The familiar smells of horse, hay and leather greeted Flynt as he entered the livery. While he was used to the earthy scents, he hadn’t thought about a lady’s reaction. Perhaps inviting Jessie had been foolish.
She let go of his arm and ventured farther inside, looking at each horse in turn but keeping her distance from the stalls. “Hmm. I wonder if I can guess which of these beautiful animals is yours.”
“You could try.” He remained near the front, where his horse couldn’t see him. The friendly fellow would give himself away if he saw Flynt.
Jessie paused in front of each occupied stall but didn’t go near the animals inside. She slowly spun to face Flynt. “This is harder than I thought. Could you give me a clue?”
“Sid is short for Obsidian.”
“Obsidian? I like it. He must be black, then, so that narrows it down.” She studied the three black geldings and stopped in front of Sid’s stall. “This one? He’s the largest, and he does look friendly.”
“That’s him, all right.” Flynt joined her, and Sid nickered his welcome. “Allow me to introduce you. Sid, meet Miss Jessica Sinclair, draftswoman par excellence. Jessie, this magnificent creature is Obsidian.”
She kept her distance. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Sid.”
“You can come closer. He won’t hurt you.”
“I’m sure that’s true, but I had a bad experience with a horse once. My father put me on his stallion when I was four and led me around the corral. The clothes on the line flapped in the breeze as we passed. That spooked Blaze. He jumped to the right, and I fell off. I was so afraid he’d trample me that I took off running. I haven’t had much to do with horses since.”
Flynt’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t mean to be disrespectful, but any horseman knows a stallion can be tough to handle. I’d never put a small child on one alone like that.”
She heaved a telling sigh. “My father saw life as an adventure. He didn’t always acknowledge the dangers.”
“Well, I do. I’d never put you in harm’s way. Sid’s as gentle as they come.” He scratched behind his horse’s ears. Sid closed his eyes and leaned into the scratch.
“How long have you had him?”
“I bought him right after college.” The purchase had depleted his funds, but he’d needed a way to get to and from his new job. Besides, after riding Ma Hagerty’s old horses, he’d wanted a younger horse he could train his way. Sid had been two at the time. Now nine, the even-tempered quarter horse was a mature, trustworthy mount. And, oh, could he cover ground.
Jessie took a step closer, watching Sid intently. “You said he was big, but I didn’t realize just how big.”
He couldn’t keep the pride out of his voice. “Sixteen hands. That’s the upper limit for a quarter horse.”
“You’re a tall man. You’d need a large horse. Would he...?” She tucked her lower lip between her teeth, a most distracting gesture. If not for Trace’s interruption, he might have tasted those pretty pink lips.
She drew in a deep breath, released it and took another step forward. “Would he let me pet him?” She grimaced. “Touch him, that is?”
“Sure. He likes to have his forehead rubbed. I’ll stay close, so you don’t have to worry.” He welcomed any excuse to be near Jessie.
She approached Sid slowly and reached out a hand. It wavered in the air. She sent Flynt an apologetic smile over her shoulder. “I’m not usually so tentative.”
He kept his voice soft, encouraging. “You have reason to be. If you’d like, we can do it together.”
“Yes. Please.”
Standing behind her, he lifted her hand and guided it down Sid’s forehead toward his muzzle.
She turned, and her hair brushed Flynt’s chin. He fought the urge to place a kiss on the top of her head.
“It’s a good thing he bent down, or I wouldn’t be able to reach him.”
Sid nuzzled Jessie, throwing her back into Flynt’s arms. He steadied her—and silently thanked his horse. “He likes you.”
“Oh. That’s why he did that? I thought he wanted me to stop. Well, in that case...” She rubbed Sid’s forehead once again without any assistance.
Sid whickered.
“He does like it! You know what I’d like...” She turned in Flynt’s arms, putting them face to face with very little distance between them. Instead of backing up as he’d expected, she lifted her chin and gazed at him with those bottomless green eyes of hers. “I’d like you to take me on a ride.”
He’d love to, but... “I thought you didn’t know how to ride.”
“I don’t, but you do.”
“You want to ride with me?” The realization sent a jolt of exhilaration through him. He’d like nothing better than to have Jessie seated behind him with her slender arms around his waist. Apparently the idea appealed to her, too.
She nodded. “If I’m to overcome my distrust of horses, I can’t continue to shy away from them. You have a well-trained horse and won’t do anything risky, so what better time to face my fears?”
A door creaked, followed by muffled footfalls on the straw-strewn floor. Flynt stepped away from Jessie.
“I’m sorry I didn’t hear you come in, Flynt. I was having some grub, and I—” The liveryman ground to a stop, and his jaw dropped. “Oh! I didn’t know you was here with a lady. I’ll just mosey on back to my office quick-like.”
“It’s all right, Earl. This is Jessie, uh, Miss Jessica Sinclair. We’re going to take Sid out.”
“Gonna show her how fast that fine feller o’ yours can run, are ya?” Earl grinned at Jessie. “You’ll be right proud o’ your beau come Saturday. He and Sid are gonna earn the blue ribbon.”
Flynt chuckled. “You’re just saying that because Chip’s no longer boarding Dusty here. Sid and I will be hard-pressed to beat them.”
Jessie stepped to his side. “No matter how Flynt and Sid do, I’ll be proud of them both.”
Earl slapped a beefy hand on Flynt’s back. “With support like that, you’re sure to win. Now, I’ll leave you and the little lady alone. I ain’t one to get in the way o’ romance.” He winked, spun on his heel and left.
Jessie’s lips curved in a smug smile. “It’s getting easier, isn’t it?”
“What is?”
“Convincing people you’re my beau. We didn’t have to say a word, and Earl could tell.”
“Of course he could.” Earl had never seen Flynt with a woman before. What else was the liveryman supposed to think? “If you’re sure you want to go for a ride, we’d best get under way. I need to get in some practice afterward, and the sun’s getting lower by the minute.”
“There’s a full moon tonight.”
The dreamy way she said it had Flynt wondering what was behind her thoughts. “That may be, but I won’t risk riding after dark. One critter hole and Sid’s racing days could be over.”
“Do you race him often?”
“Whenever I can.” Nothing beat the thrill of flying down a track with the finish line in front of them and the hoofbeats of the other horses behind them.
She glanced up at Sid and her eyes widened. “You won’t have him go fast with me up there on his back, will you?”
“No. Sid will be walking the entire time. You’ll be sitting behind me and holding on tightly.” The closer and tighter the better. He rested his fingers under Jessie’s chin and turned her to face him. “You do trust me, don’t you?”
She nodded. “It’s me I don’t trust. I usually have no trouble controlling my emotions, but—” she pressed a hand to her chest “—my heart’s galloping.”
So was his, but for far different reasons. Time to rein in his wayward thoughts and get Sid saddled.
* * *
“All you have to do is step up on the mounting block, use my shoulder for support and ease your leg over Sid’s croup. I’ll give you a hand.”
Jessie stared at the massive horse. Flynt might think climbing onto Sid’s rump was easy, but he didn’t have to deal with skirts, petticoats, modesty—and fear. At least they were in the back of the livery. Reservoir Street was quiet, so no one would witness her attempt.
She glanced at Flynt, high above her in the saddle. “Sid won’t move, will he?”
“He’ll stay put.”
“All right, then. I’ll try it.” She climbed onto the block. “If you hear me hit the ground, promise you won’t look until I’ve had time to make myself presentable.”
“I won’t let you fall.”
Please help me, Lord. She hefted her skirts in one hand, clutched Flynt’s arm with the other and slid her right leg across the broad expanse of black behind the saddle.
“That’s it. Up you go.” He lifted, she leaned and Sid stayed put.
She ended up safely perched on the back of the massive animal with the ground far below. Flynt didn’t have to remind her to hold on. She wrapped her arms around him and heaved a sigh of relief. “I did it!”
“Sure did. The worst part’s over.”
That was what he thought. She had yet to deal with the horse moving beneath her. Even more unsettling was the light-headedness. She’d never been so close to a man before. She could feel Flynt’s every move.
“Ready?”
“Ready.”
Flynt clicked his tongue, and Sid started walking.
Jessie turned her head to the side and pressed herself against Flynt’s back. His heartbeat thundered in her ear. Or was that her pulse?
“Are you all right?”
His kindness and concern calmed her. “I will be. Shortly.”
She grew accustomed to the gentle rocking motion of the horse and relaxed. As long as she held on tightly to Flynt as they rode down the dusty street and he didn’t have his horse go any faster, she could handle this.
Flynt headed west on Reservoir Street.
“Where are we going?”
“I thought we’d keep to the road until we can take off and follow Hangtown Creek.”
He was heading away from town. Was he creating an opportunity to have a conversation, just the two of them, without any interruptions this time? The possibility put a smile on her face.
“If I’ve timed it right, we’ll see George and Trace. They usually sit on their hotel’s porch and play checkers in the evening.”
Her smile evaporated. Flynt had chosen the route so they’d be seen. Not because he had any romantic notions.
He led Sid down Quartz Street, where their booth would be set up come Saturday, and turned left onto Main. They passed the Arch Saloon and Sacramento Street.
The Ohio House came into view. Sure enough, George and Trace sat at a table beneath the first floor’s balcony with a checkerboard between them. Trace saw them first and waved. George looked up, spotted them and did the same.
Jessie wasn’t about to wave back. That would mean letting go of Flynt. And she rather liked holding on to him. She smiled instead.
With slow, steady steps, she and Flynt left Placerville behind.
Before long they left the road, as well, and followed the creek. The canopy of oaks overhead created welcome shade. She’d walked this way a time or two, but everything looked different from her vantage point, the way it did when she shifted the perspective on a drawing.
They hadn’t gone far when Flynt tugged on the reins, bringing Sid to a stop. “Would you like to get down for a few minutes?”
Yes and no. She’d love to stand by the creek and watch the sun sinking lower on the horizon, sending shafts of brilliant light through the branches overhead. But she didn’t welcome the idea of getting off Sid and back on again. The leaf-strewn earth was far below, and there wouldn’t be any mounting block to help her.
The opportunity to enjoy more of Flynt’s company overcame her hesitation. “If you have the time, I’d love to.”
“Good. Just reverse the steps to get down, but take care not to get tangled in your skirts.”
“I’ll be careful.” Her dismount was anything but graceful, but she made it to the ground without mishap.
Flynt followed suit, but he made the process look easy. He looped the reins around a branch and stood next to her. “What did you think?”
Holding on to his trim waist had been marvelous. She’d even grown accustomed to the gentle rocking motion of his horse. But she didn’t like being unable to see where they were going. “I think it’s high time I learn to ride.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Did you have an instructor in mind?”
“Are you applying for the job?”
“Depends. Would my application receive a favorable response?”
She couldn’t think of anyone she’d rather have teach her, but the urge to tease him was strong. “Perhaps. But before I decide, I’ll have to see if you ride as well as everyone says.”
A chuckle rumbled in his chest and burst free in a welcome show of amusement. “You’re a breath of fresh air, Jessie, and have expanded my horizons.”
She feigned surprise. “Are you saying you’ve grown tired of being a stuffy engineer?”
“I prefer the term ‘serious’ or ‘steady.’”
“You are those, but you have an adventurous side.”
“I do?” He plucked a long blade of grass and twirled it between his fingers.
“Of course you do. You ride in horse races, don’t you?”
He stared at her for several seconds with his pleasantly full lips parted. She had to force herself not to focus on them. “I never thought of it that way, but you’re right. Horse racing is an adventure. You, Miss Jessica Sinclair—” he tapped her arm with the grass blade “—have single-handedly changed the way I view myself.”
“Then our arrangement has benefited you after all. I’m glad.” She tossed him a smile and picked her way to the edge of the creek. A trickle of water meandered over the stones. “Seeing this makes me appreciate all the more the work we’re doing to ensure that generations to come will have an adequate supply of fresh water.”
“If all goes well Saturday, we’ll gain the support of the community.”
“I’m sure it will. When they see the display you and the other men are putting together and hear your presentation, they’re sure to be impressed.”
“What will make a success of it is your idea of including the townspeople. Without that, I’m afraid it could be just another dry lecture, the kind we stuffy engineers are known for.” He winked.
She smiled. “Then it’s a good thing you’ve changed your ways and are prepared to be an engaging and entertaining engineer.”
He clasped her hands in his, tugged her close and looked into her eyes. Deeper and deeper he delved, as though he wanted to know everything about her. If only she could allow him to drink his fill. But there were things she must keep hidden. Truths that would send him racing in the other direction.
She dipped her chin, averting his gaze, and slipped her hands free. “It’s getting late, and you still need to practice. I mustn’t keep you.”
“Yes. Of course.” His serious side reasserted itself. “I’ll have Sid stand by that fallen log over there—” he inclined his head “—and you can use it to help you mount.”
The ride back to town passed in silence. Flynt turned up Coloma Street. Apparently she wasn’t invited to watch him practice. That was probably best considering the awkwardness that had settled over them.
She dismounted as soon as he stopped in front of her boardinghouse, doing a far better job of it than before. He reached into his saddlebag and pulled out her lunch pail with her reticule stowed inside. “Here you go.”
“Thank you. And thank you for dinner, the ride and...everything.”
“It was my pleasure.”
His words were polite, but the unasked questions in his eyes gave her pause. Had she been too hasty in pulling away?
Not if she wanted to maintain the friendship they’d forged. Which she did. Very much. But how long would it be before Flynt pushed her for answers?
And what would she say when he did?