Page 57 of Growing Into Love

“All okay?” Jaz asks.

I put my phone down. “Oh yeah. David’s chatting about the usual, filling cavities and such.” God, now my fake boyfriend sounds boring.

“Can I take your order?” the waiter asks. It’s the same guy from yesterday. I order the chicken and veggies again because I didn’t have time to look at the menu thanks to Zara’s penis talk and I’m too hungry to wait.

“I’ll have the same,” Jaz says. There’s a pause after he leaves then Jaz says, “I’m surprised he’s not coming.”

“Who?”

“David,” he says, like it should have been obvious. “Since he’s so supportive and all. Thought he might want to come and see you jump in the most important show of your life. I would think a stand-up guy wouldn’t want to miss this.”

I bristle. “Are you insulting my boyfriend?”

“No,” Jaz says.

“Yes, you are.”

“I just thought it would be the decent thing to do.”

“That’s a bit rich coming from someone who routinely engages with the least decent person I can think of,” I snap. That was a low blow. “Shit, sorry, Jaz. That wasn’t nice.”

“It’s fine,” Jaz says tightly, taking some bread from the basket and picking it apart with his fingers. Except I know it’s not fine. He looks miserable.

“Autumn told me she went back to Craig,” I say.

“Declan tells her fucking everything,” Jaz grumbles.

“Yeah, they’re really annoying like that.”

I wonder if he’s texted Theresa back but I don’t ask. Maybe when I was in the bath last night. I hate the idea that I was masturbating and thinking of him as he was texting his ex. It makes my stomach sour.

“Hey,” Jaz says gently. “Don’t bother yourself about Theresa. She’s my problem. I’m handling it.”

“Right,” I say quickly, taking a sip of water. I don’t want to think too hard about whathandling itmeans. I wish our food would hurry up and get here. I wonder if they’ll have a new room for Jaz tonight. Then he can text with Theresa all he wants.

“Can I ask you something?” he says.

“Course.”

“Will you promise not to jump down my throat? Because I’m being serious.”

“Maybe,” I say, feeling rather grumpy again. Jaz chuckles softly.

“Fine.” He takes a breath. “You were right,” he says, looking ashamed. “I don’t know anything about running a sanctuary. And, well, I was hoping maybe you could tell me a bit about your plan. Not to judge! Only I’m really interested. I think it’s a brilliant idea.”

I blink. “You do?”

“Of course,” he says. “Cass, you’re better with horses than anyone I’ve ever met in my life. What you did for Naturally Sweet was nothing short of a miracle. Not many would have wanted to save a horse like that. Think of all the others you could save, horses like old Stars and Stripes too.”

“Thought you wanted me to listen to Declan.”

“Eh, don’t listen to me or Declan or anyone else,” Jaz says. “We don’t know what the fuck we’re talking about. Why would anyone want to dampen that big heart of yours? I was being an idiot when I doubted you this morning. I’d really like to hear your plans for when you win the Grand Prix.”

I shoot him a look. “Now you’re blowing smoke up my ass.”

“I am not. I’m supremely confident in your abilities. So go on. Spill.”

“Well,” I say, a tingle running through my fingertips. “I’ve done the math. The purse here should be enough to cover the construction of a barn large enough for six horses, with room for additions later. Autumn said she can set me up with the team that turned the outbuilding into the inn—they’ll give me a discount because she throws them so much work. I can only afford to start with three horses, Gal not included since her care is part of the Oak Hill budget. As far as labor goes, I was hoping for some volunteers as well as maybe one part-time groom to start—with so few horses, I could do a lot of the work myself. I reached out to the headmistress at Breckencross to see if anyone of the students would be interested in helping out. I figure I’ll ask Reggie too, but you know how excited he gets, I didn’t want to tell him until it was a sure thing. I’ve learned a lot from Autumn about fundraising, so I thought maybe I could start my own channel online, like the Oak Hill one. And I’ll reach out to suppliers, offering to endorse their products in exchange for donations.”

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