“Look at you,” Brooke calls, arms crossed as she watches me from against the gate. “Naturally hot and talented. I might start getting jealous.”
“Jealousy looks cute on you,” I toss back. “Adds to your whole tragic Southern debutante vibe.”
She flips me off over her shoulder, and I laugh—full, loud, and more at ease than I’ve felt in weeks.
Brooke grabs the reins and leads Josie and me out into the small field in front of the stables, bordered by a low wooden fence and dappled with moonlight. The grass glows silver, and everything feels soft and slowed down, like we’ve stepped into another version of the world where only we exist.
“Easy, girl,” Brooke murmurs, her voice gentle as she strokes Josie’s neck. “We’re just going on a little walk.”
Josie snorts quietly, flicking an ear back as if listening, then steps forward without hesitation, completely trusting.
Brooke glances up at me, hand still on the reins, eyes twinkling. “You ready?”
I shift in the saddle and smirk down at her. “As ready as I’ll ever be…but let me remind you I’m not much of a rider.”
She grins. “I’ll tell Landon to teach you. I’m sure, he’d love a spin.”
I’m sure he would, but I want a ride from you.
I roll my eyes at her, biting down a grin, and Brooke just smirks like she knows exactly what she’s doing. With a click of her tongue and a low whistle to Josie, she starts walking us into the moonlit field.
For a few minutes, I actuallyfeelit—that high, that freedom. Josie moves steady beneath me, her gait smooth and easy, and the saddle fits like it was made for me. The night air slips cool against my skin, and Brooke walks beside us, her hand brushing the reins, the other occasionally resting on Josie’s flank like she’s checking to see if I’m still breathing.
“Relax your grip,” she says softly, her voice like honey over gravel. “Let her lead a little. Don’t fight the rhythm—feel it.”
I do. I let my body fall into the movement, hips swaying gently with each step, spine straight, boots secure in the stirrups.
I circle the paddock once, then again, growing bolder, more fluid. Brooke eventually lets go of the reins and leans against the fence, arms crossed under the soft rise of her chest, eyes glinting beneath the moonlight.
Brooke lets a slow smirk crawl across her lips. “See?You’re anaturalrider,” she purrs, voice low and teasing. “Knew you had it in you.”
My heartbeat stutters. I want to say something cocky, something flirty, but all the blood in my body has apparently migrated south. I turn Josie for one more lap, confidence blooming?—
And then she freezes. All tension. Ears forward. Legs locked.
“Uh… Brooke?” I say, voice tight.
Brooke straightens fast. “Don’t panic. She’s just spooked. Keep your body loose—don’t grip too hard?—”
Before she can finish, there’s a rustle in the tree line. Maybe a fox, maybe a raccoon—whatever it is, it’s loud and sharp. Josie bucks. It’s not violent, just sudden—an instinctual bolt forward and sideways—but it’s enough. The reins slip through my hands. My balance tilts, and the next minute I hit the groundhard.
The ground knocks the air from my lungs, my head snapping against the dirt with a jarringthudthat makes the stars above me blur.
“Jasmine!”
I hear her before I see her—Brooke, feet pounding across the field, voice breaking with panic.
She drops to her knees beside me, hands already on my shoulders, cradling my head like something fragile.
“Hey—hey, baby, talk to me,” she whispers, brushing dust off my face with shaking fingers. “Look at me. Are you okay?”
I blink up at her. Her hair's come loose around her face, lips parted, eyes wide and wild.
And suddenly I can’t feel anything but her.
“And that,” I rasp, wincing slightly. “Is why I don’t ride.”
Brooke lets out a breathless laugh, part-relief, part-‘I’m-going-to-strangle-you’.
