Conflict of Heart

Chapter 9

Rosa smiled as she watched the proud dapple grey stallion trot the circumference of the lunging arena. The evening sun was slowly disappearing over the horizon of green tree tops, and the glow of the sunset gave the stallion an almost surreal appearance as he moved gracefully through his paces, his superior breeding shining through in his movements.

Ethan stood quietly in the middle, clicking his tongue whenever the horse slowed his pace. But other than that, he remained motionless, watching the stallion work. His dark chocolate locks held a golden hue to them in the setting sun, and Rosa found herself admiring the way his shirt hugged his torso while his Levi's strained against his strong thighs.

She couldn't help but think back to the other night when she had been enfolded in his warm, solid arms, her head resting against his broad shoulder. She found herself thinking about it at the most inopportune moments, and it always resulted in a blush to darken her cheeks. Especially when she thought about how she wouldn't mind being in his embrace again.

A low whistle jolted Rosa from her appreciative thoughts, and she almost fell from her perch on the poles, but she reacted quickly enough and managed to stabilize her balance before she fell face-first into the ground. She released a low breath of relief when she glanced to the man, thankful he hadn't seen her little slip-up.

What an embarrassment that would've been.

Her attention drew to the proud stallion, and she watched him halt, his ears flickering back and forth to await his next instruction. But his trainer merely approached him, giving him a firm pat on the shoulder as he clipped the lead rein onto the loop of his halter before guiding him towards the gate exiting the ring.

It had been a few days since that unpleasant kicking fiasco, but Ethan had recovered quickly and was back to working with him the next day. The man's durability was something that Rosa could only admire as she walked around the arena to meet them, hoping that her previous thoughts were not still visible on her face.

"He's going very well, Ethan," she smiled as she reached them and stroked the stallion's muzzle for a moment before allowing them to continue walking towards the stables. "How long until you ride him?"

"I would say about another week. Two at the most. He had been trained already, but his riders broke his trust. It's just a matter of time for him to realize that he won't be harmed here like he was in his previous home," he replied and rubbed the stallion's thick neck as the large animal walked obediently beside him as quiet as a lamb despite his foreboding appearance.

Rosa's smile made Ethan lose his train of thought for a moment, and he quickly looked away before she noticed and cleared his throat. "So . . . it's your parents' anniversary soon," he began, making the young woman beside him blink in surprise.

Ethan was never one to initiate conversation, but she smiled and replied, "Yes."

"Are you looking forward to it?"

"I always look forward to a party," she said, but her smile faltered when she realized that she didn't have a partner.

Although there was no need for her and her sister to have partners, she hoped that someone could accompany her so that she had a legitimate excuse not to dance with Grayson—a man who has had his sights on her for many years now. What made it worse for her was that he was the son of two of her parents' close friends, Heather and Jackson, and that meant that he would always be at any function her parents held.

She glanced back at the silent man walking beside her, the calm swagger of his stride looking so effortless that he didn't even seem full of himself while doing so. He was just silently confident.