narrowed as he assessed me.
I smoothed my features. I didn’t think “I’ve been fantasizing about your boss and almost-brother and all the dirty things he could do to me in bed” would be a good-enough excuse for why my head had been in the clouds in today’s session.
“I’m distracted. I know. I’m sorry,” I said, and brought Huxley to a halt. Leon stood beside me, arms crossed.
“We don’t have time for distractions, Hallie. Every minute of practice is essential.” Leon’s head tipped to the side as he regarded me. “You’re not normally like this—you’re always focused. What’s on your mind?”
My heart stopped. Huxley moved restlessly beneath me, clearly feeling my distress. “I haven’t been sleeping,” I said, lying through my teeth. “I think it’s just catching up with me.”
“Are you following the training plan?” Leon asked suspiciously. The training plan. What to eat, when and how much sleep, and non-riding-related exercise we riders were to do to keep in top form.
“Of course!” I said with a little too much enthusiasm. I wasn’t. At all. Late-night jogs and confrontations with Jasper weren’t exactly “sticking to the rules.” Nor was the number of times I had fought touching myself while thinking of my boss.
My fucking boss. Who was most certainly, absolutely forbidden.
“Why don’t I believe you?” Leon said, a whisper of a smirk pulling on his mouth. Leon was a tough nut to crack, but he’d shown flickers of humor under his stern exterior during our sessions. I liked him. Loved training with him. My stomach rolled. I didn’t want to let him down.
I sighed and ran my hand down my face.
“Let’s call it for today,” Leon said, and I snapped my head up.
“No, really, I’ll get myself together—”
“Sage will be here soon,” Leon said, cutting me off. He ran his hand down Huxley’s blaze. “It’s not working today. No need to keep going when it doesn’t feel right. We don’t want Huxley”—Leon met my eyes—“or you unnecessarily stressed.”
I sank into my saddle, relaxing and taking note of Huxley beneath me. I closed my eyes and focused on my horse. Leon was right. Huxley was tense, and that was only because of me. I was off, and he sensed it, so the atmosphere was off.
“I’ll be better tomorrow,” I promised Leon, leaning down to hug Huxley’s neck in apology for being a dud of a rider today.
“Rest, sleep, we’ll reconvene tomorrow.” Leon patted Huxley’s neck and walked toward the jump to fix the pole as Sage entered the arena. I clicked my tongue, indicating for Huxley to walk on, and met Sage near the doors to outside.
“What’s up your ass?” she asked, clearly reading my face.
I blew out a long, frustrated breath. “Off day,” I said.
I hadn’t told Sage of my run-ins with Jasper.
It didn’t feel right telling anyone about Jasper being so broken by something.
If I’d tried to explain about the fountain incident, it would need context from our night at the barn. So I’d kept things to myself.
“Why’re you having an off day?” Sage questioned, because of course she did. She knew me. Her eyes narrowed. “You don’t have ‘off days.’”
“Well, hell just froze over because I’m having one today.”
“Sage, when you’re ready!” Leon called from across the arena.
I clucked Huxley on, making my escape, when Sage leaned in close. “If you think I’m leaving it there, darlin’, you’re sorely mistaken.” Sage trotted Seraphina onto the track, and I left through the doors, letting the bite of the winter chill slap at my cheeks.
“Do you want me to take Hux?” Mila said out of nowhere, making me jump. “Sorry!” she said, holding up her hands.
“Not your fault, Mila,” I said. “I’m all over the place today.” I looked out onto the bridle paths that surrounded the property. “I’m going to hack out on one of these paths for a while, darlin’. I’ll turn him out in the field when I’m done.”
“You sure?” Mila asked, clearly also sensing something was off with me. At this point, I should have been wearing a neon sign that read, “Approach with caution, I’m having salacious thoughts about my boss.”
“I’m good,” I said and moved Huxley on, passing by the barns and along a path that led me into a private forest. The minute the trees created a canopy above us, the wind dropped and the only sound was the animals scurrying on the ground and birds flapping their wings in the branches.
Huxley’s ears pricked forward in excitement, and I let myself relax.
I wanted to slap myself when the first thing that came to mind was Jasper.
“I’m fucked, Hux,” I told my horse. I’d always admired Jasper.
He had always been my inspiration to jump and compete.
Over the years, I’d come to find him ridiculously attractive too.
I mean, who wouldn’t? I knew I’d probably see him here at Golden Oaks.
But this past week . . . Hell, I never would have imagined that.
I smiled when we rounded a corner and the woods opened into a field, a herd of deer spread out before us.
Stunning. Huxley watched them avidly. Lost in the picture of them grazing, the cold mist surrounding them making the scene look more like a painting, I said to myself, “You must stay away from him, Hallie. He’s your boss, and the last thing you want is fellow riders on the circuit thinking you got here on your back and not your merit.
” My stomach fell at that. I’d worked far too long in this sport for it to be sullied by rumors of anything romantic with Jasper.
Not that there would ever be. But I had to hide my attraction toward him.
Turning Huxley onto the trail, I followed the path back to the barn. After I’d untacked Huxley and brushed him down, I blanketed him and put him out in the field to graze.
By the time I’d walked home, I felt more certain of myself. Jasper Knighton was simply my boss. I would give him a wide berth, and any interactions would be purely professional. I had a career to forge, and I couldn’t let my attraction toward my employer get in my way.
Ten days later
Knighton Equestrian Warehouse, Surrey
We arrived at a large warehouse at the crack of dawn. The morning was still dark as our car arrived at a back door of a huge white building. Sage was asleep on my arm, and I nudged her when we stopped.
“Wha—?” she mumbled, waking from slumber.
“We’re here,” I said, and Eric, our driver, opened the door for us. We’d insisted to Victoria that we’d drive ourselves here today, but she’d refused. It’s a long tiring day. Believe me, you’ll want the rest on the way back, she’d said, and ordered us a car.
The Knighton Equestrian warehouse was about an hour outside of Golden Oaks.
Sage had used the travel time to catch some more rest. I’d been too wired.
As per my vow to myself, I’d kept my head down and gotten shit done.
I hadn’t once caught sight of Jasper. Sometimes I found myself wondering whether he was avoiding me too.
If he was, it was for the best. Not seeing him had given me the reprieve I needed to push him from my mind and focus on the only reason I was here: jumping.
We’d trained like crazy over the past couple of weeks, and I didn’t want to jinx things, but Huxley and I were on fire.
Like you feel some things are just meant to be, that was me and my stallion.
The same went for Sage and her insane mare, Seraphina, or Fefe, as Sage affectionately called her.
How anyone could nickname that mare something so sweet and whimsical was beyond me, but no one could deny that Sage and Fefe were a dynamic duo.
When it came to competing against Sage in the upcoming Grand Prix, I honestly wasn’t sure which of us would win.
But we wouldn’t have it any other way. We were best friends and even fiercer competitors, though our rivalry had never affected our friendship like it did most others on the circuit. That was the biggest blessing we had.
A man came to the car. When we stepped out, he held out his hand. “Marco Roberts,” he said with a wide smile. “Artistic director for Knighton Equestrian.”
“Nice to meet you, Marco,” I said and shook his hand.
Sage followed suit, then slapped him on the back and said, “You got coffee in this place, Marco? Because I’m gonna need a kilo of that shit, stat! This country girl needs the bitter taste of java to get my systems firing and my bitch mode swiftly put on silent.”