Laurie Salzer - A Kiss Before Dawn

by Laurie Salzer

  She knew she shouldn’t work any horses in this state of mind, so she decided a walk in the woods would clear her head.

  At first the dogs danced with excitement, but apparently sensing Chris’s solemn mood, they walked quietly beside her as she meandered down the trail.

  When Chris arrived at the pond with the dogs, she walked onto the dock, sat down, and crossed her legs in front of her. She noticed Sadie wandering off, probably to go mouse hunting, the frogs having long since dug into the mud to hibernate. Cedar and Cagney sat down on either side of her. Chris was glad. She needed them close.

  Chris put an arm around each dog and hugged them, relishing their companionship. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Her gaze followed the ripples on the water, the only evidence of the active springs below. The air was still, but she saw mare’s tails in the sky, an indication of rain to come soon. She didn’t know the scientific name of the clouds that looked like flowing horse’s tails, but it was something her grandmother always called them.

  Gram. The only person Chris regretted not staying in contact with. Despite the woman being her only ally, she had been afraid Gram would tell Them. Not to be vindictive, Gram would never do that, but because she was scared for her.

  Chris had made a point to see her grandmother the day before she left home. It had been difficult to conceal the pain of knowing she’d probably never see her again. Gram had sensed something, but Chris assured her it was just the ordinary crap she lived with day after day. She hugged Gram tight before saying goodbye and turned away quickly as tears streamed freely down her face.

  Suddenly shaking with sobs, Chris buried her face in Cedar’s soft fur. “God damn it, I thought I was over this,” she whispered. She felt drained after releasing the long pent-up tears and concentrated on taking a deep breath without hiccupping. She wiped her face on Cedar’s coat and took another deep breath. She felt somewhat back in control of her emotions. Cagney licked her face and washed away any remaining tears.

  “Thank you. You girls are so good for me,” she said softly. She blamed her momentary weakness on lack of sleep. “We’re definitely going to hit the hay early tonight, girls.” She heard nails clicking on the dock and saw Sadie trotting toward them. Her ears were back, and she wagged her tail wildly. She had a mouse in her mouth.

  Chris laughed, feeling better already. “Ooh, the mighty hunter returns!” She patted the little dog. “All right, I’m okay. Let’s head back and get some work done. What do you say?” Cedar and Cagney got up, ran off the dock, and chased each other in circles. Chris rose to her feet and kept her eyes on the dogs. The dogs’ tongues lolled long as they panted, stopped, and looked at her with their tails wagging in unison.

  “Let’s go.” Chris waved her hand to get them running. She grinned at their antics and followed them home.

  It was mid afternoon when Chris and the dogs walked into the barn. She decided she would start out by working Stetson in the round pen. The stallion was already waiting in his stall, apparently having seen her come from the woods.

  “You know what I’m going to do, big guy, sometimes even before I do,” she said as she approached his stall. Stetson greeted her with a low nicker. With halter in hand, she opened his door and went in. “You are so handsome.”

  He dipped his head to nuzzle her chest. Chris stood for a moment admiring the stallion, his deep bay coat dappled now that his winter coat had grown in. The white that covered half his body seemed more brilliant against the dark brown fur and the black mane and tail. She ran her hands over the soft, gleaming coat. She stepped closer to press her face against his neck and took pleasure in the mixture of odors that defined him: horse, hay, sawdust, and the smell of the fall air.

  She put the halter on the stallion and led him from the stall. Once she had him in the cross ties, she groomed him meticulously. Stetson gently took a treat from her hand when she freed the ties, and she led him to the ring and into the round pen.

  After she secured the gate, Chris removed the horse’s halter and slung it onto her shoulder. “Okay, Stets, go on out.”

  The horse moved away from her, alert and watchful, his ears twitching. He began to walk the circle, close to the outside, always keeping an eye on Chris. She let him stay at a walk in the deep sand for several minutes to ensure his muscles were warm and loose before she asked more of him.

  Satisfied, she raised her left hand slightly. He responded by picking up a trot and moving clockwise around her. She watched the stallion glide, slowly extending his stride as he went, his inside ear always turned toward her.

  Chris backed up two steps and raised her right hand. Stetson immediately turned to face her and, still at a trot, changed direction as she took two steps toward him. She remained standing in the center as he continued, never breaking rhythm. Several times, she made him change directions. She finally gave him the signal to walk and let him have a break.

  As Stetson completed his fifth time around at the walk, Chris raised her right hand higher. He immediately began to canter counter-clockwise, and his mane and tail flowed behind him. She imagined the horse running on the plains. A Cherokee—a woman, of course—rode him bareback, and her hair mixed with his mane as they raced the wind. Chris snapped out of her daydream and asked him to change direction.

  Judging him sufficiently warmed up, she began working him on a particularly difficult movement by backing up slightly. Obediently, the horse turned in her direction, still at a canter. She lifted her right hand, then left hand as he completed each stride. She continued to back up. With each signal, he changed leads, making it appear like he was skipping.

  Chris let him slow. The stallion walked to her, his sides heaving. She put her arms around his neck. “You did so good,” she said. “What an awesome boy you are.”

  “Wow.” The familiar voice was so quiet, it was almost a whisper.

  Mary Jo casually leaned against the riding ring wall, with her legs crossed and hands tucked in her jeans pockets. She had changed clothes from earlier that morning and now wore faded jeans, boots, and a loose, long-sleeved shirt that she’d tucked in. Chris couldn’t help admiring her. She signaled Stetson to begin walking in a wide circle to cool off, knowing he wouldn’t stop without a signal from her.

  “That absolutely took my breath away,” Mary Jo said as she closed the distance to the round pen.

  “Yeah, he did very well.” Chris beamed proudly at the stallion. “It’s a movement performed in dressage. We’ve been trying to perfect it for about a year.”

  “I didn’t know you could do that from the ground. I’ve only seen flying lead changes under saddle.”

  “We’ve been working on it for a while. Today was the first time he did it without breaking stride.”

  “Well, I’m glad I was here to see it.” Mary Jo gazed warmly at Chris and then turned her attention back to the horse. “He’s your stud, right?”

  “Yeah, Ruby is bred to him. It should be a good foal.”

  “Nice. Hey, I did call this time. The answering machine picked up. I figured you were out here and didn’t hear it ring.” Mary Jo’s smile faded to a slight frown. “I hope you don’t mind that I showed up unannounced.”

  “Nope, not at all. I should probably have given you my cell number anyway. I don’t usually give it out to anybody except the boarders.” As an afterthought, she said, “Well, Doc has it programmed into his cell in case of emergency.”

  Chris found herself completely at ease, which surprised her after the morning’s events. The tears must have washed the stress away, she thought. Either that or the lightheartedness she felt was due to Mary Jo’s welcome presence.

  Mary Jo stared at Stetson.

  “What’s the matter?” Chris asked.

  She turned her head to look directly at Chris. In a low, quiet voice, she asked, “Will you teach me?”

  “I’m sorry? I have absolutely no idea what you mean.” Chris raised her eyebrows and cocked her head to one side.

  �
��Would you teach me to do what you just did in there? Please?”

  “Um, yeah, I guess.” Chris pushed her hair off her forehead. “I’d have to come up with a horse for you to work with though.”

  “Why can’t we use your stallion?”

  “Because a lot of learning how to do that is teaching the horse. You learn to read their body language, how to ask them a question through your body posture, and how to tell them it’s the right or wrong answer.”

  “Oh, I guess I didn’t realize it was so complicated.” Mary Jo’s heart sank. “Well, never mind, I don’t think it will work then.” She looked down at the sand and tapped the toe of her boot. When she had seen the way Chris handled Stetson with almost invisible signals, she suddenly felt the desire to learn how to do it. She just wasn’t sure she was up to that big of a commitment.

  “Why not? From what I witnessed a few months ago when Hattie scared the piss out of you, it would be good for you to learn.”

  Mary Jo couldn’t come up with a reason to refuse the offer that wouldn’t leave her looking like an idiot. “Well, I guess if you’re up for it.” She looked up shyly and met Chris’s steady gaze.

  Chris laid a warm hand on her shoulder. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m up for it. It’ll be fun. As I said, just give me a day or two to come up with a horse for you.”

  She gave Stetson the signal to come to her and pulled the halter off her shoulder. She waited until he stopped next to her. “Good boy.” She rubbed his face all over and put the halter on his head.

  Mary Jo had been very conscious of Chris’s touch and found she missed it when Chris turned her attention to the horse.

  “Okay, big guy, back to your stall.” Without leading the stallion, Chris took a couple steps out of the round pen.

  Awed, Mary Jo watched as the horse walked right beside Chris without the use of a lead line. Chris stopped to look back at her. Incredibly, the horse didn’t move a step beyond Chris’s knee.

  “Coming?” Chris asked.

  “Uh, yeah. That’s cool. How did you get him to do that?”

  “What? Walk beside me without a line?” When Mary Jo nodded, Chris said, “Same concept I use working in the round pen. It’s just a matter of asserting who the leader is. But you’ll learn all that as we go.” She grinned.

  Mary Jo returned the grin with one of her own. The more she talked with Chris, the easier it became. She was starting to feel like herself around Chris, not a bumbling imbecile—a thought born of that first poor impression. The happy grin stayed on her face, and her step became a little lighter.

  As they walked out of the ring and headed to Stetson’s stall, Mary Jo became conscious of how cool hanging around with Chris was going to be. And a big plus: Chris was a lesbian and a very attractive lesbian at that. A woman she found intriguing. It suddenly occurred to her… the more she was around Chris, the more she liked her.

  Yes, Chris was moody, abrasive, and guarded. But hell, I can be, too, I guess.

  Mary Jo wasn’t usually attracted to women with Chris’s personality. She had shared a few breakfasts with Chris and Frances, and she loved Frances to death, but Chris seemed to focus most of her attention on Frances. She had to admit she often felt like a third wheel in their company. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Was “jealous” the right word to describe her feelings?

  She remembered when she first met Chris, how Doc had held Chris’s entire attention. No, I think the correct word would be “envy,” she thought. Maybe that’s the only way Chris can deal with being around more than one person. Recalling the comment Frances had made about Chris’s flirting, she wondered if she could penetrate the thick wall Chris had built around herself. Either way, she was looking forward to working with her, and it would be just the two of them. Maybe Chris would open up a little and reveal something about herself.

  Mary Jo’s attention snapped back to Chris when she spoke as they reached Stetson’s stall.

  “The dogs never heard you pull in?”

  “Nope. They were sound asleep in your office when I came through.”

  “Huh.”

  “Yeah. That’s what I thought. I wasn’t even sure you were home, because I wasn’t accosted by them when I got out of the truck.”

  The dogs soon joined them. Mary Jo thought it was curious that they hadn’t heard the truck pull up and hadn’t given her away when she came into the barn. At the time, she had walked to the office, seen the dogs sleeping soundly in their beds, and snuck by.

  “Some watchdogs you are,” Chris said to them with obvious affection.

  Laughing at the dogs’ antics, Mary Jo squatted down amidst the wagging tails, wiggling bodies, and long tongues that struggled to wash her entire face and clean her ears.

  Chris released Stetson into his stall and watched the dogs play with Mary Jo. “You know, I can’t think of one person who’s ever been able to sneak by them. Even Doc’s arrival never goes undetected.”

  Mary Jo glanced up at Chris, pleased to see a slow smile creeping over her face. “I guess they like me,” she said. “Oh, yuck!” She sputtered and wiped her lips. Sadie had managed to sneak a flick of tongue into her mouth. “You better not have had anything gross in that mouth today.” She peeked up when she heard Chris giggle. “What?”

  Chris laughed outright.

  “What? Tell me. Oh shit, she did, didn’t she?”

  Every time Chris tried to answer her, she laughed harder. Mary Jo stood up and slapped her playfully on the arm. “Chrii-isss, you need to tell me.”

  Tears running down her cheeks, Chris seemed unable to speak without succumbing to fits of giggles. She finally gained control. She grabbed Sadie into her arms, hugged her tightly, and sniffed near her muzzle. “Hmmm, what’s that smell? Yup, smells like mouse breath.”

  “Oh, gross. If I start growing rodent teeth, I’ll never forgive you!” Mary Jo said. Chris’s laughter proved contagious. Before Mary Jo knew it, she was struggling to stand up and her stomach hurt. Trying hard to catch her breath, she glanced at Chris and was overcome by giggles again. Several minutes passed before she finally sobered.

  “Oh, my God, that was too funny,” Chris said, still slightly breathless. “Do you want a beer or something? I’m dying of thirst.”

  “Yeah, I need something to gargle with,” Mary Jo said, trying not to think about “mouse breath.”

  Chris led the way down the aisle and into the office. Mary Jo followed, walking with the dogs. She sat down on the cot as Chris went to the refrigerator. The dogs hopped up next to her and settled in.

  “Don’t even think about it,” Mary Jo warned Sadie when the little dog jumped into her lap.

  “Coors okay?” Chris grabbed two bottles and opened them.

  “Yeah.” Mary Jo looked around the spacious room. She didn’t remember exactly what the room had looked like on her earlier visit, probably because she had been so nervous the first time Chris showed it to her.

  The refrigerator stood at the far end of the room, next to the door that led into the bathroom, as she recalled. Chris’s big, cherry, computer desk was positioned so she could sit with her back to the windows and face the office door. A laptop sat on the desk in the middle of several piles of paper.

  Camera monitors were attached four feet up on the wall at the foot of the cot. Several pictures mounted in wooden frames hung on the walls. More photos that Bill had taken, she guessed. To the left of the door, a huge wipe-off calendar on the wall recorded breeding and likely foaling dates for all the mares under Chris’s care, she surmised. Dog beds and bits of hay obscured the design of the large green and yellow area rug covering most of the floor.

  Chris handed a beer to Mary Jo and sat on the edge of her desk. She took a long drink and wiped her lips with the back of her hand. “There’s nothing like a cold beer after a good laugh.” After Mary Jo put the bottle to her mouth and nodded in agreement before taking a sip of beer, Chris added, “It should be enough to kill the mouse germs.”

  Mary Jo sno
rted and beer almost came out her nose. “You’re trying to kill me,” she rasped between coughs. “Between you and that little varmint-killer, I’m going to an early grave.”

  “Nah, couldn’t let that happen. Where would the fun be in that?”

  “Yeah, you and Sadie wouldn’t have anybody to torture then.”

  A short, companionable silence fell as they drank their beer. Mary Jo glanced over her bottle as she took another swallow, subtly appreciating Chris’s sculpted body. She wasn’t embarrassed about her own, but she wasn’t as defined as Chris.

  “I’ve been thinking,” Chris said. “I’ve been working the Thoroughbreds in the round pen to exercise them, just doing some rudimentary things with them.” Mary Jo sat up straighter and focused her entire attention on Chris. “And I think the owners would be amenable to having us work with one of them. I’ll give them a call tonight and see what they think. Technically, it shouldn’t be a problem if I stress that it’ll be easier to acclimate and handle them.”

  “Okay, why don’t you call me tonight after you’ve talked to them?”

  “It may be late. All three of the owners live in California and that’s a time difference of three hours.”

  “Afraid you’ll disturb my beauty sleep?” Mary Jo put on a seductive expression.

  Chris cracked a smile. “No, not that you need it. It just might not be till one or two in the morning when I get a hold of them.”

  “Well, how about I give you a holler between appointments tomorrow?” Mary Jo said. “I have your cell number now.” She hoped her mild embarrassment at Chris’s compliment didn’t show.

  “That’ll work.” Beer bottle empty, Chris stood. “I’ve got a couple more horses to work. Nothing as elaborate as what Stetson does. Just exercise mainly.” She paused, after a moment and said quietly, “You’re welcome to stay if you want.”