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EIGHT
Raya
I’d madethe mistake of letting people alone with the horses before, and it wasn’t going to happen again. It had been part of the reason why I had left this facility a while back to try other things in the city. I hadn’t gotten in trouble with the people who owned the place, but they hadn’t been happy with the outcome.
The horses who had been subjected to the training of that person were ruined as far as equine therapy was concerned. We had to sell them and send them to a ranch rather than use them for the good of the clients.
No one had been hurt in the process. Not really. But, the fact that I had been naïve enough to let someone I didn’t know be alone with the horses was something I hadn’t been able to forgive myself for. I’d quit my job despite the fact the owner argued with me about it, telling me it wasn’t my fault that we had to let those horses go, and assuring me we would find replacements.
But, I felt the damage was done, and the only thing I could do now was find a job elsewhere and hope the damage wasn’t too long lasting.
I’d tried my time in the City, and while I had a blast and had made some good friends, I couldn’t shake the love I had for horses, or the need I felt to help the world around me be a better place. I wanted to help people who were struggling. I wanted to work with horses, and equine therapy had been the only outlet I’d found that had let me mix both of my callings in one.
I had to admit, I was grateful when Mr. and Mrs. Murphy gave me my job back.
“We’d love it if you came back and gave us a hand, especially with the horses,” Mr. Murphy told me. “Things haven’t been the same since you left, and if we can get a little of that back, I think the spark would spread like a wildfire through the entire place.”
“I don’t know about that,” I said. “I just know I’m tired of the city life being my only life, and if I can come out here and give you a hand with the horses, I would very much appreciate it.”
“When can you start?” he’d asked.
Ever since coming back to the facility, I had been the one who had been ultimately in charge of taking care of the horses. I’d tried to argue since that was the main reason why I had quit the place before, but Mrs. Murphy wouldn’t hear anything else. She’d insisted that I was the best of the best when it came to handling the horses, and she didn’t want me to argue. As difficult as it was to not, I obeyed. I took on the job of managing the stable along with working with the clients who came through, and I had to admit, I was in love with the job.
And that was why I was more adamant than ever about being present when there was someone working with the horses. Not that I thought Cole was going to come in here and ruin Romeo, but the fact that Romeo was so agitated with most everyone, and that he was aggressive enough he could hurt someone left me feeling that there was no choice but to be there.
I didn’t want Romeo to pick up any more bad habits or to find reason to distrust people more than he already did, and I didn’t want Cole to get hurt. More hurt than he already was. The fact that he was working with these animals with a broken leg seemed crazy to me, but then, I liked that. He clearly wasn’t going to let a setback push him out of the saddle, and I found that a massive turn on.
But Cole wouldn’t know that.
I’d hired him to come work with the horses, and I wasn’t going to be the woman who got involved with someone she’d hired. I didn’t care how good looking he was or how much he was able to help Romeo. I was grateful for the service, but I wasn’t going to tread into the murky waters of mixing pleasure with business. It just couldn’t happen.
Not to mention the fact I was saving myself for the right person. The older I got, the more I was turned on by the hot men I came into contact with, but I wasn’t going to just dive into bed with someone because I was turned on by them. No, I was going to wait until I found the right man, and I had to be absolutely certain he was the right man.
“If you’re not going to leave me alone with the horses, can you at least take a step back over that way so I can have his full attention. I don’t know about you, but I’ve always found it easier to work with someone one on one when it was just the two of us,” Cole said as he gave me a condescending look.
I rolled my eyes and stepped off to the side, disappearing to a part of the stable where the horses wouldn’t be worried about what I was doing and focus on what he was doing. I remained close enough, however, to watch and see how he interacted with the horses and what he was telling them to do. He was the professional when it came to horses, there was no denying that, but I still knew a thing or two about them myself, and I wasn’t about to stand off to the side and just trust him to do what he was supposed to be doing with them.
Perhaps I should have that trust, but after what I had gone through before, I wasn’t going to make the same mistake again. Not to mention the fact with the broken leg, I didn’t really care if he thought he was the best of the best. If he got hurt with Romeo in the stall and wasn’t able to get out of there, things could go very bad.
We had insurance, but I didn’t want to deal with that claim, especially if it came back to haunt us for one thing or another. People were so happy with lawsuits these days, I didn’t know if Cole was going to put up with a giant animal pushing against him with his broken leg and not do anything about it if he got hurt. There was a part of me that thought I ought to have made him sign some sort of waiver or disclaimer if he was going to be right up against Romeo as he was, but there was another side of me that felt if he was putting himself in that situation, he must know what he was doing.
At least, I hoped so.
“Easy boy, easy there,” Cole said. Romeo had his ears pinned back against his head, and he pawed the ground as Cole unlocked the paddock. He bared his teeth when Cole slipped inside, and I held my breath. I was ready for the horse to bolt at this person I had just asked for help, and I wasn’t sure how that would go with his broken leg.
All I could do was stand off to the side and let Cole be the one to direct the horse. And so far, things were going better there than I thought they would. He patted Romeo on the side of the neck, not at all backing up when the horse once again showed aggression. I wasn’t sure if Romeo would have it in him to attack, but I hoped not. I was mesmerized with the way Cole worked with him, and my eyes were glued to the scene.
I wasn’t sure what I expected to happen, but I didn’t think Romeo would settle down enough for Cole to pet him from the base of his jaw all the way down his neckline. He even let Cole grab a curry comb and go to work on his coat. It was something I had been dying to do for the past few days, but I wasn’t going to get in that stable with a horse that was so clearly unfriendly toward anyone who tried to get close to him.
Still.
The way Cole worked with Romeo was like watching a wizard working magic. I was shocked with the way Romeo responded to him so quickly, though I did my best to hide the fact I was impressed with him so far when he turned to look at me.
“I think we’ve got hope with this one yet. He’s just not too happy with his life right now, that’s all. I’m not seeing anything that tells me he’s beyond hope,” Cole said.
“That’s good news at least,” I replied. “I’m happy you also think so. I was sure when he pulled up he’d be fine, but we were warned straight away he was a handful. I’m glad you’re willing to put in the time to bring him up to speed here.”
“Sure,” Cole said.
