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“Not as good as it could be,” Lee said. “He’s holding back. Seems keyed up still.”
“I know,” Brooks said. “You and Nancy have been working your butts off lately. Why don’t y’all take a break? Go get some lunch, relax, and explore the place for a while. I’ll cool Another Round down, give him a bath, and get him settled.”
Lee hesitated but dismounted, then handed Brooks the reins. “I appreciate it.” He walked toward Nancy, then paused and glanced back at Brooks, his expression drawn. “I can’t tell you with any degree of confidence that he’ll shoot out of that gate on race day.”
Brooks held his gaze, recognizing the underlying fear lacing Lee’s tone. If Another Round wasn’t sturdy and confident on his feet at the gate, there would be a much higher chance of his making a mistake or panicking. Neither of those conditions was ideal on a racetrack packed with other powerful thoroughbreds jockeying for position. Brooks and Nancy had been able to see Another Round’s tension; clearly, Lee had been able to feel it during the ride.
“How much do you want this?” Lee walked back toward Brooks and lowered his voice. “It’s always a gamble putting a horse on a track, but I can tell you now that the odds are worse, given Another Round’s behavior lately. Is this win worth it to you?”
Now, holding Another Round’s reins, Brooks looked up and eyed the thoroughbred beside him, his gaze drifting over Another Round’s thick neck and muscular body, then returning to the horse’s soulful eyes. “Don’t rush through your lunch,” he said softly. “I’m going to spend some time with our winner here.”
Brooks walked Another Round across the grounds, stopping to give him water and allow him to cool down slowly. Afterward, he led Another Round back to the stables, removed his tack, and began washing him down.
The change in pace and scenery seemed to soothe the tension in the thoroughbred’s body. His ears and posture relaxed, his stance grew calm and confident, and he leaned into Brooks’s hands, searching for his touch and responding to his soft words of encouragement and praise.
“That feels good, doesn’t it, buddy?” Brooks sprayed cool water over Another Round’s back, washing away the pleasant-smelling soap he’d used to bathe the thoroughbred. “You were craving some downtime, weren’t you?”
Another Round ducked his head and nuzzled Brooks’s arm with his nose as if in agreement.
Smiling, Brooks moved farther along Another Round’s powerful frame, spraying the cold water over every inch of him until his coat was shiny and clean. “There.” He turned off the water and tossed the hose aside in exchange for a large, soft towel. “Now, I’ll dry you down, get you a good supper, and put you to bed for a few hours. How’s that sound?”
“Sounds like it’d be a better offer coming from a good-looking woman,” a familiar voice drawled from behind.
Brooks paused in midmotion and glanced over his shoulder.
Spencer stood a few feet away, his hands in his pockets and his eyes on Another Round, a surly grin on his face. “Don’t you have people for that, Brooks?”
“At times I prefer to roll up my sleeves and help out.” Brooks narrowed his eyes at the other man. “Not that I’d expect you to understand that.”
Spencer’s grin widened. “Yeah, I heard you lost over half your entourage. I haven’t seen Jo around lately. Lost another trainer, have you?”
Brooks faced Another Round again and resumed drying the thoroughbred, remaining silent. No doubt Spencer was already well aware of Jo’s departure and had decided to stop by to gloat.
“It’s unfortunate experiencing that kind of loss so close to a competition,” Spencer continued. “Not that you’ll have any trouble finding a trainer—or an entire new team—now that you’ve got a Derby win under your belt.”
“What is it you want, Spencer?”
The sound of footsteps drew closer as Spencer walked over and stood in front of Another Round, eyeing the horse. “I just came to wish you well. Isn’t that what a friendly competitor would do?”
“A respectful one, for sure,” Brooks said through clenched teeth. “But you’ve never been either of those things.”
Spencer shrugged. “I’m a businessman, first and foremost, Brooks. I don’t consider it my obligation to be friendly when doing business.”
“Or fair.” Brooks walked over to the other side of Another Round and began drying his neck with the towel. “You take more pride in stealing from people than you do in earning what you own.”
“I don’t steal.” Spencer’s tone hardened. “I simply take advantage of opportunities as they arise. As every effective businessman does.”
Brooks rubbed the towel more quickly over Another Round’s back. “There’s taking advantage of opportunities and then there’s exploiting other people’s weaknesses. You’ve always had a tendency to do the latter rather than the former.”
“It’s not my fault that some people don’t know when to stop.”
“Like my father?” Brooks stopped drying Another Round and glared over at Spencer. “You certainly exploited his weakness. Stole everything from him that he held dear.”
Spencer returned his stare for a few moments, then said, “I’m not a bad guy, Brooks. And no matter what you may think, I didn’t deliberately target your father.” He crossed his arms over his chest and tilted his head to the side. “I was only a few years older than you at the time. The business that transpired was mainly a deal between my father and yours. I was simply there to assist in the closing of it. There’s no need for you to carry a grudge against me.”
A mirthless chuckle rose from Brooks’s chest. “The past is too dirty for you to paint rosy, Spencer. Tell yourself whatever helps you sleep at night, but you and I both know the truth. You were as much an instigator back then as you are now. Just like you tried to be several months ago when you threatened Rhett and then Jo.” Another Round was dry now. Brooks tossed the towel aside and faced Spencer. “Problem is, you underestimated me and Jo.”
Spencer’s jaw clenched, but a stiff smile spread across his face. “That, I’ll concede. See how friendly a competitor I can be, Brooks?” He stepped closer, a more congenial tone entering his voice. “As a matter of fact, that’s one of the reasons I came to speak to you. I have a business proposition for you.”
