“So what about you? What was non-life like? What did you want to be when you grew up?” Sabin asks me.
Darcy slows down to a walk, and I pat the side of his neck appreciatively.
“It probably sounds weird, but I never really thought about it when I was younger. I was quiet and skittish, and honestly just trying to stay out of Beth’s path as much as possible. We moved around a lot, so I never really got my feet underneath me.
“I had Laiken until she learned that things went better for her with Beth when she stayed away from me. That was pretty much how it went until Beth kicked me out. I met Talon a couple of weeks later, and then everything changed for me.”
“How’d you meet?”
I snort a chuckle. “I ran up on his car when I was trying to escape this group of guys who were chasing me. I had never been in a fight before that day, but I knew it was only a matter of time being homeless and a girl. I carried a rock around with me, ready for whenever it happened, and then I ran into this group of guys. They wanted my backpack and other things.
“I knocked two guys out and broke a third’s nose. I surprised the shit out of myself, but there were still four left. I had magic, even though I had no idea that’s what it was back then, but it was so inconsistent and unreliable. I knew I was in trouble with those odds, so I ran for my life. I thought I was fucked as the guys closed in on me, but next thing I know a big SUV was rounding the corner and out tumbled four big scary dudes.”
“Is that what that rock is on your shelf? I noticed it on the first day I met you. It made me curious,” Sabin asks.
“The very same one. My lucky rock. Talon taught me how to fight for real, so I’ve never had to use the rock again, but it’s a fucked up memento of when my life got better, so I’ve kept it.”
Sabin pulls on the rope in his hands and Darcy walks toward him. He stops, and Sabin rounds his side and looks up at me.
“I’m sorry that’s what things were like for you.”
I stare into his fathomless green eyes, not sure what to say.
“It wasn’t all bad. Talon showed me what I was capable of. I found myself. My strength and my magic did the rest. I wouldn’t change any of it, even if I could.”
33
We follow a narrow path through the trees riding side-by-side, and it feels intimate and secluded. Sabin seems so completely in his element out here. It’s surprising to see how relaxed and happy he is. Most of our interactions are tense or aggressive, and I’m not really sure what to do with this chatty comfortable version of Sabin.
“You’re a natural,” he tells me. “You picked everything up really fast.”
“Well you’re a good teacher, and there’s also the fact that if I see something, I can pretty much do it. My magic’s weird like that.”
He chuckles and leans over to lift some low hanging branches out of the way. I duck under Sabin’s outstretched arm, and my leg rubs up against his as Darcy and I pass by. It sends tingles and unwanted awareness throughout my body.
Sabin releases the branches that he’s holding back, and one snaps down and clips Darcy on the butt. Darcy rockets forward, and I squeak in surprise at the sudden acceleration. He thunders down the narrow path, all muscle and power, and trees shoot past me in a blur as I try to keep from falling off. Everything I just learned in the paddock rattles around in my head as I hold on for dear life.
Fuck, this horse is fast. I squeeze my thighs against Darcy’s sides and push up in the stirrups to crouch in the saddle. I have no idea if this is going to help or make it easier to fall off. But trying to keep my ass in the saddle or find any kind of sweet spot in the rhythm as Darcy runs for his life, just isn’t happening.
Out of nowhere Sabin and Bennet flash past. Sabin maneuvers Bennet in front of Darcy cutting off his open track to run. Bennet starts to slow to force Darcy to slow down too, and I pull back on his reins to assist the stop running message I’m hoping will sink in. It works, and Darcy gradually slows down and comes to a stop. Sabin whips around on Bennet and comes to a stop next to Darcy and me.
He pulls me off of Darcy’s back and into his lap. He starts running his eyes all over me and patting me down to make sure I’m okay. I breathe heavy as adrenaline-soaked blood flows through my veins. Now that I’m no longer at risk for falling off and getting injured, or possibly killed, I can’t fight the smile that takes over my face.
I start to laugh, and Sabin freezes his panicked assessment for injuries and looks down at me wide-eyed.
“Are you okay?” he asks me, cupping my face with his hands
“That was fucking crazy. Holy shit, he can move. Let’s do it again, and you can teach me how to manage at that speed, instead of just hanging on and hoping I don’t bite it.”
I giggle, and it’s ten percent hysterical and ninety percent amused excitement. Next thing I know Sabin’s mouth is on mine. His lips slowly and hesitantly caress my own, and he nips and nibbles coaxing me to respond to him. I hesitate for the slightest of seconds before I answer the question in his kiss.
I claim his mouth like he’s claiming mine, and heat and want shoot through me. He pulls me even closer to him; one hand around my waist and the other tangled in my hair, as he thoroughly and skillfully kisses me into oblivion.
For someone I was convinced didn’t like me, Sabin’s kiss is incredibly erotic and powerful. Every inch of me is on fire, and there isn’t a single thought in my head other than how to get more of him. Unexpectedly, a slightly wet and warm horse nose nudges against my hip, making me squeak in surprise and snap back into reality.
I push against Sabin’s hard chest, and he reluctantly lets me go. I jump out of his lap and off of Bennet’s back. My feet thump against the packed dirt of the narrow trail, and I pant as I look everywhere but at Sabin and his mind-blowing lips. I touch my sensitive mouth and look over to see that Darcy is just watching us.Perv.
“Figures Captain Cockblock would have a cockblock for a horse," I mutter not sure if I’m grateful or irritated with the interruption.
