Domino gave an excited bark, and Erin handed him what was left of her meal. The animal wolfed it down and then looked up at her expectantly. Erin couldn’t help but grin. “That was it. I’m all out of goodies.”

Domino wandered away, hoisting his leg on fence posts all the way to the corner of the barn. Erin turned to regard Violet, who watched her with unmistakable nervousness. “I think we need to add grain to your treat list today. Change it up. Make it more exciting for you. Only I’m not about to carry grain in my pockets, girlfriend. I did that once, forgot it was in there, and washed my jeans. Have you ever seen horse grain when it’s become mush? So I’m going to find some kind of container that I can stuff inside my bra.”

Erin took off for the bunkhouse. She didn’t need anything all that big. She figured she could drag a bag of grain to sit outside the paddock and then she could refill the container when needed. She was about to give up when she saw an empty, shake-out bubble gum container sitting on the table. It was the perfect size for her purposes, and the square hole in the lip was just big enough to let grain fall out into her hand.

An hour later Erin was silently congratulating herself on being brilliant. Violet loved the grain and seemed a lot more excited about it than she was about carrots and apple slices. The horse would actually lower her head to eat from the flat of Erin’s hand.

Erin and the mare had a phenomenal couple of hours together, and then Erin lost her hold on the bubble gum shaker as she was measuring out a smidgeon of grain. The plastic container fell to the ground, the grain within it striking its sides upon impact.

Violet went berserk. She reared up, her front hooves high above Erin’s head. Erin glimpsed the mare’s eyes, and they were wild with fright. Instinct took over, and Erin threw herself away from the horse, rolled across the ground, and then sprang to her feet. She ran to the fence, grabbed a top rung, and with terror lending her strength, managed to vault over the barrier.

* * *

Ever since the first morning that Erin had worked with the mare, Wyatt had made it his habit to hang out as much as he could in Violet’s stall so he could monitor Erin as she handled the horse. As recently as yesterday, he’d decided that it was no longer necessary. Erin was abiding by all the safety rules now. Given Violet’s obvious reluctance to hurt anyone, Wyatt believed Erin was unlikely to be injured by the animal. Why he was still watching over her, he didn’t know. Habit, he reasoned. That was an easier explanation for him to deal with than the real one, namely that he had fallen in love with the woman.

But then the bubble gum container struck the ground, and the mare exploded. Before Wyatt could move, Erin hit the dirt, rolled clear of those lethal hooves, and sprang over the fence. Wyatt almost started across the paddock to join Erin outside the enclosure, but the horse’s behavior made him think twice. Instead he left the stall and hurried along the alley to the main doors of the barn. Outside, he found Erin bent forward with her hands on her knees. He lightly touched her shoulder, and she jackknifed erect, her blue eyes so wide they were almost as ringed with white as the mare’s.