by M. Garzon
“Maybe I wondered,” Dec allowed. “But it made no difference. I had a duty to my family to stay here and help out, and to educate myself and better our lives as much as possible.” The implication was clear that I should do the same.
I took a deep breath. “For a long time now, I’ve been trying to please other people — you, Jaden, even Seth.” I glanced over at Seth; he didn’t look surprised. “But not only am I not making you happy, I’m making myself miserable. I want to live my passion, Dec. I want to be me to the fullest because if I don’t fill myself up first, I’ll have nothing to give to anyone else. Not to my family, not to my work,” I met Jaden’s eyes. “And not even to my future children.” I lowered my gaze to the floor; despite my conviction, I couldn’t look at anyone now. “I want to follow my dreams wherever they take me. So... I’m leaving.” I paused, swallowing hard. I heard Dec’s intake of breath but he didn’t say anything. I went on.
“I’m finishing out the semester and in January I’m going to Florida.” I risked a sideways glance at Dec; his eyes were glacial, his mouth pressed into a flat line. Somehow, instead of making me cower, it prompted me to sit up and face him. “But that’s not all. We know you’ve been tied to this place and that you might be ready to move on, so someone else is taking over.”
“You can’t do that,” Dec interrupted impatiently, “my dad’s will-”
“States that only one of his descendants can carry on,” Jaden interjected smoothly. “And I qualify. I’m taking over the lease.”
Dec’s look of shock was almost comical. His mouth dropped open, and he went pale. I was beginning to worry when Gran spoke up.
“And don’t worry about your brother and sister, Declan. You — and they — will be paid the fair market value of the property. It will be purchased so we can end this silly lease business for good.”
Dec launched to his feet and started pacing. “This is ridiculous!” he shot at me.
“It isn’t,” Seth assured him. “We’re just doing a lousy job of explaining it.” He grinned at me. “That’s your cue, Sis. Explain away.”
I took a deep breath. “Okay. Jaden, Seth and I are buying the property. We put Jaden’s name on the current lease to convince his dad that if he didn’t agree to sell to us, we’d get the place anyway and he’d have nothing to show for it.”
Dec’s brows shot up, but he didn’t interrupt.
“Jaden’s selling his loft to cover the down payment and after that, we’ll make monthly installments. Jaden’s going back to polo.” I found his eyes, beaming love at me from across the room, and smiled. “We’ll both stay at his friend Michele’s in Florida until spring, and then we’ll come back here for the summer. Eventually, we may spend our summers in Europe; Jaden can play in England while I follow the Global Champions Tour.”
“What about in the fall?” Dec asked, frowning.
I hesitated, and Jaden smoothly took over. “Téa will go to the big indoor shows and I’ll go to Argentina. We’ll be apart for about two months every year, but we’ve learned we can cope with that. And we can be here for a month every winter, including the holidays,” Jaden explained.
Dec rubbed the back of his neck. He’d stopped pacing, but he was still standing and staring down at all of us. “If you two are gone, who’s going to run the place?”
“I am, with Gran’s help,” Seth said. He grinned over at Gran. “We’ve always made a great team, and Gran’s going to sell her house and move back in here.” Gran beamed. She had leaped at the chance to continue her life’s work, and she’d been touched that we wanted her involvement.
“And Jaden and I are going to build a second house on the property,” I added.
Dec threw up his hands, palms outward. “Hold it! All this talk of buying and building — where’s all the money going to come from?”
“Well, Jaden will be playing polo, which pays awfully well. As for me, the Donalds called me last week. They wanted me to take Hades back and I told them I’d do it if they signed a two-year contract, which they did. I also got a position as assistant trainer with Sasha Reznikov in Florida.”
Gran’s eyes went wide. “I didn’t know that. However did you manage?” Sasha Reznikov was a well-known former Olympian, a tall blonde with a reputation as a fierce competitor.
“Karen introduced us, and the chef d’équipe of the Dutch team put in a good word for me.” I grinned, still in a state of minor shock over my good fortune.
Dec’s hard gaze returned to me. I turned away from it, suddenly nervous.
“You’re quitting school?” he demanded.
“I’ll take a few online courses, but basically, yes. And if you choose to sell Cal, that’s your prerogative. But please, Dec-” My voice hitched, and I took a breath to steady it. I raised my eyes to the pale blue discs that had so often denied me the things I wanted most. “Sell him to me,” I whispered. “I’ll make payments every month, as much as I can.”
Dec looked away, frowning. “Let me see if I’ve got this straight. You three kids are buying the business. Seth and Gran are going to run it, and Téa and Jaden will pitch in when they’re around?”
“This will be my training base,” I supplied.
“What about me?” Dec asked quietly.
My eyes went wide, and for a minute I floundered, wondering what to say.
“You can be as involved as you like. We just thought... I mean, we know you’ve wanted to focus more on your consulting business, and if you ever marry Joanne...” I trailed off, feeling a sick sense that I’d somehow made Dec feel supplanted in his own home.
He marched over to the loveseat. “Do you remember me telling you that you’d never make it in this business?” he rumbled. I nodded miserably. “I said you didn’t have what it takes, that you weren’t tough enough.”
He was staring down at me, and I stood, forcing myself to hold his gaze no matter how humiliated I felt. This was my life, and I was finally going to live it as I saw fit, but I didn’t bother to argue with Dec. He had made his feelings abundantly clear.
He put his hands on my shoulders. “I was wrong,” he muttered.
I gaped at him. Tears sprang to my eyes, making me want to scream with frustration — it was just the kind of reaction Dec would scoff at. I felt a goofy grin form at that thought, and I threw my arms around my father.
“For the record, I wouldn’t sell Cal,” he murmured as he hugged me back. “He was a gift. He’s yours.” He drew back and looked around. “The people in this room are proof that we don’t have to repeat our parent’s mistakes. This family is a far sight better than it used to be, thanks to you kids.”
Jaden came over and slung an arm around me, and I thought I could get used to the proud smile he bestowed on me.
Dec sat next to Seth. “Listen, son, we should talk about the courses you’ll have to take in order to manage this place. You’ll need bookkeeping and marketing-”
“And animal husbandry,” Seth interjected. “I plan to start a breeding program.”
Jaden’s arm moved me outside. I closed the screen door gently and we stood on the porch, looking out over the land that had been his ancestors’, and that would form the foundation for our future. I wrapped my arms around his waist and he rubbed my arm, warding off the chill although I hardly felt it next to the heat of his hard body.
“Do you know how proud I am of you?” He spoke quietly. “You were the driving force behind all of this, and you’ve changed all of our lives for the better. You’ve never once given up on the things you care about, and I’m honored to count myself among them.” He cupped his warm hand to my cheek for a moment, and then, slowly, he sank downward. I reached for him in concern, and he gathered my hands between both of his.
“Jaden...” I gazed at him in confusion, and it slowly dawned on me that he was kneeling. On one knee. His honey-drop eyes were molten, making it impossible to look away.
“I realized a few things while I was away,” he said. “I realized that wherever yo
u are is home to me. That the first person I want to share my joys and sorrows with is you. That I can no longer even imagine a life without you. And that I love you more than I ever thought it was possible to love another person. Téa Everson, will you marry me?”
Shock stole my breath, and for a long moment I simply stood and trembled.
Finally, I managed to open my mouth. “Yes. Of course, yes.”
Those stupid tears were back, and as Jaden rose to his feet he wiped one away with his thumb before cradling my face in his hands.
“I’m sorry I don’t have a ring,” he murmured. “I wasn’t actually planning to do this now. I didn’t want to rush you.”
“The wedding can wait until we both feel the time is right,” I said, looping my arms around him. I felt a new sense of calm and certainty about the future. “Would you want me to change my name?” I asked. Everson was my mother’s name, after all.
His face was radiant as his eyes burned into mine. “It makes no difference what your name is, querida. As long as you’re mine.”
“Forever,” I agreed as I smiled against his lips.
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THE END
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About the Author
When she's not hiking up the sides of active volcanoes in the company of stray dogs, M. Garzon likes to take time to appreciate the fierce beauty of the natural world around her. She used to ride horses for a living, which was fantastic, but now considers herself extremely lucky to be a writer. She shares her home with two kids and too many rescue animals.
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Books in the Blaze of Glory series:
Blaze of Glory
Look Twice
Renaissance Man
Halo Boy
Elina
The Turning Point (short story)
Blaze of Glory Horses Coloring Book
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For kids 8-12:
Awesome Possum
Lemon Squeezy
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For a training system that will keep your horse sound and happy throughout his/her life, check out:
http://www.art2ride.com