Page 95 of Reckless Skye

‘You nervous?’

She was sick to the stomach, her anxiety swirling unchecked. But she leaned against the side of the trailer, said, ‘Nope. Just another day in paradise.’

‘Liar.’ TJ poked his head back out. ‘We have an hour before you have to warm up. Let’s walk the horses for a bit, give Smokey some controlled movement, and check her dressing. There’s no point in stalling her until after you run.’

‘Yeah.’ Skye stepped into the trailer. She belatedly saw TJ’s roping saddle, hanging on the top saddle rack and kicked herself for not hiding it in the trailer’s luggage compartment.

‘You kept it?’ TJ asked.

Skye tried to act nonchalant. ‘It was a gift.’

‘And the cactus?’

‘I wasn’t going to take my anger at you out on Bob.’ Skye cocked one hip.

‘Bob?’ TJ queried.

‘Bob. And I actually needed the saddle.’

‘Where’s the other one I sent you?’

A chill ran down Skye’s spine. ‘What?’ she said very quietly.

TJ looked over his shoulder at her.

Skye raised both hands to her face as horror filled her. ‘Please don’t tell me you sent me a custom barrel saddle a few months ago? Black seat, tan basket-weaved leather, Skye Marchant engraved on the fender?’

TJ shrugged. ‘I heard your name making the rounds, figured you might need a pro saddle.’

‘Oh my God.’

TJ frowned. ‘Jesus, what’s wrong?’

‘TJ … I thought it was from Holden. I burned it.’

‘You what?’

Their eyes held for a long moment.

The silence stretched.

Then TJ started laughing, first in stuttered chuckles, and then in big, deep belly laughs.

Skye didn’t find it funny at all. But her lips twitched as she watched him lose himself. For just a second, it felt like it had back when they’d first met. Light. Good. Fun.

But then she remembered the smell of that new leather burning and groaned. ‘Why didn’t you send a card or something?’

TJ swiped at his face, but he couldn’t quite stop his grin. ‘Well, Skye, given our history, I thought you might burn it.’

The reminder was all she needed to take a big step back, her dry, ‘Ha. Ha,’ falling awkwardly from her lips.

Unsure of what else to say, swamped with regret, Skye moved through the trailer, offloaded Smokey first and, once TJ had taken her lead rope, went back in for Kai.

When both horses were safely out, they started walking side by side, TJ leading Smokey, Skye leading Kai.

Around them, the coliseum grounds were swarming with people and animals. Contestants were signing in and offloading their horses. Event staff were running around, trying to get everyone organized, answering questions, and generally attempting to contain the chaos.

Next to her, TJ tipped his head to look down at her. ‘You really set it on fire, didn’t you?’