Chapter 10 #2
“He’s one of our equine therapy horses and the steadiest soul you’ll ever meet. He helped me a lot when we first got back.” Kai was different around this animal. He seemed steadier, calmer, more centered. There was a peace that settled over him as he patted the horse.
“Want to go for a ride?” he asked, surprising me as I’d been hypnotized watching how loving Kai was with this animal.
“A ride?” I stuttered, trying to get my heart to stop racing, as my emotions for this man threatened to overwhelm me. “I’d love to.”
“When was the last time you rode?” His gaze assessed me.
“It’s been a while. Maybe three years.” Thinking back to the last time I’d been able to ride before Cain had forbidden it.
He’d purposely locked me in with a spooked horse and laughed with glee when he antagonized it to buck and kick me in the face.
He’d often used my love of horses and riding against me, and as the reason for any of my visible injuries, which had all been him.
“Are you okay?” Kai said, making me jump when his hand touched my shoulder. He quickly held his hands up, palms out. “What’s wrong?”
“Just thinking about the last time I went for a ride. Your brother locked me in with a problem horse, and it kicked me and broke my wrist. He didn’t let me go riding again after that.
He seemed to enjoy taking something I cherished away from me.
” Tears I hated welled in my eyes at another thing Cain had cruelly taken away from me.
“I hate him. I wish I could have saved you from him.”
“It’s not your fault. I agreed to marry him.
I could have run away, but where would I have gone?
Sometimes I feel like he tricked me. It was okay at the beginning.
He was nice and attentive. I should have known better.
But I’m free now, and he will never touch me again.
” I was both surprised and thankful for the vehemence in my voice.
With Levi’s ongoing counselling, I was healing more than I’d imagined, gaining strength daily.
“If he comes anywhere near you, he’s a dead man.
” Kai’s brisk tone should have worried me, but I found I liked it.
I’d never had someone in my corner, someone willing to protect me at all costs.
Not sure if that made me a bad person or not, but I liked this darker side of Kai.
He offered me a sanctuary, a place of true safety, and his vibrant energy and adeptness made that security feel unshakeable.
All I could do was smile at Kai. He dispelled my fear; he made me feel free.
“So, if Ankh’s for you, who do I get to ride?” I asked, looking around. “How many horses do you have?”
His nostrils flared as he rotated his neck from left to right before answering. “We have ten therapy horses, but we have other horses for ranch chores, trail rides, and some workers keep their own horses here, too. You can ride Peanut; she’s a Norwegian Fjord and the gentlest horse here.”
Kai led me to the tack room and had me grab a pad and a saddle, while he grabbed the rest of the gear. “You remember how to saddle up, right?” he teased.
“Of course.” I playfully shoved his shoulder. Having grown up around horses, saddling and grooming them became second nature.
He guided me over to a stall near the front of the barn, and a beautiful tan head with a streaked black and white mane popped out. Her nose was gray and white, and her coat was thicker than that of the gelding.
“She’s so fuzzy and adorable.” I squealed as I let her sniff my hand and patted her neck. She whinnied and lipped at my coat.
“She likes you.” Kai smiled at me, and he unlocked the stall and made his way around Peanut’s side to get her saddled up.
“I thought I was supposed to do that?” I asked.
“I’ve got you. You and Peanut get acquainted,” he said as he fixed the saddle and stirrups.
Once he finished, he passed me a helmet. I raised an eyebrow at him. He knew better than anyone that I’d been riding my whole life, and unless I was racing, I rarely wore a helmet.
“I need you safe,” he pleaded, his gaze catching mine, making my cheeks heat.
“Okay, fine,” I huffed, rolling my eyes before pulling my hair out of my messy bun and finger combing my long hair as best I could. Once I took the offered helmet, I fastened it, and then adjusted the strap around my neck.
Kai moved to my side, offering a silent hand up; I didn’t need it.
Sending him a wink, I placed my foot in the stirrup and gripped the saddle horn, pulling myself up as I swung my leg over Peanut’s back and onto the saddle.
As I settled in, a profound sense of peace flowed through me. I’d missed this.
“You get familiar being back in the saddle while I get Ankh ready. Don’t leave the barn, please.” His gaze bore into mine.
“I won’t go anywhere,” I vowed as I shifted on the saddle, reacquainting myself with my positioning and movements.
Peanut was a calm horse, and I settled myself on her back.
I gave her a gentle kick and got her to walk out of her stall and pace to the front of the barn.
When I tugged on the reins, Peanut turned with ease and continued trotting back down the row of stalls.
I stretched, stood and shifted in all the ways I could think of to ensure I was comfortable and ready to ride again.
Kai came out on Anchor’s back with a black Stetson on, looking like a super-hot cowboy, and I just about swooned.
I noticed his stirrups differed from the standard ones.
They had a curved metal bar at the front; I was guessing to stop his foot from going all the way through, and he’d added what looked like an elastic band, crisscrossed at the back so his foot wouldn’t fall out.
I wondered how hard it had been for him to adapt to riding with his prosthetic.
“Is that an elastic band? How do you find riding with your prosthetic?” I was curious.
“It took longer than I’d liked to adapt.
I started with a bucket stirrup but didn’t like the lack of control and that I couldn’t dismount as easily.
I much prefer this method.” He said as he moved his leg back and forth, testing the hold.
“This is a specialized STS iron stirrup, and it’s been a game changer ‘cause I can’t feel when my foot is too far forward, and the elastic keeps it from flapping.
Ankh is also accustomed to me and knows my tells. He’s been the best.”
As Kai stroked Anchor’s neck, I took a moment to take them in. These two had a special bond. Ankh was an extension of Kai and moved as he did.
Kai and Ankh led us out of the barn, and I trotted up beside him.
“You up for a trail ride? I can show you around the ranch, and then we can head back to my place afterwards.” There was no heat as he spoke, but the idea of having Kai alone behind closed doors, just the two of us, had me shifting in the saddle. What this man did to me was new, but I welcomed it.