Page 210 of Promise Not to Fall for the Rich & Famous

"Buttercup," Nash said in a deep, soothing voice, "this is my friend, Ellie. I promise she’ll be real gentle with you, even if she seems a little scary."

Ellie gasped and bumped his shoulder. "I do not look scary. Do I?"

"I'm mostly teasing, but sheisreading your energy, and it’s making her tense up. Take in some deep breaths, look into her eyes, and let her feel your affection for her."

Affection—it was an interesting assumption, the idea that Ellie harbored affection toward an animal she’d never met, but as she stared into the wide, trusting eyes of the massive horse, Ellie sensed a shift. Buttercupwasbeautiful, and there was something sweet about the way she so fully trusted Nash.

The horse blinked a few times, and the action made her look more human. Ellie wasn’t sure if it was Buttercup’s long lashes, the slight movement of her upper brow, or the way she seemed to curiously gauge the new stranger in her presence, but Ellie noted a dose of warmth encircling her heart.

Buttercup was—despite her size—cute. Still, a lot of dangerous animals were cute to look at. Like bears, who didn’t think bears were cute? They were, but that didn’t change the fact that an interaction with one could be deadly.

Suddenly, Buttercup backed up and harrumphed.

"It's okay," Nash said, moving even closer to Ellie and wrapping an arm around her. "She's safe, see? She's a friend.”He leaned into Ellie. “Take another deep breath and exhale slowly,” he suggested. “Then give her some soothing words."

Ellie did as he said, first pulling in a deep breath and exhaling in a long, drawn-out motion. "Okay. Hi there, Buttercup. Thanks for coming out here to meet me."

Buttercup blinked, then looked away.

"There we go,” Nash said proudly. “She's more at ease already.”

Ellie’s brow furrowed. "How can you tell?"

"Her posture shifted. So did her ears, see? They’re relaxed, not tensed up and tight."

"Oh, good." Still, Ellie shifted her weight and took a step back. Maybe that was enough for now.

Nash didn’t seem to catch her cue. "Now, let’s get you a little closer. Come right over here, and I'll show you the proper place to stand."

He used the heel of his boot to carve a line into the dirt, coming straight from the horse’s front hoof. Next, he carved another line off to the side to create a ninety-degree angle.

"See this triangle here?” he asked before dividing that triangle with one more line down the center. "Now we've got two forty-five-degree angles. If you stand in this back triangle while communicating with a horse, it’ll have a hard time kicking you.”

Ellie gasped and took a few steps back. "She wants to kick me?"

A wry grin pulled at his lips. Dang, he was handsome and appealing on so many levels. It was hard to look at him without blushing.

"Not necessarily,” he said, “but if the notion strikes, let's just say she won't be able to strikeyouso easily." He motioned for her to join him, stepping back to make room. “Maintain eye contact so you’re not sneaking up on her, and come stand in front of me.

Ellie stared at the spot in the dirt. "Nowyou'regoing to get kicked."

She glanced back at Nash to catch an amused expression quirk at his lips. "Don't worry about me. And stop stalling. Just come this way."

"I'm not stalling." She took a tiny, hesitant step forward and then another.

There was that amused quirk again. "Whatever you say,slow step.”

Ellie gasped. “Slow step?"

“For someone who's not stalling, you sure takereallyslow steps."

She lifted her shoulders indignantly. "I may not know a lot about horses, but Idoknow that you shouldn't approach a skittish animal too quickly," she said, which only made his smirk grow.

“If she’s skittish, it’s becauseyou’reskittish.”

She laughed a little and took another step. “Maybe I am.”

"There you go,” he coaxed, “don't be shy."