Chapter 1
Mia
The first thing you learn when you grow up around horses is this: they feel everything. Fear. Anger. Impatience. And if you walk into a stable with the wrong energy, they know.
I ran my hand slowly along Storm’s neck, feeling the warm strength beneath his coat. His ears flicked back for a second before relaxing again.
“Easy, boy,” I murmured. “You’re not the nervous one here.”
Storm snorted softly, as if he disagreed.
The early morning air smelled like hay, leather, and damp earth. The sun was barely up, thin golden light slipping through the wooden slats of the stable. Most people hated mornings like this.
I lived for them. This was home. Not the small farmhouse behind the paddocks where my sisters and I had grown up, constantly fighting over the bathroom and cereal boxes. Not even the land itself. The stables. The horses. The quiet before the world woke up.
“Talking to the horses again?” a voice called.
I rolled my eyes without turning around.
“Good morning to you too, Luna.”
My sister appeared in the doorway of the stall, still wrapped in a hoodie two sizes too big for her, dark hair in a messy bun. She looked like someone who had been violently dragged out of bed against her will.
Which, knowing her training schedule for skating, was probably true.
“You know,” Luna said, leaning against the wooden frame, “most people drink coffee in the morning.”
“I do drink coffee.”
“You drink it after you’ve been here for three hours.”
“Details.”
Storm nudged my shoulder, clearly offended that I’d stopped brushing him.
“See?” Luna said. “Even the horse is judging you.”
I smirked.
“He prefers me. Everyone does.”
“That’s debatable.”
I stepped out of the stall, brushing hay off my jeans. “Where are the others?”
“Amelia left for practice already. Olivia at the gym.”
“And Hazel?”
Luna gave me a look.
“She’s seventeen. She’s asleep.”
“Fair.”
Our mornings rarely lined up anymore.
When we were younger, the five of us used to run through the fields together, racing each other on bikes or trying to climb fences our mom specifically told us not to climb.
Now life was different. Different sports. Different schedules. Different dreams. But somehow, we always ended up back here. At the Knight stables. The sign outside the gate read “KNIGHT STABLES” in old iron letters my mom refused to replace, even though half the paint had peeled away.
It had belonged to my dad. Or at least that’s what Mom always told us. I do not remember him. He died before Hazel was even had one year.
But sometimes I wondered what he would think if he saw us now. Five daughters. Five athletes. Five different kinds of chaos.
“You’re thinking again,” Luna said.
“I always think.”
“Dangerous habit.”
Before I could reply, the distant sound of an engine rolled across the property. That was unusual. People didn’t just show up here without calling first.
Luna frowned. “Are we expecting someone?”
“No.”
We both turned toward the driveway. A black car pulled through the gate, tires crunching over gravel. Definitely not a local farmer.
The car stopped near the stable entrance. The door opened. And then he stepped out. Tall. Broad shoulders. Dark hair that looked like it had never heard of a comb. He glanced around the property like he was inspecting it, hands casually in the pockets of a dark jacket.
Luna nudged me.
“Oh no,” she whispered.
“What?”
“He’s hot.”
I elbowed her.
“Focus.”
The stranger started walking toward us. Something about his confidence immediately irritated me. Like he belonged here. Which he definitely didn’t. When he got closer, his gaze landed on Storm behind me.
“Nice horse,” he said.
His voice was calm, almost amused. I crossed my arms.
“He is.”
The man stepped a little closer to the stall door. Storm lifted his head, ears twitching.
“Thoroughbred?” the stranger asked.
“Yes.”
“Good build,” he said. “Strong legs.”
I narrowed my eyes.
“You know horses?”
“A little.”
That answer was suspiciously vague.
Luna leaned toward me and whispered, “He’s definitely hot.”
“Stop.”
The stranger’s gaze shifted to me again.
“You must be Mia Knight.”
That made me pause.
“How do you know that?”
He shrugged slightly.
“This place has your name on it.”
I glanced at the sign outside. Fair. Still annoying.
“And you are?” I asked.
A slow smile appeared on his face.
“Jack.”
Just Jack. No last name. Typical. He rested one hand on the stall door. Storm immediately pushed his nose forward, curious.
I grabbed the halter rope.
“He bites.”
Jack didn’t move his hand.
“Only if he doesn’t like you.”
I stared at him.
“And you think he likes you?”
Storm sniffed his sleeve. Then snorted.
Jack laughed softly.
“Guess that’s a no.”
Luna snorted behind me. I ignored her.
“So why are you here, Jack?” I asked.
“Just looking around.”
“At a private stable?”
“Is that a problem?”
“Yes.”
He studied me for a moment, like I was a puzzle he was trying to solve. And I already hated that look.
“Well,” he said casually, “maybe I’m thinking about buying a horse.”
I leaned against the stall door.
“Then you’re in the wrong place.”
“Why?”
“Because we don’t sell.”
His eyebrow lifted slightly.
“Not even for the right price?”
I smiled. But there was nothing friendly about it.
“No.”
Jack held my gaze for a second longer.
Then he nodded slowly.
“Good to know.”
Something about the way he said it made my skin prickle. Like this conversation wasn’t really about horses at all.
He stepped back from the stall.
“Nice meeting you, Mia.”
“Sure.”
He started walking back toward the car. Luna grabbed my arm the second he was out of earshot.
“Oh my god.”
“What?”
“You were so rude.”
“I was not.”
“You were.”
“He was weird.”
“He was attractive.”
I sighed.
“That’s not the point.”
Luna grinned.
“It should be.”
I watched the black car drive down the gravel road and disappear through the gate. Something about that guy bothered me. Not just his confidence. Not just the way he acted like he already knew this place. It was the feeling that this wasn’t the last time I’d see him. And for some reason I couldn’t explain—I already didn’t like him.
