Page 77 of Growing Into Love

Isla wraps an arm around her. I notice an engagement ring glinting on her finger, a huge pink diamond. “You make do just fine, though, Gracie. Look where you placed today!”

“Right,” I say. “Shall we head to the barn so you can meet Galadriel?”

She looks to Isla. “Can I go?”

“Of course,” Isla says, then mouthsthank youto me. I leave her and Jaz behind and take Grace to the barn.

“Wow,” Grace says as Gal comes over to sniff her hand. “She’s pretty.”

“Thanks,” I say, pleased. “Hey, I could give you some tips, if you want. To help with your jumping.”

“I’d like that,” Grace says solemnly. “I’m not very good.”

“You just need a bit of direction, that’s all,” I say.

“My dad says I should quit.”

“Dads don’t always know what’s best for us,” I tell her. “My dad was quite stuck in his ways about things too.”

Grace strokes Gal’s neck, her face thoughtful. “He wants me to be friends with the kids at school, but I like animals best. Animals don’t judge when you say the wrong thing. They always behave exactly how they feel. I don’t understand people sometimes. They say one thing but mean another. It’s confusing. Then they get mad at you when you don’t know their code. But no one ever tells you the rules.”

“Hm,” I say thoughtfully. “That’s true.”

We chat a bit more about horses and I give Grace some advice about jumping. It’s rather calming to talk to her and not worry so much about tomorrow. After about a half an hour, we go back to where Jaz and Isla are watching the next class.

“Did you guys have fun?” Isla asks as Grace plops down next to her.

Grace nods. “I really like Cass. She says what she means and her smile is always real.”

“That’s awesome,” Isla says with a grin. She glances at Jaz. “Because you might get to see her again.”

“Huh?” Grace and I say at the same time.

“I was talking to Isla about our trip to New York,” Jaz explains. “I’ve been looking at hotels, Cass, but they’re all really expensive.”

“My family runs a bed and breakfast in a little town called Magnolia Bay,” Isla says. “It’s in the heart of Long Island wine country and it’s beautiful this time of year. We have a room free on Saturday night and I can get you guys a discount. You can check out the sanctuary next door and do a tasting at Everton Estate. It’s the best winery on the North Fork. I’m close friends with the family that runs it.”

“What do you think?” Jaz asks me.

“I mean, you had me at wine country,” I say. Isla laughs.

“Check it out,” she says, taking out her phone and pulling up an image of a beautiful lodge among acres of vines. “That’s Everton Estate.”

“Wow,” I say.

“You can spend the day in the city and then take the Long Island Railroad out to us,” Isla says eagerly. “I can pick you guys up at the train station. I do all the cooking at the Thorn and Rose, so bring an appetite.”

“That sounds perfect,” I tell her. Everything feels like it’s shifted today—the sun shines brighter, the air smells sweeter. Jaz and I are going on a trip to romantic, exotic Long Island. We can sip wine and snack on delicacies and kiss to our hearts’ content. Hopefully we’ll be doing more than just kissing but if I let my mind go there, I’ll be distracted the rest of the day and I really need to focus.

We watch the rest of the competition with Isla and Grace, happily chatting away and cheering on the riders. When the day ends, Isla and I exchange numbers.

“Good luck tomorrow,” she says. “I’ll send you guys some suggestions for the city too.”

“You’re amazing,” I say. “Thanks, really.”

“It’s nothing. Thankyoufor being so kind to Grace,” she says warmly.

But as Jaz and I head back to the Fairview, my bubble of happiness begins to deflate, and the nerves descend. I’m quiet all through dinner, studying the map of the course over and over. Jaz gives me space, knowing that I need to concentrate. When we get back to the room, I set up a mock course on the bed using toothbrushes and hotel pens and such. Jaz helps me go over it again and again.

---