by Jean Carroll
“Uh … Meg, uh … ” Jill paled, then changed the subject. “Calm down, sweetie, you already have more control over him than any of us ever did.”
Just then, Blackie came breezing in the door. “Hello, ladies,” he said cheerfully. He walked over and kissed Meg softly on the mouth,
“And how are you this morning?” he said with his head back just a few inches so she got the full impact of those gorgeous eyes.
“I’m fantastic, how about you,” she said, mesmerized by him.
“Never better” and he kissed her again lightly and smiled. He prowled around the kitchen looking for something to eat. He came up with a handful of leftover bacon and a biscuit.
“I’m still hungry,” he said pouring a cup of coffee and sitting down with his snack.
Jill looked at Meg with wide eyes and raised eyebrows, trying, not too successfully, to hide a smile.
“Okay, are you ready to go and play with the horses,” he asked Meg.
“Definitely, I can’t wait,” she said, jumping up. He drained his cup and gave Jill a hug.
“We’ll see you later.”
* * *
They went to the barn; he saddled Sandman and led him to the indoor arena. Blackie vaulted into the saddle and adjusted the stirrups. Gathering the reins, he moved off with Sandy dancing a little, but settled down right away.
He started Sandman at a loose rein, extended walk and the horse relaxed. Blackie took up the reins and used his legs to get the horse into a collected walk, with Sandy’s forehand very light and his weight back on his hindquarters. He moved him into a collected trot and did some beautiful circles then into the center, reversing the direction he was going and back out to the rail to circle again at the opposite end.
On the other side of the arena, Blackie made him do a half-pass to the right. A half-pass is where the horse moves forward and diagonally at the same time by crossing its legs in front of each other. At the center X, he moved smoothly into a half-pass to the left and back to the arena wall. Meg was in awe. She didn’t have a clue that Sandman could do any of this and Blackie hadn’t as much as moved an eyelid. He still remained in perfect balance and position.
He put the horse into a collected canter and did a circle at the end of the arena, then crossed diagonally through the center X changing leads and then did another circle at the other
end. He tracked to the left and put Sandman into an extended trot, which was breathtaking. He just floated along the ground.
Blackie brought him back to a medium then a collected trot and moved half-way around the arena then slowed to a walk and finally let him have his head on a loose rein. He stopped in front of her and she could tell Blackie was excited.
“He moves well and responds instantly to my aids. He’s great! I love riding him.”
“That was fantastic, you’re unbelievable. I didn’t know he was trained to do that.”
Blackie actually blushed from the praise. “I’m kinda out of practice.”
He dismounted and patted Sandman. “Good boy, great job. It won’t take much work to get him doing upper level tests.”
“Really!” She said, excited. “So you think he can do it?”
“I do, yes. Let’s cool him off.”
After they wiped the sweat off Sandman and brushed him down, they turned him out in one of the paddocks. Blackie carried the tack and she stowed the grooming equipment in the tack room.
He came up behind her and touched her hair. She turned around and he was very close. He put his hand on her cheek and gently ran his thumb over her mouth, looking at it hungrily and then moved his eyes up to hers. She saw desire in his eyes and something else, longing.
He moved his hand to the back of her neck, drew her face to his and kissed her. He kissed her mouth, then her cheek and then soft little kisses all around her mouth. It made her tremble. She let herself drift into his aura of desire.
He put his leg in between hers, pulled her into him and engulfed her with a long, deep kiss. She was suddenly on fire. She leaned back against a saddle rack and opened her legs for
him. He pushed his leg farther in between hers, ran his hands under her shirt and up her back. She suddenly couldn’t breathe.
He started kissing her shoulder and ran his tongue all the way up her neck and into her mouth again. She was starting to feel out of control. He was making muffled groaning sounds and breathing harder.
“Blackie,” she breathed into his ear.
“What?” he said softly.
“I thought we were going to control this and wait,” she said reluctantly. He didn’t say anything. He sighed and hugged her tighter with his face in her hair. He held her until his breathing slowed and he moved back and looked at her.
“You’re right. I said I would control it and not let it get out of hand. I’m not doing too good a job am I?” He sort of laughed.
“That’s okay, I’m not helping much either,” she said and ran her fingers through his hair. He put his head down on her shoulder and blew out another big sigh.
“Wow,” he said as he moved slightly away from her. “This is not going to be easy.”
“Thank you.” She said kissing him lightly. “Most guys wouldn’t have stopped.”
“Well, I respect you and our decision and I believe in keeping my word, no matter how hard it is.” He looked at her and laughed. “That wasn’t a good choice of words, was it?”
“Oh yeah, I guess not,” she chuckled too.
“Let’s go up to the house and have lunch. Are you hungry?” he asked her.
“Yes, actually I’m famished.”
* * *
As they walked up to the house, he put his arm around her neck, pulled her head over and gave her a ‘Dutch rub’ on top of her head with his knuckles. She grabbed for him but he swiveled out of reach and backpedalled in front of her, laughing. She ran after him and he turned around and scooted in the kitchen door, laughing harder. Keary and Jill looked up as they burst into the dining room still laughing.
“Hello, you two. Sounds like you had a good morning,” Keary said smiling.
“We did, yes.” Blackie answered and jumped in line for food. Meg looked at them and they were both smiling with raised eyebrows and a questioning look.
FOURTEEN
“Hey, Jill, can Meg ride Black Jack after lunch?” Blackie asked her suddenly. Meg
looked at him in astonishment.
“Sure, I don’t see why not. What are you guys doing?” she asked.
“I want to show Meg some dressage movements and how to execute them. Cloudy isn’t responsive enough and Sandy’s too much for her, so I’d like to use Black Jack. I’ll put them on the lunge line first. Is that okay with you?”
“Yes, can I come and watch? I might learn something,” Jill asked.
“Yes, of course, and I doubt if I can teach you anything you don’t already know,” Blackie said as he got up. “I’m going to take a short nap in the TV room. Don’t let me sleep too long,” he said to Meg.
He did look tired and as she watched him walk down the hall toward the family room, she thought he might be limping slightly. Uh, oh! She hoped Jill hadn’t noticed.
* * *
Meg’s stomach was so jittery she thought she might throw up. Just the thought of riding Jill’s warm-blood stallion and learning from Blackie was almost overwhelming. She hoped she could do what he wanted. She knew how good he was as a rider; now what kind of teacher was he? Blackie went in Black Jack’s stall and led him out. He was unbelievably beautiful! Blackie
cross-tied him and started grooming him.
“Are you sure he’s not too much for me,” she asked.
“You’ll do fine. He’s very gentle and a lot easier to handle than Sandman.”
“Okay, if you say so, but I’ve never ridden a stallion and the idea is a little scary.”
“It just makes him more sensitive. You’ll see. Hey, all of us studs are more sensitive.” “Oh, gag me, very funny.”
/> “I’m going to put you on the lunge line first until you get used to him.”
He saddled the horse, using Jill’s dressage tack and led him out of the barn. He had a special halter on Black Jack over the bridle with the line attached. They went into the arena and Blackie gave her a leg up. He started adjusting the stirrups and studying her sitting there.
“A dressage seat is a lot deeper than a jumping seat, so your legs need to be longer. You have to have a lot of flank contact.” He put her foot in the stirrup after adjusting it, stood back and looked. He lowered it another notch and studied her again. He seemed satisfied.
Just then, Jill came into the arena and waved.
“Hi guys, hi Black Jack.’ The horse pricked his ears and nickered at her voice.
“Awww, that’s so sweet, Black Jack said “Hi”, too,” Meg said and waved to Jill.
“Okay, you two, cut out the girlie stuff,” he said, still focused on what he was doing.
Meg made a face at him and Jill laughed.
“Okay, move your legs back, they’re too far forward and put your heels down. Your seat has to be really deep.”
“It feels awkward and unstable,” she said.
“I know, it will at first, but once you get into it, you’ll be surprised how much better you ride,” he said. He stepped back and studied her again.
“Legs back a little bit more. Okay, now pick up the reins. Just use the snaffle and leave the curb loose for now. Hands lower and back over the pommel.” He looked at her again.
“Okay,” he moved away from her and whistled softly,
“Black Jack, siuil (Gaelic for walk),” and the horse started walking in a circle around Blackie as he gradually let the line out so the circle got bigger.
“Okay, get some contact with his mouth and flex your calf muscles.”
Black Jack became collected and pricked his ears. He was now alert and ready to do what she asked him.
“Okay, now squeeze your calf muscles quickly and relax and he should trot. I don’t want you to post, just sit to it.”
She did what he told her and Black Jack went into a slow, smooth trot. She couldn’t believe how sensitive he was. She felt insecure, however.
“Keep your legs still; they’re all over the place.” Blackie said softly to her.
“Now when I tell you, squeeze your right hand and at the same time, move your right leg back an inch. Do it now.”
Black Jack moved into a slow, rocking canter on the correct lead. Meg was amazed! This horse was so responsive!
“Keep your legs still,” Blackie said again, more firmly. She tried to concentrate on sitting deeper, using her balance and relaxing her legs.
“That’s it, good girl,” Blackie said
She kept going around and was kind of getting the hang of it. She stole a look at Blackie and he was smiling.
“Okay, now when I tell you, bend your hands in and get deep in the saddle. Flex your butt muscles slightly, okay now!” She did what he said but Black Jack did not slow down.
“Relax, Meg,” Blackie said evenly. She concentrated on relaxing and sitting deeper and the horse slowed to a walk. Wow! This was so cool. She loved it! Blackie said something else to the horse and he turned in and stopped in front of Blackie.
“That was good, Meg. If you work on the lunge without stirrups, your seat will feel more secure.”
“That was wonderful, Meg,” Jill applauded and ran into the center with them. She patted the horse’s neck and scratched his face.
“You guys should use him for Meg. I only get time to ride him maybe two to three times a week and that isn’t enough exercise for him,” Jill offered.
“Are you sure, Jill, because that would be great? Cloudy is just not up to this.” Blackie said.
“Jill, I can’t ask you to do that, this horse is too good,” Meg said.
“I’m serious, he needs the exercise. Blackie, are you going to show her some more exercises?” Jill asked him.
“I wasn’t today, no. I wanted to show her some aids and work on her seat. Why, do you want to ride him?”
“No, I wanted to watch you ride him,” Jill said looking at him seriously.
“What?” He looked at her with wide eyes. “But I haven’t.”
“Oh yes you have, you don’t fool me,” she said, smiling at him. He glanced at Meg and then back at Jill.
“I, uh ... but what about Keary?”
“If I thought you’d get hurt doing this, I’d tell him, but I don’t think you will.”
He looked at Meg again and she nodded. He waited until she dismounted and then vaulted into the saddle. He sat there and looked at Jill again.
“It’s okay, honey, go ahead,” Jill said.
He sighed, adjusted the stirrups for his legs. He worked the horse around the arena, doing just general moves and was perfect. Then he started doing incredible stuff. He was doing half-pass, shoulder-in, flying changes, passage. Meg was mesmerized! She looked at Jill who had tears in her eyes.
“He’s so brilliant. I love watching him ride,” Jill said. “What a miracle he is. We never thought he’d walk again and look at him.”
“I know.” Meg said, savoring the look of joy on his face
At that point, he rode over to them and dismounted. “What’d you think?” he asked Jill.
“You’re awesome,” she said and hugged him. “How have you been practicing? Does it hurt your hip?
“First, are you telling Keary?” he asked her.
“No, not if you don’t want me to.”
“Not yet. I’ve been riding Sandman and he’s good. At first my hip was sore but now I’m used to it.”
“Good. What are you planning to do with this?” Jill asked
“We thought we’d enter some low-level competitions soon and see how he goes. Other than that, I’m not sure where we’re going with it.”
“Actually there are a lot of competitions going on now. They’re usually Training Level classes up to Gran Prix and you’re good enough to enter third or fourth level. Meg should start with the Training classes,” Jill told him.
“You think so? Jill, that sounds good, I think we’ll do that. Thanks, Jill,” Blackie told her as they walked back to the barn. Blackie groomed Black Jack and turned him out. Jill went up to the house and Meg stayed to keep him company finishing up.
“Hey, I’m really tired. I think I’ll crash and see you in the morning. I had a great day and you did a fantastic job on Black Jack,” Blackie said as he put his arms around her.
“I had a wonderful day and thank you for showing me the dressage.”
“You’re welcome,” he said as he kissed her. “You know I really miss you when you go home. I can hardly wait until morning,” he said as he kissed her again, deeper and then said,
“Good night, Meg.”
“Good night, Blackie.
* * *
Meg got to the stable late the next morning and Blackie was already hard at work.
“Hey,” he said and kissed her lightly on the mouth. “I put the horses in the paddock and I’m almost done the stalls.”
“You don’t always have to clean my stalls; it’s my responsibility,” she hugged him, “but thank you anyway.”
“I don’t mind, I need to do things around here anyway. Actually I want to work Sandman again and get him really moving on the dressage program.”
“Well let’s finish up these stalls.”
They finished putting down some sawdust and then put clean straw on top. Blackie stood there and sniffed the bedding.
“I love the way fresh straw smells.”
“So do I,” she said and pushed him down on top of it, jumped on him and started tickling him. He was rolling around laughing, trying to get away from her. He pulled her down in the straw and they were rolling around laughing like kids. Suddenly he stopped and looked at her with that hungry look, kissed her hard and pulled her on top of him. He ripped her shirt open, grabbed her breasts roughly and then put his
hands between her legs. She felt a frenzied urgency to be against him, kissed him deeply and held him down with her knee. She kissed him again and pulled his shirt over his head. His eyes were fierce with desire. He suddenly rolled over on top of her and she could feel how hard he was. He was gasping for breath as he pushed her legs apart and pressed himself against her. He moved his hips back and forth and she came in a burst of exquisite sensation and cried out in a prolonged gasp.
He rolled off and was still breathing as if he had been running. She lay there completely spent.
“Oh God!” She sobbed, “I’m so embarrassed!”
“No, no don’t be, it was completely my fault.”
“I shouldn’t have started playing around and teasing you.”
“No, I’m a grown man, not a teenager. I should be able to control myself.”
She sat up and he pulled her over, drying her tears with his fingers.
“Come on, sweetie, don’t cry. It’s not that bad. I promised you I wouldn’t do this and I’m sorry.”
He leaned back and unzipped his jeans and she said, “What the hell are you doing now?”
He laughed, “These jeans are too damn tight for this stuff. It hurts.”
“Cute!” She said and got to her feet.
“I’ll be with you in a few minutes after I calm down.”
She glared at him as she grabbed her top and left him in the stall. She ran into the tack room to put her clothes back in some kind of order. Her hands were shaking. She always had such an intense reaction every time he touched her.
I’ve got to get a grip on myself. He’s not going to control this so I need to, somehow.
She was buttoning her shirt when he walked into the tack room. He turned her around and she made an exasperated sound and gesture. He took his hands off her quickly and held them up defensively.
“Meg, I’m sorry! Are you angry with me?”
“Yes, I am! Oh no, not really.” She told him. “Oh, I don’t know what I am. This is
getting ridiculous. Either sleep with me or stop getting me so hot and bothered!”