“My family owns a horse farm in Brazil, and my brothers have played polo since they could walk.”
“That’s why you moved to the United States?”
I nodded. “To California. My brothers and my cousin have a big contract there.”
“And you moved all the way to Colorado?”
“To go to school.”
“Aren’t there any schools in California?”
I almost laughed. Meu Deus, the curiosity of this man! “What’s with the twenty questions?”
He shrugged. “A pretty girl with a sexy accent driving a fancy car, rocking the cowgirl look, and who isn’t afraid of getting her hands dirty? I’m curious.” He looked over his shoulder, and I followed his gaze. Garrett was still around and he seemed to be paying attention to every word. “I’m not the only one,” he whispered. This time, I snorted. Yeah, right. “So, are you going to tell me? Why didn’t you go to school in California?”
I glanced to the side. Garrett paid attention to the horses. “I guess I wanted to get away from my family. My brothers’ career is everything, and I was just supposed to follow them around.”
He nodded. “You wanted to live your own life.”
“Yes.”
“Sounds like a good reason.” He turned the hose off. “But is it worth it? Family is everything.”
I agreed with him, but my relationship with my family was becoming strained because of all I had to give up to come to the U.S. That part, I decided to keep inside.
We took the rest of the tack and the horses inside.
“I’m off,” Garrett said.
“Bye,” Tom said, sounding uninterested.
“You remember I have tomorrow off, right, old man?”
That made me curious. Garrett had a day off. Why? What was he going to do?
What the hell was I thinking? Of course, he could have a day off. He should have a day off; everyone should.
Tom grabbed a few empty buckets. “Yeah, yeah, I remember.”
“Okay, good.” Garrett’s eyes met mine. “Good night.”
“Have fun,” I said. I felt guilty for wishing he didn’t really have fun.
He nodded and walked out.
Tom filled buckets with grain. When he had two filled, I picked them up and put them inside the horses’ stalls.
“Do you plan on coming tomorrow?” he asked.
“I do.”
He smiled at me. “Good. I’ll need all the help I can get.”
Chapter Thirteen
Saturday morning, I arrived at the ranch at seven sharp with coffee and the donuts Tom liked so much.
“Girl, I’m not kidding,” he said, taking the coffee from the tray and a donut from the bag. “I’m gonna get used to this.” He gestured with his chin to the food in his hands. “To the treats and your help. Then when you’re gone, it’ll hurt like heartache.”
I laughed. “So dramatic. Don’t worry, Tom. Unless you kick me out, I plan on coming here for a long time.”
“I should probably start paying you, then.”
I shook my head. “No. I don’t need money. Besides, being here makes me feel like me. I need this.”
He narrowed his eyes. “You aren’t you all the time?”
“Unfortunately, no.”
“Want to talk about it?”
“Not really.” I finished my coffee and threw the travel cup in the trash. “What can I start with?”
“Take Midnight for a run.”
My eyes widened. “I can’t. Delilah forbade me to ride him. I don’t care about her, but I don’t want Garrett to be in hot water with her, or his father.”
“I know, but he isn’t here, and as far as I know, she won’t be here today.”
I bit my lip. “Are you sure about that?”
“No, but someone has to ride him and he doesn’t really like me.”
He didn’t need to do much convincing. I was all for riding Midnight. “Is there any riding groups scheduled for this morning?”
“Not until eleven, why?”
“Nothing.” I shrugged. “I’m going to take Midnight out now, then.”
Before getting Midnight ready, I raced to my car to grab my bag with my swimsuit and a towel. With no riding groups soon and with Garrett out of the picture, I could stop by the lake and swim for a couple of minutes.
“Hey, big boy,” I said, approaching Midnight’s stall. He nickered, watching me. I showed him the halter in my hands. “Want to go for a ride?”
He nickered again and I took that as a yes. I got him tacked and ready, and left with him. We followed the main trail down to the lake. It wasn’t as warm as the previous week, but I didn’t think I would freeze in the water. Well, I would soon find out.
It was as if Midnight could read my mind or sense me, because I didn’t need to steer him off the trail to the lake. He simply turned toward the lake. He stopped on the bank and lowered his head to drink water.
I jumped off him and tied his reins to a low tree branch. After looking side to side to make sure there was no one around, I stepped between two thick trees shadowing the lake and quickly changed from my jeans and tank top into my dark blue bikini.
I dipped my toes in the water and shivered. “Puta que pariu.” It was cold, really cold. Midnight snorted, as if laughing of me. “What? Do you think you can handle it?” He nickered, tugging against his reins. “All right. I get it.”
I took off Midnight’s saddle, untied him from the branch, and taking a leap of faith, let go of his reins. He stomped into the lake, spouting water everything and soaking me. I gasped as the cold seeped into my skin.
“Oh, you.” Using my hand as a scoop, I threw water at him. He snorted and stomped some more before going in deeper. I just watched. “You like to swim, big boy? Who knew?”
I dove in after him and met him in the middle of the lake. The cold wasn’t too bad here, but it was probably because I was getting used to it, and the water wasn’t too deep, but I had to paddle to stay above water. He poked his wet muzzle on my shoulder before crossing to the other side of the lake.
For some reason, I wasn’t worried he would run away.
While playing, I told him about Preta. “I miss her,” I said, floating on the water beside him. “She’s a dark gray mare with a strong temper too. You would like her.” He snorted, poking my waist with his wet muzzle. “I mean it. Maybe someday you’ll meet her.”
I swam for a couple of minutes, while Midnight played close to the shore.
I dove and swam to the bank, close to where Midnight played. I just didn’t grab his legs from underwater, because on instinct he would stomp on me, so I jumped above water a few feet from him.
He neighed and reared. I laughed and he charged me, poking his muzzle in my ribs. I fell in the water, laughing, and he pushed and shoved me.
“Having some fun, Brazilian girl?”
I froze and Midnight neighed again.
Reaching for the horse’s reins, I turned and found Jonah on a brown horse at the edge of the water.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, hiding behind Midnight. The last thing I needed was Jonah ogling me.
“I came to check on Midnight for Delilah, but Tom said you had taken him for a ride, so I decided to catch up with you.” He licked his lips. “I’m glad I did.”
“Isn’t it a little early for you?”
“I had to get up early for an international meeting my father had. He wanted me there.” He tilted his head, trying to see me behind the horse. “I had no idea you were still coming here. Why didn’t you tell me?”
Because I didn’t want you knowing, dumbass. I shrugged. “Didn’t occur to me.” I started walking to the bank, pulling Midnight with me. “You shouldn’t be here.”
“Hmm, why? This is my father’s ranch.”
“That’s not what I meant.” On the bank, I picked up the towel and wrapped it around myself, then tied Midnight to a tree branch. “Audrey is out for my blood, and I really don’t think you
should be anywhere near me.”
He jumped off his horse. “I told you I talked to her. She knows there’s nothing between her and me anymore.”
“She didn’t accept that, Jonah. She told me that herself. She asked me, not very politely, to stay away from you, and honestly, I wish you and she would stay far away from me.”
His flashy grin took over his features. “You don’t mean that.”
“What do I have to say for you to get it? I don’t want anything to do with you. I’m not gonna go out with you.”
“Who’s talking about going out?” He took a few steps toward me. “We could just go back into the lake, or lean against a tree here.”
My jaw fell open. So, that was what he wanted with me. “What happened to the date and getting to know me part?”
“Well, I thought being polite and cute would be the best approach, but you refused that. Maybe if I’m more myself, rough and direct, you’ll like it.” He reached his hands to me. “I promise you won’t regret it.”
I slapped his hands away. “Don’t! Step back, Jonah, or I’m going to scream until I burst your ears.”
“You do realize nobody would hear you, right?”
Fear flooded my senses, making my blood turn to ice. He wouldn’t do what I thought he would, right? “Leave me alone, Jonah. I mean it.”
He sighed, losing the smile. “I’m crazy to have sex with you, but I won’t force you. I’m not that kind of guy. But …” He wrapped his fingers around my wrist and pulled me closer. His lips brushed my ear. “You’ll come begging me, Brazilian girl. I’ll make sure you do.”
He let go of me, hopped on his horse, and trotted away.
Anguish erupted in me, and I fell back into the grass, gasping for air, tears brimming in my eyes.
Meu Deus, what just happened?
***
I closed Midnight’s stall door and Tom entered the stable with two doggie bags.
“Lunchtime,” he said, jerking his head to his office.
Smiling, I followed him in. He set the bags on the table and sat down on his chair. I took a seat across the table.
“I hope you like sandwiches.” He handed me one of the bags.
I opened it, and found a chicken salad sandwich and bottled orange juice. “I do.”
He had a tuna sandwich for him, and grape juice. We ate in peaceful silence for about two minutes. I tried keeping my encounter with Jonah out of my mind before I freaked out.
Thankfully, Tom distracted me with questions.
“So,” he started, eyeing me over his half-eaten sandwich, “you don’t like polo?”
“I do. I used to play with my brother when we were younger.”
“I don’t really follow polo, though I think it’s a great sport. Are your brothers doing well?”
“You could say that.”
“How well?”
“My twin is ranked first in the world. My other brothers, Ricardo and Pedro, are ranked tenth and seventeenth respectively, and my cousin, Gui, is twelfth.”
“Whoa, that’s … they’re famous.”
I nodded. “Yes, but being famous in the polo world doesn’t mean stepping out of the house and having paparazzi on your tail.” Unless one of them was involved with drugs, or stopping another famous polo player from killing a woman. But I wouldn’t mention that.
“That’s good. I mean, being famous but not that kind of famous.”
“I guess it is.”
“How about you? Is Colorado turning out to be everything you expected?”
“No.” My voice didn’t disguise how miserable I was.
“I thought you were after freedom. You should be free and happy right now.”
If only it were that easy. “I wish.”
“What happened?”
When I thought about answering that, I felt childish. My problems felt childish. Why didn’t I just stand up and faced them headfirst? It wasn’t as if I was going to die. Maybe my reputation would, and my pride, but those were already sinking fast.
“It’s just … each time I go through an obstacle, there are more fences in my way, you know. The course never ends.”
He nodded, his expression serious. “It never will. There will always be challenges and problems you’ll have to face.”
“I was hoping I could take a breather between problems, but they keep coming at me, escalating.” And making me change into someone I didn’t really like, someone weak and submissive.
“Want to talk about your problems? Specifically?”
I shook my head. “Tell me about you instead. How did you become a cowboy?”
He laughed. “I’m not a cowboy, not anymore. Garrett has the title of the ranch’s cowboy right now.”
I stilled. I wanted to take advantage of the fact that Tom had mentioned Garrett, and ask more about him, but I was concerned about what that would look like.
To my surprise, Tom continued on his own. “Garrett wasn’t always into horses, you know. When he first arrived here, he had never seen a horse up close. It took him a while to get used to horses, but once he let them in, he was taken.”
“Mr. Hudson sounds very …” I grasped for a word.
Tom filled in for me. “Harsh? Cold?”
“I wasn’t going to say that.”
He nodded. “But Mr. Hudson is harsh and cold, especially with Garrett.”
“I bet it was hard for all of them, when Garrett came to live here.”
“It was. Mrs. Hudson was mean to him, and Stella too. Jonah seemed glad. I guess having another guy close to his age meant he would have a buddy, and in the beginning, they were buddies. Now they are friends, but not very good ones.”
“What do you mean? They seem like great friends.”
“Believe me. It’s not all that it seems.”
Odd. They were always together around campus. I would have said they were still buddies, but Tom knew more about that than anyone, I guessed.
“I heard Garrett was pre-vet for his undergrad, but didn’t go to vet school.”
“Yes, he graduated last year, almost sixteen months ago. It took him a while to finish since he had to take fewer classes.”
I frowned. “Why?”
“Because he had to work full time to pay for his tuition.”
“Mr. Hudson didn’t pay for it?” I asked. Tom shook his head. “But I bet he pays for Jonah’s.”
Tom snorted. “He does. And he paid for Stella too, and I know he will pay for Delilah’s.”
“That’s unfair.”
“I know.”
“Why is he still here? I mean, when he turned eighteen, wasn’t he considered an adult and he could leave?”
Tom paused, looking at me with a wary expression. “He has his reasons.”
“Won’t you tell me?”
“I think I already gossiped too much about his life. If you want to know more, you should ask him.”
“I won’t ask him.”
“Well, then you won’t find out more.”
“Maybe I will. Can you tell me where he lives?”
He cocked an eyebrow. “Planning on visiting him?”
“Yeah, right.” I slapped his arm across the table. “It’s just I see him around here a lot, and I was wondering if he lives here.”
“If you’re asking if he lives at the mansion, no. He has never even set foot inside.”
“No.” I pointed my finger up. “I mean here. I saw him coming down from upstairs.”
“Oh. We have a spare room upstairs, but we only use it when someone has to stay when a mare is about to deliver. No, Garrett doesn’t live here. He has his own place, and that’s all I can tell you about it.”
I pressed my lips closed, but the question jumped out anyway. “Why?”
“Because where he lives is connected to your previous question, why he’s still here. Again, if you want to know those details, you gotta ask him.” He stood, put the waste in the garbage, and halted by my side. “Let’s get back to work.”
For the next couple of hours, I helped Tom all over the ranch. Around four, I stopped to rest a little. Although, I rested while humming a country song and brushing Midnight’s coat. My mind was on Garrett, of course, and everything I had learned about him.
Poor guy. It must not have been easy living with his father’s family and being pushed aside.
Tom stopped in the main aisle and narrowed his eyes at me. “I don’t get you.”
“It isn’t the first time I’ve heard that.”
“The few things I have heard about Brazil involve soccer, samba, and women. I guess there’s more to it than that.”
“Much more.”
“You’re not much different than us. I mean, I thought Brazilians would be different from Americans. Besides your accent, sometimes I forget you’re not from here.”
“We’re different, but I guess that when living here, a person starts to change. I guess that happens to any foreigner in any country.”
“How different is it?”
“Too many things to actually list, but like here, each state has its own traditions and culture. People have different accents and manners. I’m from the south, and we are one of the proudest states in Brazil. We always say our men are the most manly and fearless, and our women are the prettiest and most intelligent.” I shrugged. “Normal state rivalry.”
“I can definitely attest to the beauty of one woman from the south of Brazil.” Tom winked.
I shook my head. “Careful, old man. I’m going to think you’re a creep.”
He laughed before walking in the tack room. Talking about my country made me miss it. An idea bloomed in my mind and excitement bubbled inside me.
I kissed Midnight’s muzzle. “I hope they like it.”
***
I looked at the speedometer, careful not to go over the speed limit too much. Excitement filled me and it was hard. I wanted to sink my foot on the pedal and get to the ranch right this instant.
I parked my SUV beside Tom’s old truck at 6:56 a.m. I hopped out of my car, and skipping, I grabbed the basket from the passenger seat and entered the stable.
“Someone is in a good mood,” Tom said from his office.
I joined him inside. “I am.”
He jerked his chin to my arms. “What’s in the basket?”
Breaking Fences (The Breaking Series) Page 11