“Mine and my wife, Sandra’s.” He gestures to another pair of rubber boots flopped over near me. “Those are hers, if you’d like to put them on and step inside.”
It takes a bit of balancing on my part, but I slide out of my sneakers and into Sandra’s sturdy mud boots, then I clomp across the hay and peek into Whiskers’s stall.
“He’s beautiful.”
“Sandra’s dream.” He reaches up to open the top gate of the two-tier stall door. Whiskers pokes his head out. “Loves them. She’s out right now riding Peony.”
I hold out my hand to Whiskers, his giant nostrils tickling the inside of my palm as he sniffs. His rich brown coat has a stunning glossy sheen that’s silky to the touch.
“Heard what’s happening up at that school of yours,” Gary continues. “I’m sorry, it’s such a monumental place.”
I swallow thickly. “My dad used to teach there. Years ago. And I spent most of my childhood here. We made a lot of great memories growing up.”
“It’s pure greed.” Gary pats the side of Whiskers’s neck. “If there’s anything we can do, you let us know.”
I listen to the methodic scrape of William’s rake and gentle swish of hay, my mind whirring.
“Actually,” I say, “there might be.”
By the time we exit the stable, Gary’s agreed to auction a day of horseback riding lessons for our gala. I promise to email him and Sandra a save-the-date this week, and he seems thrilled to attend.
“Been waiting to visit for the heck of it,” he says. “Love that you’ve gotten our little community involved. Makes us feel part of the greater cause.”
“Delaney’s been working hard on this initiative,” William says. “It’s most admirable.”
My belly swoops at his compliment.
“Hey,” Gary says, “you ever ridden before?”
“Oh no.” I step away. “I don’t—I wouldn’t be good at it.”
“Nonsense.” William’s giving me an odd look. “How would you know if you haven’t tried?”
“Excellent point.” Gary backs into the stable. “One ride. So you can say you’ve done it.”
“That’s not—” I try, but William slings an arm around my shoulder and navigates me toward the stall. My pulse thrums a slow lullaby at his touch.
I’m overwhelmed in every sense of the word. Gary secures Whiskers’s saddle while William offers me some direction with the reins. The next thing I know, I’ve slipped a foot into the stirrup while William helps hoist me onto Whiskers’s wide body, all while my heart thunders with nerves. I grip what Gary tells me is the horn in the front of the saddle, quickly realizing I’m much higher than expected.
“William’s gonna lead ya.” He tosses the lead rope into William’s outstretched hands. “Just around the premises. You’ll be fine.”
And I am. Mostly.
“You’re sure he’s not going to buck me off?” I ask William for the fifth time.
“Try to relax, won’t you?” He smiles up at me. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Whiskers’s trot isn’t any faster than the time I sprained my ankle in fifth grade and had to hobble around on crutches, but from this height, we might as well be traveling at the speed of light.
“Can we go slower?”
“Delaney, if we went any slower we would not be moving.”
I take a deep breath. “I’m not good at this.”
“You mentioned before.” William’s eyes land on mine. “However, from where I’m standing, you seem to be a halfway decent rider.”
“Only halfway?”
