me and I rolled my eyes.
“What are the boys up to?” I asked, spying in the oven. Oh, I could see Bia’s awesome Pão de Queijo in there. My mouth watered.
“Guess?” Lauren said, her tone a little irritated.
“Monster truck racing, as usual,” Iris said, just as irked as Lauren. Even though they weren’t apt riders, they loved horses too, but they didn’t get the monster truck thing.
“As usual,” I repeated, nodding.
The rest of the evening went by fast. We talked about the wedding, of course, and about the guys, and about polo and horses. We also texted Gabi and, as we suspected, she was sad that she couldn’t be here with us.
Not surprisingly, I was the first one to leave.
I climbed down the front porch steps, my eyes looking in the distance for the stable. At night, only a handful of lights were on, expanding the shadows and making it look like something out of a horror movie.
I shuddered. What went down at this house and this stable three years ago could be considered right out of a horror movie. I shuddered again, exhaling. It was okay. It was over. No one would hurt Hannah or me anymore.
As I walked to the parking lot, I stole glances at the stable, focusing on what was inside. I had a terrible fear of horses. I still didn’t know how I had the courage to mount Belle and ride away on her that forsaken night. I guess I only did it because it was that or worse. After that one time though, I hadn’t gone near Belle. I hadn’t even stepped into the stable. Only gone to the gates a couple of times with Hannah and the others. But never inside.
Fear of horses was the next item on my list.
I stopped beside my car, still gazing at the stable. I had to face this fear. It was one of the easy ones. Well, no fear was easy to face, but this one was on the less difficult end of my list. If I were nervous about even planning on how to face horses and defeat my fear, how would I advance on my list? I closed my eyes for a second and took in a long breath.
You can do it, Hilary. One fear at a time.
I just wished it were that easy.
Chapter Eight
I parked my car beside Hannah’s, knowing she would be out with a tour group. I couldn’t do this if she were here. I don’t know, maybe it was because I wasn’t sure I could go through with it, and if she was here, she would keep saying, “You can do it,” and I wasn’t ready for someone else’s pressure. I was already having trouble with my own.
I looked around the parking lot. For a Friday afternoon—Fallon had sent us off to enjoy the weekend early—the ranch wasn’t as full as I thought it would be. Beside Hannah’s car and mine, there were six other cars parked near the stables, probably belonging to the riders who were out in the field with my sister.
After taking a long breath, I slid out of my car and looked down at my clothes. Jeans, a plaid, fitted shirt, and cowboy boots—the only ones I had, which had been a gift from Hannah when I was fourteen and miraculously still fit. Back then, she still had hopes that I would fall in love with horses like her, and we would ride into the sunset together.
I didn’t think I would ever fall in love with horses, but I was here to face my fear, to try and defeat my fear of horses.
Exhaling deeply, I walked into the stables. I wrinkled my nose once the smell hit me and I almost bolted right then. Gosh, how did Hannah spend all day here and didn’t gag? It was crazy.
I had been inside this stable only a handful of times, but I still remembered every detail. After the fire that killed our grandmother and destroyed the entire thing, Hannah took over the ranch and had the stable rebuilt exactly as it was before. To her, it was to preserve our grandmother’s memory. I would have preferred if Hannah had built it differently. Maybe it would have been easier to step into it right now.
“Miss Taylor?” Jimmy, my sister’s right hand at the ranch, stepped out from a side room, startling me.
I
“What are the boys up to?” I asked, spying in the oven. Oh, I could see Bia’s awesome Pão de Queijo in there. My mouth watered.
“Guess?” Lauren said, her tone a little irritated.
“Monster truck racing, as usual,” Iris said, just as irked as Lauren. Even though they weren’t apt riders, they loved horses too, but they didn’t get the monster truck thing.
“As usual,” I repeated, nodding.
The rest of the evening went by fast. We talked about the wedding, of course, and about the guys, and about polo and horses. We also texted Gabi and, as we suspected, she was sad that she couldn’t be here with us.
Not surprisingly, I was the first one to leave.
I climbed down the front porch steps, my eyes looking in the distance for the stable. At night, only a handful of lights were on, expanding the shadows and making it look like something out of a horror movie.
I shuddered. What went down at this house and this stable three years ago could be considered right out of a horror movie. I shuddered again, exhaling. It was okay. It was over. No one would hurt Hannah or me anymore.
As I walked to the parking lot, I stole glances at the stable, focusing on what was inside. I had a terrible fear of horses. I still didn’t know how I had the courage to mount Belle and ride away on her that forsaken night. I guess I only did it because it was that or worse. After that one time though, I hadn’t gone near Belle. I hadn’t even stepped into the stable. Only gone to the gates a couple of times with Hannah and the others. But never inside.
Fear of horses was the next item on my list.
I stopped beside my car, still gazing at the stable. I had to face this fear. It was one of the easy ones. Well, no fear was easy to face, but this one was on the less difficult end of my list. If I were nervous about even planning on how to face horses and defeat my fear, how would I advance on my list? I closed my eyes for a second and took in a long breath.
You can do it, Hilary. One fear at a time.
I just wished it were that easy.
Chapter Eight
I parked my car beside Hannah’s, knowing she would be out with a tour group. I couldn’t do this if she were here. I don’t know, maybe it was because I wasn’t sure I could go through with it, and if she was here, she would keep saying, “You can do it,” and I wasn’t ready for someone else’s pressure. I was already having trouble with my own.
I looked around the parking lot. For a Friday afternoon—Fallon had sent us off to enjoy the weekend early—the ranch wasn’t as full as I thought it would be. Beside Hannah’s car and mine, there were six other cars parked near the stables, probably belonging to the riders who were out in the field with my sister.
After taking a long breath, I slid out of my car and looked down at my clothes. Jeans, a plaid, fitted shirt, and cowboy boots—the only ones I had, which had been a gift from Hannah when I was fourteen and miraculously still fit. Back then, she still had hopes that I would fall in love with horses like her, and we would ride into the sunset together.
I didn’t think I would ever fall in love with horses, but I was here to face my fear, to try and defeat my fear of horses.
Exhaling deeply, I walked into the stables. I wrinkled my nose once the smell hit me and I almost bolted right then. Gosh, how did Hannah spend all day here and didn’t gag? It was crazy.
I had been inside this stable only a handful of times, but I still remembered every detail. After the fire that killed our grandmother and destroyed the entire thing, Hannah took over the ranch and had the stable rebuilt exactly as it was before. To her, it was to preserve our grandmother’s memory. I would have preferred if Hannah had built it differently. Maybe it would have been easier to step into it right now.
“Miss Taylor?” Jimmy, my sister’s right hand at the ranch, stepped out from a side room, startling me.
I
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