AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"You can't arrest him. He didn't do anything!" She said.
"Lee, that's enough. I'll go with the good officers and get this sorted," he said, and she stood there watching him in disbelief. His face was calm, but she could see the storm in his eyes. She immediately wanted to reach out to Hayden, but she knew that she wouldn't be able to. It was against the rules. She would just have to wait a day. Her heart was beating fast against her chest. She needed to do something.
Austin woke at the same time that Hayden did. He saw the smile on the man's face. Well aware of what was happening on the outside right about then.
He said nothing as he saddled his horse and mounted at about the same time that Hayden did then he started cantering away. This was going to be a marathon, and he was ready.
It started slow for Austin. He could feel the energy gathering in the man around him as the space narrowed into a bottleneck where they were all able to see themselves, each of them warming up to the speed. Austin could see Hayden and was satisfied that he had given the man a fighting chance. He had nothing left to give him now, and it was his turn to take.
He urged his horse to a gallop and that seemed to set off a fuse in the other men. Austin smiled. They didn't stand a chance.
They rode through the morning and Austin made sure he didn't tire himself or his horse. He stayed away from being in the first at the beginning and he just followed them until he felt that the ending was in sight. His back was already hurting and even the calluses on his inner thighs chafed again. That didn't matter to him. He whooped once and the horse started speeding. He blew past the man in third place, and he saw that Hayden had gone past the man in first. He smiled to himself. He wouldn't have had it any other way.
The horses pounded across the earth and a sea of dust rose but that didn't mean anything to Austin who had a small smile on his face as he slowly gained on the man in second place and surpassed him. He soon drew up to Hayden who looked at him and urged his horse even more, but Hayden had not calculated the strength of his horse well, setting the animal at a torturous pace in second place. It was tiring. Austin continued gaining on him then started surpassing him. He saw the brief flash of panic on Hayden's face that soon faded and gave way to quiet resignation. Austin nodded inwardly. He could respect that.
He crossed the finish line to the cheers of thousands of people, slowing his horse to a canter again and letting their admiration and praise wash over him. He sat there and waited, the sweat on his back and face.
It didn't take long for his helpers to come to him then he got off the horse and started walking with them. He didn't stop to say anything to Hayden. He had enough problems to deal with already.
"You won," Nicole said, walking up to him. He looked at her and then smiled, feeling his heart lighten.
"Tell me you watched the ending race," he said.
"It was good," she said.
"I feel insulted," he replied.
"What do you mean you feel insulted?" She asked him, and he shook his head.
"I give you a stellar performance. Unparalleled in the history of hires racing and you tell me that it is what? Good? The correct answer is that you have never seen such a thing in your life, and you consider yourself most privileged to have been born at a time when such a thing was around to be witnessed because you might never have seen what it’s like again," he said.
"I see that not bathing for three days has done nothing to caulk your tongue," she said.
"If anything, it has only sharpened it. I shall find food and bathe now, not because my scent offends me but because it isn't something mere mortals should perceive freely, wasted upon you," he said and started walking. He felt her eyes on him for a while before she followed. He smiled.
†
Austin ignored the call thrice, and he knew that Nicole had gone to the hotel, but he didn't much care. He just sat there in the restaurant and stared at the glass of water. This was just the beginning, and it was already proving to be too hard.
"Ah, I thought by the time I'd arrived you'd have done something that would put you in prison," Nicole said from behind him. He turned to see her standing there in a red, turtleneck, sleeveless gown and his breath caught in his throat.He kept his features masked, but when he looked at her face, he knew that she realized he was admiring her. He stood.
"Glad you could make it. Then again, if you didn't then I would have made some ruckus to draw your attention. You look lovely," he said and walked her to her chair then pulled it back for her to sit, then he walked to his and sat down.
"That chair looks like it belongs to a child when you sit on it," she said. Austin shrugged.
"Almost every chair except the ridiculously oversized feels that way. I am glad you came, really. I had started enjoying eating alone but…your company is always welcome," he said.
He noticed that she was looking at him with slightly narrowed eyes then she shrugged. They made their orders when the waiter came, and Austin realized he was nervous. This wasn't even an official date.
"There's something I've been meaning to ask," she said as the food was served. He looked at her and raised an eyebrow.
"Are you still in contact with your brothers?" She asked. He nodded.
"Yes, the last time I met them was during the time of my father's burial," He said.
"Then how come none of them came to see you?" She asked. He thought about that for a while and shrugged.
"I didn't tell them. Must have forgotten," he said.
