Overprotected

Chapter Four

"Come in!" I say at the knock on my door. It creaks open and Caroline pokes her head in.

"I'm here to do your hair and makeup for the shoot." She says.

Noir and I went shopping last night and got the perfect dress. It's white, strapless sweetheart neckline wraparound top, with a space that shows my belly. The skirt part is a hi-lo, mid-thigh in front and below my ankles in the back with a foot-long train. He said the hi-lo will make it easy to sit on the horse, and also easy to drape over the horse's 'rump,' which is his butt.

"Okay," I say, and hop up to put on the dress. She helps me arrange it so the triangle in the middle shows my belly in a flattering light.

She waits for the curling iron to heat up and says, "That's a pretty necklace. What do the letters stand for?"

"Lexi and Carson, my boyfriend."

She starts, "You have a boyfriend?"

"Yeah? Does that surprise you?"

"Noir was hoping to ask you out this week." Caroline says softly.

"Oh, well, um, obviously I can't. He knows I have a boyfriend."

"Typical of him, going for someone already taken."

She curls my hair and it turns out like a professional. "I think I'm going to do a silver smoky eye, to bring out your green eyes."

"You're really good at this." I comment.

"Well it's my job, I've worked with some famous people. Brianna Castro, Kaitlyn Kutch, Lindy Rose."

I gasp, "You've done Kaitlyn Kutch's makeup? Oh my gosh I love her!"

Caroline smiles, "She's very nice."

I agree, "I've met her once."

"There, you're done."

I look in the mirror. "Wow, I look, not horrendous."

"Not even close." She says sweetly.

I run out to the truck where Noir waits. He whistles, "I have never seen you look so beautiful, though the prom pictures you posted are close. Carson is one lucky guy."

I beam, my face hot.

"Let's go. Landon already trailered Lucky to the beach."

"Lucky? Is that a joke? With your parents being so superstitious?"

Noir winks, "He did it to be ironic."

We reach the beach at exactly 2:30pm. Landon is standing there holding a tall, thin horse. "That's Lucky," Noir whispers. "He's an 11 year old, bay thoroughbred."

I have no clue what that means.

Lucky has no white on his face and no white on his legs. He also has nothing to sit on. I approach Landon.

"What a pretty horse." I reach out and stroke his nose. "I see he has the thing on his head, and the ropes for me to hold onto, but what shall I sit on?"

Landon laughs. "This is the bridle, I chose the black so it's photogenic. These 'ropes' are the matching reins. And you're going bareback, it will look cooler."

"And up you go," Noir comes up behind me and lifts me abruptly onto the tall horse's back. I squeeze tightly with my knees and twist my fingers into his mane. Noir goes around adjusting me, draping my train over Lucky's butt.