Nina shouldn’t have noticed the span of his broad shoulders or the way his shirt contoured to muscles well used to physical labour. She shouldn’t have noticed his gentle blue eyes, or the laugh lines around them. But she did. And she begrudgingly acknowledged that Markus might have something for his shoot.
Maverick kept his tone even when he continued. ‘Horses can also hear human heartbeats within four feet of them. So, if your heart was racing and you approached her straight on, she wouldn’t have thought you just wanted to say hello. She would have thought “Danger!” and reacted appropriately.’
Nina took stock of her heart, still beating frantically, and then moved back several steps, putting herself well over four feet away from the horse. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘Don’t be. She needs to learn that she’s safe; otherwise, she won’t be rideable. And she won’t find a home. The only way she’s going to learn is by exposure. Ordesensitizationas we call it in the horse world.’ On the other side of the barn, the Morgans moved closer, and Maverick lowered his voice just for her. ‘I’m not telling you all this to make you feel guilty. I’m telling you so that you understand she’s having a very normal response. She only needs to work through it.’
Nina glanced at the horse, noticed that she had already stopped pacing. Now, she stood stock-still, her ears twitching, her eyes focused on Maverick’s back. ‘She seems calmer.’
‘Yeah.’ Maverick tipped his head in the horse’s direction. ‘Wanna come try again?’
Nina hesitated. She didn’t want to cause any more harm than she already had …
Maverick saw her hesitation. ‘I wouldn’t offer if I thought either of you couldn’t handle it.’
Nina didn’t move, but she did ask, ‘What do I do?’
‘Take a huge breath in, hold it in your lungs for two seconds, and then exhale it loudly.’ He demonstrated, filling his lungs with a big breath and then releasing it slowly.
Nina’s skin prickled as the Morgans’ attention fixed on her. She looked for Markus, hoping he’d intercede, but he was distracted, taking photos of a horse further down. Seeing no way out, she took a deep breath, quietly asked, ‘Is this where you make fun of the city slicker?’
‘No, ma’am.’ When he grinned, Nina felt a tiny responding nudge low in her stomach. ‘We save the line dancing for that.’
When she still hesitated, Maverick didn’t push, only waited quietly.
It was Nina who took the first breath. She inhaled deeply, held it, and then exhaled in one huge whoosh.
‘Good. Keep doing that.’
She breathed five more times before Maverick waved her forward, and when she took a tentative step, he said, ‘Don’t be so cautious. She’ll think she has something to worry about. Just do everything normally. As if you were talking to a friend or working on a film.’
Nina approached more confidently, though it was a lie. An act. She felt unsure and anxious, even a little scared.
‘Keep breathing.’
She exhaled the breath she had been holding in another loud whoosh. Inhaled again as she touched the stall door.
Maverick slid the lock out and slipped inside. ‘You ever meet Margot Robbie?’
‘No. Why? Is she good with horses?’
‘No idea.’ He shrugged. ‘I just watchedBarbiewith my daughter the other day, and my sister told me the actress was Margot Robbie.’
‘You didn’t know who Margot Robbie was?’
‘I do now – keep breathing.’
‘What are we doing here exactly?’ she asked, but she did as she was told.
‘Talking. Breathing.’
Nina took another pointedly exaggerated breath in and released it.
Only this time, the horse behind her did the same thing. Nina heard it – the long exhalation, almost a sigh. ‘Did you hear that?’
Maverick grinned. ‘How’s that heart of yours?’
Nina focused on her heartbeat, realized that he had completely distracted her from her anxiety. ‘Huh.’
