Chapter Eighteen #4
Camille Dubois cantered out of the arena, waving to her home crowd.
She was smug, as always, but on one of Jean Pierre’s horses she’d made good time and was clear.
I wasn’t a fan, but she was an excellent rider.
I couldn’t fault that. She’d stayed far from Hallie thus far.
I’d promised Hallie I wouldn’t interfere for now, but if she said anything to her again, I’d make my feelings known.
“Can Hallie beat that time?” Jean Pierre said and nudged me. In that second, Hallie was introduced, and I fixed my gaze on my woman trotting out into the ring. She was dressed in her olive-green Knighton Cavaliers show jacket, her raven plait hanging down her back.
Fuck, but she was beautiful.
Hallie had no idea I was here. I wanted to surprise her.
The bell sounded and Hallie pushed Huxley into a canter.
I gripped the champagne glass so tightly that I worried it might smash.
But as soon as Hallie cleared the first fence, I relaxed.
Huxley looked good. He was calm and moving steadily.
Hallie, as always, was as fluid as water.
I pulled out my phone and couldn’t resist taking her picture as she sailed over fence five directly in front of the Eiffel Tower.
I had the exact same framed picture of me on Henry on my study wall from a few years ago.
I looked down at the picture, running my thumb over Hallie’s face.
When I refocused on the round, it was to see Huxley stumble badly after fence seven.
He had cleared it, but I saw Hallie pull him back slightly.
Even from here I could see the look of concern on her face.
I focused on Huxley’s front right leg. He was limping. Hallie must have realized it too, as she held her hand up to the officials and gently brought Huxley to a walk, retiring him from the ring.
My stomach fell and Jean Pierre said, “Are you seeing his right leg too? Strained, perhaps?”
“Shit,” I hissed. “Looks like it.” I handed Jean Pierre my half-full glass and patted him on the shoulder. “I need to go check on things.”
“What a shame,” he said. “That partnership has been incredible this season. Let’s hope it’s nothing serious.”
I left the box and rushed to the stables. It took me ten minutes to get there, and by the time I did, Hallie, Sage, Atticus, and Leon were already in the yard. Mila was holding Huxley as the vet assessed his leg.
Leon looked up at me and subtly shook his head. Fuck. It clearly wasn’t good.
“Jas?” Atticus said, frowning. “Fuck, I didn’t know you were coming back today.” He pulled me in for a hug.
When I turned, Hallie was looking up at me, tears in her eyes and devastation on her face.
She’d removed her jacket and hat and had her arms across her chest. Her bottom lip wobbled when she saw me, and I wanted nothing more than to pull her close.
But Mila and the vet weren’t among the people who knew we were together, and after the arson attack and the rumors that had only just died down, I didn’t dare expand that tight-knit group.
“It’s ligament damage,” Hallie said, and the crushing sadness in her voice made me want to yank her to me and make sure she was okay.
The vet stood. “Mike,” I said, shaking his hand. “It’s good to see you again. Though I wish it were under different circumstances.”
“Same, Jasper. It’s nice to see you around here again.”
“What are you thinking?” I asked.
“Ligament. He’ll need some scans and X-rays to rule out everything else, but he must have landed on it badly. It’s a strain, or at worst, a tear.”
A tear fell down Hallie’s face, and she moved to Huxley, throwing her arms around his neck. She bloody loved this horse.
“Anything you need to do, you have carte blanche,” I said. “No penny spared.”
Hallie lifted her head from Huxley’s neck and turned to me. “Thank you,” she mouthed, and I nodded. It was the least I could do.
“I’m going to give him some injections now for pain and to reduce the inflammation. We’ll keep him stalled, iced, and rested, then we can get to those scans.”
“I’ll call Liz, our vet back at Golden Oaks, and tell her he’ll be coming home.” I met Hallie’s eyes and said, “We’ll get him better and back on the circuit in no time.”
“Good man,” Mike said, then shook my hand. “Let’s get Lord Huxley resting in his stable, and I’ll be back with the meds.”
Hallie went with Mila, rugging Huxley up and getting him settled.
Leon moved beside me. “I’m going to contact Danielle at the stud and see who looks ready to jump now.
Lady Marjorie was the most promising when we left for the circuit.
Danielle told me she’s been making excellent progress with our trainers since then.
We can have her flown over today. She’s on the list of registered horses for this season. ”
“Okay,” I said, but I couldn’t take my eyes off Hallie, who was whispering in Huxley’s ear.
“You listen to me, milord,” she said, and my chest ached at the affection in her voice.
As they always did, Huxley’s ears flicked back and forth, listening to his rider.
“This is just a little bump in the road for us.” She kissed his nose.
“You’re going to go home and heal, then I want you to come right back to me, and we’ll finish what we started.
Okay? The tour is far from over for us.”
“This’ll kill her,” Sage said under her breath, coming to stand beside me. “She’s totally fallen for him.”
I made a vow right then that I was gifting Huxley to Hallie.
When you found your heart horse, the one that attaches itself to your soul, there’s no separating you.
Hallie waxed lyrical about Canyon, about his ability to connect to horses on another level.
But whatever magic lived at the ranch they both grew up on had rubbed off on her too.
I’d never seen horses connect to anyone as quickly as they did to my girl.
Mila left the stable with a bucket in hand. I assumed she was getting Huxley food. Making sure the coast was clear, I snuck into the stall with Hallie. She didn’t look up from Huxley’s neck. She must have thought I was Mila as she didn’t turn around.
“Angel?” I whispered, and Hallie’s head whipped up. The minute our gazes connected, she fell apart. Throwing her arms around my waist, I held her to me and let her cry.
My shirt became wet with her tears, but in this moment, I didn’t give a fuck. “Ssh,” I soothed, kissing her hair. “He’ll be okay, I promise. I’ll have only the best vets working on him.”
“Thank you,” she whispered. “I just . . .” Hallie backed away and ran her hand down Huxley’s neck again. “I just feel so guilty.” She shook her head. “I must have approached the fence wrong or pushed him too hard.”
“It was far from your fault,” I said sternly. “I was watching. In this sport, these things happen.”
Hallie laid her cheek against Huxley’s neck again. “I’ll miss him.”
I stepped back when Mila came back into the stable. With a nod at her groom, I left Hallie with Huxley and went to Leon and Mike, who were talking in the yard.
“No suspicion of foul play, right?” I said to Mike. I’d like to say Mike looked shocked by my question, but after the past few years and McGowen’s father’s stunts, plus the sordid history of this sport, none of us were. The sad truth was, it was rife in our industry.
But Mike shook his head. “No, I just rewatched his landing online. It is genuine. No foul play.”
I exhaled in relief. “Thank God.”
“I’ll just give him the medication, then we can see if the swelling goes down. From there we can discuss him traveling back to Golden Oaks.” I nodded again, then Leon came to stand beside me.
Sage had gone in the stable with Hallie to keep her company. Atticus was brushing down Barnaby, giving them some space. I’d check in with him later.
“Marjorie is the best option,” Leon said, and showed me Danielle’s text confirming that. I stared back at Hallie, and the devastation on her face—it cut me where I stood. When the person you loved was hurting, the pain you felt for them was debilitating.
“Actually, Leon,” I said, taking his elbow and pulling him far from anyone else. “I need to run something by you.”