Jockeying for You (14 page)

“Respect doesn’t mean total submission, Dad. Respecting you doesn’t mean I have to dump my girlfriend because you want me too.”

“There is a better woman out there. You made her walk away.”

“No. Betsy’s not a better woman. You simply think she’s better bred. People aren’t horses, Dad. And as people, we need to be in control of our own lives. I love you, but you have to let your control issues go.”

Jake extended his hand out to his dad, wondering whether he would shake it. “I do love you, Dad. I hope you love me, too. Do you?”

The color drained from his father’s face. “Of course I do,” he sputtered. “I can’t believe you doubt me.”

Jake arched an eyebrow. “Good to know. But I’m standing here with my hand in the air, Dad, looking stupid. Are we going to shake or not?”

His father’s eyes grew round and his voice quieted. “Before we shake son, I think there’s something you need to know.”

Jake put his hand down and let out an exasperated sigh. “What?”

“I
might
have left Ryder Hannon a message.” His father tugged at his shirt collar uncomfortably.

“You
what
?”

“Okay, I admit it. I left her a note.”

“First you call her up and now you’re leaving her notes? I can’t believe it. Are you going to tell me what your note
might
have said?”

“It’s best I go handle the matter myself. Truce?” His father extended his arm for a handshake.

“After you rectify the situation,” Jake said flatly, his hands by his sides.

Chapter 17

Ryder sat down on the floor outside Handsome Dancer’s stall, tears streaming down her face, not caring about the dirt. The horse was obviously all right. She had done her best with red, swollen, teary eyes to check him out thoroughly. Handsome’s mood, on the other hand, was horribly injured.
So is mine.

With great effort she pulled herself up and peered into his stall. Handsome Dancer stepped forward, one twitching leg at a time. Ryder took hold of his big head and rubbed it in small circles. “It’s okay, boy. I’m sad, too. Angry. Hurt. And scared just like you. Wishing I had my friends around me right now.”

The horse whinnied softly and settled down. For a moment he closed his large brown eyes. She lifted herself until she touched her nose to his. “Love you, too, babycakes.”

When she pulled away, Handsome leaned his head forward to try to nuzzle her. She stroked the white snip on his nose with a gentle hand and blinked hard against stinging tears. Pressure was building up behind her eyes and forehead. Soon she’d have a migraine for sure.

“Because you’re one of my friends, Handsome Dancer, I’m going to tell you something. I’m not going to race you today. I’m not in a proper mindset to do it, and I would never jeopardize your safety.” She paused and croaked out her next words. “I’m not going to train you after today, either. Because my dealing with Jake Carter is not safe for me.” She swallowed hard. “Lord, I need to keep myself safe,” she whispered.

“Safe from what?” a familiar voice asked.

Ryder whirled around to see Mindy standing there. Her friend’s head was cocked to one side as if trying to evaluate. “I came by to check on the goat situation. Baby Be Mine is already with his jockey, so I figured I’d give you a hand if you needed it. Hey, are you all right?”

“No.” It was all Ryder could do not to laugh hysterically. “Not at all.”

“Well pull yourself together. This is your big day. Not just Handsome Dancer’s, but yours. The rest of the jockeys are either getting their silks on or meeting their mounts. It’s time for you to do the same.” Mindy’s face lit up. “I know you’re going to win, Ryder. I did my best for Baby Be Mine, but there’s no way you and Handsome Dancer aren’t going to take the top prize. I’ve seen you two in action. You are more than simply horse and rider. You guys are like musical harmony, separate components of one beautiful song. And when you make it to the finish line first, I’ll be the first one to sing both your praises.”

The words wrapped around Ryder’s heart, touching it deeply. “Those words mean a lot to me, Mindy. But I’m not going to ride. I was going to, but then I saw Jake kissing a woman he was engaged to.
Is
engaged to, I think. And his father called me a while back telling me to back away from his son.” Her eyes narrowed. “He told me I was too low-brow to be with Jake.”

Mindy’s eyes widened. “Why that rotten little piece of sh—”

“I know,” Ryder agreed. “But he’s not the only one. Someone else left me an anonymous note saying Jake Carter does not date trash. It’s probably from Jake’s father, but who knows? And then there’s Barney Smythe. He’s the one who stole Clem the goat and the chickens, I’m sure of it.” Ryder laughed tightly. “I’ve got to hand it to him. He did his best to throw Handsome Dancer and me off our game. Worst thing is—it worked. All of it worked. I’m not riding this race. Or any race. I’m never going to be a jockey again.”

Mindy’s eyes softened but her expression stayed firm. “I understand what they’ve all done to you is terrible. Though I’m still hopeful Jake has a solid explanation. But even if he doesn’t, I don’t understand why you’re willing to let him and the rest of those idiots win.”

Ryder’s jaw dropped again. “You don’t? You’ve got to be kidding me.”

Mindy breathed in so deeply Ryder could see her chest rise up. “No, I’m not. I think you’re kidding yourself. You’re afraid, Ry. Scared to take the big chance and fail again. All of these things happening to you is bad, I get that. But they’re still excuses. You’re looking for reasons to not put yourself out there.”

“But—”

“No
buts
, Ry. Unless you’re referring to the butt-kicking I’m going to give you. You need a kick in the ass to get you going. No different from when you kick a horse’s hindquarters to nudge it along.”

Ryder stared at her silently and sullenly, her arms crossed tightly over her chest.

“The truth is,” Mindy plowed forward, “whether or not Jake Carter is a two-timing lowlife, he still gave you this opportunity. This golden opportunity to do what other owners would not let you do—to race once again. To live out your dream. Win or lose, you’d be living up to the name your father gave you by trying your best. Don’t you want to live out the life, the destiny you deserve?”

Ryder’s unfocused gaze found the ground and her hand moved of its own volition to absently stroke Handsome Dancer’s mane.

“Look at me, Ry. It’s not about any of them. It’s about you.”

“It doesn’t feel like it’s about me.”

“It will when you get on the horse. Isn’t that right, Lenny?”

Out of nowhere, Lenny appeared.

“I saw you coming down the corridor,” Mindy chastised. “You can walk softly all you want, but you’re not going to sneak up on me again.”

Lenny puffed out his chest. “You just finished telling Ryder this is all about her. So why are we talking about you?”

“Or you,” Mindy retorted.

“I thought you were sick,” Ryder cut in.

“I’m feeling better. I had to be here for you,” he answered.

“So what do you think, Lenny?” Mindy asked. “Can we agree on anything? On the one thing that matters? I want Ryder to race today. Do you agree?”

Lenny face scrunched up as he turned toward Ryder. “I hate to admit it, but Mindy’s right.” He coughed loudly. Whether to clear his throat or eat his words she didn’t know. “It’s not easy for me to say that,” he said, admitting the obvious.

Mindy burst out laughing. “That I believe!”

Lenny ignored the interruption. “It’s hard for me because I don’t want to see you get hurt. Neither does your mom. She couldn’t bear to watch you today. You’ve been through so much already. Getting injured the last time you jockeyed. Losing your dad. Having to start over. Giving up your racing dream . . .”

“But that’s my point, Lenny,” Mindy cut in. “She doesn’t need to give up on her racing dream. Now’s her big chance!”

For once, Lenny was quiet. Ryder watched the old man suck in his lips and lean the weight of his body against a stable wall. “You’re all I have, Ryder.” Lenny’s rough voice shook with emotion. “I want what’s best for you, but if something bad happens . . .”

“Nothing’s going to happen to her,” Mindy protested.

Lenny shot Mindy a withering stare. “Fine for you to say. It’s not you who will feel the pain.”

“You think I’m not going to feel pain if she gets hurt, old man? If that’s what you think, you’re even crazier than I thought.”

Ryder cut them off before they went another round. “You’re both right. It is about me. I need to decide what I really want out of life. Do I want to play it safe? Or bet it all?”

And just like that, the truth she had buried down deep was now unearthed. Her path found. The direction of her footsteps clear. She reached for Handsome Dancer’s reins. “Come on, boy. Let’s ride.”

Jake stopped his father from leaving to demand an answer. “I can’t believe you left a note like that for Ryder. What were you thinking?”

His father sat there stiff and mute, barely indicating he heard the words at all. Until Jake noticed the smallest downturn of a lip. Otherwise, Jake would have sworn his father had gone deaf.

“First off,” Jake continued, “she’s a licensed, professional horse trainer. That does not make her the
hired help
. Second off, even if she did fit that description, I wouldn’t care. This is the twenty-first century for crying out loud. There are no social caste systems anymore.”

“Are you blind? Of course there are.”

Jake twisted his lips into a frown. “Elitist, much?”

At that, his father’s right eye twitched. A telltale sign he was pissed.

Good. At least he heard me.
“We spoke at the restaurant, Dad. I explained to you I don’t want you to interfere. You’ve overstepped the bounds in a big way. I thought I’d been very clear. And yet you go ahead and do something like this. Something that could destroy me both professionally and personally. And this is on top of you trying to shove Betsy down my throat
again
.” Jake shook his head in disgust. “I’d say we’ll talk about this later but there’s no point. I doubt I’ll ever get through to you.” He got up to leave.

“Wait, son.”

“Sorry, Dad. I’ve listened to you long enough. The person I’ve got be with now is Ryder.”

As soon as Jake left the VIP section he bumped into his sister and brother-in-law at the bottom of the staircase.

Dina, decked out in some obviously pricey outfit and crazy large derby hat, sighed with relief. “Oh, there you are,” she exclaimed. “I just ran into Betsy.”

Steven rolled his eyes at his wife. “Why do you have to go there?”

Not answering her husband or missing a beat, Dina slipped her arm around Jake’s and tried to steer her brother in the opposite direction. “Ignore my husband. I think you and Betsy should get back together, even if Steven doesn’t. Your break-up with her is all because of a silly misunderstanding. You two make the perfect couple.”

“Sorry,” Steven mouthed wordlessly over Dina’s head. “I tried, bro.”

If Jake hadn’t been so angry he would have laughed. “For God’s sakes, Dina, I just went through this with Dad. I want to be with Ryder Hannon. Accept it. Or don’t. I’m good either way. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to go find her.”

“Ryder Hannon?” Dina’s eyebrows knit together. “Really? The hired help?”

Jake stopped mid-stride and turned around. “Care to say that to me again? This time to my face?” His words were cold steel.

“No, she doesn’t.” Steven turned to his wife and placed a firm hand on her shoulder. “Let’s take our seats now, Dina, and let Jake run his own life.”

“But—”

“
Now
.”

Dina’s eyes went wide. “All right,” she said softly. “I guess I said too much.”

“Yes, you did,” her husband replied, his voice low and firm. “You and your father need to stop being so controlling. Not just with Jake, either. I’m talking about me, too. I’m not going to build an addition on our house . . .”

Steven’s voice grew fainter as Jake turned back around to look for Ryder. With any luck, he’d find her soon.
Oh, Ryder, I’m so sorry.

He was nearly back at the stalls when he ran into someone else determined to talk. Barney Smythe held his hand out in a signal for Jake to stop.

“Sorry, Barney, I can’t stop now. I’ll catch up with you after the race. Good luck with Knows No Bounds.”

Barney tugged Jake’s sports jacket. “I don’t need luck. I need to be made whole. You owe me, Jake Carter, and I mean to collect.”

Jake took hold of Barney’s hand and shoved it off his jacket. “Don’t put your hands on me. I don’t know what you’re talking about, Barney, but now is not the time. Sorry—”

Barney’s voice came out in a low growl. “You’d better make the time. Or you’re going to
be
sorry.”

“What the hell are you talking about? It sounds like a threat, but you make no sense at all.”

“I’m talking about Handsome Dancer. You took him from me for a song. You hid his true potential and that’s not fair. Now everybody says Handsome Dancer’s going to win this race and a whole bunch more races thereafter. I want a share of those winnings.”

“I paid you for the horse. The full amount of what you asked. It’s not my problem if what you asked is way less than what he’s worth. It’s your job to know the value of your horses, not mine.”

“I don’t care! You took advantage of me. So listen up, you’re going to give me ten percent of the winnings for this race and the rest of all his wins for the next year.”

Jake narrowed his eyes, doing his best to keep his clenched fists at his sides. “Is this some sort of screwed up attempt at racketeering? Why would I agree to this? Am I drunk in your opinion, or just stupid?”

Barney gave a malevolent grin. “Maybe you’re both, but I do know you’re desperate.”

“Interesting you know more about my life than I do.” His fists were itching now to make contact with Barney’s face.

“I do know more than you, Carter. I know your horse is going to lose unless you agree to pay me my fair share.”

Jake stiffened and felt the blood in his veins turn to ice. “Are you planning to hurt Handsome Dancer? If you so much as touch a hair on his bo—”

“Nope. I’d never hurt our
mutual
investment. But I will cause him to lose this race.”

“Damn it, Barney, say your piece so I can move on.”

“I—literally—have got his goat.” Barney laughed. “The damned goat and the rest of his little animal friends are with me.”

“Are you crazy, Barney? You’re really so nuts you’ve actually kidnapped a goat? I don’t know whether to take this seriously or not. Get the hell out of my way.”

“Okay,” Barney said breezily. “No problem. I’ve got other incentives that will make you see things my way.”

“Like what?” Jake laughed. “You’re going to steal every goat in America to ensure Handsome Dancer never gets another friend? No, that would be silly. You’d have to steal every chicken in the U.S.A. That would be hard to pull off, wouldn’t it? So why don’t you go ahead and go
pluck
yourself, Smythe.” Jake gave a tight smile in an attempt to piss him off more.