Bareback(37)
Jessica wanted to throw herself into Skyler’s strong arms and take up where they had left off, but Skyler had erected a wall between them. “I want to talk about yesterday,” she said.
Skyler made a show of chewing slowly, staring at her plate and refusing to look at her. “It’s none of my business if you’re dating Tory.”
“I’m not dating Tory. We went out one time for dinner.”
“Well you’re not dating me either.” Skyler shoved her plate away and stood. But instead of moving toward Jessica, she backed up to lean her back against the wall and stuff her hands in the pockets of her jeans. “You should date Tory. She’s a really good person.”
“You’re a good person, too, Sky.”
Skyler appeared to give that some thought. When she spoke, she sounded as if she was thinking out loud when asked to give her opinion of a horse. “No, I’m not all that good. I’m a good trainer. I’m a good rider.” Her tone turned soft. “I can be a good friend, Jess. That’s what we need to be. Friends.”
“What about the rest?”
When Jessica took a step toward her, Skyler pulled her hands from her pockets and folded her arms across her chest, a clear signal for her to keep her distance. “Sexual attraction doesn’t always last. Our friendship could.”
Jessica stopped her advance, but her eyes bored into Skyler’s. “What about the fact that I want to throw myself into your arms every time I hurt? What about the fact that we couldn’t wait to get back here yesterday to tear each other’s clothes off? You know that’s where we were headed if Tory hadn’t shown up.” She softened her tone. “I can still feel your lips, Sky. I can still taste your mouth on mine. I still want to see where that was going.”
Skyler stared at her boots, the flexing muscles in her smooth cheek giving away her turmoil. When she finally spoke, she didn’t look up and her voice was low. “Well, you see now, that’s where I’m not so good. I have a really short attention span when it comes to women. Don’t know why, but that’s just the way it is.” Her eyes pleaded with Jessica. “We’ve got a good working relationship, Jess, and an important goal ahead of us. You are right about Rampage. You two are Olympic material. This is my career, hell, both of our careers at stake. I don’t want to do anything to mess that up.”
Jessica was stunned. It was obvious that she felt there was more between them than Skyler did. She was nothing but a career opportunity to her. An angry retort rose to her lips, but the sadness in Skyler’s eyes confused her and kept her from lashing out. She composed herself before she spoke. “If that’s the way you want it.” She gave Skyler a weak smile. “I would like to think we’re more than rider and trainer, Sky. I’d like to think we are friends, too.”
Skyler looked relieved. “Definitely friends. You can never have enough friends.”
Jessica left without another word. The door closing behind her opened up an emptiness inside, the like of which she hadn’t felt since she woke up in that hospital more than a year ago with a cast on her leg and Racer gone.
Tory showed up in the late afternoon and invited Jessica to take in a movie with her in town. Still stinging from Skyler’s rejection, she accepted the invitation.
The movie was a romantic comedy, but Jessica didn’t laugh.
Afterward, Tory took her to a very upscale women’s bar, the patrons white collar and a single performer playing tunes on a baby grand in the corner. Jessica sipped on the wine Tory placed before her and watched several women dancing.
“I didn’t think the movie was that bad,” Tory joked.
Jessica blushed. “I’m sorry. I guess I’ve just got something on my mind.” More like someone.
Tory cocked a questioning eyebrow. “Care to talk about it?”
Skyler had said Tory was a friend. Would it be wrong to ask her some questions? Jessica needed to understand why Skyler was pushing her away. She knew if she didn’t get answers she wouldn’t be able to relax and enjoy the rest of the night.
“You may not want to talk about this, but I was wondering what the real story is on Skyler. What exactly happened that got her blacklisted from the circuit?”