He started down another sandy path, but Oliver hesitated. “No, it’s got to be that way.”
Garrett turned back.
“It feels like we’re standing inside a cloud,” Joanna said.
Aside from the steady roar of the ocean all around them, there was no frame of reference, until the sound of thumping hooves and a few snorts and nickers caused them all to turn in the same direction.
Four horses materialized out of the mist—a bay mare, a young buckskin, a shaggy colt, and an enormous black stallion bringing up the rear.
Garrett spread his arms wide and swept Joanna and Oliver behind him. “Watch out, guys. Back up. Let’s clear the path.”
They stumbled into a patch of low-lying bayberry bushes to give the horses the right of way, but the band drew to a halt. The mare tossed her head and walked toward them, forcing them to continue backing up.
“I think she wants to say hello,” Joanna said, because she was no stranger to horses. She had a good sense of their moods and behaviors.
“Just remember not to touch them,” Garrett reminded her.
The young male approached, and Joanna put her hands behind her back. He sniffed her chest, then nuzzled her arm and shoulder and sniffed her ear. His hot breath tickled her neck, and she couldn’t help but softly laugh. “Hello, there. It’s nice to meet you.”
The colt approached and did the same to her other ear, while the stallion seemed unconcerned. He bent his long neck to feed on some beach pea.
“This is something else,” Garrett said. “I’ve never seen this happen before.”
“She’s always had a way with horses,” her grandfather said. “Must be her kind heart. They recognize it.”
The young male nuzzled her cheek, and she scrunched up her face, smiling as she squeezed her eyes shut. “You flirt. We hardly know each other.”
Then she opened her eyes and looked deeply into his. They each stood calmly, staring at each other on the misty heath.
Joanna found herself awash in a sense of inner calm and a feeling of connection to the earth beneath her feet, the air coursing into her lungs, the blood rushing through her veins, and the continuous pulsing of all her organs. She wanted so badly to touch this particular horse, to stroke his face and neck, to speak soft tones, whisper in his ear. But that would be breaking a law, so she resisted.
The mare nickered and started walking again. The young male hesitated before he finally turned and followed. Within seconds, they all vanished like phantoms into the fog, but Joanna could still hear the soft thumping of their hooves on the sand.
“Blimey,” she said, her heart racing. “That was closer than twenty meters.”
“I won’t tell if you won’t,” Garrett said, staring at her with fascination. She sensed that his heart was beating fast as well. “That was amazing.”
“It sure was. I’m never going to forget it. Not as long as I live.”
“Me neither.”
They were smiling at each other, and in that moment, Joanna wasn’t sure if she was still spellbound by her encounter with the horse or the man before her now. Both, she supposed. It was all part of the same experience, the same special magic.
“Let’s follow them,” her grandfather suggested, and she had to shake herself back to reality.
Garrett turned to him. “What makes you think they’re heading to the rose garden?”
“Nothing,” he replied. “But their way is as good as any.”
Garrett locked eyes with Joanna, and they shared a look of agreement.
“Works for me,” he said.
“Me too,” she replied, and felt her attraction to him growing.
They started walking on the same path the horses had chosen, and walked for about five minutes before they came upon a small concrete slab.
“This is it,” Garrett said.
