Page 21 of Irish Thoroughbred
“Loud enough?” Travis grinned at her with unexpected boyishness.
“Aye,” she agreed and gave him a solemn nod. “You sounded like a herd of great African elephants. You’re a funny man, Travis,” she commented, tilting her head to the side and studying him.
“Am I, Dee? How?”
“There’s times you’re like the local squire tossing orders about, and the steel in your eyes could freeze a man in his tracks. Then I think you’re a hard man. But thensometimes…” Faltering, she shrugged and turned back to Majesty.
“Don’t stop now.” Deliberately, he turned her back to face him, a faint smile playing on his mouth. “You’ve intrigued me.”
She was uncomfortable now and wishing with a full heart that she would learn to think before speaking. But Travis ignored her expression of embarrassment, hands light but firm on her shoulders, eyes demanding her elaboration.
“Sometimes… I’ve seen you laughing and talking with the men, or carting one of the twins about on your shoulders. And I see the way it is between you and Uncle Paddy, and the way you treat your horses. I think then maybe there’s a gentle side, and maybe you’re not so hard, after all.” She finished in a rush, wishing she had never started, and turned back to give Majesty unnecessary additional attention with the brush.
“That’s very interesting,” he commented, taking the brush from her hand and continuing the grooming himself. “She’s spoiling you,” he addressed Majesty, running an affectionate hand along his flank. “She’d stand in here rubbing you down for the next hour if I let her.”
She tore her eyes from Travis’s fingers as they stroked the rich chestnut hide. “I don’t spoil him; it was just love and care I was giving. We all need that from time to time.”
He turned his head and met her eyes with a long, level look. “Yes, we all need that from time to time.”
That night, awake in the unfamiliar hotel room, Adelia tossed and turned, ultimately rolling over and pounding her innocent pillow. Love was decidedly uncomfortable, unpredictable, and unwelcome. Sighing, she hugged the pillow she had just beaten, determined to erase incredibly blue eyes from her dreams.
The next morning Adelia had her first real look at Churchill Downs. Leading Majesty from the stables, she stopped as she came to the track, her companion waiting with calm indulgence as she stared in open amazement.
The grounds were enormous, the wide mile-and-a-quarter track encircling a grass field bordered by fences and graced with well-shaped shrubs and flower beds of brilliant color. Moving her eyes over the vast expanse of stands, she wondered somewhat whimsically who would be left to tend to the outside world when they were filled with people. The tops of the stands were roofed, crowned with spires, she noted.
“Something wrong, Dee?” Her observations were interrupted by Travis’s question, and she jumped in surprise. “Sorry,” he said without bothering to conceal a grin. “Forgot to stomp.”
“I should be getting used to it by now.” She sighed and began to lead Majesty along once more. “What a grand place this is.” Her hand swept in an expressive arch as he fell into step beside her.
“It’s one of my favorites. The architecture’s basically the same as it was when it was built over a hundred years ago. And, as you well know, it’s the most famous track of all because it is here that the Derby is run. And the Derby, everyone remembers. On the first Saturday in May, this ribbon of track is gold, and for a few minutes the world stops, and it’s only the race.” He turned to her with a smile. “It all comes down to the challenge at the turn for home, when the goal is still a quarter of a mile away. Since eighteen seventy-five the best horses have run here, and the best horses have won here. It’s not only the classic race, it’s a breeders’ race, and there isn’t anyone in the States who wouldn’t rather produce a winner in this than in any other contest. The winner of a Derby becomes the horse to beat for the rest of the season; the magic stays with him. And this,” he continued, giving Majesty a friendly slap on the flank, “is one who likes to win.”
“Aye, that he does,” she agreed, giving Majesty an indulgent smile. “And he’s not shy about his own capabilities. He’s feeling pretty sure of himself. He wants the Blue Grass Stakes out of the way so he can move on to the Derby.”
“Does he?” The corner of his mouth tilted as Majesty nuzzled Adelia’s shoulder. “And how do you feel?” His finger touched her cheek, and she turned to face him. “Do you want the prep race out of the way so you can dive into the Derby?”
“I’m not ready for the first one yet.” Adelia shrugged,nearly stumbling as Majesty’s head nudged at her back. “It’s him that’s in the hurry. But I like the looks of this place.” Again, she encompassed Churchill Downs with a sweep of the hand. “I like knowing it hasn’t changed much in all these years.” She began to walk again, at Majesty’s urging. “Never did I think to see such a place.”
“There are other tracks that are perhaps more eye-catching,” he commented, following her fascinated gaze. “At Hialeah in Florida, they have hundreds of pink flamingos in the center-field lake.”
Stopping, she turned to him with wide eyes. “I should like to see that.”
“I’m sure you will,” he murmured, twining his fingers in the ends of her long, silky waves. Then, pulling the brim of her cap down over her eyes, he repeated in a lighter tone, “Yes, Dee, I’m sure you will.”
The week moved swiftly, hours crammed with duties and activities. Most of Adelia’s time was given to Majesty’s care, talking and fondling as much as grooming and seeing to his more practical needs. She spent much of her free time with Steve Parker, teasing him about his girlfriends or watching from the rail as he accustomed Majesty to the track. Other times she spent with Paddy, discussing the Thoroughbred’s qualities and the style of the other colts who would compete in the qualifying race.
“The colt that wins is automatically eligible for the Derby,” he informed her, giving Majesty a thorough examination as she watched from the stall door. “Of course,Travis nominated this fellow right after he was born, the same way he’s entered Solomy’s foal, and kept up with the nomination as he got older. He knows when he’s got a winner. Travis is a man who keeps one eye on the future.”
“He’s good with the horses,” Adelia commented. The obvious pride and affection in Paddy’s voice warmed her. “You can see he cares for them; it’s not just a matter of the money they’ll bring him.”
“Aye, he cares,” Paddy agreed, giving Majesty an affectionate slap on the flank. “And he’s fierce on the matter of using painkillers or drugs as others have been known to do. If one of Travis’s horses isn’t up for the race, he doesn’t run and that’s that. Of course, money’s not a problem with Travis, but it wouldn’t make any difference if it was, because that’s the man he is. Now, he has a practical side as well.” He moved from the stall to join Adelia and slipped an arm around her shoulders. “Investments—and he’s mighty crafty about them. He knows how to take a purse or the sale of a foal and turn it into more. He’s got the touch,” Paddy added with a wise nod. “And a time or two, he’s stretched my pennies for me, though not on as grand a scale as his. Travis takes care of his own.” Squeezing her shoulder, Paddy led Adelia out into the flash of sunlight. She remained silent, thinking of this new aspect of the man she loved.
The sky was overcast on the day of the Blue Grass Stakes. The air was heavy. Lead-gray clouds lay thick as a blanket overhead. Tension seemed to start at Adelia’s brow and spread down to her toes; the stillness of the air weighed like a stone at the nape of her neck. To take her thoughts off the coming race she kept both hands and mind busy. Glancing up she saw Travis enter the building. She smiled as he approached.
“I believe that, if you could, you’d get into the silks and ride him today.”
“The truth of it is,” she began, finding the ease of his smile soothing, “I think I’d be less terrified that way. But I don’t think Steve would care for it.”
“No.” The syllable was accompanied by a slow, grave nod. “I don’t think he would. Come up to the stands with me. Paddy’ll take over now.”
