Heart over jumps.

Jealousy.

Hunter and Blake went inside, we put Whisper and Champ into a smallish pasture and let the other horses in with them. Whisper happily greeted them as he had shared a paddock with the horses before, Champ was a bit more withdrawn at first but still greeted each horse, they crowded around to suss him out but there was no drama. "Well looks as though he's going to fit right in" I smiled, relieved.
"Seems like they get along fine already" Trent nodded. We sat on the fence in silence watching the horses run as a herd around the paddock, bucking around and having a ball. "So what's going on with you and Hunter?" Trent asked out of nowhere.
"W-What do you mean?" I played dumb, of course he'd be able to tell something was up, it was his specialty.
"There's something going on with you two, I can't tell if it's good or bad. Did you have an argument?" He questioned.
"I have no clue, maybe I don't know. It's complicated" No use in denying it.
"Come on Eden, something is up. Tell me please" He begged.
I gave a big sigh and rolled my eyes "We kissed".
"You did! Aww that's so cute!" He clapped his hands and I gave a slight smile at his reaction "What's wrong? This is a good thing, I can tell you like him so why are you upset?"
I shrugged "I don't know, we were so into each other all weekend, we would hug and kiss. It was nice, more than that, it was perfect. But he's totally cooled towards me since you got home. He was clearly just bored and I was the only one around, you know how he is. I made a mistake in thinking it could have meant more" I shrugged.
"I should kick his ass" Trent said and pounded his fist into his hand.
"Please don't, let's not tell anyone about it OK? It'll just cause drama" I shook my head.
"Alright, I promise... But you guys didn't have sex or anything right?"
"No, it didn't get that far. Thankfully we didn't even come close to intercourse" I replied.

"Food is ready!" Hunter called out.
Trent and I jumped down from the fence and went to join them out on the lawn where we had an outdoor dining set. We ate in silence apart for Blake noting how well Champ had settled in already.
After eating we got Rusty, Merlo, Whisper and Champ and tacked them up. Though Champ had come with his eventing tack I didn't really want to use that on the trails so I tried one of Bandits stock saddles on him and it fit well so I took him to the round yard so he could adjust to the new saddle, it may not seem like much but a new type of saddle could make a horse uneasy and since Champ was still new to me I didn't know what he may be sensitive to. After 5 minutes of lunging I was certain that the saddle hadn't phased him in the slightest, not even when I mounted.
The guys mounted up and we set out on our trail we chose a trail that included a river crossing and the choice of jumping some logs. I jumped Champ over all the obstacles we came across and he went through the river after the other horses without an issue.
We spent a good 3 hours out on the trails and gave the horses a nice cool off at home before headed into town to have lunch at a pub bistro. Although it was only lunch time the bar was already full of guys drinking we sat down at a table and ordered our meals.
The entire time we were eating I couldn't help but notice Hunter flirting across the room with a pretty bartender who had pink hair and tattoos, even I had to admit she was attractive.

As soon as he had finished eating Hunter stood up "Excuse me while I have a drink" He winked and headed to the bar.
I gave a groan and Trent shot me an understanding look before mumbling "Jerk" under his breath.
I watched as the bartender and Hunter began to flirt and laugh, she twirled her long pastel hair and gave a flirtatious smile. I had to look away as jealously bloomed inside of me to a point I began to feel ill. I was such an idiot to even think he'd ever be into me. Especially since he could effortlessly capture the undivided attention of girls ten times more attractive than I would ever be.
It took all of ten minutes for him to return to our table "Success" He announced as he places a cardboard coaster on the table on display like a trophy. Written on it was a phone number and the girls name 'Briana Steele'.
My jealousy erupted to a point that it was making me nauseous now I stood up "I need some air, I think I'm going to walk home" I said. All three of them looked at me and Trent gave a small nod. I pushed away from the table and noticed the worry on Blake's face until Trent signaled I was OK. At least no one was going to stop me.
I got to the door and felt someone grab my shoulder I turned to face Hunter. "I'll come, I'm finished here" He said.

I really didn't want to be around him right now. I shook his hand off and glared at me "If you flirt with Briana some more maybe she'll sleep with you tonight". If my tone didn't work the content of my comment certainly did. Why would I say something so stupid?
Once I reached the outskirts of town I began to jog, though I had never been very athletic on ground running would usually help to clear my head. But nothing compared to a good ride, especially on Bandit. So as soon as I got home I got Bandit and mounted him with nothing but a lead rope around his neck. I always felt more free and connected to Bandit with the less tack we used, Bandit loved it too. As we galloped down a trail I focused on his flowing mane and the drumming of his hooves to sooth me. Once I was completely at ease I slowed him and continued to ride until we got to a nice green meadow and I dismounted.
I walked to his head and faced him "You're the only boy I can depend on" I whispered and hugged his neck. He put his head over my shoulder and used it to pull me close. I pressed my face into his mane and the smell of horse filled my senses. As long as I owned horses I will never have a need for a therapist. Everything about people soothed my soul.
I laid on the ground and let Bandit graze around as I watched the clouds, I wanted to stay there forever, away from everything. I drifted off for a little while and woke up to Bandit nuzzling me. "OK" I laughed as I stood and patted him "Let's go home". I mounted and set off for home at a leisurely trot and then a canter.
There was a strange car in our driveway it was a grey four wheeled drive, I realised I had seen it earlier at the pub. It could only belong to Briana I thought to myself. I took Bandit to the stable and cooled him down then spent a good half hour grooming him though he was already spotless. I couldn't avoid this forever so I turned Bandit out with the other horses before going inside.