Page 82 of Lost Trust

But not lowering the bar. Just helping them figure out how to reach it.

A smile pulls at my mouth. “I like that.”

Shelby grins. “Good. I knew if anyone would get it, you would.”

I look out across the arena again.

For the first time since I woke up this morning, the knot in my stomach loosens.

I can do this.

I can be exactly the kind of coach I always needed.

The barn smells like leather, hay, and horse sweat—the familiar combination settling something inside me, even as my nerves keep fluttering beneath my ribs.

I’m halfway through tightening the cinch on one of the academy’s barrel horses when I hear a low laugh from the other end of the barn.

I glance over.

And there’s Royce.

He’s sauntering through the barn beside one of the other female instructors. She’s hanging on every word he says, smiling up at him with the kind of interest that would be impossible to miss even if I weren’t watching.

He looks good.

Really good.

Flannel shirt, sleeves pushed up enough to show his forearms, worn leather chaps over his jeans, boots, hat pulled low.

There’s something about a cowboy in leather that has always been my particular weakness.

Apparently, that weakness hasn’t gone anywhere.

His scar catches my eye when he turns his head, the pale line cutting through his eyebrow. I hate that I notice it.

I hate even more that I like it.

He says something that makes the woman laugh again, then glances across the barn.

Straight at me.

His smile changes. “Excuse me for a second.” He leaves her standing beside the stall and crosses toward me. “Morning, Rina.”

The nickname lands somewhere low in my chest.

Rina.

I shouldn’t like it. But I do.

He called me that the first night we spent together, a fleeting moment, one that wasn’t supposed to mean anything to either of us.

Funny how two syllables can carry the weight of a memory with them.

“Good morning.”

His eyes drop to the horse, then back to me. “You ready for today?”

I tug the strap through the ring, pretending to be much more interested in the task than I am in the man.