Born In The Saddle - Quicksilver Stud - Book 1 (#wattys2016)

Chapter 11

Thankfully my aching muscles started to ease after those first couple of days. And within the first week they were completely ache free, growing stronger with every emptied wheelbarrow.

Amber and I quickly fell into a routine. We worked well in a partnership and things were running smoothly. I couldn't believe how time was flying, after those first two days had felt like a prison sentence.

Though I should have known better than to think it would last. When things are going that well something always crops up to ruin your plans. And today was that day.

There was nothing particularly special about today it was just 'one of those days'. Everybody has them. I should have realised I was in for one as soon as I got out of bed and straight away put a hole in my favourite stripy socks.

By lunchtime I'd broken the handle on two buckets, snapped a lead rope, trapped my hand between a door, been hauled off my feet by Jasper, a large shaggy Fell pony with a huge barrel for a belly. And, to top it all off, I'd spent five minutes with Fox to take the edge off and then promptly landed flat on my backside in a large patch of mud. Also, I'd chosen that day of all days to wear some light, beige jodhpurs and now they were splattered with muck and lord knows what else. The beige colouring was nearly invisible under a thick coating of brown dirt.

When I walked into the common room at four o'clock everybody just froze before bursting into laughter. I lifted my arms and gave them a twirl to get the full effect. Clay was in the middle of the room, leaning against the air hockey table. He was mid slurp of a cup of coffee and ended up spraying most of it at Dawn.

Things had really eased between my uncle and I. We still didn't have that much to say to each other, outside of yard stuff, but at least we'd found one thing we could chat about.

'Wow.' I heard a voice from over my shoulder, just as the laughter of the other three was starting to die down. I spun round to find Connor in the doorway, taking in my battered and muddied state. He raised his eyes and smiled sympathetically. 'Want me to hose you down?' He half offered, half teased.

'Hmm, it may come to that, yes.' I answered brightly, pulling at my soggy pale polo shirt to stop it from sticking to my skin.

Connor smiled warmly as he passed by and spoke to Clay. I headed to the little sink by the fridge and brushed a damp sponge across the bottom of my top where Fox had sneezed all over me.

'The Pony Club lot are here.' I heard Connor telling Clay.

'Right. Thanks.' He replied before heading out.

It was Friday evening and Clay was running a Pony Club Dressage Clinic. Amber had pre-warned me in case I'd wanted to make myself scarce. But I'd survived the rest of the week seeing strangers buzzing around the yard without having a nervous breakdown. I could handle another gathering of the Pony Club.

I'd quickly gotten used to strangers eyeing me from a distance and clearly talking about me. They weren't very subtle, but at least they had the decency to keep their distance. Not one of them had come over and said anything about my dad to my face. It was growing easier talking to my family and the others at the stable about him, but it wasn't something I was ready to discuss with a bunch of strangers.

I'd just finished putting up the last haynet ready for the ponies to come in from the field. I headed towards the common room to have a drink and sit down for five minutes which, meant passing right through the main yard near the arena. There didn't seem to be anything special about the herd of mothers and kids gathered by the fencing. The kids looked a little older than the ones I'd seen the other day but I didn't think anything of it. Well, until a couple of people moved away from the huddle and my eyes landed on someone I recognised.