Chapter 14

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Soundtrack

Skyscraper - Demi Lovato
As the smoke clears I awaken
And untangle you from me

Everything Has Changed - Taylor Swift
All I know is we said hello
So dust off your highest hopes
All I know is pouring rain
And everything has changed

***

Days turn into weeks, and I become a fixture at the Waters' ranch.

I spend every available moment with Alice, just grooming and tending to her leg at first. As she begins to heal, however, I start to lunge her around the round ring. Walking, mostly, but she's surprised me once or twice with an adorably bouncy trot.

I've also taken to walking her around the property on foot, letting her get used to the different stimuli on the trail. I find that while she, unlike Rhett, has no qualm with squirrels, she is not fond of plastic bags. Luckily, there are not too many of them around the ranch.

Squirrels, on the other hand, make their homes all over the property. I learned this the hard way, unfortunately.

A little over a week ago, Tilly and I went out on a trail- her on Amethyst, me on Rhett. We decided to gallop through one of the larger fields, when a squirrel ran up a tree in front of our path. Rhett promptly threw his legs out in different directions, and I flew over his shoulder. 

Luckily, I managed to get off with only a few bruises.

Aside from spending time with Alice, I've also been helping with barn work and getting acquainted with the ten horses who live here. Along with Alice, Rhett, Scarlett, Amethyst, and Galileo, I find myself becoming fond of Hercules, a buckskin yearling whose half Arabian and half mutt. Tyler tells me he was orphaned when his mother died in labor, and that his grandfather raised the foal.

Hercules reminds me of a large puppy in his behavior. Anytime I wander into the paddock, he'll trail closely behind me, nuzzling my pockets for treats. If I don't have any on me, he'll shamelessly beg to be pet.

When turned out with the herd, he seems to stick close to Lavender, Marilyn's black and white Rocky Mountain mare. I'm told she was once a broodmare, and still clings to her innate maternal instinct.

Paul's gelding, Nero, is a white Friesian, which up until now I thought did not exist. When I made the mistake of voicing this doubt, I was given a passionate history lesson by Paul. Luckily, I managed to hold Tilly and Tyler hostage during a rant I'm sure they've heard a thousand times.

Apparently, about a century ago, black Friesians were all the rage. As such, people employed the idea of selective breeding to achieve the beautiful onyx horses that equestrians love to gawk at today.

Along with being a living legend, Nero also seems to be involved in a delightful bromance with Fiddle, a bay Hackney horse with a bit of a kicking problem.

I've noticed that Levi is particularly fond of a doe-eyed, bay Paso Fino mare, appropriately named Bambi. He takes extra time in his grooming her, and picks her for a trail ride nine times out of ten.

Unfortunately, that isn't the only thing I've noticed about Levi.

His cocky attitude reminds me of someone I'd like to forget, and though I know it's just me projecting my feelings for Avery onto him, I can't help but gravitate towards him. Even this way he speaks sometimes takes me back to memories of summer and heartbreak.

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