Get Back On

Chapter 9

The whole day went by slow. Ashton of course followed me around but I was used to it by now. I thought about Jake a lot and about last night. I sighed as the last bell rang.

I walked out of the class and saw Maddie at her locker down the hall. She saw me and smiled. "So I heard you are coming to that party with me this weekend." I rolled my eyes. "Yea I'll be there. You an stay at my place the night of." She smirked. "Ok girly."

I walked out of the school and she went to cheerleadering practice. Ashton was leaning up against his sports car with his arms folded over his chest. He smiled when he saw me. "You look gorgeous today." I smirked. "Thanks." Boys like him didn't get to me. Well only one boy got to me and I'm pretty sure you know who that is.

He opened the passenger door for me and I got in. He pulled out of the school parking lot and drive toward the barn. "I heard you used to be a cheerleader." I mentally rolled my eyes. "Yea I was captain." I saw him smile. "You should try out for the team." I shrugged. "Maybe."

He pulled up infront of the barn and parked the car. I got out of the car and he got out and stood infront of me. He pulled me too him and kissed me quickly. He jumped back in his car and drove away. I grumbled and made my way inside.

I looked up to see Jake in the middle of the alley way with his jaw clenched. I stopped and looked at him. He was in ripped jeans,boots, a muscle tee, and a jean jacket. He had a baseball hat flipped backward and his black hair curled around the edges. "Jake." He just shook his head and walked past me.

I sighed and went to the tack room. I sat down and pulled off my Uggs only to pull on my riding boots. I went to Image's stall and grabbed her halter off the hook. I opened the door and put her halter on. I put her into crossties and went to the tack room to grab her brush box.

I took off her sheet and polo raps and started to get to work. I brushed her down and I tacked her up in a hot pink saddle pad and my usual saddle and bridle.i grabbed my helmet and my protective vest and led her outside.

The stable had a huge cross country course. Any jump you could name and they had it. The course was empty and I breathed in the cold crisp air. I put on my helmet and my vest and put the reins over her neck. I made her stand at the mounting block and climbed up. I swung my leg over her back and got settled.

You could feel her muscles bunch and she was getting jumpy. I smirked. She loved a cross country course and charged at every jump that got in the way. I rubbed her neck and kicked her into a slow gallop. I collected the reins and made sure she had her head.

She cleared the chicken coup and the huge log. She was an amazing jumper and I had raised her since the day she was born. We went around the course taking on ponds, logs, gardens, basically anything you could think of.

We came up to the last jump which was three barrels side by side. She cleared it and did a little buck at the end. I laughed and rubbed her neck. I pulled her up to a walk and rode her over toward the western barn where Jake and his friends were practicing.

Image pranced like the dressage horse she was and I patted her neck. Some of the boy wooped. "Take that horse back to the show ring." I flicked them off. Jake sat on top of Pegasus in the middle of the ring while this guy that looked like was in his mid thirties was sitting on a leggy paint.

The man looked at me and smiled. "You must be Paige, I've heard a lot about you. Since you fixed Levi's horse I haven't heard any complaints." I smirked. "Yea Levi sure does have that attitude." The cowboys snickered and Levi just glared at me. He sat on the mare I fixed and patted her neck.

The man rode over toward me and held out his hand. "Mike Chambers." I grabbed it and shook it. "Paige Woods." He smiled. "I'm just trying to teach the boys here the proper way to rope a calf. Want to join?" One of the guys snickered. "On that show pony, please she doesn't know what's coming." I smirked. "I'm in."