Page 28 of The Past

One of the horses balked.The rider was thrown.

I looked back, saw his body hit the ground hard, but there was no time to stop.No time to hesitate.

Brannagh soared over the final fence, his hooves landing cleanly, and I pushed him through the finish line, coming in third.

Standing in my stirrups as Brannagh slowed to a canter, I pumped my fist in the air and screamed out my joy.Another one of the riders came breezing past me, looking over his shoulder with appreciation.“Good run,” he said.“Fancy a pint to celebrate?”

I laughed at the offer, the flirtation, and shook my head.“Sorry.”I patted Brannagh’s neck.“Only guy I’m interested in right now.”

Which was a lie.

“Can’t blame a lad for trying,” he called out.

I was grinning ear to ear when I reached Tommy who stepped up to take Brannagh’s reins, his eyes shining with something between pride and mischief.

“Damn,” he murmured, walking beside me as I caught my breath.“You were incredible.”

A thrill shot through me, but I kept my expression neutral.“Aye, well, third isn’t first.”

“First or not, you rode the hell out of that course.”

I smiled, the heat in my cheeks unrelated to the race.Before I could say more, I noticed Rory by the fallen rider, his face grim as he spoke with the others.

Tommy nodded toward them.“Looks bad.”

I swung down from Brannagh, my legs still shaking slightly as I handed the reins to Tommy.“Aye.Let’s go see.”

When we reached them, Rory turned to us, his expression serious.“Broken collarbone.We’re takin’ him to the hospital.”

Tommy straightened.“You need me to drive the trailer back?”

Rory nodded, tossing him the keys.“Aye.And get Fiona home safely.”Eyeballing Tommy for a beat too long, the warning clear.

Tommy grinned.“Always.”

Then Rory did something unexpected—he looked between the two of us and said, “Come to dinner tonight.Kathleen’ll cook somethin’ up.”

I blinked, surprised, but Tommy recovered first.“We’d love to.”

Rory gave us one last knowing glance before walking off.

I exhaled, turning to Tommy.Was he thinking what I was thinking?That Rory was giving us opportunities to be together?Was he possibly helping me break out from under my father’s thumb?

Tommy smirked, those blue eyes sparkling even though the sky was fully overcast.“Looks like we’ve got a date tonight, darlin’.”

I rolled my eyes but felt a flutter in my chest that had nothing to do with the race.

And everything with the man that was responsible for all sorts of rebellious thoughts running through my mind.

CHAPTER 10

Tommy

Rory and Kathleen’shome was warm in a way that reminded me of Sunday dinners back home.The kind where family packed around a big wooden table—aunts, uncles and cousins.Food was passed hand over hand, and everyone talked so loudly, you really couldn’t hear anything.

Their cottage wasn’t fancy, but it was lived in, with scuffed floors and pictures on the walls of Fiona and her siblings, prized horses Rory had trained and photos of him and Kathleen.The man was obviously very much in love.He beamed with pride when he talked about how he respected that she was her own woman with a thriving business in town.I think that might’ve been why it was so important to him to be Fiona’s champion.Why he supported Fiona in pursuing her dreams because he knew that some women weren’t meant to have their wings clipped.

The scent of roasted lamb and fresh bread lingered in the air, mixing with the faint bite of whiskey from Rory’s glass.I had declined the offer, wanting to showcase that I could be responsible and wasn’t all about the party.I had no clue what my father told Rory about the reasons for sending me here, but I didn’t want him to think I’d be a bad influence on his niece.

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