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Damn, he smelled good. Like hay, and the outdoors, and an underlying hint of fresh citrus swirled in with all kinds of male goodness.
“Sorry.” His hands grasped her shoulders to set her back a step.
She flicked her gaze up and just as quickly dropped it again while turning back to Fire. Those green eyes of his were way too damn pretty in the morning sunlight.
“I had it, but, yeah, whatever.” His chest brushed against her shoulder as he bent to offer his interlocked hands for her boot. Two seconds later, she was in the saddle and looking down at him as she gathered the reins with shaky hands. “Thanks.”
“Yep.” He patted Fire’s neck and headed for the arena fence.
Raine blew out a silent sigh, her stomach tightening at the thought of him watching them practice. Then she got a good look inside the arena and her annoyance spiked as she squeezed her knees to signal Fire forward. All the rails were on the ground. Not a single jump was set up with even an inch of air between the rail and the dirt.
“What is this?” she demanded once she’d ridden through the open gate.
“Back to basics,” Reyes replied.
“This is ridiculous. I’m not some ten-year-old beginner.” She twisted in her seat to glare at him as he joined her inside the arena. Then she swept her furious gaze toward the barn, and the driveway beyond. “And why is it I’m not supposed to be late, but this guy—or woman?—isn’t even here yet?”
“Who says he isn’t here yet?”
The fake innocent tone of his voice instantly stiffened her spine. The tension in her body sent Fire dancing sideways, and she spun him in a circle to settle him down before finally looking at Reyes. Amusement in his sunlit gaze made her stomach drop out from under her.
“You?”
He offered a slight smile with an affirmative tilt of his head. “Me.”
“Why didn’t you just say so last night?”
“And miss this fun?”
She suppressed the urge to scream, but still tossed out, “Asshole,” before urging Fire into a trot around the outdoor arena. She needed a few rounds to cool off. Reyes didn’t say a word as she passed the first time. Nor the second.
Smart man.
By the time he’d climbed the fence on her third round and perched on the top rail to watch, she’d managed to get her aggravation under control.
“Run the course,” he instructed as she and Fire approached. “Mix it up, but take it easy. I want to get a feel for your rhythm.”
“Our rhythm is fine,” she retorted.
Still, she grit her teeth and did as he said. Three times through, during which he stayed silent. Her annoyance flared yet again. It was one thing to let her cool off, and Lord knew she didn’t want to talk to the guy, but if he was supposed to be training her, he was going to have to say something at some point.
Finally, she rode over to the fence and planted Fire directly in front of him. “What exactly are your qualifications?”
He sat balanced on the top rail, hands braced on either side of him, the sun adding blond highlights to his brown hair. “I did some jumping back in high school.”
When he didn’t add more, she tilted her head in disbelief. “Are you serious right now?”
He smiled while sitting up straighter. “I did jump some in high school, though nowhere near your level. However, I have been training horses with my dad since I was fourteen. I took a six year break while in the military, but after coming home almost two years ago, I’ve been working solo.”
Raine snorted. “With what, the few horses my aunt keeps here now?”
“You do know Janine rescues horses, right? Most of them off-the-track-thoroughbreds?”
“Of course.” Her dad wrote a check every year to contribute to his sister-in-law’s non-profit.
“Well, then you should know, she doesn’t keep them all. We celebrated a hundred and fifty rehomed last month.”
She had not known that, but she should’ve. It was an extremely impressive number.
