The Gift Horse

by Jami Davenport

  “That’s the least of your problems.”

  “I know it’s not aesthetically pleasing yet.” Carson bristled. He didn’t like her attitude, as if she was doing him a favor. Sam actually wrote a good plan on how the program fit into Cedrona. Those two things considered, he felt obligated to hear her out. Instead, she was making demands of him.

  “Appearances don’t concern me like they do your wealthy dressage clients. My clients care about safety and the ability to function in a quiet environment conducive to healing.”

  “I can appreciate that. We’re willing to work with you to make reasonable improvements when we have a lease agreeable to everyone.” He wasn’t going any further than that. She’d need to meet him halfway. She harrumphed, as if she didn’t believe him. He bit back a retort and forced a stiff smile.

  “I don’t see how the new facility will be ready in time for our program to move in with a minimum of downtime.”

  “I guarantee it’ll be ready. You received the contract?”

  She nodded.

  “It’s acceptable to you?”

  “One of our board members is an attorney. He has concerns. I’m not sure the risk is worth it. If we act now, we still have time to find another place.”

  Despite his annoyance with her, Carson understood where she was coming from. Up until Cedrona had been shoved down his throat, he’d never been a risk-taker. Now he took them left and right, agreeing to contracts he wasn’t one hundred percent certain they could meet, backing Sam rather than a sure thing like Hans, and letting a temperamental redheaded horse control his future.

  Maybe this was what happened when you had so much to lose that you risked it all in order to keep it.

  An hour later, Carson escorted her back to her car with mixed feelings. A signed contract and financial commitment from the handicapped riding program could be a mixed blessing. If his mother’s fund-raising efforts for the program yielded a reasonable amount of donations, it might be enough to finance the completion of Cedrona.

  It’d be a scaled-down version of the grandiose scheme his sister envisioned, but they’d have a solid foundation to build upon. With Sam’s knowledge of show grounds and his building knowledge, they’d carefully designed the facility with room for future expansion. It’d satisfy their horse show contracts for the ensuing summer.

  If they didn’t make it, the show sponsors would sue their asses and irreparably tarnish Cedrona’s reputation. His father would declare him a failure. He’d lose the brewery and his fledgling business. And Reynolds Corporation? Who knew? He didn’t. Could it survive one more failed project? His stomach twisted in knots. If he didn’t have ulcers already, he would before this was over. He rolled his shoulders in an attempt to loosen them and ease some of the tension.

  Yet, at the end of a very long tunnel shone a dim light. He could salvage Cedrona with a little business ingenuity and a lotta luck. First things first. Control his sister’s spending. Bring in a few more horse show contracts. Pray the handicapped program agreed to the terms and provided the necessary funds.

  Now if he could only find a way for that damn horse to start performing up to expectations, so he could maximize his investment. Of course, that involved Sam. She wasn’t progressing with the animal as he’d hoped. In fact, they’d gone backwards since she and Herr Doctor started their cold war.

  Herr Doctor refused to teach her until she groveled in apology for offending him. She refused to grovel. It was time to forget personal pride; her livelihood depended on her groveling, as did his future.

  Sighing, he slugged down a cup of cold coffee and trudged across the gravel parking lot to the old barn, intent on dealing with his most immediate problems, his sister and Sam. He dreaded this confrontation with Sam, but it needed to be done. From what he’d overheard, he bored her. He didn’t need that, not from her. And certainly not with everything else on his plate.

  He met Sam in the doorway, as she led Gabbie out to pasture. Faking a smile he didn’t feel, he braced himself for another unpleasant confrontation. The mare made that rumbling noise. He wished women found him as intriguing as that damn horse did.

  Sam walked up to him but avoided his eyes. He’d been avoiding her and owed her an explanation. Gabbie shoved her nose between them, sniffing at Carson.

  “You’ve been feeding her snacks, haven’t you?”

  “Me? Why?” Carson pushed the mare’s nose, but she wasn’t budging.

  “Because she obviously expects them every time she sees you.”

  “She does not. She just wants to wipe her big nose on me and is disappointed I’m wearing a t-shirt.”

  “You’re ruining all her fun.” She made an attempt to keep her voice light, but it cracked. “Carson, have you been avoiding me?”

  “What makes you think that?” Now, he was the one avoiding her eyes. Suddenly that horse became the most fascinating creature on earth.

  “For one, you make it a point to be where I’m not, and you’ve been sleeping alone at night. Did my brothers scare you off?”

  “Them?” Carson snorted. “Hardly. I’ve been rethinking things. Perhaps us getting involved was a lapse of judgment on my part.”

  “I’m a lapse in judgment? That’s it? That’s all I mean to you?” She clenched her fists, and her body stiffened.

  “Yes. Judgment. Don’t worry; you’ll get over it. After all, riding a horse is better than sex with me.”

  “What are you talking about?” Her eyes flashed fire, and he realized she wasn’t his only lapse in judgment—opening his big mouth was worse. He couldn’t stop himself. He wanted to hurt her as much as she hurt him.

  Bracing himself, he pushed on. “You told Burke there was no right man. At least, that man doesn’t appear to be me.”

  “Carson?” She shook her head, confusion etching lines in her face.

  “I heard you talking with Burke. You don’t think I’m good in bed.” She’d offended his masculinity and downplayed their relationship, after he’d thought she was different than the rest.

  “I didn’t mean it that way. He was prying, and our relationship is none of his business.”

  “You could have found a different way to tell him to mind his own business. Admit it, you think I’m boring, don’t you?”

  “Oh, of all the stupid.” She threw her hands up in the air. “They say women are hard to figure out.”

  “It’s not stupid.” He studied her face. “What am I to you?”

  She stared at him. “I...I’m not sure how to answer that.”

  “You don’t need to. What you don’t say, says enough. You’ve been using me.”

  “Me? Using you? What about you using me?”

  “What the hell would you have that I’d want?”

  Sam bristled. “My riding ability.”

  “You’re paid well for that. Besides, it’s really done me a hell of a lot of good.” He was stepping over the line, but he couldn’t help it. She’d wounded his most vulnerable spot.

  “Maybe you’d like to ride that mare yourself?”

  “At this point I can’t do much worse.”

  “You insensitive ass.”

  “Better an insensitive ass than a washed-up horse trainer.”

  “You have no idea how difficult that horse is to handle.”

  “All I know is that you’ve pissed off the one man who can help you. It’s my horse, and you’ll reconcile with Herr Doctor.” Carson, the Tight Ass, was back in fine form, but it didn’t feel right anymore.

  “I don’t need him. I’ll do fine on my own.”

  “Bullshit. I want you back on that horse tomorrow for your regular lesson, so you’d better beg his forgiveness.”

  “But I...”

  “Either resume your instruction with Hans, or I’ll pull the horse and find another rider.”

  She’d betrayed him and been just like every other woman he’d had the misfortune of falling for. Damn, he was a fool. He’d thought she’d be different, but she wasn’t any diff
erent. He should have kept their relationship strictly business. Given his tendency to fall in love, he’d let his guard down.

  Not only had he let his guard down, but he’d opened the prison gates and released all his emotions without even preparing them for life in the cold, cruel world.

  * * * *

  Sam fumed. She hadn’t done anything wrong. If he was getting tired of her and her unsophisticated ways, he at least owed her an honest explanation instead of some asinine reason that didn’t make sense.

  Had she blown it when he asked her what he meant to her? How did a person answer a question like that? Especially when they didn’t know how the other half felt. Why should she bare her soul when he wasn’t about to bare his?

  Surely, a confident man like him wasn’t bothered by her conversation with Burke? What she said was as far from the truth as Wal-Mart was from Nordstrom. He had to realize that.

  Sam swallowed a lump in her throat. She’d felt a connection between them, like they had something special. How could he deny it? Despite their differences, deep down where it counted, they were a lot alike.

  After that baseball game with her family, he’d exposed a hidden side, and she’d fallen that much deeper in love with him. He’d held his own with her sports-crazed family. That said a lot about his strength of character. She almost smiled. The pretty boy was a closet jock. Who would’ve guessed?

  Booted heels clicked on the concrete behind her. Hans, in his impeccable tan breaches and polished boots, walked down the aisle. When he saw her, he scowled and sniffed the air as if smelling a distasteful pile of dog poo. He pivoted smartly, reversed his direction, and strode into the arena.

  Praying for a quick merciful end, she followed him. “Hans!” He kept walking. Hans had long ago mastered the fine art of grudge holding.

  Sam ran after him. Man, she hated this, but it had to be done. In a weird twist of irony, she needed his help in order to beat him. He ignored her as he waited for his next student to finish her warm-up. With a deep breath, Sam stepped next to him.

  “Hans, I’m sorry. I acted rashly at the show. I apologize.”

  He waved his hand around. “Bah. Is nothing. You are not worth my effort.”

  “I really am sorry.”

  “You will do fine without me.” Sam was taken aback. The impenetrable Herr Doctor seemed to be licking his wounds.

  “You know I won’t.”

  “Apparently, you do not.” A muscle worked in his jaw as he studied the arena wall.

  “I do. I’m admitting it.” She groveled before the master.

  “Why should I help you? We both want the same thing. I could be damaging my chances for an ingrate.”

  “Why does this job matter so much to you? You could go anywhere. Work for anyone.”

  “I cannot. I have commitments that bind me to this area. This is my best opportunity.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “It is not for you to understand. It is personal.”

  “Hans, I need help with this horse. Carson is counting on her having a high resale value in a short amount of time. If I let him down, my reputation as a rider and trainer may never recover.” And she’d be counting yarn and thread for the evil stepmother.

  “The horse is fixable. You are not.” His clipped voice betrayed how much she’d hurt him.

  “Then help me fix the horse.”

  “And if a miracle occurs, and you win this ridiculous contest, I would be—as you Americans say it—screwed.” The man was an American, but she didn’t need to remind him of that.

  “I need the bonus money to pay off a debt.”

  “Bah. I do not care about the money. I want the position.”

  “Help me win with this horse, and the position is yours. I keep the money.”

  Hans rubbed his chin in thought. “And if I win?”

  “You win the position and the bonus. You can’t lose either way.”

  “We split the money regardless, and you leave no matter the outcome. That is the final deal.”

  The bastard drove a hard deal. So much for him not caring about the money. Taking a deep breath, she nodded. “Agreed.”

  “You must follow my instructions to the letter. No deviation.”

  “I will. I promise.” Half the bonus money and the commission from the sale of Gabbie would be enough to pay off the majority of her debt. She’d start elsewhere with a new position. Starting over didn’t appeal to her, but she couldn’t stay here, not with Carson so nearby. Not now. She’d deluded herself that they had a future. “No one can know about this.”

  He laughed. “I am no idiot. My reputation is at stake. You will leave Cedrona after Regionals. I cannot tolerate the chaos that revolves around you like the planets circling the sun.”

  Sam shook the hand he offered, sealing the deal and her fate.

  * * * *

  “I have no issue with the contest as presented.” Hans shrugged indifferently as he flipped through a horse magazine that had been sitting on the lounge coffee table. His laissez-faire attitude pissed Bridget off.

  “But it’s not fair to you. You teach her.” She tapped one perfectly manicured finger on the chair arm.

  “She is but one student. I have several other advanced students with excellent horses. She cannot teach as I can. Her students will not be able to surpass mine. There is no contest, even though I am competing against my own creation.” Hans put his hand over his mouth as he yawned.

  “What if her students rise above their level of competence?”

  “You have no faith in me.”

  “It’s not that.”

  “Sam is her own worst enemy. You, on the other hand, are an excellent rider with two well-trained, obedient, and talented animals. On any given day you will place higher than her. There is no issue.”

  “She has Gabriella. The horse oozes talent. If she ever puts together one good ride, no one can touch her.”

  Hans snorted. “That is unlikely, despite my best efforts.”

  “I won’t tolerate her winning. She can’t manage this place. She’ll ruin it before our grand opening.”

  “Trust me. She will not be here much longer. I have seen to that.”

  “Really? How?”

  “The how is not important.”

  “My brother has made some inroads with her lack of confidence and her disorganization. He thinks he can reform her.”

  “Your brother cannot change a leopard into spots.”

  “You mean change a leopard’s spots?”

  “Ya, that’s what I said.” Impatient, he rolled up the magazine and swatted a fly with a loud thwack. “Enough of this nonsense. I have work to do.” On that note Hans threw down the magazine, rose to his feet, and left the room as Carson entered. Bridget jumped up, ready to beat a quick escape.

  “I’ve been looking for you.”

  “It’ll have to wait. I’m busy.” Bridget attempted to skirt around him, but he blocked the door. She knew that look. She’d seen it many times in her life.

  “Busy making trouble? Sorry, that doesn’t qualify as busy in my book.”

  Bridget shrugged and rolled her eyes. Lecture time. Big brother was on the rag. “Make it quick.”

  “Sit. Now. And listen.” Carson pointed at the old worn chair she’d just vacated. Bridget slumped into it and pouted. She hated this.

  “I’m going to be late.” She sounded like a petulant child. She couldn’t help it. Carson brought that out in her.

  “For what? A massage?”

  She cringed. He knew her too well.

  “You interfered with my subs’ work today. You asked the roofers to quit what they were doing, unload your car and even wash it.”

  “I had a lot of stuff, and it was dirty.”

  “You didn’t have any problem putting that ‘stuff’ in the car when you bought it. Surely, you could have managed to get it out.”

  “What do they care? They’re still getting paid.”

  “My point exactly.
They’re on Cedrona’s payroll, not your personal payroll.”

  Bridget yawned. He could be so boring when he lectured. “Whatever.”

  “Bridget,” Carson sounded exasperated. “It’s time you grew up. Do you really think that Mommy and Daddy will be around the rest of your life to support you like the Princess of Wales?”

  “I have a trust fund.”

  “At the rate you’re spending money, it won’t last until you’re thirty.”

  “I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”

  “Fine, we won’t. Leave my subs alone. You need something from one of them; you go through me. No more talking directly to any worker on this farm.”

  “What if I don’t like how they’ve done something?”

  “Complain to me. I will not tolerate any more interference. The new facility is off-limits to you. If you want a tour, ask me.”

  “But it’s mine.”

  “Ask me.” His mouth formed a tight, thin line.

  “They forgot the cupola on the barn.” She sulked. It wasn’t fair. Big brother was ruining the ambiance of the place, and no one seemed to care but her.

  “I had it removed from the plans. It’s an unnecessary expense.”

  “It is not. It gives the barn class and character. Without it, the place looks like some old cow barn.”

  “Fine. Consider it a cow barn and stay out unless you want to be mistaken for a bovine.”

  Chapter 33—Misery Looks for Company

  Carson nursed a beer on the deck and stared down the hill. A light glowed in Sam’s apartment. It cast a warm glow through a dark night, unlike the coldness that seeped into his orange and avocado hell. He’d escaped to the deck to dull this outrageous assault to his good taste. Unfortunately, the ploy backfired because he couldn’t stop imagining what Sam was up to. It was times like this when Carson found himself questioning his priorities. He missed her. If only she felt the same. Shifting in his chair, he sighed. Ever since their argument a week ago, she stayed in her corner, and he stayed in his.

  It was better that way, yet he still felt miserable. He’d opened up to her when he knew better. He was such a gullible fool where women were concerned, a fact she’d been in a position to exploit to the fullest.