Page 15 of Keep You Safe
“Oh wow.” I gazed around the ring from my new vantage point. “I’m up way higher.”
“Eyes forward.” Grayson shook his head as I did the exact opposite, glancing over at him.
“Oops.” I corrected my posture and attempted to get Cinder to walk away. I made the same noise and gave the gentle heel tap that had worked with Magnolia, but nothing happened. I tried again, and Cinder merely snorted, shaking her head, seemingly disinclined to move. “I think my horse is broken.”
“More like stubborn.” Grayson ambled over to pat her rump. “Needs more direction than Magnolia, that’s for sure. Giddyap.”
His encouragement worked for about ten paces, then she stopped, looked around, shuffled. I repeated the command and got another ten paces before she slowed. This time, she didn’t so much as perk up at my encouragement.
“Why do you keep stopping?” I asked the horse as if she might answer, trying not to let frustration seep into my tone.
“Maybe her ears are ringing from your God-awful taste in music earlier.” Grayson laughed at his own joke, the first smile I’d seen from him all day. He gave her another rump pat. “Come on, girl, let’s git going.”
“That worked.” I struggled to hold on as Cinder started a merry trot, something a bit faster than a walk without being a gallop.
“Use both your reins and thighs,” Grayson called out. He leaned against the riding arena gate. “You’re the driver, not the passenger.”
“But I make such a cute passenger princess,” I shot back, remembering at the last second not to turn toward Grayson to see his reaction. Instead, I settled for his answering snort-laugh as I continued to guide Cinder in a circle.
“Want you to practice some wide turns now,” Grayson ordered as we passed back by him. “You’re gonna make a bigXacross the arena.”
That sounded a bit optimistic given Cinder’s stubborn nature and distractible brain, but I gave it my best shot, focusing hard on my posture and commands. Our first try looked more likea squiggly snake, but our next one was far closer to Grayson’s instructions. Then he set out some barrels and had me practice weaving back and forth down the length of the arena.
“I did it! We did it!” I cheered as we completed the mini-obstacle course. I patted the horse’s neck as we pulled back even with Grayson. “Good girl, Cinder.”
“She might be a keeper after all.” He reached out to give her a pat as well.
“No praise for me?” I prompted, not above demanding what I craved.
“We might make a rider of you by spring if you keep your focus,” Grayson allowed. “Shoulders back.”
Back muscles I hadn’t been aware of owning were tense and sore. I rolled my neck from side to side. “Riding is more intense core work than the Pilates class Maverick dragged me to in LA.”
“This isn’t a gym class.” Grayson’s lips twitched like he was working not to smile before his tone turned more serious. “Ranch work is a physically demanding job. Expect to be exhausted end of most days, especially at first, and eat up at dinner. You burn more calories than you think.”
“Thanks for the tip.” I resisted the urge to snap back that I knew all about hard work. “I’m used to being on my feet a lot as it is.”
“What is it you did with Maverick and his hotels anyway?” Grayson asked in what might be his first attempt at small talk with me. I smiled encouragingly, in no hurry to ride away.
“You never saw his show?” The idea that Grayson might not know my whole story was rather appealing.
“Not really.” Grayson shrugged. “TV’s not my thing.”
“Maverick and I met at one of the show’s first flips.” I petted Cinder as I talked. “I’d worked my way up from front desk work to concierge and staff management roles, and Maverick usedme on other projects to train staff and improve service at the properties he was flipping.”
“I’d think there would always be demand for hotel managers like that.” Grayson sounded ready to send me back to California to look for work.
“You’d think.” I took a breath. He might not know my story, but there was also no outrunning it. “Luckily, you missed the episode where I drove a hotel-owned van into a fountain. A very public sinking of my professional reputation. Also, Maverick’s asshole ex understandably declined to give me a reference.”
“Understandably petty sounds like.” Grayson sounded ready to give Domnic a firm shake, which I’d pay good money to see. Grayson Campbell rising to my defense was unexpected and made my chest all warm.
“Eh. The DUI and surrounding gossip made me a risky bet.” As much as I liked Grayson taking umbrage on my account, I had to be honest. “Domnic didn’t want to rec someone likely to fail.”
“Are you?” Grayson took on a demanding tone.
“Am I what?”
“Likely to fail?” He narrowed his gaze like he could see past every barrier and wall I had. “Don’t seem that way to me. You seem stubborn as they come.”
