The closer they get to the stable, the more Fay seems to cheer up, as if she’s leaving the memories of last night behind. Kent can’t help the smile from his face when he sees it. He was worried for her last night – truly worried that some real damage had been done.
Fay was delicate. He knew it intimately – it was one of the things he liked best about her. She was a sensitive girl, feeling things keenly, more acutely than others. But beneath that, she has a solidity to her core, a well of strength that he’s not sure she’s even aware of.
She’s going to need that strength, he knows, if she’s going to make it in this world. And he’s quite determined to see that she does. Because if she doesn’t…
He shakes away the thought, not letting it enter his mind. He will see that she does, and he’ll do everything he can to foster that strength in her. It won’t be easy, but Kent intends to see it through.
Fay sits up very straight in the seat when they pull into the driveway of the stable, the gate swinging open for them. Kent can tell that she’s reining in his excitement for his sake, trying to play it cool, but she’s out of the car before he can throw it in park.
Kent finds her in Heathcliff’s stall a few minutes later, cooing to her horse, running her hands over his silky ears and talking to him softly. He watches her for a few minutes, letting her greet her friend, who nuzzles her warmly.
“Have you ever ridden before, Fay?” Kent asks quietly after a few minutes. She turns to him and smiles, biting her lip a little in embarrassment. He smirks, knowing her answer before she says it.
“Yes?” she says, a question rather than a statement. “I’ve…ridden. Before.”
His smile deepens. “By which you mean, you’ve sat on a couple of ponies at the county fair.”
Fay bites her lip again before smiling and blushing a little. “Okay, yes. But the man who owned the ponies said I have a natural seat!”
Kent laughs at her then and bends down to pick up a basket of brushes and combs by the door, placing it inside the stall before shutting it and bolting them in. “I’ll let you two get acquainted,” he says, “perhaps you could brush him. He’ll like that.”
Fay eagerly coming forward to select a brush.
“I’ll be back in a little bit,” he says. “We’ll get you saddled up and then we’ll see if that seat is any good.” Kent turns away then, heading to the front of the barn.
He’s surprised, a moment later, to hear her call after him.
“Thank you,” she says softly, her head peeking out over the stall door.
Kent simply nods to her and turns, tucking his hands in his pockets and continuing on his way.
Kent and Fay spend the rest of the day at the stables. He leaves her alone, mostly, going around to visit the other horses under his care, checking in with the grooms and the manager to ensure that everything is running smoothly.
When the trainer arrives, Kent points him in Fay’s direction and is pleased, about half an hour later, to see Fay leading her saddled horse out to the riding arena.
Kent leans against the door of the barn, watching at a distance as the trainer runs her through the basics of riding, showing her the horse’s gaits on a long lead while Fay is still on the ground. It’s a special thrill, though, when he sees Fay put on her little velvet helmet and lead her horse over to the mounting block.
The joy on her face when she sits astride Heathcliff’s back for the first time – a little chill runs down his spine. He can’t help feeling just…purely happy.
Last night, in the car, seeing Fay shake like that – the shock, the trauma in every muscle – it was one of the worst feelings of his life. He frowns, thinking of it now, of his extreme reaction to Fay’s physical danger.
He’s a mafia boss, for heaven’s sake, Kent tells himself. It’s not like he hasn’t lost people to this business before, hasn’t put his loved ones on the line on an almost-daily basis. So what was it about this girl that made him absolutely horrified at the thought of her in danger?
Kent grits his teeth, uncomfortable with the potential answers to this question. He knows that he wants her on a physical level – god, every day he’s confronted with that horrible fact. But this other feeling, this…protectiveness. He shakes his head, unwilling to delve into it just yet.
Instead, Kent stands up straight from his spot at the stall door and walks towards the riding rink.
The lesson is coming to a close, the instructor talking eagerly to Fay, who smiles down at him from her place on the gelding’s back. When Kent comes to lean against the rink’s fence, the trainer gives him a warm smile.
“She’s a natural!” the trainer says, resting a comfortable hand on Fay’s knee. Kent glares at the touch and the trainer, grimacing a little, quickly removes his hand. Fay doesn’t notice.
“See!” she says to Kent, laughing. “I told you I had a natural seat!”
“I didn’t doubt you for a minute,” he says simply, giving the trainer a stern look. Knowing his boss, the trainer says a gracious goodbye to Fay, promising to see her again next time, and then heads back to the barn.
“He’s really nice,” Fay says, nudging her horse so that he walks over to Kent.
“You just like anyone who gives you compliments,” Kent jokes, reaching out a hand to stroke Heathcliff’s neck.
Fay’s eyebrows raise, almost disappearing beneath her helmet. “A joke!” she laughs. “Kent Lippert made a joke!”
He laughs with her, perhaps a little surprised himself. “Don’t get used to it,” he says quietly. “It’s not a common occurrence.”
“No kidding,” she says in response, smiling indulgently at him.
“You enjoyed it?” Kent asks, nodding towards the ring and indicating the lesson as a whole.
“Yes,” she says, definite and happy. “Can I come back tomorrow?”
Kent nods, pleased at the big smile she gives him. “Come down now,” he says, gesturing towards her. “Heathcliff has earned his rest.”
“Um,” she says, biting her lip, suddenly concerned. “He didn’t…teach me…how to get down.”
Kent laughs and ducks under the rail of the fence, coming close to Fay’s left side. “Feet out of the stirrups,” he says, and she obeys. He puts up his hands towards her. “Now just swing your right leg over the back of the horse and slip down to the ground.”
“What!” she says, appalled. “You just want me to jump down!?”
Kent laughs at her, entertained. “Well, you can always stay up there forever if you want.”
Fay gives him a dirty look.
“I’ll catch you,” Kent says, enjoying himself. “Come on, let’s go.”
Fay narrows her eyes at him a little and then takes a deep breath, swinging her leg back over the horse.
Kent is as good as his word, catching Fay by the waist, letting her fall back against him instead of sliding her body down against the saddle. As he lowers her slowly to the ground, Fay puts her hands on top of his for balance, her back running down the length of his chest and stomach before her booted feet hit the ground.
A little thrill echoes in his stomach at the feel of her against him. Kent clenches his jaw, trying to keep himself under control.