Have you ever experienced a moment in your life when it felt like time stopped? Like the world around you was utterly still, everything had gone quiet, and it was just you in that moment. I couldn’t hear the noise of the crowd. I couldn’t even see them. All I could hear was the sound of Cash’s hooves pounding the ground and his steady breaths. All I could see was what was between his ears. Nothing else existed in that moment. It was just me and Cash together, moving as one, and breathing as one.
Coming down off the last jump, I felt like a switch was flipped, turning back on the deafening noise of the crowd. I knew we went clear, I rode my ass off, and Cash was with me the whole way, but what I didn’t know was what our time was, because Cash overjumped the hell out of one of the jumps, which caused us to miss one of the inside turns I had planned to do. I looked at the scoreboard, and it was like someonestole the breath from my lungs. My hand immediately went to my chest to compose myself. Despite that missed inside turn, I was currently sitting in second place behind Kent Miller. In what fucking world was that even possible? I shook my head in disbelief, but I couldn’t wipe the smile from my face as I made my way out of the ingate. The two VIP boxes, filled with my family and friends, still erupted with loud cheers.
Eli and Lacey were beside themselves as I made my way to them. They both hugged and patted Cash, spoiling him with peppermints. “That’s how it’s done, kid!” Eli was beaming with pride.
There were three more horses and riders left to go, one being Lyle Ward. I somehow managed to push Betsy Frasier down to third because my time was slightly faster than hers and she didn’t attempt one of the turns that I had. The next two horses had faults, leaving me in second place, and Eli, Lacey, and I just sat at the ingate in complete silence, watching as Lyle Ward made his way into the ring. Lyle was also extremely accomplished, ranked tenth in the world, and was known for taking daring and risky turns with his horses in jump-offs.
Lyle’s round was fun to watch. He did some turns that I wouldn’t dare try and ended up in second place, pushing me down to third for the final placing. I was completely dumbfounded. I came to this horse show not even expecting to place, let alone make it into the jump-off, and here I was participating in a victory gallop, tears streaming down my face, with some of the best in the world. I was determined to make a name for myself in this industry, and I felt like my time wasfinally here. I had arrived.
The walk back to the barn was surreal. Kent, Lyle, and Betsy all stopped me to congratulate me and tell me how impressive my ride was and how incredible Cash jumped. They all knew Eli and mentioned that they remembered me competing with him along the East Coast. Lyle said he was always jealous that Eli found the best riders. I was on cloud fucking nine. They all hoped to see me again competing in this arena, and I assured them that we were just getting started. Betsy took my contact information because she had a client moving to the Austin area and would recommend my farm to them. Kent and Lyle followed suit, wanting to have my information in case they had clients moving to Texas or if they were looking for horses. They also asked if I would catch-ride for them if we ended up at the same shows and they needed help. This could sometimes be a very lonely sport, so it was fantastic to see some of the top riders in the world wanting to create a sense of community and support each other.
As I was getting Cash settled back in his stall and loaded up on all the horse treats, I could hear what I could only describe as a small army making their way toward Cash’s and Dahlia’s stalls. I closed Cash’s stall door behind me as my own personal cheering section made their way over to me.
My mom was the first to step up and pull me into a hug. “We are so incredibly proud of you, sweetheart. You did it!”
Mydad put his arms around our shoulders, engulfing us in a giant hug. “I am so impressed by you,” he murmured into my hair. After my parents released me with tears in their eyes, each of my siblings hugged me, telling me how proud they were.
I looked at all of them in disbelief that each one of them was even standing here. “How did you all get here? I didn’t think any of you were going to be able to make it.”
Walker smiled and put his large hand on Dean’s shoulder and squeezed. “This guy right here. He flew every one of us in and somehow was able to get us two VIP boxes.”
I turned my attention to Dean. “Really? You did all of this?” I knew he did, but I wanted to hear him say it.
Dean shrugged as he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “I knew how important this show was for you, and I knew more than anything that you wanted your family there. So I made it happen.”
I shook my head in disbelief, and without even thinking twice or allowing my head to get in the way, I walked right up to him and wrapped my arms around his neck.Finally.He immediately wrapped his arms around my waist and held me close, his scent intoxicating. I missed this man so much. “Thank you,” I whispered to him, placing a soft kiss on his cheek before stepping out of the hug. I turned toward his parents. “Mr. and Mrs. Adler, it is so nice to see you again. Thank you for coming.” Both of his parents hugged me, telling me how impressed they were and how they would love to watch me compete again. I finished up the receiving line of hugs and congratulations with Archer, Harper, Jessica, and Heather.
Dean’s parents, along with Archer and Harper, headed out, as they were flying out late tonight. Jessica and Heather had a late dinner reservation to make, so they followed shortly behind them, leaving just my family, Dean, and me. I excused myself for a moment so I could finish cleaning my saddle and bridle.
Walker strode up to me as I was cleaning my bridle, placing a kiss on the top of my head. “Adds, you are such a badass. I’m so happy I got to see this one.”
I smiled up at him. “Me too. I can’t believe Dean got all of you here. That’s crazy.”
Walker chuckled. “The timing was perfect with my spring training schedule, and he insisted on flying the rest of the family out on his plane. He also knows one of the head doctors at the showgrounds here, so he was able to pull some strings for those boxes that he got us.”
I took a steadying breath. “I need to talk to him, without an audience. I have a lot that I want to say. Do you think I’m stupid to forgive him?”
Walker took a moment before he spoke. “No, I don’t think you’re stupid to forgive him. Dean is a good dude. He sat down with me, Weston, and Ava as well as Mom and Dad and laid everything out on the table. He came to your family, apologized to each one of us, and explained everything. He also asked us for our help to surprise you so he could do something for you that he knew would mean the world to you. He wanted to show you his support, prove it to you.” Walker put his hand on my shoulder and squeezed lightly. “He made some mistakes, Adds, but there is no question in my mind that he’s in love withyou.”
I nodded, and tears pricked my eyes as I tried to force the lump down that felt lodged in my throat before speaking. “I didn’t realize he did all of that,” I rasped out.
Walker smiled. “That’s why he’s here. So let him tell you.” Walker left me to finish cleaning my tack and went to join the conversation between the rest of the family and Dean.
I walked into the makeshift tack room to put away my saddle, and I could feel him before he even said anything. “That was a hell of a ride, James.” A smile tugged at the corners of my lips before I turned around to face him.
“Thanks, Adler. It really means a lot that you brought everyone here for me,” I started, nervously toying with the long braid draped over my shoulder.
He noticed and stepped closer, reaching out to take my nervous hands in his. I sucked in a sharp breath at the contact. I hadn’t felt the warmth and strength of his hands in weeks, and God, how I missed it. I took a deep, calming breath before looking up into his dark eyes. He pulled one hand away to brush the hair from my face that had fallen out of my braid, tucking it behind my ear. I felt like my heart was beating out of my chest.
“Will you come to my hotel room tonight so we can talk? There are some things I want to show you and talk to you about,” he said almost in a whisper, his eyes locked on mine.
I nodded. “Y-yeah. S-sure. There are some things I want to talk to you about too. Where are you staying?”
“The Four Seasons.” He started playing with the end of mybraid, making it hard for me to concentrate.
“Let me just make sure Lacey is all good, and I can be there in an hour or so if that works?” I said as I stepped back from him so I could get my bearings. Between him touching me and how insanely good he smelled, I needed some distance for my brain to work properly.
Dean nodded with a small smile, the corners of his mouth lifting. “I loved watching you at the top of your game, having a front seat to your dreams coming true. You were incredible tonight.” He reached out and squeezed my hand before he made his way back over to my family. I blew out a breath that I thought I had been holding the entire time during that exchange, and finished putting everything away.
