“Listen, I need to get dressed and ready for the day. I’ll see you downstairs in forty minutes, just as we planned.”
“Sure. Yes, of course. You’ve got this, Wren. Jumping is your strength. Wrax has that power, and I think you two can take this all the way.”
I often wondered if Coach Sharky was aware of how much stress his pep talks caused me?
He was a fabulous coach in many ways. His training could hold up to any program anywhere. But the mental side of this sport was huge. And I liked to get myself in the zone by meditating and relaxing and not focusing on anyone else. I liked to tune out the noise and just ride.
I didn’t need someone calculating scores and predicting the future. Anything could happen in this sport on any given day.
Accidents happened.
Mistakes happened.
And amazing things happened as well.
I ended the call and sighed. “I’m sorry. He can be a lot sometimes. But it irritates me more when he makes comments like that. As if you being here isn’t what turned everything around for me. I’m even feeling physically better now that you’re here.”
“Yeah?” He ran his fingertips along my shoulder. “That’s a good thing. And don’t worry about Coach Sharky. He doesn’t bother me. I think he’s a little threatened by me, and that’s something he’ll have to work through because I’m not going anywhere.”
“I think he’s threatened by you, too.” I moved out of bed, and he followed.
We quickly got dressed, me in my riding gear, and Axel in a pair of jeans and a tee.
I had so much to talk to him about when this was over.
The last few days had brought me a lot of clarity.
But right now I was in the middle of one of the biggest competitions of my career, and I needed to keep my head on straight.
The final phase of the Hampton Classic had proven a bit disastrous for many athletes. The rain had caused a lot of trouble for the riders and the horses. The terrain was wet and slippery, and conditions would only get worse as the day went on. I was going last today. I’d stayed in the stable with Wrax and Axel the last hour, since watching people slip and fall was not good for my mental game.
I sat with Axel and listened to music, and we walked Wrax around a bit. Axel went and got us some lunch, and we found a quiet place to eat on our own.
Coach Sharky was watching each athlete and sending updates, but I’d turned off my phone, as I wanted to focus on my event.
Not anyone else’s.
“Okay, baby, it’s time.” Axel handed me a bottle of water, and I took a sip before handing him my backpack.
“You should stay in here. It’s raining out there.”
He laughed. “I go where you go, Wren. Rain. Hail. Snow. Tornado.”
“Tornado, huh?” I wrapped my arms around him one more time.
“Abso-fucking-lutely.”
“All right. I’ll see you after.” I gave him a kiss before climbing on Wrax. I waved at him as I turned to leave the barn.
We made our way to where the athletes waited before going out into the ring. Coach Sharky was there, and he hurried over to me. “Jacques missed one jump. It’s really muddy. If you stay to the right of each jump, it’s a little less sludgy. Everyone is leaning left, so there’s been a lot of foot traffic on that side.”
I nodded. “Stop worrying. We’ve got this.”
Because we did. Whatever today brought—we were going to be fine.
I leaned down and hugged Wrax around his neck. “It’s me and you, always.”
And when my name was called, I was at complete peace. I wanted to savor this moment.
