Heirly Ever After by Vernon, Magan (best classic novels .TXT) 📕

shaking his head. “Don’t worry. They’ll move.”

I wanted to ask him how he knew for sure, but before I could, he made a clicking sound with his teeth, his boots lightly tapping against the horse before they took off at a trot toward the door.

The dogs parted then pranced beside the horse, their tongues wagging in the air like this was their favorite playmate.

“Okay, smart-ass, maybe you were right,” I mumbled to myself.

Then I looked down at the horse, and dread filled me. I shot my head up, wide-eyed, watching the backside of Jacob’s horse get smaller and smaller as he trotted away.

“Hey! How am I supposed to get out of here?” I yelled.

“I believe in you and Buttermilk,” he yelled back, but it came as a softened echo through the barn.

“Jerk.”

I let out a deep breath and nodded to myself. “Okay, we can do this, girl, right?” I patted her head then took the reins with both hands. Then I made the clicking sound with my teeth, trying to mimic the same one that Jacob had.

Nothing.

Buttermilk didn’t even snort back.

Okay.

I looked up, seeing the dogs and Jacob watching me a few yards ahead.

Blinking slowly, I waited, thinking there was no way he’d just leave me there and eventually come to help me. It could have been seconds, it could have been hours, but neither the dogs nor the horse moved.

Gripping the reins hard, I tried to right myself and control my heartbeat that I was pretty sure was also pulsing right into the back of my neck.

“Okay, Buttermilk. We can do this. All right? No bucking me off and I’ll take you out.”

No response from the horse.

I closed my eyes then opened them gently.

Clenching my teeth together, I made a clicking sound like Jacob before lightly tapping my boot against the horse.

No movement.

Okay, maybe a little harder.

Tap. Tap.

Nothing.

Okay…harder.

Maybe I needed to pull the reins, too.

Pull.

Nothing.

Okay, Pull and Tap.

PULL. PULL. PULL.

TAP. TAP. TAP.

Buttermilk took off in a full-on sprint out the door. The wind whipped through her hair and over my face as we zoomed past the barking dogs.

“Hey, Buttermilk, whoa!” I leaned forward, gripping the reins as hard as I could.

How did I stop her?

What if she never stopped?

Would we just run forever until she kicked me off?

I just kept my body as close as I could to the horse, gripping onto the reins and her hair, hoping like hell I could stay on.

“Whoa, girl,” a loud voice called, but I didn’t lift my head. Not until a streak of black rushed in front of us, and then Buttermilk came to a full halt, snorting just as Jacob and Satin stopped in front of us.

I held on to Buttermilk, looking down at her mane, not sure I could even get up right now without throwing up everywhere. My head was spinning.

Jacob murmured a few things, then I heard his boots clomp to the ground and the grass crunch under his feet.

His warm hands were again at my side, tracing small circles on my skin. “Are you okay?”

I let out a deep breath out then in, keeping my head down. “You seriously just left me.”

“I’m so sorry. I thought she would just follow. I didn’t realize you’d get a little overzealous and she’d go in a sprint.”

I shot my head up, narrowing my eyes as I stared down at him. “I told you I’d never ridden a horse, and you just took off. Why the hell would you do that?”

He shook his head as he ran his fingers through his hair. “I’m sorry, Madison. I wasn’t thinking. I thought I was doing the right thing by teaching you that way.”

“Well, it wasn’t.”

“I know, I messed up, okay? I keep messing up with you, and I’m sorry,” he spat.

“Is this just about me or something else?” I whispered.

He sighed, putting one hand on the side of the horse, the other back to tracing circles on my skin. The same calming effect he’d used before. Though maybe he should have been calming the horse more instead of me. “I don’t know.”

He then finally looked up, and it was as if all my fears melted away in that emerald green stare. “I’m sorry, Madison.”

That could have meant so many things in that moment.

About the horse.

About not telling me who he was.

I should have still been angry at him, but there was a deeper feeling behind his apology.

“It’s okay. I’m okay,” I said, sitting up.

“Do you want me to help you off and I can take them both back to the barn?”

I shook my head. “No. If I’m going to ride with my sister, I need to learn now.”

He licked his lips, his eyes slightly narrowed as if he was in thought. Then he finally nodded. “Right. Stay here and I’ll ride right next to you. No taking off this time.”

“That sounds like a way better idea than your original plan.”

He smirked, squeezing my waist. “Yeah, yeah. No need to rub it in now.”

My body still seared, even as he removed his hand and got back on his horse with a fluidity that I could never have.

He circled the horse back so we were next to each other. “Okay, we’re going to do this slowly this time.”

“Yes. Slowly.”

I followed his lead, and Buttermilk made her move alongside the large black beast to our right. I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding in, finally able to look around at the lush green scenery.

I’d lived in North Carolina all my life and was used to large pines that dotted every part of the landscape. Webley was almost like a different world with the rolling hills and dozens of irises everywhere there wasn’t a blooming birch tree. It was as if each piece of landscape had been chosen for this location to make it look like something out of a painting.

“It’s peaceful out here, isn’t it?” Jacob said, breaking the silence.

“Yeah, I guess, if you don’t have allergies.”

“Do you?”

I shook my head, laughing