Page 19 of Fall With Me (Sugarland Creek)

He sprints down and aims right for the first barrel. As soon as we round the second, I focus on my technique so he doesn’t shoulder, and thankfully, he rounds it perfectly.

“Yes,go go go!” My legs bobble against him, but my boots manage to stay secure in the stirrups. We twist around the third barrel, slightly wider than I’d like but still in a good position to race home.

“Hustle, hustle!”

As soon as Landen calls time, I blow out a breath and pull on the reins to slow us down.

“Whew, such a good boy.” I pat his neck.

When I turn us around toward Noah, she looks thrilled.

“Fifteen point nine five one,” Landen announces. “Not bad. Lost two microseconds on that third barrel.”

The way he says those words dampens my excitement.

“Yeah, we’ll work on that,” Noah says as I swing my leg off the saddle and jump down. “You rode nice and straight, though. Your breathing is gettin’ better. I can tell your workouts are payin’ off.”

Workoutis a pretty loose word for jogging and doing jumping jacks every morning, but I’m not admitting that.

“You should try singin’.”

Landen’s words grab Noah’s and my attention. My brows furrow in confusion.

Once Ranger’s tied up, I step closer. “Did you saysinging?”

“It’ll help you work on your breathwork while you run. You’ll build up your stamina faster,” he explains. “After a while, it’ll feel effortless when you’re racin’.”

“You sure know a lot about stamina and breathwork…” I cross my arms, then raise a brow. “Or is it breathplay?”

Landen winks, then licks his lips.

Gross.

“That’s not a bad idea.” Noah points at me, ignoring my comment to Landen. “Taylor Swift jogged for three and half hours straight while singing to get ready for her tour. I bet it’d help with your nerves, too.”

“And the calmer you are, the better Ranger will follow your lead and commands,” Landen adds.

I blink in disbelief. “You want me tosingwhile jogging three miles?”

“Not like you have to be on key.” Noah chuckles. “Go as long as you can and each day aim for a little longer.”

“If it helps, I’ll run alongside you.” Landen smirks. “I’ll sing backup.”

No, thank you.

I narrow my eyes. “As temptin’ as that is to have you stalk me on my runs, I’d much rather go solo.”

“And if you need song ideas, her Reputation album will get you amped up.” Noah smirks before grabbing her clipboard to record my race time. She’s been keeping track of my progress and makes notes after each lesson.

When I glance at Landen, he’s already grinning at me, and I mimic a faux one in return. “Good idea. I connect with her song ‘Look What You Made Me Do’ and could sing it on repeat.”

Noah barks out a laugh. “Remind me to introduce you to my little cousin Mallory one of these days. She’s eleven and obsessed with her music. She even named her horse Taylor Alison Swift and has all her lyrics memorized.”

That makes me smile genuinely for the first time today. “She sounds like my kinda girl.”

“Magnolia and I have slumber parties with Mallory one weekend a month and blast her music while we bake goodies and do facials. You’ll have to join us sometime.”

“That sounds fun,” I say honestly, but it immediately brings me back to being Mallory’s age and having scary movie night sleepovers with my older cousin. I haven’t had one of those since she was taken away from me.

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