Page 29 of Reining Her In

“You can go change in the office, dear.” My mom places a hand on my arm and I jerk away. “I had a set of britches and boots brought down from the house earlier. Go on. Show your father you appreciate everything he does for you.” My mother’s voice sounds as pathetic as I feel.

“I don’t know anything about that horse.” My bottom lip is shaking. I hate that I’m scared. Terrified really.

“Travis tells me this is the horse that will get you to the next level. He knows better than any of us what you need. We knew Ruby wasn’t the right horse anymore for you. You should have never gone to that other trainer. Now, go get changed and get on that horse. Show me you are serious about this.” My father crosses his arms and stares over my head at the horse. “The doctors said there was nothing wrong with you.”

Ten minutes later I’m still fighting the tears, but I’m on the mounting block while my parents and Travis watch from the other end of the arena. The groom is holding the new horse, and I can see the animal’s skin twitching. The whites of his eyes ring the brown inside. He’s terrified.

“Whoa, bud,” I murmur, slipping the tip of my black boot into the silver stirrup. “One, two, three,” I softly count off to myself, then pop up, throwing my right leg over the saddle.

Before I find my seat and settle my other foot in the stirrup, the horse explodes forward like a dragster off the line.

“Whoa!” I don’t even have my hands on the reins, all I can do is reach down and grab the mane. My heart is in my throat as the horse is gaining momentum and heading toward the open arena doors. If he makes it outside, he can run forever. I’m barely holding on as it is. I loosen one hand, flailing for the leather rein strap that is hanging down under his neck.

“Oh God, please...” We’re thirty feet from the door and my parents are screaming at me like there’s anything I can do. Travis doesn’t throw himself in front of the gelding, he doesn’t try to slow him down; he just jumps out of the way. I’m doomed. If this animal gets out in the open, my only chance is to dump myself off now, but he’s going so fast. If I fall at this speed I may not ride again, ever.

I squeeze my eyes shut, my one hand holding onto the short, coarse hair at the top of his neck, my other hand still feeling around for the leather, when I hear a voice roar above the sound of the others.

“Whoa!”

I dare open one eye and there’s Reed, arms high, waving his cane in the air and yelling at the horse, making himself as big as possible, countering every left and right motion of the gelding. He anticipates the horse’s movements before they even happen.

“No! Get out of the way!” I yell, but my voice breaks in my throat. The gelding is hell bent and he’s going to run right over Reed if he doesn’t move.

I squeeze my eyes shut again, tensing, waiting for the inevitable collision that will throw me to the ground and trample over the man that I am sure I am in love with.

A small prayer falls from my lips and I bring both hands to tighten on the mane, hoping beyond hope for an outcome I cannot foresee.

“Whoa!” Another bellow from Reed.

My mother is screaming, my father is shouting, and Travis is silent.

As the gelding reaches the open doors, suddenly he turns sharply to the left, my body nearly flying from the back of the giant animal, but I manage to keep my grip. Before I know it, the black gelding is turning in larger then smaller circles, his speed slowing until he is a huffing mess under me.

“Jump down, Constance, now!” Reed’s voice wakes me from where I’m frozen in fear.

I don’t think. I just do as he says, flinging my right leg back over and free-falling down the side of the gelding into his one open, waiting arm. His other hand is dripping blood from the leather rein that has cut into his palm. The horse is stomping in place and pulling backward, eyes wild and froth dripping from his mouth.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Travis finally has something to say.

“I’m obviously here to be the one person who has any sense. What the fuck are you doing, putting her on this horse? On any fucking horse.” Reed looks like he could kill with just his eyes.

“That horse is a three-time International Eventing Champion,” my father chimes in, lurching forward.

“Is he?” Reed is huffing himself, his face twisted in anger. “That’s what Travis told you?”

“Yes. We bought him. Luckily, Travis was able to negotiate a deal for Constance.”

“Yeah? Negotiate a deal.” Reed spits. “Let me see, did it go something like this? He’ll take Ruby off your hands and sell her – at a huge loss, of course. Then, just by sheer luck, this amazing champion horse is for sale at the rock bottom price of 1.6 million dollars, but you have to act now or someone else will snatch him up.”

I’m looking back and forth between the three men, my mother looking like a scared barn mouse standing by the arena wall.

“How did you know that?” My father’s forehead pulls together.

“Yes, how did I know that, Travis?” Reed hands the reins to the wide-eyed groom who’s run across the ring next to him.

“Reed, you don’t know anything about this horse. This is Lucian McDonnelly’s old mount. The one that won him gold two years ago at Warrington. Years of Gold is his name; they call him Black Gold.”

“Black Gold?” Reed steps forward, pulling me by the hand to stand behind him. He’s laughing now. “Mr. Montgomery.” He turns from Travis to my father. “You’ve been sold the Brooklyn Bridge. I’m Reed Sawyer, and when the trailer showed up to pick up Ruby, I stepped in and refused. The driver told me all about this ‘Black Gold,’ and this is a small horse community. I know all the horses on this circuit, their owners, who’s for sale, who’s hurt. I made some quick phone calls just to be sure. I’m telling you, sir, this is not Black Gold.”

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