The horn sounds again and the riders are back on the field.
“Does it happen often?” I ask, a little knot of worry forming in my belly. I hadn’t really thought about it as I haven’t seen anyone get hurt.
“Yes,” he says bluntly, and my stomach bottoms out. “It’s one of the most dangerous sports. I’ve broken my left leg twice, and my right ankle, my left arm once, dislocated my shoulder five times, and had a concussion at least three times.”
I stare at him to see if he’s joking, but he looks deadly serious.
“Why do you play, then?” I’m appalled at the injury record.
“Why does anyone play a sport?” He shrugs. “For the skill, the adrenaline, to be the best. No one ever thinks that they might get hurt. If we did, we wouldn’t be able to play.”
I turn back to the match. It’s still thrilling, and I think about his words. It’s true of all sports to an extent. I get caught up in the game again, and as the horn sounds again, Gabriel scores a goal ending the first half. The riders talk and swap horses before they start the third chukker. This time the opposing team starts aggressively, Gabriel’s team fights back but the score is equalised.
As they start the final chukker, I find myself shouting encouragement along with the rest of the crowd. Learning a few more points from Austin, I find I can follow the game better. Gabriel takes control of the ball, and Linden is in a defensive position. Gabriel passes to Andrés, and he takes a long shot at the goal and misses. There’s a penalty throw-in, and the teamsbattle for control again. Linden blocks the other team from scoring. When that happens I hear Austin laugh, and I look down to see that I’d gripped hold of his arm.
“Exciting, isn’t it?” He grins at me. I don’t have time to answer as Gabriel has the ball again. I can see Andrés is in a free space and I shout as I see the ball flying towards him. He sets off, Chispa galloping as he makes it to the ball, and he takes it with him, the other team hard on his heels. I see he’s just about to be bumped when he shoots. I don’t breathe as I see the ball sail through the air and straight between the goal posts. There’s a minute left of play, but neither team manage to get the ball near the posts, and then the horn sounds—only once in the final chukker, Austin explains. It’s over. They’ve won.
I race towards them as they ride off the field, Andrés slipping off Chispa as Jorge takes hold of her. I’m drawn into a group hug, squashed between Andrés, Gabriel, and Linden. Eventually I’m released, and lots of players and other people come over to congratulate them. I pull Andrés to one side.
“Congratulations,” I say and he beams at me.
“You brought me luck,” he says.
“You played amazing. I’ve never seen anything like it.” I haven’t, I’ve never watched polo before, and I want to see more. I’d like to see it played on grass for sure. I laugh at myself, caught up in the giddiness of his win. Then I remember I was only supposed to be on a break. Shit. “Look, I’ve got to get back to work,” I say quickly.
“Thank you for coming,” he says and then leans in close, his warm voice in my ear whispering a promise. “I can’t wait to celebrate with you later.”
His words carry me all the way back to the resort and to the kitchen. It’s only when I go to put my apron on again that I realise I still have his coat on.
What more can one more night hurt, I say to myself as I prepare for the evening shift, ignoring my morning resolve, which has been well and truly shattered. I might as well enjoy one more night. Especially as I’m still buzzing from their win. With renewed energy I set the staff onto putting the final touches to the after-party dishes, agreeing with Conal that he’ll deal with the usual restaurant meals. We have all the available staff working and the kitchen is crowded. So far no one’s dropped anything, but it’s still early yet. By seven I have everything ready to perfection and the servers are poised to take everything out. Angie has reprinted the small menu cards with the amended dishes, and they’ve been set out on the table. At least it’s a buffet and not silver service tonight, so it’s easier. At five past I give the instruction for the food to go out. It all goes off without a hitch. I bring out one of the dishes myself, just so I can be nosy. Everyone is dressed in their finest, men in suits and women in glittery dresses, then I remember that polo is as much a social occasion as it is a sport. I glance around, trying not to make it too obvious I’m looking for Andrés. I can see Gabriel and Linden but no sign of him. I can’t stand there staring so I return to the kitchen; he’s probably talking to someone, or at the bar. We keep the dishes stocked, replenishing them as they empty, and I manage to get out of the kitchen a few more times but still don’t catch sight of Andrés. I try not to worry, telling myself he’ll be busy and this isn’t for us. Our time will come later. The party continues and I hear the sound of speeches. Everyone seemsto have eaten what they wanted, so we start to clear away and tidy up, though the guests will probably continue drinking and dancing for several more hours. I set the staff to washing and making sure the kitchen is cleaned and head out to the party to make sure everything is properly put away. It’s getting late and the crowd is starting to thin a little. I still can’t see any sign of Andrés. Worry forming, I approach Gabriel. I feel out of place in my chef’s whites, and if Angie saw me I know I’d be in trouble, but I can’t help it. I half expect Gabriel to dismiss me, as if he’s never seen me before, not wanting to be seen with a member of the staff in front of his posh friends. But he doesn’t, and he greets me warmly.
“Um, I wondered if you knew where Andrés was?” I ask.
“He didn’t come tonight. He’s out in the barn. One of his horses is sick,” Gabriel explains and my heart flies to my mouth.
“Will they be okay?”
“She’s getting the best care,” he says, which tells me nothing.
I return to the kitchen feeling a little more settled as to why I haven’t spotted him. I hate that his horse is sick, though, and I can’t help the rising worry that it’s Chispa. I pace the kitchen feeling restless and powerless to do anything. Then I remember, there is something I can do. As the rest of the kitchen staff are dismissed, I take out everything I need and get to work. Within fifteen minutes I’m ready, and I put on Andrés’ coat and head out to the barn. When I get there I walk along the line of stalls. My heart sinks when I see that Chispa’s stall is empty and I can’t see Andrés anywhere.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
ANDRÉS
I straighten Chispa’s rugs, checking she’s warm enough, but not too warm. She sighs a little.
“I know, girl, but you’ll feel better soon,” I murmur to her. She’s over the worst and now just needs monitoring, but the panic that came over me when I was told she had colic is still fresh in my mind. It’s not uncommon, but can be fatal if not dealt with quickly. The frantic dash for the barn, shouting for someone to call the vet. When I reached her, Jorge was trying to back her out of the stall. She was trying to lie down so she could roll, and in such a narrow space she’d have got stuck and would’ve ended up injured as well. With the help of Kit, Linden’s groom, it took three of us to get her out, then we made sure she kept moving and didn’t lie down until the vet arrived. It’s been a tense few hours, but her stomach has settled now and she’s no longer desperate to relieve the pain by rolling, which is where the danger is.
We’ve moved her into a larger enclosed stall at the end of the barn where she can rest properly, and now it’s been a couple of hours since she last had a spasm, I can offer her some food. So I mix some warm water in with some grass pellets to soften them for her. I’ve sent Jorge to bed for the night. I know it was his mistake that caused it, but I can’t stand his mournful, sorry face right now. I get to her stall, about to unbolt the door, when I hear a noise from down the barn. I glance at the source and see someone near my horses, they’re looking around frantically.
“Simon?” I call and he spins round, his eyes wide. Shit! I forgot to let him know what had happened. I didn’t give a thought to anything except Chispa. He’s probably mad at me, but the horses are always my priority. I’m not going to change that, ever.
“There you are!” he says walking towards me, and I go to meet him halfway. As he gets closer I don’t see anger, I see concern and worry. “For a moment I thought... Well, I don’t know what I thought when I couldn’t see Chispa. Is she alright? When Gabriel said one of your horses was sick, I...” His voice trails off and he swallows, then he looks at me and repeats in a frightened whisper, “Is she alright?”
My heart catches on his look and his question. He hasn’t rushed out here to tell me off for not meeting with him, his first thought is for my horse, and the rush of warmth that floods through my body makes me dizzy. He’s still gazing at me with a stricken look and I realise I haven’t answered him.
“She will be.”
