Page 6 of Waiting for Ru
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JASIM FLINCHED AT the shriek. Not for the first time.
“What about this one? Oh she’s so beautiful. I love her so much.”
Jasim followed his friend David’s twelve-year-old daughter over to the stall opposite the one where she’d just said exactly the same thing, a little way down from where Samantha had also declared her undying love for a chestnut filly with a white blaze. The new love of her life was a grey. Too big and powerful for her in Jasim’s opinion. He opened his catalogue and looked up the details of the horse.
“Isn’t she gorgeous?” Samantha tickled the horse’s nose between the bars.
“Yes,” Jasim said.
“Stop agreeing with her.” Farida, her mother, nudged Jasim with her elbow.
Jasim shrugged. “Sheisgorgeous. She’s too big for Samantha though.”
“I can’t decide.” Samantha came back to her father, who was reading the details in his own catalogue. “I wish we could buy all of them. You’re going to have to help me choose.”
“Why don’t you go back to the entrance and pick out the two you like best?” her mother suggested. “Narrow it down.”
Much as Jasim enjoyed spending short periods of time with David and his family, he found Samantha hard going and her mother too pushy. Farida had spent the weekend introducing him to one single friend after another. After the game of polo yesterday, they’d been lined up to talk to him, each in their own cloud of expensive perfume. Jasim had immaculate manners, but he could only be pushed so far.
He kept walking along the line of stalls away from the overexcited twelve-year-old, but stopped when he heard a male voice talking quietly in a soft, lilting Irish accent.
“I’m awful sorry, Cookie. I really am. You’ll soon have a new home, somewhere grand, so you will. I’m going to miss you.” The guy gave a heavy sigh. “Be good, you hear? Whoever is lucky enough to buy you will love you just as much as me. I’m not going to say more than me because I don’t think that’s possible. Just be a good girl and behave.”
Jasim moved forward so that he could see who was speaking. It turned out to be a young man with untidy fair hair, which looked dyed. Jasim couldn’t see his face fully because it was pressed against the neck of the mare he was talking to. The stall number was 22 and Jasim checked the catalogue.
Lot number 54 Stall 22 Vendor Felan Byrne. Five-year-old chestnut mare 159cm. Cookie.The names of her sire and dam meant nothing to him, not that he’d expected them to. Any horse he might be interested in would not be on sale at an auction like this. Polo ponies cost more than the combined price of all the ones in this block.
The man, who Jasim assumed to be the owner, was still talking, grooming the horse now as he muttered endearments and reassurance, dragging a soft brush over her body in long, sweeping strokes. Jasim swallowed hard.Oh shit. Stop watching.But he might as well have told the tide not to turn. He was mesmerised by those tanned hands, the long, slender fingers, the firm yet gentle way he brushed the horse. Byrne wore a creased white shirt that had become partially untucked from tight dark jeans. His backside was small and trim and… Not something Jasim should be looking at.
As if he’d sensed he was under observation, the guy turned in Jasim’s direction, and Jasim jolted. He’d never seen this guy before, but for a moment, he reminded him of…Fuck it, he’s gorgeous.His lungs locked. Danger signs flashed in his head.Walk away!
“What have you found?” Samantha brushed up against him. “Oh, not very pretty. Come and see the two I’ve picked and tell me which is best.”
Jasim allowed her to pull him away. It was too risky to do otherwise, but he wished he could have stood and stared a little longer. And not at the horse.
“Seen something interesting?” David glanced in the stall before following them.
Jasim shook his head. He wouldn’t risk speech until he was sure his voice wouldn’t betray him. No croak, no tremor, nothing. He’d spent his life being more than careful because the consequences of being outed as gay could be fatal. He wasn’t going to wreck things now because he was tempted by a cute backside. Five years ago, he’d made a mistake that could still come back to haunt him. It already had, though he hoped it was all behind him now. Even so…
While Samantha dithered, her parents both favouring a different animal, David because of pedigree, Farida because of how the animal looked, Jasim glanced again at the catalogue. Seven horses in the auction were owned by Felan Byrne. Quite a lot for a young man who looked barely out of his teens.Shit.Jasim’s stomach twisted.Don’t even think about it.
Samantha finally settled on a grey filly called Dulcie as first choice, a black gelding as second. Either looked fine to Jasim. They left the stabling area and went out to the ring where the horses were shown prior to being auctioned in the main arena. All the horses were pre-vetted, but if David made a purchase, he’d have the horse checked again. Vendors’ warranties had to declare vices like crib biting, weaving or lip flapping, but the more you inspected the horse the better. Jasim had a bidder’s card too, though there had never been any likelihood of him buying an animal.But you never know.He liked to keep his options open.
The four of them leaned against the metal surround of the ring and watched as horses were brought in either on a leading rein or ridden. After Dulcie, the grey that Samantha wanted, had been ridden round and jumped, they moved to the seating area from where David would bid. When Jasim looked back, he saw Byrne move to where they’d just been standing. He dropped a rucksack and jacket at his feet and a few moments later, Cookie was ridden into the ring.
She moved well. Chestnuts could be difficult.Jasim remembered one of his who’d regularly encourage the other mares tobreak through the fence into the geldings’ field, then pretend it wasn’t her at all.Little madam.Cookie was progressing nicely around the low jumps when another horse came up fast on her right shoulder and veered across her path. There was an etiquette in a ring and Cookie wasn’t at fault, but suddenly there was a collision, and Cookie lost her rider.
And her composure. She reared up, then bolted. Jasim hadn’t even realised Byrne had climbed into the ring until he saw him standing in the horse’s path, sheltering the fallen rider who still lay on the ground. Byrne put his hand out, palm forward, and to Jasim’s astonishment, the horse slammed to a halt, feet away. He wasn’t sure whether he was more impressed by Byrne or the horse. While people were looking after the injured rider, Byrne took the reins and led the horse to one side.
The rider was helped away, limping, and things settled down. Byrne talked to one of the officials and was handed a helmet. Moments later, he was riding Cookie calmly around the ring and Jasim was gripped by another surge of lust. He belatedly became aware David was talking to him and tuned back in.
“You must think these are fairly ordinary mounts compared to yours.”
“I don’t think there’s such a thing as an ordinary horse.” Jasim smiled. “Certainly, no horse thinks it’s ordinary.”
“No, you’re right. But I don’t see you buying any of these for polo.”
