Zach and Sabrina: Round 1

by K. M. Hill

  What was that sound? Was that coming from her car? She maneuvered to get over into the break down lane. As soon as she slowed down and came to a stop, the car died. What the hell? She had just had this car serviced. She tried turning the key over again and again. No luck. It was dead. Great. Now what was she going to do? Well, I guess I should start by calling the tow service, she thought.

  Once she was assured that the tow truck would be there within 20 minutes, she called a taxi. She had to get to the barn and she would figure out a longer-term solution later.

  That’s when she felt the first drop of rain. Sabrina went to get into the car to stay dry and that’s when she remembered her top was down on the convertible. As she looked across the horizon and in front of her, she was shocked to see how dark the sky had gotten. She had been in her own world thinking about Zach’s comments. There he was again causing an issue for her and he wasn’t even here!

  She jumped in the car to turn it on so she could push the button to make the roof go up and that’s when she remembered what set off this catastrophe… the car was dead. Damn it all. She was going to wring the neck of the mechanic. As Sabrina envisioned the dressing down she was going to give him, the sky opened up and it started raining like crazy.

  She was beginning to wind up for a full tirade that would do justice to her red haired reputation when a Ferrari pulled up behind her. Out jumped a tall man who went to his trunk and pulled out a tarp. He rushed over and threw the tarp over the top of her convertible. The tarp had rope ties in the corners and they quickly fastened the ties around her tires.

  He yelled, “C’mon” and motioned for her to follow him back to his car.

  Chapter 5

  She plopped into the passenger seat next to him and closed her eyes as she put her head on the rest. She had to catch her breath. She’s sitting in a stranger’s car. Every horror movie always told you don’t get in a stranger’s car but frankly she could care less at this point.

  Speaking of the car, it was a very expensive car and she was getting water everywhere. Her own car was going to be a disaster but not as bad as it could have been thanks to the quick thinking of this stranger.

  She opened her eyes and looked over at the stranger. She hadn’t had a chance to notice it before but holy crap he was hot. Like seriously, this guy was mega gorgeous. Sabrina didn’t think she had ever seen a better-looking man. His wet shirt showed off his broad shoulders and well defined abs. As he leaned over to turn on the wipers and reached in the back to grab a towel, she could see he had a lean waist. She already caught a glimpse of his rock solid butt and thighs as he worked on fastening the tarp on her car. As he turned and looked at her, all she could see were his full, lush lips and his alarming blue eyes.

  She shivered.

  He mistook the cause of her shiver as her being cold and being wet. He took another small towel from the back and handed it to her.

  “Here, use this to dry yourself off and dry your hair a bit so you don’t catch a chill.” the stranger instructed.

  As he handed her the towel, her fingers brushed past his hand and the touch was electrifying. It surprised her so much that she looked up and saw him looking at her. He clearly felt it too. They stayed like that for what seemed like minutes but was probably only a second or two.

  “Thanks.” Sabrina said quietly.

  “My pleasure.”

  She wondered what that really meant because a sly smile came with it. With the smile, she saw his perfect teeth and his eyes crinkle a bit. Man, she was in trouble. She had to get out of this car. This guy was steamy.

  “I’m lucky you came along when you did. I would have needed a paddle to get my car moving if it got any more rain in it.” Sabrina said mournfully as she looked at her car through the windshield wipers.

  “It got a little wet but I think it was just a sprinkle that we can wipe down when it stops raining,” the stranger responded.

  “What are the odds that you would have a tarp in this beautiful car?”

  “Well, I have it because the same thing happened to me with this car a while back. It took me months of drying out and refurbishing to get this baby back to what it was. It was brand new at the time and the fact is, I didn’t know how to put the top up. I had put it down in the spur of the moment and then got caught in the rain. There wasn’t the time to pull out the owner’s manual to figure it out but that’s actually what I had to do. It was hard to see because the pages were getting soaked as was frantically whipping through the pages. It was quite the scene, I imagine,“ he said with a big laugh.

  “Wow, you are a patient guy. I would have freaked. Actually, I was getting ready to freak when you came along.” Sabrina confessed.

  “I saw that when I pulled up. It looked like you were winding up kicking the car. You know, sometimes you have to just roll with life and pick up the pieces, I have learned,” the stranger offered.

  It seemed like there was more behind that statement based on the look in his eyes but she just let it go. She was a little overwhelmed by her reaction to him. She was drawn to him and had no idea why. And she didn’t like it. She didn’t know who this stranger was and frankly, had no time or interest in men at this point in her life.

  She was about to ask him what his name was when the tow truck pulled up and right behind it, the taxi. Thank goodness!

  In a flash she was out the door.

  He watched her for a minute. Was she relieved because she was in a hurry or because she wanted to get away from him? Either way, it was probably for the best. He was blown away by his powerful attraction to her.

  Even soaking wet, she was gorgeous. Her red hair curled from the rain into ringlets down her back. The rain was his friend today. It shrunk her clothes so they were plastered against her petite frame and showed off her amazing body. It’s probably a good thing that the tow truck showed up when it did.

  He also thought, she felt the same thing he did.

  The taxi honked.

  Being the gentleman he was, he wasn’t going to let her handle this by herself. He grabbed an umbrella from the back and followed her path to the tow truck. He walked up behind her and held the umbrella over her while she spoke to the driver.

  Sabrina finished up with the tow truck driver. She turned around to head back to the Ferrari to thank the stranger and ran smack into him. How had she not known he was behind her? And holding an umbrella no less! She ran right into him so resoundingly that she almost touched her lips to his.

  “Oh!” she exclaimed. For a brief moment, she wondered what he tasted like.

  He just smiled that devastating smile again.

  He was enjoying her discomfort and decided he liked seeing her flustered.

  The taxi driver honked again, rolled down his window and motioned for her to hurry up.

  “Sorry, I didn’t know you were behind me.” Sabrina said breathlessly.

  “I figured you were already wet enough and an umbrella might help. Do you need help or a ride or… anything?” The stranger asked, searching her eyes to figure out what she was thinking.

  She looked up at him again. She couldn’t figure out if he really meant…anything. Was she reading into things? Was she just jet lagged? He was a tough read.

  “No – thank you. I will be all set with this taxi. I can’t thank you enough for all your help.” Sabrina said appreciatively.

  The taxi honked again.

  She looked over at the taxi and said, “One minute!”

  She glanced at her watch. “Oh, no. I’m going to be late. I can’t be late. First meeting and all! Thanks again!” with that, she grabbed her bag as she rushed towards the taxi. Turning around as she grabbed the door handle, she gave him a big smile as she jumped in the taxi and they sped off.

  He stood there in the rain for a minute trying to process what just happened.

  Well, that was interesting. And interesting just slipped through his fingers. And he hadn’t even gotten her number. He hadn’t even gotten her name! Dum
b ass, he chided himself.

  Chapter 6

  He was late.

  Sabrina could not believe it. He was late. After what she just went through to get here! And get here on time! And he was late!

  She arrived at the stables and had grabbed her riding clothes from her trunk. She headed to the rest room to change and she brushed out her wet hair as she went. What a day. She had a few minutes before her first lesson started and finally took a deep breath. She put the car and that disaster scene out of her mind.

  Putting the guy in the Ferrari out of her mind was proving to be much more difficult.

  She knew that as soon as she got into the saddle, she would be able to focus. She had no time to get hung up on some random stranger. She didn’t even know his name or anything about him other than how incredibly hot he was. She really was lucky he came along when he did. She was also lucky he wasn’t some maniac. It was very unlike her to hop into a car like that. But he was so kind from the start that she didn’t even think twice about it.

  She probably should have done something to thank him more properly. Or send him something. But that would require her to have known his name!

  As she worked through all of this, she thought again about how Zach was late. She was quickly coming to the conclusion that this was not someone she was going to be able to work with.

  At that moment, she heard a low deep voice followed by one of the grooms telling the person attached to that voice that she was in the Tack Room.

  So he decided to arrive. She busied herself in her tack trunk organizing things. She could feel him standing in the doorway.

  “I’m Zach.”

  “You mean you are late.” Sabrina shot back.

  “You must be Sabrina. I’m sorry I am late; I had to stop at my house on the way here.” Zach replied, ignoring the biting greeting.

  She paused. Hmm. That voice stirred at her memory but she wasn’t sure why. She stood for a minute, collecting her thoughts,

  “Well, I would have thought you would have done that early enough to be here when I arrived.”

  She folded her arms and turned around.

  No! It couldn’t be. Are you kidding me? Sabrina thought.

  Ferrari guy was standing in front of her. And if possible, looking even more luscious. Just my luck, Sabrina thought, still not saying anything.

  Zach stayed in the doorway.

  Well, well, well. Isn’t life funny? This spitfire he dealt with on the phone a week ago was now the beauty who had dripped rain in his front seat.

  Her long strawberry blond hair had dried and was hanging in soft waves down her back. Her skin was clean and clear, almost porcelain with a light sprinkling of freckles across her nose and upper cheeks. Her eyes were a brilliant shade of green, and were, at this moment, shooting daggers at him. Her lips were full with her mouth slightly opened from shock and surprise. She looked delicious in her tight white britches and tall black boots that went up to her knee. The white pants made it look like her legs went on forever. He was surprised at her petite frame. It didn’t look like she was built to wrestle the big horses that arrived a few days ago.

  He wanted to shove his hands into that hair pull her head back and start making his way down that long, lovely neck. Slowly. With his tongue…

  What? What the hell was that! This was a client! He had a hard and fast rule that involved no clients! Actually, it was a barn rule. So many riders had come onto him through the years. He found from experience that abstinence was better than the drama that was created after a relationship ended and you still had to see the person on the show circuit all the time.

  No! This hot little number cannot be the indomitable Sabrina.

  “I would have been here sooner but I found myself unexpectedly dripping and needed to take care of it.” Zach’s casually replied trying not to betray his racing heart.

  Did he really just say that? She looked at him to see if he was intentionally goading her. His eyes betrayed nothing but she saw a slight crinkle in the corners of his mouth. THIS was her new instructor? It can’t be. The horses were her safe haven. This was supposed to be the place where she sorted through all the crap in her life.

  She just didn’t have it in her to go back to the drawing board to find another place for the horses. This one was so highly recommended. Well, she would just get things back on track starting right now.

  “So, Zach. I’m Sabrina. I thanked you for helping me with my car but really, it was so nice of you to stop for me. I’m sorry you got drenched in the process. It’s understandable why you weren’t here, of course, when I arrived. I’m looking forward to getting started. Who should I get on first?” Sabrina offered.

  Hmm, thought Zach. She buttoned up very quickly. All business again... Ok, we can roll that way. And honestly, it’s better because the whole time she was talking, he barely heard what she said. She radiated heat. She was so dam sexy. And intense... And he was pretty sure she wasn’t even trying. She was probably trying just the opposite. She had no idea the impact she had.

  “Why don’t you get on the one you are most comfortable with and that will let me get a good look at you? I gave them all a light workout this morning to get a sense of how they go.” Zach said, still leaning against the doorframe.

  He was still envisioning her neck exposed, making his way down to the curve of her breast.

  “What do you think?” Sabrina asked.

  “Think about what?” he replied tentatively, afraid that he got caught.

  “About the horses! You said you hacked them all this morning.” Sabrina said trying hard to not give an eye roll as she said it. What was his problem?

  “You’ve got some nice horses. Now, let’s see the rider and how good she is.” Zach quipped.

  Sabrina looked at him with her steely green eyes. Screw you, she thought. I’ll show you how good I am.

  As if he heard her, he smiled.

  This was going to be interesting.

  Chapter 7

  Sabrina started on Max. He was nine years old and a fantastic jumper. She had him for three years and he had been a great partner the entire time. She had moved up in height with him recently and was getting comfortable at that new height. Max was like an old pair of shoes. As soon as she mounted him and sat in the saddle, it was like taking a deep breath.

  He was just what she needed.

  She walked Max around the arena once both ways and picked up her trot. His stride was easy and enjoyable. She loved the feeling of this big horse under her, moving across the ground smoothly. She moved from the trot into the canter incorporating some changes of leads as she went. She was so engrossed in her ride that she was surprised when she caught something out of the corner of her eye.

  Zach was standing in one corner of the arena, leaning back against the fence with arms crossed. This lady knows how to ride, he thought. The horse was moving off her leg and was well balanced. She had a soft but effective use of her hands. And damn it all, didn’t she look fantastic doing it. Zach cursed Lewis and his broken body again when Sabrina cantered by him and finally looked at him. Those eyes were so full of thoughts but he had no idea what they were.

  “Ok, walk a minute. You seem to know what you are doing on the flat riding. He seems to know you well and responds. One thing I would think about is adding your leg to him before you hit the corner because he wants to push his hind end out. Your corners are consumed with getting him back in. If he doesn’t respond while you are here practicing, add some spur and if he still doesn’t respond, use your crop and gently tap him behind your leg to let him know you mean business,” instructed Zach.

  “Let’s try it now. Pick up your trot again and stay down at this end and make a big circle. There, see how he wants to shift his weight out. Circle again and add your leg two steps before he hits that spot. Good! That’s much better, do it again. Good. Keep that in mind as you go around. It’s not as important for what we are doing right now but rather when you are doing a jump off and tryin
g to make sharp, fast turns, this will make a difference.” Zach explained.

  “As you correct it, don’t let him fall in to compensate. Keep him balanced and round through the corner,” he continued.

  Sabrina was delighted. She had a big issue with Max losing himself in the corners in the jump offs and she could feel Max track under himself. No one had been able to really help her solve this and Zach did it within the first few minutes. She looked up and saw Zach looking at her. Was it her imagination or did the heat from sitting in the Ferrari with him come rushing back to both of them?

  “Do you feel that?” Zach asked.

  Sabrina looked at him. He was waiting for an answer. How should she answer that?