Watch Me

Chapter Two

"Tag!" Harley pushed Tara under the water then quickly swam away. Tara popped back up and dove towards Harley. They splashed and dunked each other in the cool pond water. Harley pushed up onto Tara's shoulders then fell back, pulling Tara under. 

Tara heard a small splash and looked behind her. Jewel was standing in the edge of the water, her ears perked towards the girls. Harley bounced up and waved. Tara laughed and called Jewel into the water. The mare snorted and splashed towards them. The water came up to her neck and she lifted her head to swim farther. Jewel finally reached the girls and stopped, snorting happily.

The mare took her nose and flicked water at Tara's face. Harley pushed water at Jewel and Tara splashed them both. Jewel played with them as if she was a teenage girl, obviously enjoying her swim in the cool pond.

"I'm hungry, how 'bout you?" Harley propped her arms on Jewel's back. Tara did the same on the other side and nodded. "Can we take Jewel back? I don't feel like walking."

Tara laughed and nodded. They swam to shallower water, Jewel following close behind. The girls grabbed their towels off the small pier and then pushed up onto Jewel's back, Harley sitting just behind Tara. "Let's go home, girl." The little mare swam to shore and picked up a smooth lope once she got out of the water. Tara held her mane and Harley pressed against her, her arms out to the sides like wings. They laughed and rode through the field, letting Jewel roam wherever she wanted to.

Jewel slowed to a walk and stopped real close to the gate so Tara could reach down and unhook the chain. The mare pushed the gate open with her nose and walked through calmly and happily. Tara and Harley slid off once they got to the barn. Jewel walked herself to her stall, Tara tossed a flake of hay in the corner, and Harley waited at the door.

"I think we should order pizza. I'm ordering pizza. Is Hawaiian okay?" Harley already had her phone out, dialing the number for the pizza parlor. They walked to the house, Harley ordering the pizza and Tara rubbing her hair with the towel.

"Pizza will be here in twenty."

"Sounds good." Tara opened a soda and jumped up on the counter. Harley helped herself to leftovers. She could eat as much as a room full of boys and still keep her muscled figure.

Pizza arrived and the girls took it upstairs to Tara's room. Harley turned on the radio and turned the music up, dancing around the bed while eating a slice of hot pizza.

After a few slices, the girls collapsed on the floor, stomachs full. They laid there without speaking. The music was still loud and Tara could feel the bass in her chest.

"Did you hear about Yasmine's big win or whatever?"

Tara rolled onto her side to face Harley. She shook her head and waited for the sweet gossip Harley always provided.

"Well," Harley began. "Apparently she won the county open jump or whatever it is. Someone claimed that they saw her drugging her horse with steroids or something to make it jump higher and run faster so they had a vet come out to test it and guess what! That horse was pumped with so many steroids, they disqualified her and took away her titles from previous shows this year!"

"Why would she do that to Piccolo?" Tara's eyes were wide with genuine concern for the gelding. "He's a top dollar eventer from amazing bloodlines! There is no reason why he couldn't win without the drugs."

Harley shrugged. "She must've thought otherwise. Maybe she wanted some sick safety net or something. She did try to put the blame on her trainer though."

Tara rolled completely onto her stomach and propped her chin on one hand. "She does have the money to get away with all of this."

"Yeah." Harley sighed. "That is probably the worst part."

"Well. On that note!" Tara pushed up and pulled Harley up with her. "Don't you need to be home for practice or something?"

Harley rolled her eyes. "I do actually."

Harley's step mom stopped by to pick her up. Tara waved goodbye as they pulled out of the driveway.

*****

Tara brushed Jewel's coat slowly. She worked at every spot and didn't stop until her bay coat shined. She moved to her mane and combed it until it felt like silk. She did the same with her thick black tail then plaited it neatly.

"Would you like to go on a ride?" She held Jewel's head in her hands. Jewel blinked back at her, her large dark eyes gleaming with excitement. Tara smiled and said "let's go then."